Having sufficient health insurance coverage is paramount when you choose to travel. Being sick or accidentally injured while in a foreign country can be a very worrying incident and can also be very expensive. Health insurance safeguards your wallet in such circumstances. However, when you are travelling often, especially crossing borders, you require a different type of coverage that the normal health insurance policy may not offer. In this post, we talk about what you should consider when selecting a health insurance plan if you are a frequent traveller.
Top #5 things about Health Insurance to keep in mind while travelling:
While having a travel insurance plan when travelling abroad is a must, there are some things that frequent travellers must keep in mind when it comes to health insurance for travellers. Let us talk about the main ones to ensure a hassle and stress-free travel:
- Coverage area:
The first and the most crucial aspect is to check whether the health insurance for travellers covers all the regions, including the international areas, that you frequently visit. Most of the comprehensive health insurance for parents in India only have hospitalisation provisions in India. There are only a few global policies which offer global coverage.
While enrolling for health insurance, do not assume that claims made in other countries are covered; instead, ask the insurer. If your health policy does not allow, always take a travel insurance policy and check which countries it applies to. Thus, the best travel health insurance plans should have geographic coverage extending to the US and Canada. - Emergency evacuation:
Business travellers need to obtain plans with categorically defined emergency medical evacuation provisions. This means if you are involved in an accident and are pregnant or have a heart disease, and the facilities are not well endowed, the insurer will fly you back home or to the nearest hospital. This includes even an air ambulance if required. Without emergency evacuation, you might find yourself stranded in a foreign country and facing massive medical expenses and poor quality of treatment. Travellers’ insurance should include evacuation expenses to an adequate extent. - Claim process:
The claim process of overseas hospitalisation is a bit cumbersome since more documents are needed. So, when you are purchasing a health insurance policy, you need to enquire whether the insurance company has tie-ups with overseas hospitals or assistance companies. This will make the process of making a claim easier.
Ideally, the best plans have internal resources that act as a link between the hospital located in the overseas country and the insurance company in India. The options that involve cashless claim settlement, where a patient does not have to pay anything from his or her pocket, are also preferred. - Duration of coverage:
For individuals who travel often, taking an annual travel insurance policy rather than a single-trip policy would be more advantageous. Annual plans enable you to make several trips within a year to the destination countries without purchasing insurance each time. This is more economical for you in the long run than single-trip covers, which can only be used for one journey. Annual plans are cost-effective for more frequent travellers who make at least 2-3 international trips annually. - Pre-existing conditions:
Travel insurance is hard to come by for people with health complications. There are, however, some policies that will allow coverage of some pre-existing diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and the like if they have been inactive for the past few months. But this comes with extra premiums.
So, if you want to make a claim, be sure to state your ailment truthfully so that your claim will not be dismissed. Moreover, read policy documents to identify which pre-existing conditions are recognised and the terms surrounding them. - Add-ons and riders:
For extra costs, several useful add-ons and riders are available. Adventure sports riders help reimburse the expenses for injuries sustained during adventurous activities such as bungee jumping, sky diving, etc. Senior citizen plans are specially designed for aged travellers. You can also choose from different riders to help you tailor your travel insurance policy. But there are certain standard services like personal accident cover, lost checked baggage, lost passport, etc., which should form part of the base policy only. - Sum insured:
This is the maximum amount of money the insurer will be willing to pay if the policyholder is hospitalised outside the country. The sum insured should be sufficient to cater for any medical costs that may arise in the foreign country such that the insured does not incur any additional expenses. Hospitalisation and surgeries in emergencies in other countries may cost lakhs of rupees. Another thing you should consider when choosing the sum insured is inflation in the costs of medical procedures. It is safer to be higher. - Premium costs:
Of course, premiums are relatively higher with international plans compared to domestic health insurance plans. Premiums also rise with the sum insured. You should be prepared to get charged a higher amount across the globe except in the United States. About US coverage, the expenses are nearly twofold.
It is crucial to consider all benefits when it comes to costs. There may be cheaper plans to offer, but these plans usually come with certain limitations. To achieve the best results, make use of the comparison sites which will provide the appropriate offers. - Ease of purchase:
It is now easier to purchase travel insurance plans online. It saves time since it is possible to compare various plans, get a quote and purchase the policy online within an hour. The products can also be purchased offline through agents. Purchasing online is convenient, particularly when one gets to use the product or service frequently within a year, such as travel plans. Policies should allow for easy buying since it is shopping online, and there should be provisions for policy extension if a holiday is prolonged. - Pre-trip requirements:
Some insurers insist on medical examination before the trip depending on the age and any other diseases which have been disclosed. This assists them in evaluating the level of risk. Other things to note are whether there are any mandatory pre-trip medical tests in the plan you are buying. Also, it is necessary to check if you are required to submit any medical test reports at a later date while filing for claims. Some policies demand test reports concerning the diagnosis while paying claims. - Key exclusions:
Although having this policy may sound fantastic, read the small print to see what is not covered. These often include adventure sports injuries, alcohol/substance abuse, mental health issues, maternity etc. Perhaps terrorism could also not be included. Do not seek a total exclusion; instead, look for some relaxation with regard to certain activities that may include adventure sports. That is rather not very useful if too many exclusions apply. This means that when purchasing travel insurance, one should consider the premium amount and exclude features that may be expensive to cater to.
To wrap it up!
Travellers must be able to secure a sufficient amount of health insurance. When purchasing travel cover, consider those with worldwide and associated coverage, high limit insured, evacuation options, and simple claims/purchase options. Be aware of what is left out, too—this is referred to as the exclusions. Finally, select a plan that meets all your needs for protection but is still affordable. Safe travels!
Disclaimer: The above information is for illustrative purposes only. For more details, please refer to policy wordings and prospectus before concluding the sales.
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