Travel
Insurance 101
When you’re budgeting for your trip, it’s easy to forget
to factor in travel insurance. It’s certainly not as exciting as
spending on a swanky hotel in Paris. But without it, you’re at the
mercy of foreign medical systems, and expenses – which can differ
greatly from our own.
In the United States, daily hospital costs can reach up to $10,000. And
finding a hospital in the African savannah could be as hard as tracking
down an oasis in the dessert. Travel publisher Lonely Planet has taken
health so seriously it sells Healthy Travel pocket guides, offering practical
advice for staying well on the road.
But in a foreign country, especially one where you don’t speak
the language, the best safeguard for your health – and your life
– is comprehensive travel insurance.
You can’t control everything that might happen to you on holiday
– but with insurance, you can at least make the best of a bad situation,
and most importantly, avoid racking up the kind of debt you might be paying
for – the rest of your life.
Real stories
- A man was hit by a car while riding a motorcycle in Bangkok.
With no travel insurance, he was taken to the nearest local hospital,
which did not have the expertise to do anything except clean the
wound. After 3 weeks his wife asked the Embassy for assistance
as parts of her husband’s shinbone had died and the fractured
ends were not healing. The Embassy assisted in having the man
medically evacuated to Australia for admission to hospital, at
very considerable expense to his family.
- A young Australian surfer went to the United States for a surfing
competition. During a practice session, a wave dumped him on a
reef and he sustained serious injuries. He was flown to a local
hospital and immediately underwent two major operations. The hospital
bill was $AUD290,000. The insurance company covered the bill,
and the young man and his family were able to focus on his recovery.
- A young man who worked in a US ski resort for four months, then
took time off to travel around the US. He let his 12-month travel
insurance policy lapse just a few days before he headed home.
He was hit by a car while crossing a road and suffered serious
head injuries. He was admitted unconscious to intensive care and
required sophisticated treatment. He was flown back to Australia,
still unconscious. The cost to the family for the medical evacuation
alone was $80,000. They have taken out a second mortgage on their
house to raise the funds.
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