Specialist Travel Insurance whilst participating in sports and activities abroad.
Travel insurance specialist, Safe and Insured, is warning British holidaymakers not to ‘jet off’ and indulge in any form of sporting activity without having the right travel insurance in place. It also urges holidaymakers to recognise their definition of a ‘dangerous’ activity may be far-removed from that of their insurer’s.
Safe and Insured points to summer 2018 incidents in the news that left Brits stranded overseas, without means of repatriation back to the UK for treatment under the terms of their travel cover.
Natasha Stevens from Blackpool suffered severe head and abdominal injuries after a quad-bike accident in Zante, with her family left facing a £30,000 bill to get her home. Ashleigh Donnelly, severely injured after a jet-ski accident in Turkey, was told the bill would be £26,000, because she had no insurance to cover watersports.
Scenarios like this – many involving jet-skis – happen every year, but still catch holidaymakers out. The on-hand nature of potentially dangerous vehicles like jet-skis and quad-bikes makes it very easy for holidaymakers to be seduced into ‘having a go’, unaware of the implications of them being injured, should the worst occur.
As the thirst for adventure grows year-on-year, so does the list of activities that can catch the uninsured out. Whilst bungee-jumping and sky-diving have long been high-risk activities, we now have the even more dangerous base-jumping and additions such as volcano-boarding and the very bizarre extreme ironing. Anyone contemplating such sports should have the common sense to realise their travel insurance needs to cover them.
However, equally high-risk are activities that seem harmless. This includes horse riding and pony trekking, camel riding – a must for those visiting parts of Africa – and even hot air ballooning, if on a balloon safari.
Scuba diving may only be covered to a certain depth – a term of the insurance cover that is easy to break once involved in the sport – and for some sports, whilst the policyholder may be covered for any injury to themselves, they may not be covered if they injure a third party.
Safe and Insured works with Just Travel Limited – voted Best Travel Insurance Provider 2017 in the Insurance Choice Awards – as its specialist travel insurance panel provider, meaning it can often cover dangerous and extreme sports for which other travel insurers will not quote.
Safe and Insured director, Chris Roberts, says: “The message is to ‘think ahead’ and consider activities you might enjoy whilst overseas. Check the insurance you are buying will actually cover those activities and never consider travelling without insurance protection.
“Many people stranded overseas without repatriation cover rely upon public goodwill and the success of ‘giving’ schemes that raise money for their cause. That is a massive gamble and one sure to keep them away from their families on a prolonged basis whilst funds are raised. If you are injured overseas, you need the peace of mind of knowing you can at least come home to be with your loved ones and be treated by English-speaking doctors, in a hospital as close to home as possible. For that you need travel insurance, like ours, that covers ‘dangerous’ sports and you need to buy it before you board the plane, train, ferry or boat.”
Click the link to find out about Safe and Insured’s specialist travel insurance or call 0808 161 7008. Cover is available for both single-trip travel cover and annual travel insurance, both of which are competitively priced.