Properly Insured on a Summer Holiday

Summer time is holiday time and many vacationers ask themselves: What happens if I get sick on holiday? Or my flight is cancelled? Am I sufficiently insured? And what rights do I have? Read on to get to learn everything you need to know.

Important questions about travel and insurance

Do I need an international travel health insurance before I start my trip?

Sure, you can get sick on vacation too. The good news is that good medical care is no longer a problem for most classic destinations. However, a visit to a doctor abroad means that you will receive an invoice which you have to pay yourself. Depending on what it is about, it can be very expensive. Even within the EU, statutory health insurance does not always cover the costs.

Good to know: Travel health insurance is valid for trips of up to eight weeks. If you are travelling for longer, e.g. for work and travel, as an au pair or as a student, you need an international health insurance for long-term travel. It can be taken out for up to two years and sometimes even longer.

Who pays for the return transport to Germany?

If you are seriously ill or injured so that a special return transport to Germany is necessary, it can be really expensive and even threatening to your existence. When taking out an international health insurance policy, you should make sure that the costs for the return transport are covered – the statutory health insurances usually pay for nothing!

How about a liability insurance?

Even when travelling, property damage or personal injury can occur and this can be expensive. For example, the vase you threw down in your holiday home may not be from IKEA, but from the 18th century and may have been very valuable. Or you can be so excited about the sunset that you don’t see a pedestrian and run him over by bike. Without liability insurance, you could have a big problem – depending on the amount of damage.

The good news: With most private liability insurances a stay abroad of up to twelve months is no problem. To be on the safe side, you can for example check the General Conditions of Insurance.

As a general rule, and not just on holiday: If you don’t have liability insurance yet, you should change that as soon as possible! Get all the information now and take out Getsafe liability insurance!

What insurance do I possibly need?

Travel cancellation insurance

Anyone who has to cancel a trip at short notice due to illness, an accident or a change of job remains liable for the cancellation costs. It is therefore worth thinking about a travel cancellation insurance. Annual insurance also covers individual flight tickets or overnight stays. Especially for expensive trips, you should think about a travel cancellation insurance.

Travel interruption insurance

A travel interruption insurance is particularly worthwhile if you have to consider the fact that the trip may have to be interrupted (e.g. because you or a family member is ill). It does not only pay for services that have not been taken up, but also covers additional costs such as additional hotel nights, rebooking costs, transport costs, etc. Please note: The exact reason for the cancellation must be stated in the insurance conditions. Not every policy covers every claim.

Both insurance policies can often be taken out in combination.

Which holiday insurance policies are unnecessary?

Luggage insurance is almost never worth it. If your luggage is stolen, you have to prove that you never let it out of your sight. Sounds difficult? It’s almost impossible! Unless your luggage has been ripped from your hand in front of several witnesses and video cameras. In the end, however, the loss of your luggage is usually attributed to the lack of attention.

This is not the case with destruction by fire or flooding. But even then, only the time value of the items is replaced – the value that objects actually have at the time of loss. You will then need all the original invoices (and who has them?). Of course, the risk of your luggage going up in flames is much lower than the risk of it being stolen.

Conclusion: Luggage insurances promise a lot and hold little. You can therefore confidently do without them. The good news is that if you have contents insurance, your luggage is often covered. This applies, for example, if someone breaks into your holiday home or something is stolen from your hotel room (beware, not in the car!). For very expensive equipment, such as camera equipment or expensive sports equipment / musical instruments, there are special insurance policies.

What do I have to pay attention to when taking out travel insurance?

„Those who are unable to travel due to illness are left with their costs!” With dramatic formulations like this, online travel portals try to persuade their customers to take out insurance. You think „emergency“ and immediately switch to what-if mode. What if someone actually gets sick and their holiday is over?

As a general rule, travel portals are not allowed to impose insurance on customers, and insurance packages such as those offered by many tour operators are often redundant. Those who book these all-in-one packages usually end up being overinsured. This includes not only international health insurance and travel cancellation insurance, but also unnecessary components such as luggage insurance. Or, for example, accident insurance with insufficient coverage.

Tip: Look very closely or just keep your fingers off it!

What do I need to bear in mind when traveling by air?

If you are a passenger travelling in the EU, you are entitled to benefits from the airline as soon as the plane has a delay of 2 hours. If the delay exceeds 3 hours, the passenger is also entitled to compensation. The airline must then pay up to 600 euros, depending on the route. The only condition is that the airline itself is responsible for the delay. Should there be exceptional circumstances (weather or strike) the airline does not have to pay!

Distribution according to flight distance:

• less than 1.500 km = 250 € compensation
• between 1.500 – 3.500 km = 400 € compensation
• more than 3.500 km = 600 € compensation

By the way, it doesn’t matter how expensive the flight was. You are also entitled to compensation from low-cost airlines – even if the travel costs are lower than the compensation.

Cancellation

In principle, airlines are obligated to inform passengers as soon as possible about a flight cancellation and to find a reasonable replacement flight. This is also in the airline’s interest, as it may be able to be exempted from a compensation payment. However, if you do not want to fly at all, this is also possible and you can reclaim the fare and, if necessary, be entitled to compensation.

If your flight has been cancelled, you have the choice between:

• the full refund of the ticket price OR
• a prompt alternative means of transport, e.g. by air or rail OR
• alternative carriage at a later time (if seats are available) OR
• a return flight to the starting point of your journey.

The most important thing is: If your flight is cancelled and you get a refund of the ticket price or are offered an alternative transport in the near future, you can still be entitled to compensation – provided you have been informed of the cancellation less than 14 days before departure!

Do you have any questions? Contact us. The Getsafe team will be happy to advise you. Send an email to [email protected].

Stay safe!