My daughter is off backbacking in Thailand/Vietnam/india for three to six months. She has asked me for advice re travel insurance. I haven’t travelled like this but I thought some of you may have some experience yourselves or sons/daughters. She is twenty four. Any pointers to particualr companies you have used would be great or any other pointers to help would be much appreciated. Thanks
ATM – Backpacking in Asia – insurance advice
There are any number of backpacker blogs she can probably get some good advice from…when I did it in ancient times mine came via the Student’s Union.
Cheers Twang – yes I have pointed her that way myself. I didn’t get to backpack as such I was packing amps instead!
No experience of this but get cover for activities your daughter might do such as riding a hired motorcycle. Some things are excluded on the cheapest policies which, if the worst happens, could be a false economy. FWIW, I use a broker for everything as I have a dislike and mistrust of comparison sites. https://www.aplan.co.uk/ At least you can ask a broker a question rather than having to work through the fine print yourself.
Cheers Dave – good idea I do know a broker but never actually used him.
While I think the services of a broker ought to be a good idea, bear in mind that you are putting a lot of trust in them, and be sure they are up to the job and have experience of the precise circumstances of your daughter’s requirements.
I speak as one who drove a large motorcycle up to the window of a brokers office, parked in clear sight of the desk inside, walked in to the office in full leathers and asked about holiday cover for an imminent two-week motorcycle camping stint in France. They sold me a policy, once I had taken my crash lid off, and off I went.
Three and a half weeks later, with a very bent motorcycle in the garage for a rebuild and a hefty bill from the local A&E en France, I returned, limping, to the office to pick up a claim form. I was soon talking to a clerk who seemed to have had all of the blood drained from his face as he informed me that the policy which he had sold to me did not, on examining the small print, cover me for motorcycle accidents.
Ouch! Thanks Vulpes.
My son has been travelling for 11 months now and went through Europe first, then Thailand/Vietnam before Australia where he is now.
He looked into his insurance quite thoroughly and I paid £225 for his Worldwide cover from these people
http://www.coeconnections.co.uk/Get_Quote
Thankfully not had to claim thus far, so can’t give you an account of what they are like if you have to (always the acid test with Insurance Companies unfortunately) but you have reminded me that his cover is shortly up and needs renewing, so thanks for that!
At present he is in Byron Bay and will head off further round Aus, then NZ before coming back through the Far East again and back to Blighty….. I don’t expect to see him til 2018 !
Hope you get good cover that brings peace of mind to you and her…Safe Travels.
That sounds like a fab journey. I’m sure he’ll have some great tales when he returns. Cheers for the link.
Re Foxy’s post up there. I work for an insurance broker. We do not sell travel insurance.While I firmly believe my profession has got an unwarranted poor image, I do think travel insurance companies make more effort than any other branch to find reasons why they shouldn’t pay out
Mind you, if you can buy ‘cover’ for under £6, of which 20% is tax, you can’t expect phenomenal service.
As above, read the small print and don’t necessarily go for the cheapest. Thankfully I never had to claim.