BACKPACKERS INSURANCE
There is nothing more liberating than just packing a rucksack and hopping onto a plane. The sense of freedom of being able to travel from country to country for a long period of time is exciting and exhilarating.
However, before you hitch that rucksack onto your back make sure that you haven’t forgotten about getting some backpacker travel insurance.
Backpacker insurance provides protection when you are travelling on a limited budget for an extended period of time. Unlike normal travel insurance that will only cover you for a maximum of 90 days, backpackers insurance will cover you for trips from one week to two years.
If you haven’t heard of backpackers travel insurance before you may know it by a different name. It is sometimes referred to as; gap year insurance, adventurer insurance, student insurance, traveller insurance, or extended stay insurance.
Whatever it is called, it is an essential element to have when you go long stay travelling.
As a backpacker travelling to different countries you will be exposed to greater risks and dangers than most other holidaymakers and for a longer period of time.
Depending on where you go you will likely face an increased risk of:
- Robbery or mugging. – Recent research shows that young backpackers face a one in eight chance of suffering a robbery whilst travelling.
- Illness. – Due to unusual foods and possible poor hygiene standards in some countries.
- Accidents. – If you are unfamiliar with the transportation methods and rules than you have a greater chance of being involved in an accident. Also if you take part in any extreme sports or activities you are more likely to injure yourself.
- The Law. – Unless you know all the laws and customs of where you are going then you could, accidentally, find yourself breaking the law and ending up in trouble.
- Causing harm – Through ignorance or by accident you may end up causing personal injury to someone or damaging somebody’s property.
So you can see that without backpackers insurance you could face a hefty medical or legal bill should anything go wrong on your trip.
The chances are that nothing bad will happen to you on your travels, but if you have backpackers insurance then you will have the peace of mind and security to know that you will be protected if anything does occur.
A good backpackers travel insurance policy should cover:
- Emergency medical expenses.
- Cancellations.
- Cash, baggage and personal belongings.
- Personal liability.
- Search and Rescue, including repatriation.
- Going to dangerous countries.
- Working Abroad.
- Legal Fees.
However as with all travel insurance policies there is some responsibility on you to ensure your own safety and the safety of your belongings. You should generally know what to expect in the places that you visit and how to behave there. It is important that you adhere to local laws and know the procedures to follow should anything untoward occur.
You can find some cheap backpacker travel insurance by shopping around online and using a specialist provider. However, it is always worth checking the excess (the amount you have to pay before they give you any money) on these policies.
Some cheap backpackers insurance policies have a high excess charge so make sure it is something that you can afford to pay if necessary.
Most gap year insurance policies only cover younger people, usually up to the age of 35. Some insurers will offer backpacking insurance for more mature people but normally at a much higher cost.
The best backpackers insurance policies will include cover for a number of extreme sports or activities, such as bungee jumping, scuba diving, parascending, kayaking etc.
Any other extreme sports not automatically covered can usually be added on at an extra cost. However winter sports are not usually included in this list, so check your policy to see if you are covered for what you want to do.
One of the great benefits of having backpacker insurance is that the policy lengths are often extendable and can be adapted to included different destinations. So should you decide, on the spur of the moment, to stay somewhere a bit longer or to travel to an extra country, you can easily add this to your policy at any time.
This means that backpackers travel insurance is ideal for gap year students or anyone who wants to work or study abroad, as well as those people who just wish to take an extended holiday.