What is travel insurance and why buy it?
Travel insurance is designed to protect you against unforeseen medical emergencies. It provides you with 24-hour assistance and allows you and your family to travel with peace of mind. A medical emergency outside the province or country without travel insurance can cause considerable financial difficulty and emotional stress and can ruin a vacation.

Canadians are not always aware of the high costs of medical treatment and hospitalization outside their province of residence, especially in the United States. Provincial government health care plans only cover a small percentage of incurred emergency medical costs. Furthermore, many Canadians are not familiar with American and other healthcare systems and can feel overwhelmed by the experience of needing medical care while they are away from home.

These are problems that can be easily avoided by having appropriate emergency medical insurance. Don’t risk your financial stability – protect yourself and your loved ones from unnecessary expenses and anxiety. You cannot predict the future, but you can protect it!

 Not all travel insurance is created alike…
There are many different types travel insurance today. The biggest mistake many people make is to buy travel insurance based on price alone without considering other factors such as limits and pre-existing conditions. Increasingly, insurance companies are making themselves accessible by phone and Internet; consumers should take advantage of this by doing their homework and calling them with questions.

Consider the following when shopping for travel insurance:

1. Do you need emergency medical coverage only?
2. Should you obtain trip cancellation and baggage insurance as well?
3. Are you planning to study or work abroad? A different type of insurance may be more beneficial.
4. Do you already have coverage with your credit card? If so, read the fine print – they may not offer enough coverage.

Tips for travel abroad:

1. Make sure you purchase the right type of coverage to suit your particular needs.
2. Carry your travel insurance ID card with you at all times.
3. Make photocopies of your travel documents (passport, birth certificate, etc.), leave them with your family members at home and provide copies to your hosts at your destination.
4. Find out what kind of travel documents you will need before you go!

• Some countries may require that you have a valid passport to permit entry.
• Some countries require that you obtain a travel visa or a visitor’s permit before you travel.

5. Get medical advice. You may want to look into necessary vaccinations before you go or find out whether you will have access to certain medications you may require.
6. Know how to get in touch with a Canadian consular office in the country you are visiting.

Useful websites to consult before travelling abroad:
Consular website: www.voyage.gc.ca
Canadian Passport office: www.ppt.gc.ca
Citizenship and Immigration Canada: www.cic.gc.ca

A typical example
Mr. Smith and his wife, along with Mrs. Smith’s wheelchair-bound mother, had an unexpected medical emergency while travelling in their RV in the United States. Mr. Smith, who was the driver of the RV, threw his back out and was taken to the hospital where he was diagnosed with spinal stenosis of the lumbar region. He was hospitalized for seven days and required air ambulance services for his return home. Since neither Mrs. Smith nor her mother could drive the RV, they were flown home and the RV was returned to their home in Canada under the provisions of their policy. The total cost was over $25,000 USD!

The value of an annual travel insurance plan
Mr. Johnson, an annual plan policyholder, decided to take his boat out for a day of sailing around the waters near the Canada-U.S. border. During the course of the day, however, he began to feel very unwell and was experiencing serious medical problems. The boat was docked in the nearest harbour and Mr. Johnson was taken by ambulance to the hospital – on the American side of the border. He was treated there and recovered well, and later returned home. Had he not had the annual plan, he would have been responsible for the cost of all his medical treatment that day. He told his insurance representative how grateful he was to have had the annual plan, since it would never have occurred to him to purchase medical travel insurance for his one-day sailing trip.

Do you need travel insurance if you are travelling to another province in Canada?
No one should leave their home province without travel insurance. Consider this example: A husband and wife were travelling from Ontario to Alberta for a vacation. While in Alberta, the husband required emergency hospitalization and surgery. As there were variations in medical costs between the two provinces, the patient’s excess medical expenses were covered by his travel insurance plan, and the hospital billed the insurance company directly so the patient and his wife didn’t have to worry about arranging payment themselves.

The husband was also the driver of their car, and his wife was unable to drive the car home. Under the benefits in their policy, once the patient was stable to travel, Global Excel covered the flight back to Ontario not only for the patient but also for his wife.

The couple’s out-of-pocket expenses for meals and accommodation were reimbursable, and Global Excel also arranged for and covered the cost of returning their vehicle to Ontario. Without their out-of-province medical insurance coverage, the couple would have been responsible for making their own travel arrangements to get home, and for the total cost of all their expenses – provincial government health insurance plans cover NONE of the non-medical costs mentioned above when they are incurred outside the province of residence.

Is travel insurance really necessary for someone who is young and healthy?
Travelling without adequate insurance can leave you vulnerable financially no matter what your age or your health. Consider the following average costs for routine tests and procedures:

Source: Global Excel Management