" Travel Insurance " Limits !

When we go overseas, most people take out travel insurance to cover the cost of medical treatment in the event of an accident.  It is a reassuring thought that the insurance company will pickup the tab for any hospital stay, and in the event of a serious injury - pay for a medical evacuation flight to get us back to Australia.

This week a young Australian woman suffered a serious accident in Spain.  She was gored by a bull - and along with hundreds of other people from various nationalities - she was willingly running through the streets of Pamplona in company with a herd of wild bulls.

This " Running of the Bulls " festival is an annual event in Pamplona.  There are always numerous injuries - some minor, but the death of people trampled or gored is not unknown.    The fact that people knowingly - and willingly - put themselves at risk raises the question of whether this is  covered by travel insurance ?

Some insurance policies explicitly exclude taking part in the " Running of the Bulls " from the cover they provide, and all insurance requires the insured to " take reasonable care " in the activities they undertake.    The wise will ponder this question - and sort it out before they leave Australia on their overseas holiday.

A question mark hangs over many events which have a " risk factor ".    The list is long, and includes Bungee jumping,  parachuting from air planes and riding in wicker baskets beneath hot air balloons.    Those intending to take raft trips through the " rapids " of wild rivers would also be wise to first clear this activity with their insurers.

All that seems reasonable - if we have such activities planned on our itinerary.   The trouble is that once we reach exotic places, opportunities beckon and we need to ask ourselves if we have cover against injury - or whether our entire financial future is at risk if things go wrong - and our insurer denies the claim.

The costs of a medical evacuation and hospital care in foreign lands is causing the insurance industry to tighten the rules of cover, and it is no longer adequate to expect that travel insurance covers all eventualities.   Even the age of the insured now becomes an issue.   Some policies exclude those in their seventies, and most decline to cover travellers once they pass eighty years of age.

It seems that travel insurance has passed from being a mere " formality " into the specifics of individual cover for intended events.    We need to know exactly what " risks " are covered !