A friend of mine once told me:
“If you can’t afford travel insurance for India then you can’t afford India travel…”
I didn’t really understand her at first, but then I did the math and realized if something went wrong on my trip I’d be f#@*ed… When I considered paying the relatively tiny fee to get full coverage compared to the total trip cost, her statement totally made sense.
A quick “worst case” story:
Another friend of mine was trekking in the Himalayas staying at tiny little inns with very breathtaking views of the majestic mountains.
Everything was perfect.
But… at the next stop when the bags were being taken from the bus to the hotel lobby, somehow, his didn’t make it! All he had were the clothes on his back and a small bag.
This meant he had to borrow clothes and gear from friends until he could buy new stuff in Kathmandu.
The worst part: He didn’t have travel insurance! 🙁 And of course he lost $1000’s of dollars which would have been reimbursed if he had insurance.
Moral of the story:
Whether you’re going to India, Nepal or any other international destination, I highly recommend you consider getting a good quality travel insurance plan.
In India you need to expect the unexpected… Whether it’s a minor car crash or anything else that can rack up huge bills, you need to be covered.
I personally use World Nomads. You can get an instant quote from them on the widget down below.
I’ve found them to be highly affordable and they have comprehensive plans that cover just about anything that could go wrong while you’re out adventuring around the world.
In case you need some
more convincing:
Get reimbursed for:
1) Medical emergencies
2) Loss, theft or damage of baggage
3) Trip cancellation, delay or interruption
4) Emergency evacuation
Other reasons why you need it:
5) Enjoy peace of mind while traveling
6) Claim online or call 24 hour phone support
7) It costs a fraction of your total trip
8) You probably can’t afford not to be ensured
9) Have the confidence to fully experience your journey
Last updated: November 2nd, 2016
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Hi Asher.
Thanks’ for your nice and informative newsletters.
This time you took up the topic: “Travelers Insurance”. A good, and certainly also a very relevant topic to shed some light on – considering that some people, not all, but some, do leave their relatively safe nests at home, without such a thing being arranged before they leave. It is hazardous to do that. Personally I have been to India 12 times, but always with a travelers’ insurance in my valet. I guess that perhaps particularly young travelers may choose to save some money skipping that otherwise important part of the whole travel-budget! But also one of my friends, he’s now 72, do that every time he’s leaving for India. One time he barely managed to get his typhoid-ravaged body back to Denmark, where we live, and was quickly hospitalized, for 40 days, in order to be treated from that illness, which, when we met him at the airport at his arrival, had left him almost unable to either speak, walk or do anything else. He hadn’t any insurance at that time, but – yes, he managed to survive anyway.
– But, and here comes the important point – here in Denmark we have a rescue service called Falck which would be the one that travelers insurance companies usually would use in case people would have to be transported back home, either by train, car – of for that matter even by plane. I got curious about this whole issue and wanted to find out how much, approximately, it’ll cost to bring a person back to Denmark, from India, by plain, in case that’ll be considered a necessity. The guy I talked to did some quick calculations and said that it’ll cost about 800.000 d.kr. (85.000 British Pounds?) to do so, maybe even more. In other words: One would get totally ruined by having to pay that amount of money – simply because one just wanted to safe some few 300 Pounds or so.
So I totally agree with your viewpoints in your news-letter. And I appreciate very much that you take the time to elucidate these things for – perhaps younger, and maybe more careless – people.
However, there was one point in your letter, in the section “Get reimbursed for”, that I think was missing and that was the need for also having a Public Liability Insurance, which always, in our Danish travelers’ insurances, are automatically included. Imagine a bill you could be presented for, in case you, on an Enfield or the like, are pled guilty of being the course or a huge traffic accident in Goa, or on a Himalayan mountain road, with dead people, damaged property etc.? It could become VERY expensive.
Cheers…
Ulrik Stephensen
Copenhagen,
Denmark
Thanks for sharing your experience Ulrik! 🙂
Definitely recommend travel insurance. From the water to the food.. you need to protect yourself.
Yep! 🙂
Asher, thanks for this article. I have been to India about 10 times without buying travel insurance, but you’ve made me realize what a huge risk that is. I hadn’t even considered the need for liability coverage. I am going again in January and will not fail to purchase insurance this time.
Hi David,
Yeah, my first few trips I didn’t have any insurance either but in hindsight it was dumb to run the risk when the cost of the insurance is negligible.
Have a great trip!
Cheers,
Asher.
Yes, I believe that travel insurance is highly essential when you’re going for a vacation and that is certainly not limited to India, it’s required for every country. You’ll have the opportunity to get full cover in return when damage occurs to your belongings. You’ll be reimbursed even if you cancel the trip for any emergency situations. Moreover, the tourists will be in the safe zone and travel worry-free. But before agreeing with any travel insurance policy, you must read the documents thoroughly.
Hi Megha,
Yes, as always with any kind of insurance it’s important to read the fine print to make sure you know what it covers and what it doesn’t.
Thanks,
Asher.
thanks for sharing this information. Insurance is a must for everyone if you are travelling from one country to another. To know more about India you may visit https://fusion.werindia.com/