Back to News List

Understanding Your Policy Wording

So you’ve made it through the task of searching, finding and booking the right travel insurance for you. The next step for everyone should be reviewing the policy documents one they come through but here at Planet Earth we know that a lot of people tend to only look at their policy schedule and disregard the rest of the documentation sent over.

We understand reading through a 37 page booklet isn’t exactly the most exciting of activities however it’s really really important that you try to read the most important bits to make sure that what you’ve bought is suitable for your needs. Your policy wording booklet outlines all the information and ‘terms and conditions’ regarding the policy you’ve bought. It will state what you’re covered for and what’s excluded.

In our policy wording booklet and those supplied by most other insurance providers, there will be a set of questions which you must read through carefully and answer honestly. These questions often relate to your health and help to establish if you have bought the correct policy and what to do if not.

Your ‘Cover limits and applicable excesses’ are also outlined in detail in your policy wording which is vital to understanding what you are covered for and what to expect your ‘excess’ to be in the event of you making a claim. (Excess is what you would be required to pay per person, per claim should you need to make a claim. You can be excluded from the excesses if you have paid an additional premium for an ‘excess waiver’.)

You also need to make sure that you are aware of the general policy exclusions. It may come as a surprise but lots of people don’t realise that travel insurance policies don’t cover anything and everything. There are certain areas that underwriters believe are too risky to cover so it’s simply excluded all together so it is important to familiarise yourself with these exclusions so you don’t get caught out.

One of the most common claim that travelers tend to make is for medical expenses so making sure you understand your over for emergency medical and repatriation is highly recommended. It is also really important to check if your policy covers any pre-existing medical conditions you may have. For many policies there are some ‘accepted and waived’ conditions that are automatically covered should you meet the criteria and these will be outlined in the policy but for some conditions, you would need to pay an additional premium for cover. You can find all the details about this in your policy wording and we’ve also written a handy blog post that explains this which you can view here.

In the unfortunately event that you need to cancel a trip, you can find details of your cancellation cover in your policy wording booklet. Cancelling your trip is a nightmare and we all hope never happens but don’t worry as we aim to make this as easy for you as possible. The first step to this is making sure you understand what you are covered for and how to claim back any expenses lost which will all be detailed in your policy wording booklet. A Planet Earth policy will allow you to claim back any expenses lost, however with all the levels of cover there will be certain exclusions so read through them to understand what you’re covered for.

One of the most overlooked section of the policy wording booklet is usually the ‘Covered leisure activities’ section. If you’re someone who wants action and adventure on holiday instead of lounging by the pool then the end of the policy wording booklet is the place to check.WeirdPlaintiveBudgie-max-1mb

We have a range of activities that are automatically covered at no extra cost, however the activities that state ‘yes’ under the additional premium required for cover to apply section are not covered unless you have payed the additional premium. For example, if you’ve not paid extra and end up going mountain biking which isn’t automatically covered in your policy and you break your leg, you will not be covered.

Finally, and most importantly, you will find all the emergency numbers and contact details you may need should anything happen whilst your away. We recommend making a note of these on your phone or on piece of paper to make sure they are to hand in an emergency.

Thank you for reading! We highly recommend you thoroughly read through your policy wording booklet as having this important information helps to protect you and reassure you should anything go wrong whilst your away. However, if there is anything you are unsure of then our sales advisers are always happy to help with any questions you may have.

If there’s any further information you need about our policies then please contact us using any of the below details:

Email: Info@planetearthtravelinsurance.co.uk

Contact Number: 0161 439 0333

Website: http://www.wearetravelinsurance.co.uk/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Planetearthtravelinsurance/