You and your holiday adventures
As cheap deals continue to fly and ferry an increasing number of Maltese holidaymakers out of our islands, many will be going to all sorts of destinations this summer forgetting to pack an insurance cover in their luggage.Of course, how can you think...
As cheap deals continue to fly and ferry an increasing number of Maltese holidaymakers out of our islands, many will be going to all sorts of destinations this summer forgetting to pack an insurance cover in their luggage.
Of course, how can you think of insurance when your mind is buzzing with fantastic foreign scenery and endless adventure? Well, do, unless your holiday plans include a couple of thousand emergency liri to cover your sense of adventure and your vulnerability to risk on foreign ground.
Member companies of the Malta Insurance Association (MIA) are expecting travel-related claims to rise to thousands in the summer. This prediction is based on past market behaviour with most claims being linked to luggage, travel cancellations and medical issues. Serious medical claims are not uncommon, especially in the high season. They vary from serious road accidents followed by prolonged hospitalisation to broken bones, cardiac problems and tropical diseases. How about that for holiday adventure?
Over 257,000 passengers left the island last year for leisure, business or other reasons. A good number of them did not bother to get insurance cover. Another chunk chose to apply for the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), which many see as a free entrance ticket to free emergency treatment. Wrong.
The EHIC is just a personalised card that allows individuals to access public healthcare facilities in other European Union countries as well as in Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. This means that dreamy Joe-the-holidaymaker, facing the need for medical assistance during his playtime abroad, will have to turn his pockets inside out to try and settle the bill for his broken leg or his hospitalisation after a heart attack. Hold on, wasn't treatment free of charge? No. This is the huge misconception about the EHIC.
The EHIC simply gives you the right to receive treatment like any national of the state you visit, which is different to granting free treatment. Indeed, in some countries a patient has to pay a fee or partial payment for treatment. So if your holiday heart-attack sends you straight to a private hospital or in the event of a serious illness you need to be flown back to Malta, you would need some serious cash, besides the pretty EHIC card, with which to clear those bills.
Many of us still cannot believe the joy of budget flights. So they are just hopping away any moment they can. Never mind the insurance cover, they think, if they bother to think about it at all. But private insurance cover is crucial before going abroad. A cheap bargain is no bargain if your risks are high, is it?
Travel insurance fact box
Travel insurance policies cover financial damage or loss while travelling.
The risks generally covered include the following:
i. cancellation/interruption of trip
ii. expenses related to travel delays
iii. delayed luggage, luggage damage and/or loss
iv. loss or theft of personal effects and currency
v. emergency medical treatment
vi. emergency repatriation
vii. accidental death
viii. personal liability
The precise terms of cover may vary from one insurer to another and it is always advisable to consult your policy terms to determine the extent of cover.
Travel cover can be bought directly from an insurance company or alternatively from your travel agency.
Emergency medical assistance could cost thousands of liri especially if one needs to be hospitalised or repatriated. Flying back home would generally mean occupying first class/business seats for the patient and assistant as medical assistance is required by most airlines.
Trip cancellation is one of the most common claims related to travel insurance. Travel insurance cover usually protects against cancellation both by the tour operator and by the traveller for reasons such as sickness or an emergency situation at home. In addition, if the insured or an immediate family member becomes seriously ill or is injured during the trip most policies would reimburse for the unused portion of the vacation.
The Malta Insurance Association (MIA) is a non profit-making organisation that represents the views and common interests of all insurance companies in Malta, both indigenous and foreign. MIA members write over 94 per cent of all life and non-life insurance business in Malta and accounted for a domestic premium income of approximately Lm122 million last year.
• Mr Calleja is communications officer of the Malta Insurance Association.
Of course, how can you think of insurance when your mind is buzzing with fantastic foreign scenery and endless adventure? Well, do, unless your holiday plans include a couple of thousand emergency liri to cover your sense of adventure and your vulnerability to risk on foreign ground.
Member companies of the Malta Insurance Association (MIA) are expecting travel-related claims to rise to thousands in the summer. This prediction is based on past market behaviour with most claims being linked to luggage, travel cancellations and medical issues. Serious medical claims are not uncommon, especially in the high season. They vary from serious road accidents followed by prolonged hospitalisation to broken bones, cardiac problems and tropical diseases. How about that for holiday adventure?
Over 257,000 passengers left the island last year for leisure, business or other reasons. A good number of them did not bother to get insurance cover. Another chunk chose to apply for the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), which many see as a free entrance ticket to free emergency treatment. Wrong.
The EHIC is just a personalised card that allows individuals to access public healthcare facilities in other European Union countries as well as in Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. This means that dreamy Joe-the-holidaymaker, facing the need for medical assistance during his playtime abroad, will have to turn his pockets inside out to try and settle the bill for his broken leg or his hospitalisation after a heart attack. Hold on, wasn't treatment free of charge? No. This is the huge misconception about the EHIC.
The EHIC simply gives you the right to receive treatment like any national of the state you visit, which is different to granting free treatment. Indeed, in some countries a patient has to pay a fee or partial payment for treatment. So if your holiday heart-attack sends you straight to a private hospital or in the event of a serious illness you need to be flown back to Malta, you would need some serious cash, besides the pretty EHIC card, with which to clear those bills.
Many of us still cannot believe the joy of budget flights. So they are just hopping away any moment they can. Never mind the insurance cover, they think, if they bother to think about it at all. But private insurance cover is crucial before going abroad. A cheap bargain is no bargain if your risks are high, is it?
Travel insurance fact box
Travel insurance policies cover financial damage or loss while travelling.
The risks generally covered include the following:
i. cancellation/interruption of trip
ii. expenses related to travel delays
iii. delayed luggage, luggage damage and/or loss
iv. loss or theft of personal effects and currency
v. emergency medical treatment
vi. emergency repatriation
vii. accidental death
viii. personal liability
The precise terms of cover may vary from one insurer to another and it is always advisable to consult your policy terms to determine the extent of cover.
Travel cover can be bought directly from an insurance company or alternatively from your travel agency.
Emergency medical assistance could cost thousands of liri especially if one needs to be hospitalised or repatriated. Flying back home would generally mean occupying first class/business seats for the patient and assistant as medical assistance is required by most airlines.
Trip cancellation is one of the most common claims related to travel insurance. Travel insurance cover usually protects against cancellation both by the tour operator and by the traveller for reasons such as sickness or an emergency situation at home. In addition, if the insured or an immediate family member becomes seriously ill or is injured during the trip most policies would reimburse for the unused portion of the vacation.
The Malta Insurance Association (MIA) is a non profit-making organisation that represents the views and common interests of all insurance companies in Malta, both indigenous and foreign. MIA members write over 94 per cent of all life and non-life insurance business in Malta and accounted for a domestic premium income of approximately Lm122 million last year.
• Mr Calleja is communications officer of the Malta Insurance Association.