Travel Insurers Paid Out £370 Million In 2016

The peak overseas holiday season will soon be upon us with schools here in the UK shortly to break up for the summer. Many families will be taking to the sky in planes, boarding cruise liners and ferries as they venture across oceans and travelling by car or train through the Channel Tunnel onward bound to some European destination or an exotic country many thousands of miles from our shores.

With this in mind, it is perhaps rather timely to mention travel insurance that, based upon research carried out by the Association of British Insurers (ABI), rather surprisingly reveals there are a significant number of holidaymakers who are not arranging this potentially valuable form of cover. Apparently, around 1 in 4 people travelling overseas do not bother to take out travel insurance.

When you consider that 480,000 people travelling abroad last year claimed on their travel insurance policies in respect of things like lost luggage and medical treatment there is obviously a need for such cover. In fact, around £1 million was paid out to claimants every day.

Of those people, 154,000 required emergency medical assistance. The cost of such treatment amounted to £199 million. There were 83,000 claims made in respect of cash being lost and luggage going astray totaling £17 million. There were 159,000 claims made by holidaymakers who unfortunately had to cancel a holiday at a total cost of around £130 million.

When you consider that the average amount claimed for cancelling a holiday was £816 and that the average amount claimed in respect of medical treatment amounted to £1,300 yet the average amount of an annual travel insurance policy is £37 it rather puts this into perspective. It is also reassuring to note that insurers approve almost 9 out of every 10 travel insurance claims.

So, if you are looking for quality travel insurance at a competitive price, why not give us a call here at AIB Insurance on 02380 268 351 and discuss your requirements with a knowledgeable member of staff. It really is not worth the risk of travelling abroad without suitable cover.