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Travel InsuranceSpecialist Travel Insurance
Specialist policies cover anything outside the normal range of expected use.
Typical travel insurance quotes are based on certain expectations. These are usually that you are:
- physically and mentally fit,
- that you will not be engaging in any activities or sports that would put you at risk of injury or death (such as hazardous sports or work that takes you abroad) beyond what you would encounter on an average trip,
- that you are within the age range of 18 to 50 (or 65 for some providers),
- and that you will not be travelling abroad for an unusually long period of time.
Who needs a specialist policy?
If your needs are outside this range either for physical or planned activity reasons then you may want to consider a specialist policy.
Extreme Sports
If you are travelling abroad for an activity holiday you may find yourself exempt from several areas of a typical travel insurance policy. Expensive items such as sporting equipment will not usually be covered as standard and certainly not if you are renting the equipment.
Business Travel
Most policies have exemption clauses for matters concerning business, meaning you are unable to claim if you are injured while working abroad or for the loss of business documents or equipment which belong to your company. Business cover is generally not offered as standard, which means you'll have to purchase extra cover if you intend on working while you are abroad.
Age
An upper age limit is placed on those covered by the policy, with most providers not covering members of the party who are aged over 65 years old. If you or a member of your party is over the age of 65 you may want to find a provider who specialises in offering cover for this age range. Because of the volume of users they may be able to give you comprehensive cover at a better rate.
Backpackers and Long Term Travelers
Most policies have a maximum length of stay, it is usually 45 days for annual multi-trip policies and can be up to 180 days for some single trip policies - not very useful if you are backpacking around Asia for a year! Fortunately there are providers who cater to longer term travellers. They will have tailored policies for backpackers, gap year students, and other travellers that will enable you to stay safely covered for the length of your trip.
What does it cost?
Many people assume that "specialist policy" means "expensive" but this is not necessarily the case. As specialist providers these companies will have helped thousands of people in the same (or similar) situation and based on sheer volume alone they might even be able to offer you a cheaper rate than you would get from a provider who offers fewer policies of this nature.
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