We all want to travel and explore new places with our friends and family members. Be it a business trip or a vacation with your loved ones, in any case, you need to plan and prepare well for the trip. This is more important if you are going to travel abroad. When you travel to a different city, state or country, there are a few things that might often bother you. Your health condition and the safety of your baggage and important documents are among the few. Fortunately, the availability of travel insurance policies has lessened our worries.
Travel insurance policies cover a number of aspects, such as medical and healthcare services, missed/cancelled flight ticket, hotel accommodation, emergency dental expenses, medical evacuation, and even accidental death. However, there are also a few aspects that are not covered by most of the travel insurance policies. When people buy a plan, they often forget to ask about the set of exclusions. As a result, at the time of making a claim, they are left shocked when they come to know that their claim has not been accepted. For this reason, it is crucial that you should clearly ask about these exclusions. To help you out, we have created a list of five travel insurance exclusions you should know about.
- Pre-existing diseases
In almost every type of health and travel insurance policies, pre-existing diseases are not covered. If you are already suffering from any disease, such as diabetes, cancer, heart stroke, etc. then any kind of expenses incurred during the trip will not be covered by your insurance provider. Likewise, if you undergo any kind of surgery which is related to the treatment of pre-existing disease, the same will not be covered by your travel insurance policy. For this reason, when you buy a policy from an insurer, you must inform them about your existing illnesses. If you are purchasing a family travel insurance plan, you need to be more particular about the health condition of the senior members in your family.
- Breach of law
When people visit another country, sometimes they get too much carried away and get involved in activities that are considered illegal. For example, consumption of intoxicant substances in parties is quite common in the popular tourist destinations. In such cases, people often end up falling sick or behind the bars. We all know that hospital expenses and the cost of hiring an attorney can be expensive in a foreign land. If someone lands in such a situation then the expenses will not be covered by their insurer. Therefore, when you visit another state or country, you must always remain on the right side of the law.
- Self-inflicted injury
Injuries that are caused due to your negligence or mistake will not be covered in your travel insurance policy. You will have to bear the expenses of treating such injuries. Likewise, if you intentionally harm yourself or try to commit suicide, your insurance provider will refuse to cover the cost of hospitalization and other related expenses.
- Taking part in adventure sports
It is understandable that holiday trips are meant to be adventurous and exciting. Adventure sports like paragliding, snow skiing, rock climbing, sea surfing, etc. add more fun to the whole experience. But, it is also true that the risk of getting injured in such activities is always high. If you get injured while performing any of those activities, your insurer will not cover the expenses of your medical treatment. Therefore, if you want to take part in some adventurous activities, you must remain extra careful, as any kind of injury will put unwanted pressure on your wallet.
- Cosmetic treatment
If you are planning to undergo any kind of cosmetic treatment during your trip, keep in mind that its cost will not be covered by your travel insurance provider. Most of the policies do not offer coverage for cosmetic or obesity treatment.
Besides them, there are a few more exclusions that you may come across. When you compare the different travel insurance policies, it is quite important to take a close look at the list of exclusions every policy has. If you end up buying a travel insurance plan that excludes even the basic things like flight delay, hotel accommodation, financial emergency assistance, and personal liability then you should not consider buying such a product.
There is no doubt that having a travel insurance plan during a trip can make you feel more relaxed and less anxious. You can get your family members covered under the same policy. Group or family policies prove to be more cost-effective. So, next time when you are planning to visit another state or country, the first thing you must do is buy a travel insurance policy.
