Bad Backpacker Travel Insurance Policies
June 26th, 2010
All travel insurance is not created equal as many backpackers have discovered. It seems that if anyone would get the proper coverage for travel it would be a backpacker. However, the insurance simply wont cover the activities that backpackers engage in.
The coverage does exist for backpackers, but remember that you need something to cover more than a cancellation. People generally get cheap travel insurance for the medical coverage as well as insurance for their possessions when they travel. This would be something for a backpacker to think about especially because they often travel through the mountains, and take wilderness hikes.
Standard policies will place limitations on the activities that people can engage in, and may even limit where they can go. So it would be wise to inform them where you will be traveling to. Especially when doing an international hike, it would be helpful for you to disclose where you plan to go, and any concerns about items you might want to have coverage for just in case.
And just bear in mind, that even though you are backpacking, these insurance companies believe that you are more likely to be robbed or assaulted so that makes you a higher risk. Its interesting that using nature as an accommodation would make you a higher risk than staying in a building that could burn to the ground or be subject to a hold up in the middle of the night.
Be sure to look at the medical coverage on a backpacking travel insurance policy too. Most dont cover pre-existing problems, so if you have a medical history of heart related illnesses and you do have a heart attack while you are traveling, you will not be covered. If this happens, find another policy that could provide you with what you need.
