Travel insurance

princessmoneysaver

I'm looking at insurance for a family of 4 to go to Florida in April - 9 nights although it's an overnight flight coming back so actually 10 nights away from home ITMS, my DH has been advised to use Columbus Direct (he was quoted about £30 which seems too good to be true ) but I've never heard of them. Where's the best places to look for quotes?

Thanks :money:

Steve_xx

Look at Moneysupermarket.com for travel insurance quotes.

Also, if you have a Quidco account you might route your purchase through there. Type "travel insurance" in the search box and you will see that it returns a plethora of companies offering varying rates of cashback.

mjon3105

Columbus is a specialist Travel insurance agent formed in 1988 which has a very good reputation but it is NOT the insurer. Columbus places its travel insurance risks with a well known and respected travel insurer and "legally" your policy must state who the insurer is and if they are regulated by an authority such as the F.S.A .There shoudl also be a "Complaints Procedure" outlined on policy document. There are many travel insurance specialist agencies who are themselves NOT underwriters ,Columbus being one of several. If you look at the Columbus website you will find much more info re Columbus in their Q+A and History sections but they are well known and have good reputation....

mjon3105

....and for quotes have a good read of Martin's "Insurance" articles which list all the good places to look for quotes such as MoneySupermarket, Flexicover, Citybond, and numerous others. remember though that whatever you choose should have a 24hours emergency assistance service, adequate medical expenses cover ; unlimted "get you home" coverage etc so whilst PRICE is VERY IMPORTANT, cheapest is NOT always best. Shop around and check out as much as you can online re any insurer especially if the name is "unknown" to you,. Are they members for example of the Assn of British Insurers (Abi) OR Lloyds? Are they regulated by the F.S.A ? Martin's articles on Travel Insurance are pretty comprehensive and well worth a read...

SimonW

As the advice above, have a read of Martin's website articles then go through a search engine like moneysupermarket. See what results come out. If flexicover are competitive I have a 15% discount code which I was emailed this afternoon.

"As a valued customer, we are delighted to offer you, your family and friends, a special 15% online discount on our already low premiums. Please enter MN28 in the discount reference box when booking: www.flexicover.net. "

the-chauffeur_2

To a greater degree, the underwriter (issuer) of the policy is largely irrelevant. If you're buying from the high street, most policies are issued by very large insurers - some household names, others more obscure but equally huge.

By far the most important factors are what the policy covers. Many people buy basic travel insurance expecting all kinds of private tratment style cover - and are very disappointed to find that it actually only offers basic medical costs cover and/or repatriation via a commercial airline in all but the most severe cases.

Be sure to specify exactly what it is you need when you approach an insurer or selling agent. And read all of the various terms and conditions with regard to the type of cover the policy offers - it may take a while, but better that than find out the plan limitations when something goes wrong. One thing to watch out for is what happens if one of you is taken ill and needs to be repatriated. Some policies will only pay for the patient and one other. Great if there are only two of you travelling, but not so good if you take a family with kids - 'cos if dad gets hurt, mum is covered to go home with dad, but there's no provision for the kids.

Remember, you gets what you pays for. Competitive prices are all well and good, but only if they give you the cover you need. If you need to pay more for better cover, it's quite simple - pay more.

Hope that helps