You’ve been buying travel insurance all wrong – six mistakes that could cost you thousands of pounds

MILLIONS of people are jetting off to sunnier places at the moment – but what happens if your holiday goes wrong?

Making sure you have travel insurance which covers any disasters is vital, Brean Horne, a personal finance expert at comparison site NerdWallet, said.

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But there are potential pitfalls when it comes to taking out the right policy.

You need to make sure that in the event that something happens, you will be able to claim from your insurance to cover costs, or to get compensation.

It is really important to take time to read the small print of any policy to check that you will be covered for the trips you plan to take.

And using a comparison website will help you find the best deal, so do shop around.

Depending on your circumstances, you might get different deals from someone else.

And you can’t claim on someone else’s insurance – the policy must cover you personally.

Here are six potential mistakes which could cost you tens of thousands of pounds – and how to avoid them.

Purchasing an annual policy for a long trip

“With an annual policy, you can usually do more than one trip over the course of the year,” Brean explained.

“But there is often a limit on how long your trips can last. So if you have a plan to go backpacking for a couple of months, or have an extended stay somewhere, you may not be covered for the whole trip.”

She pointed out that many policies cap their cover at either 28 or 31 days.

“If you go over that amount, your policy might be void, and not count if you’d have to make a claim for any time after that time,” she warned.

She advised reading the terms and conditions of a policy carefully before you commit, and making sure that it covers the entire length of time that you will be away.

If you are planning to take a long trip, it is worth investigating whether a specific policy would be better.

“You want to look for specialist long stay or extended trip travel insurance,” she said.

“These sorts of policies usually cover trips of up to 18 months, although if you don’t plan on staying somewhere that long you may be able to reduce the time and save a bit of money on the cost of the policy.”

Not declaring medical conditions

“When insurers calculate how much you pay for insurance, it’s based on your risk and the likelihood that you’re going to claim,” Brean said.

“Included in that are any pre-existing medical conditions you might have, which you might need to claim for when you’re abroad.”

This is because insurance policies often cover the cost of medical expenses in the event of you having an accident or becoming ill while on holiday.

If you already have an illness or condition, the insurers will charge you more because there is a higher chance that they will have to pay out.

The type of thing you might need to declare are serious illnesses such as diabetes, heart conditions and cancer, or recent large operations.

“You don’t have to declare Covid, which is good,” Brean added.

It might seem worth hiding these conditions in order to save money when you are taking out an insurance policy, but doing that risks serious consequences in the event that you do need to claim on your insurance when you are abroad.

“If you decide not to say that you have, say, diabetes, and while you are on holiday you have to make a claim due to your illness, it isn’t going to be covered by your insurer because it wasn’t factored into the quote that you have,” Brean said.

That could leave you footing the bill for ambulances, medical procedures and hospital stays, or even being flown back to the UK, she warned.

Depending on where in the world you are, this could easily amount to tens of thousands of pounds.

“When you are taking out a travel insurance policy it’s often quite good to have a quick read through what conditions the insurer is looking for as well – they’ll usually have it available in the application process,” Brean said.

If you are in doubt about declaring a particular condition or illness, you can contact the insurer directly by phone, or by finding a live chat function on its website.

Not covering your expensive gadgets

“Standard travel insurance policies will give you an allowance for things like your personal belongings, and will pay to replace them if they are lost or stolen.

“But if you travel with expensive gadgets such as lots of camera equipment or multiple computers then it might not be covered in your policy,” Brean said.

Most policies have limits on the value of personal belongings which may not be enough to cover gadgets if you’re taking a lot of expensive items with you.

“It is important to check what is actually covered in your policy because if it gets lost or broken while you’re away it might not be covered due to its value,” she said.

This could leave you shelling out for a new gadget out of your own pocket.

Again, reading the small print of your policy is so important.

If you want to take a number of high-value items away with you, it could be worth adding them to your insurance policy separately.

This is likely to cost you more, but will be worth it if anything happens. 

For example, the Post Office offers an add-on gadget cover which will pay out up to £1,000 for specific items including phones, tablets and drones.

Not keeping within policy limits

Brean again warned that making sure you know exactly what your policy covers is really important.

“If you don’t stick within the limits that they give you, it’s unlikely that they’re going to pay out if you have to make a claim,” she said.

This may particularly be a problem if you plan to do particular sports such as skiing or climbing a mountain, she said.

“There will be specific limits on the type of activities that you can do,” she said.

Only some policies cover extreme sports such as diving, and some will require an additional premium. 

One of the most common travel insurance mistakes is to think that your insurance will cover hiking at any altitude – but many standard travel insurance policies specify the altitude limit of hiking to 2000 metres above sea level.

“If you do end up being in an accident and your policy doesn’t cover the sport or activity you were doing at the time, you could end up having to cover the cost of medical treatment, and this could be huge” Brean said.

This can be avoided by making sure you choose a policy which covers the specific plans you have in mind.

“Make sure you have a look through the terms and conditions to see if whatever sport it is that you plan on doing is covered,” Brean advised.

If you spontaneously decide to do that whitewater rafting, for example, you can call your insurers and have an activity added to your policy, usually for just a few pounds, she said.

“You may have to pay a bit more but it’s definitely worth making sure that you’re protected just in case anything happens.”

Insurance company Admiral, for example, doesn’t cover bungee jumping, horse riding or rugby in its standard policies, but does offer an “adventurous sports” add-on.

Getting your details wrong on the forms

Brean’s advice when you are taking out any insurance policy is to check, check and check again when it comes to your personal details.

It might not seem like much, but even spelling your name wrong or putting in the wrong date of birth can invalidate your insurance.

“They’ll always ask, “are your details correct?” a number of times in the process,” she said.

“Do make sure you read it all carefully.”

That’s because if you make a mistake, the insurers might think you are trying to commit fraud by claiming on another person’s policy.

Even if you spot a mistake after you’ve confirmed a policy and paid for it, it’s not too late, Brean said.

“As long as you spot the mistake before you need to make a claim, just get in touch with your insurer and get them to update the details. Sometimes you may have to pay an admin fee, but if it’s soon after you purchase your policy, you might be able to get it updated without an extra fee.”

So if you spot a mistake, contact your insurer straight away.

Buying your insurance when you’re already at the airport or abroad

“Often policies will give you cover for your travel to the airport, so it is worth getting your insurance sorted before you even leave the house,” Brean said.

She said that some policies will allow you to claim for issues such as missing your coach to the airport, cancelled flights, or losing your luggage, as long as they are in place when those problems occur.

“Do it early,” is Brean’s advice.

This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk