Travel Insurance Singapore – Why You Need it?
Travel Insurance is important as it protects against medical fees and some disasters that could happen while travelling.
A travel policy is an essential part of your holiday preparations and needs as careful consideration as the holiday itself.
Buy Before You Go
Get insurance travel as the coverage starts sixty (60 )days before departure day as you’re covered for any eventuality long before your holiday begins.
Coverage Included
Good travel insurance will cover a variety of misfortunes from the mundane like
- minor injuries to major illnesses
- broken limbs and accidents
- hospital and doctors’ fees
- cost of air evacuation or repatriation to your home country.
Insurance Plans
There are different ranges of plans and policies so you should choose carefully your requirements, do you need an annual plan or a single? Think of any risks that you will be involved and the activities you may be undertaking.
What Are You Paying For?
Expensive doesn’t mean the best. Cheaper doesn’t mean it’s useless. The cheaper the insurance the less comprehensive the coverage is likely to be. For example the amount of compensation for loss or damage to luggage, delays, loss of currency and credit cards will also be less generous and cancellation of the trip may not be covered at all.
Your Insurance Check List
Most insurance policies do not cover:
- Chemical attacks
- Injuries caused by terrorism, blasts and acts of terrorism, civil war or commotion
- Illness or accidents contributed by alcohol or illicit drug use
- Participation in dangerous or extreme sports
- A flair up of an undisclosed pre-existing condition like high blood pressure or diabetes
What You Should Do
Make a copy of your travel policy with you.
In the unfortunate event of an accident or a medical emergency all relevant documents should be kept including:
- Police reports
- Medical notes and reports
- Boarding passes and tickets.
Finally…any exclusion?
Read the exclusions – some of the things the insurance provider will not pay. Read the fine print on the contract and if you have any question please check with travel insurance singapore.
Buy Travel Insurance: Get Insured Before You Take Off
From reading the Sunday Times on 5 December 2010, around 51 per cent of an online respondents polled do not buy any travel insurance on a regular basis, that shows the fact that Singaporeans are under-insured when they travel. Many people still don’t think that buying adequate travel insurance is necessary.
Travelling without travel insurance is just like taking a risk; still many Singaporeans are not aware what travel insurance does covers. Many see it as an extra cost. As much as 49 per cent of those surveyed have no idea that travel insurance does cover injuries caused by accidents, flights delay, flight disruptions and in rare case when the airline go bankrupt.
Another reason some Singaporean are hesitating to buy travel insurance as they feel that it is a waste of their money as they travel to the nearby country like Johor in Malaysia or Batam in Indonesia.
Buy travel insurance the moment you confirm your flight. Don’t wait till the last minute for you never know you may be forced to postpone or cancel your holiday or a business trip.
Benefits to Activate Your Travel Insurance Early
Now that you’ve booked your air tickets and the accommodation. Should you buy travel insurance now or should you wait nearer to your departure date? This is a very common question most travelers will ask.
Our answer is: you should activate your Travel Insurance the moment you confirmed or booked your air tickets and accommodation.
Most travel insurance policies cover flight cancellation, trip cancellation and other benefits prior to departure date subject to the contract’s terms.
In the event that for some reasons you need to cancel your flight or trip, our Chartis Travel Guard has Trip Cancellation benefit that starts 60 days before the departure date.Unfortunately, many travelers are clueless about how travel insurance works.
Understand the travel insurance you are about to buy or have bought. Read its claused carefully. Check all terms of your policy. Clarify with the insurance company anything you’re not sure before you travel.
It pays to activate your travel insurance EARLY! Enjoy your holiday with the peace of mind that comes from knowing that you have a comprehensive coverage for your trip.
Activate your travel insurance early by calling our hotline: 67 456 110. Don’t wait till the late minute!
If you have any further query on Travel Insurance please do not hesitate to call us.
Must-Have Travel Accessories
Going on vacation is a nice way to get away from it all and have fun. It can also be an energy-sapping experience with troubled times. Packing a few extra items for your trip can help make things go a lot easier and allow you to have time to relax.
Here are some top travel accessories you can take advantage of.
Digital Camera
This is actually a must for any trip. How many times have you been to a place where you saw something you want to take a picture of, but you didn’t have a camera to do it with – or you take a picture and you get home only to find out the picture didn’t turn out right?
Digital cameras allow you to see the picture right away, so you have time to try again if needed. Don’t get anything too expensive or bulky, just a small cheaper one will do.
Personal grooming bag
Grooming bags help keep all of your items together in one place instead of you having to rummage through different suitcases to find one item. It also eliminates problems with getting make-up or other substances on your clothes.
Travel alarm clock
If you need to get up at certain times while on your trip, use a travel alarm clock. This is less intrusive than the annoying wake up calls from the front desk.
Compressor bags for clothes
This is an awesome accessory to have. These bags are stuffed with your clothes and then the air is sucked out of them, leaving you with a compact bag.
It enables you to have more room in your suitcases and they protect your clothes. When you need an item of clothing, all you need to do is open up the bag and get it. The amazing part is that they don’t wrinkle the clothes.
Fanny pack
These are nice to have to keep your money and credit cards in. It eliminates the need for purses and you don’t have to worry as much about losing your wallet or purse. For women, it frees them up to move around instead of having to struggle with a purse strap always coming down.
Travel first aid kits
These are perfect for those minor emergencies that occur on the drive to your destination spot or even while you’re there. Buying them on the road can be costly or impossible, so bring your own and save that money for something else. A Swiss army knife can be very helpful, too.
Traveling can be hard, but if you bring along some accessories, they can make things go a lot smoother for you. It may mean a few more things you have to pack, but it can be well worth the space and effort in the long run.
Tips for Travelling with Kids
Travelling can be a headache, especially when it’s done with kids. Long plane rides or car rides can make any child restless, thereby making your trip miserable. It doesn’t have to be.
Here are some tips to use to try to make travelling with tots a bit better:
Tip #1 – Plan ahead
Last minute, spontaneous car rides don’t work when there’s children involved. Plan your route and plan for frequent stops, too. Children need to get out and run around at least once an hour to stretch out their legs. If your child isn’t old enough to walk yet, get them out of the car seat for a little bit anyway.
Tip #2 – Prepare yourself
Children have smaller bladders than you do, so they need to go ‘wee wee’ more often. They also tend to ask a lot of questions and noise is inevitable for them. Don’t act surprised when you have to answer a lot of questions and make more stops than you anticipated. Keep your sanity by preparing yourself for these things before the trip.
Tip#3 – Bring along some new toys
For long trips in a car or plane, bring along some new toys for them to play with. Handheld video games are good time killers for the older children and some travel games are good for the younger ones. Avoid books and coloring books because they can cause car-sickness. Infants aren’t immune to boredom either, so make sure they have new squishy things to hold or a rattle to shake.
Tip #4 – Don’t forget the snacks
Children get bored on long trips and tend to get hungry quite often. Have some good, healthy snacks handy to dole out at these times to save you from having to make yet another stop and spending a lot more money for snacks at a gas station.
Tip #5 – Recruit reinforcements if you can
Invite friends or other family members along on your trip. They may be able to keep your kids busy while you get a few moments here and there for yourself, so you can recuperate and refresh your mind.
Tip #6 – Space out your activities
If you’re traveling with young children, don’t try to jam a day’s worth of activities for them in only a few hours. This will only exhaust them and cause them to be irritable and grumpy. Give them time to do what they want as well, even if that means some time at a video arcade.
Tip #7 – Keep most of their normal routine
Try to keep as much of their normal routine as possible. There’s nothing wrong with letting your kids stay up a little later while you’re on vacation, but don’t let them stay up for hours longer every night. This will only cause more trouble when you get back home.
Traveling with children can be a very exhausting task for your mind and body, but try to keep these tips in mind to help ease the process. Think of the trip through the eyes of your children and don’t expect them to act and react the same as you. It will only make your trip miserable.
Travelling Abroad – What You Need to Know to Stay Safe
There’s nothing like seeing new things and experiencing different cultures, but sometimes this can come at a price. Traveling abroad can be serious business unless you know how to stay safe.
Here are some things to keep in mind the next time you have to travel abroad.
Check out weather patterns
Check out the weather patterns for every place along your route. Plan for possible plane delays if the weather seems to be iffy in one or more areas.
If there’s a chance of severe weather, like a hurricane, for your destination then plan on going another time if possible. Play it safe and don’t risk getting caught in severe weather like that.
Check for security concerns
Find out what’s going on within the country you plan to visit. Are there any political arguments that could lead to an all out war? Don’t get caught in the middle of a battle if you know ahead of time that a war could break out.
Research the culture of the country
Research the culture of the country you’re planning to go to. Different countries have different cultures. Don’t assume that the country you’re planning to go to will accommodate your cultural beliefs.
You may ultimately offend someone in another country by what you deem to be innocent behavior. This can cause them to retaliate against you. Know as much as you can before leaving for your trip.
Learn their language
Learn as much of their language as possible. Some people can take advantage of you if they think you don’t have any idea of what they’re saying. It can also help to eliminate any misunderstandings, which may cause violence.
Check with your medical insurance company
Find out if your health insurance will cover medical costs abroad. Don’t just assume they will. If they do cover medical costs abroad, find out what they do and don’t cover.
Reserve your stay at the more popular tourist attraction hotels
These are more likely to have better security than ones that are off away from the tourist spots. Don’t wander away from hot tourist areas because you can be an easy target for the locals. If you have a trustworthy guide, then it’s okay to explore – but only with them. Never go off alone.
Don’t advertise yourself as a tourist
Try to wear clothes that will make you blend in with the locals. If you choose to rent a car while abroad, don’t go for anything too flashy. It will only scream out to the locals that you’re a tourist and you then become a target.
Traveling abroad to another country can be a safe experience if you take precautions before you leave on your trip and don’t let your guard down when you reach your destination. Respect the locals and their cultural beliefs and try not to offend anyone. They’re more likely to welcome you then and may even protect you if needed.