Picking the Most Suitable Travel Insurance

As Europe sits in the deepest recession for decades, now more than ever it is important to make every pound count and cut back on unnecessary spending. But some things you just cannot justify going without - and travel insurance is definitely one of them.

If you think it is bad having to pay £30 for something you are unlikely to have to use, try paying foreign hospital bills running into thousands of pounds. If you're uninsured abroad and things go wrong, you really can find yourself in big trouble.

But that doesn't mean you can't minimise the cost of travel cover. We in the UK spend more on travel each year than anyone else in Europe, and as you would expect there are an appropriately large number of insurance options available.

By tailoring a policy to your needs or picking the one most suited to them, money can be saved without having to reduce the protection afforded by travel cover. One of the most basic ways to save is to pick the right type of policy, a few examples of which are shown below:

Single Trip Travel Insurance. Realistically, are you going to go abroad more than once in the coming year? This is a question we all should be considering prior to choosing a policy, because it is the most common way of saving money. as you would expect, single trip cover is cheaper than an annual or multi-trip package but would be more expensive should you purchase more than one individual journey policy in less than a year. But that doesn't mean this type of policy can't go a very long way. Six months is a common allowance, especially if you travel often. There is generally no limit on the number of trips you can go on, however the duration of any one trip may be less than the length under a specific Single Trip policy. You are unlikely to get much more than a months cover on a single trip.

Specialist Travel Insurance. This is a varied and often very specific section in the market. Examples of specific packages would be backpackers insurance, wedding insurance (yes, some people do want to go to the other side of the world for their big day), or sports insurance (such as golf). The particular needs and risks associated with specific activities has been assessed by the insurer in order to construct a comprehensive policy.

The first priority should always be to ensure the cover you buy is suitable and extensive enough for your needs. After that, there are many ways and different options that can save you money, or that represent better value. Shop around, do a bit of research, and you might be surprised at what you find.