Trip insurance helps reduce some financial losses incurred on a trip due to delays, cancellations or unforeseen circumstances. Travel insurance is broader in nature, and even includes insurance of trip delays, interruptions, cancellations and other related problems. Additionally, it may also cover medical expenses or health emergencies that may arise during the trip.

The expenditure incurred while travelling can be quite substantial and delays and unforeseen circumstances may cause you additional financial loss. Moreover, there are several things that cannot be anticipated. While trip insurance can provide protection against such losses, travel insurance provides the extra assurance that expenses will be covered for medical care, hospital admissions, emergency dental care etc. It is thus imperative to have trip and travel insurance coverage.

In addition to hospital admission and travel related medical assistance some insurance plans include referral services such as:

Translation Services

Referrals to medical or legal personnel

Inoculation Information

Emergency Cash Advances

Bail Bonds

Replacement of eyeglasses or prescription drugs

There are three basic types of supplemental health insurance coverage:

The first plan includes insurance purchase for each trip or a plan for all travel during the year. It is limited to medical expenses and medical evacuation coverage while travelling.
The second plan is designed for customers of a tour company or cruise line and sold through the tour operator with whom you scheduled the trip. This type of plan would probably include trip cancellation benefits as well as medical coverage.
The third plan is a package that includes trip cancellation and related trip insurance coverage as well as medical coverage.

Some dangerous sports like hand gliding and glacier skiing may be excluded in the travel coverage. If you want to be insured for this, you may have to opt for a higher premium plan.

The cost of travel insurance depends on the company you chose and the coverage details. Typically, the cost of insurance will be 5% to 12% of the cost of the trip. One should buy coverage from a third party travel insurer that is financially sound. This is because, in the event that the trip company becomes bankrupt, the travel protection that they issue will be worthless. Only a portion, or none, of any outstanding claims might be paid. You could also buy travel insurance directly from the insurance companies.

If you are planning on travelling frequently, you might want to buy a yearly policy and save some money. Some travel insurance providers have plans specifically designed for student budgets on trips such as spring break travel, class trips, or study abroad. Typically, they provide coverage for trip cancellations or delays, medical emergencies, baggage problems and accidental death.

Some premium credit cards provide limited flight or travel insurance benefits such as emergency evacuation to an appropriate medical facility or baggage delay when the travel is charged on that credit card. You should check with your credit card company to find out what benefits are offered and if there are any restrictions.

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