Similarly to medical emergencies happening in everyday life, when travelling abroad, you never know when you’ll fall victim to illness or harm that requires you to seek medical attention. In the worst-case scenario, most business travellers and holidaymakers won’t have the cash to settle a large medical bill, which is why medical insurance – available through comprehensive travel insurance is important.
For travellers travelling to African and Asian countries, whether you’ll experience a medical emergency isn’t a matter of if, but when. Numerous risk factors are amplified, including crime, disease, and terror attacks. Now that COVID-19 is adding another risk element, all travellers should have medical insurance available in comprehensive travel insurance.
Consider The Risk Factors and The Cost
No one ever thinks anything will go wrong, but it can. Besides being subject to medical treatment in a foreign country, the cost of medical treatment can also differ significantly.
Next time you’re planning a trip, consider what you’ll be doing while abroad. Whether that’s skiing on a much-needed vacation or using a forklift while you’re contracted abroad, the risk is always there. Even the most mundane activities like walking to or from work could turn into a medical emergency because of nefarious elements that target tourists.
Contracting Illness
Falling ill while abroad is common. You eat something that doesn’t agree with you from a restaurant or eatery that does not have the best hygiene practices. The consequences? Maybe you miss a day or two of your planned activities. However, what happens when the illness you’ve contracted could result in hospital admission because of its severity? Your hotel, tour operator, or employer is unlikely to compensate for treatment that could run into millions. Unless you want to be liable for an exorbitant medical bill, it only makes sense that you have travel insurance.
Terror Activities
Terror attacks – and as a result – hostage situations are becoming increasingly common for tourists and business travellers. Most terror attacks are targeted at tourists as terror groups want to achieve international notoriety and generate income. Unfortunately, when travelling within certain regions, the risk of falling victim to a terror attack in addition to other travelling risks, increases. To ensure you aren’t stranded or left in dire financial straits in such an incident and need to rely on – what could be incompetent – government assistance, travel insurance is necessary.
Criminal Attacks
Checking the crime stats of the region you are visiting is essential, as this dictates the likelihood of you falling victim to an attack while travelling. What many clients who have received assistance from TIC experience, is that in addition to robbery, there is also significant violence associated with these acts.
This means, beyond needing to recoup the cost of a stolen device, passport, and cash; there is also the need for medical treatment because of a gunshot or stab wound that may place you in a critical condition.
In these worst-case scenarios, having comprehensive cover from a reputable travel insurance will ensure you don’t need to pay a cent if you find yourself in this situation.
Injuries
Do you know the cost of being airlifted in the country you will be travelling to? Most travellers don’t.
In our experience, most travellers budget for common ailments like jet lag, exhaustion, or dehydration or budget for small injuries like wounds. But when travelling, you need to evaluate the probability of experiencing a serious injury and have the equivalent cover for that.
For leisure travellers, this could include the activities on your itinerary that could place you at risk.
For business travellers who are doing physical labour, the risk of injury is heightened.
Existing Medical Conditions
If you have pre-existing medical conditions, comprehensive travel insurance is vital. The cost of medical treatment can fluctuate from country to country and often cost more if you require expert care. Those with pre-existing conditions also have a greater risk of falling ill with minimal external forces.
COVID-19
As risk factors go, Covid is the latest threat in a litany of potentially deadly illnesses that continue to plague international travellers. However, the stark difference between COVID and other diseases is that COVID is far more transmissible. For travellers who are yet to be vaccinated, travelling abroad increases the likelihood of being infected. Additionally, the introduction of the Delta and Delta Plus variants – revealed to be the easiest variants to transmit – require travellers to be cautious.
To ensure that any medical expenses – and possible repatriation costs – due to exposure to COVID are covered, travel insurance is a must.
Remember, anything can happen while you’re travelling. Whether it be a medical emergency due to a pre-existing condition like a heart attack or an accident. Travel insurance gives you the peace of mind that you’ll have the similar level of care you would expect if you had a medical emergency or accident at home. Additionally, it ensures you aren’t stranded or left with ridiculous bills.
Get in touch with our team to discuss your travel requirements.
