Is Travel Insurance Important?
Overseas travel can be an enriching and unforgettable experience. However, without proper travel insurance, a dream holiday could lead to financial ruin or even worse.
Luckily, arranging travel insurance doesn’t have to break the bank or take large amounts of your valuable time, getting a cheap Budget Direct Travel Insurance quote on-line takes less than 1 minute.
Some go overseas without ever having considered obtaining travel insurance, but the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade strongly advises that all Australians take out travel insurance before going overseas, and with good reason.
Each year the department handles over 20,000 cases involving Australians in difficulty overseas. This includes over 700 hospitalisations and 100 evacuations of Australians to another location for medical purposes.
These cases can be extremely expensive, with hospitalisation costs in Southeast Asia regularly exceeding $800 per day and medical evacuations from the United States often costing as much as $95,000.
Sadly, the department has to deal with instances where families have to sell the family home to bring loved ones home for treatment.
Consider the example of one young Australian holidaying in the US.
He permitted his 12-month travel insurance policy to expire just a few days before his departure for home. In the simple act of crossing a road, he was hit by a car and suffered head injuries.
He was admitted unconscious to intensive care and required highly intensive sophisticated care until he was able to be flown back to Australia.
The cost to the family for the medical evacuation alone was $80,000. They had to take out a second mortgage on their house to raise the funds.
For the peace of mind of knowing that should misfortune befall you while you’re overseas your travel insurance will make sure you’re well looked after. Get a one minute, cheap Budget Direct Travel Insurance quote on-line.
