There’s a reason why travel insurance exists. If you’re a frequent or regular traveler, you know how important travel insurance is. It’s supposed to cover you in case of emergencies, like accidents, canceled flights, lost luggage, medical expenses, and other losses incurred while traveling.
But what if you’re having trouble claiming your travel insurance? What if your travel insurer won’t give you the payout you deserve or expect? It’s important to understand why travel insurance won’t cover you in some situations, like when what you’re asking for wasn’t in your original agreement. If that’s the case, then you really won’t get anything from them.
However, if you think your travel insurer is being unreasonable and you believe you should’ve been covered, here’s what you need to do.
Travel Insurance Coverage Exclusions
It’s important to know why travel insurance won’t cover certain things. Typically, your travel insurer won’t pay the following:
- Excess – This refers to the excess amount of the claim your insurer won’t pay at all.
- Exclusions – Your policy may come with certain exclusions. So when purchasing travel insurance, you should always check the fine print as exclusions may vary from one policy to another
- Overcharging – Your travel insurer will only refund reasonable costs. They won’t shoulder anything else.
- No reasonable care – If you didn’t take reasonable care on your trip, like if you left your bags unattended or you handed them to someone you don’t know), the insurer might refuse to give you a payout.
- No replacements – Travel insurance doesn’t replacements of old or worn-out items. Chances are you are demanding a new item to replace something that has suffered natural wear-and-tear.
- Pre-existing condition – Pre-existing medical conditions are typically not covered by travel insurance and even other types of insurance, such as healthcare policy.
Top Travel Insurance Tips
When it comes to travel insurance, you should know what to do when filing a claim. Here are four important travel insurance tips that you should be aware of:
- Travel Insurance – First and foremost, it’s best to get insured by taking advantage of travel insurance.
- Policy Check – You should check your policy first before making a complaint.
- Complaint Hierarchy – You must complain to your insurer first. If denied, you can take your complaint to the ombudsman.
- Correspondence – You must keep copies of all correspondence, should you decide to pursue your complaint further. You must also save all the receipts. You may send copies of these unless you’re asked to provide the originals.
Travel Insurance Complaint
If you think you are covered, but your travel insurance won’t pay out, then you have all the rights to complain. However, you should follow the right procedure when filing a complaint and take the hierarchy into consideration. That said, you may complain to the following:
- To your travel insurer – Put your complaint in writing and indicate how you want your problem to be resolved. You can make a formal complaint using the company’s internal complaints procedure. Typically, insurers are given up to eight weeks to reply to your complaint. If they don’t respond or you don’t agree with the decision, then you can take the next course of action.
- To the ombudsman – Please be informed that all insurers are covered by the rules of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). You have to deal with complaints in a certain way. Now, if you’re not happy with the insurer’s response, then you may go to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). The FOS will look into your complaint and make a reasonable decision. Now if all else fails, you can take your insurer to court, but that should be your last resort.
If you’re looking to learn more about how you can claim compensation, Consumer Reclaimers is your best option. Get in touch with us today to see how we can help you.