The Case for Travel Insurance
Many would-be vacationers take their chances that accidents or illnesses won’t happen abroad. Nobody thinks it will happen to them, and yet every year thousands of Canadians travellers have to seek emergency treatment in a doctor’s clinic or hospital far from home. What’s at stake when travelling without emergency medical insurance? A lot!
When you consider that something as simple as a wipe-out on a bicycle can easily mean tens of thousands of dollars in medical expenses, the $63 the subject of this story spent on travel insurance quickly seems like a pretty amazing value. In fact, it’s probably one of the best investments in your future financial security that you’ll ever make.
Beyond Accidents and Illness – Travel Protection
The first thing that comes to mind when thinking about travel insurance is the need to protect yourself from the high costs of obtaining medical treatment outside Canada. That’s certainly an important factor, but you should also keep the protection of your comfort while on vacation in mind. After all, you work hard all year to earn those few precious days away!
In addition to medical emergencies, there are other elements of travel insurance to consider. For example, Trip Interruption and Trip Delay insurance can help protect you from unexpected loss if a family emergency causes a change in your travel plans. It can also help protect you from financial loss if you or a member of your travel party are unable to make the trip at the planned time because of illness. Baggage Loss and Delay insurance can make your trip a more comfortable one if you arrive in your destination, but your luggage does not.
We spend so much time trying to get the best deal on a holiday, it seems like a really big risk to scrimp on the expense of insurance that can keep your dream vacation from becoming an ongoing financial nightmare.
Before passing on travel insurance for your next trip, ask yourself if it’s really worth the risk of finding yourself in a land far from home, sick or injured, and wondering how you’re going to pay for your care.
