The Importance of Looking For The Best Travel Insurance For Skiers

Hundreds of thousands of people every year go skiingwithout adequate cover. This is usually because they buy theirinsurance through the travel agents which sell them their holiday.These agents are left to go unregulated in the way they sell insurance,so many people quite easily find themselves in a situation where theirinsurance policy fails to give them the cover they are looking for.

Analysts say that over a million people left Britainfor a skiing holiday on the mountains last winter, and half of thesebooked their holiday through a travel agent. This suggests that thereare many people out there who are hitting the slopes with insufficientinsurance coverage.

You’ll find that if you are buying insurance as partof a holiday package with your tour operator or travel agent you willlikely be told to simply tick a box on a form in order to get the deal.You won’t be told what you are paying for, nor will you be informed ofthe terms and conditions in any meaningful detail.

To add to the complications, it is common for travelagents to fail to tell customers that pre-existing medical conditionsneed to be declared. This will usually be specified in the policy’ssmall print, but most people will not look at this until it is toolate.

The Financial Services Authority regulates theinsurance industry and tries to ensure that you’ll get decent value formoney and a good service from your insurer. It is important to rememberhowever that the sale of insurance through travel agents inunregulated, and you’ll have no access to the Financial OmbudsmanService should the worst happen. If you need to make a claim thisinsecurity could become a problem.

The Association of British Travel Agents has in placea compulsory exam for any agents that want to sell insurance. Howeverthe policies they sell are often limited in scope and can offer poorvalue for money.

A lot of people remain unclear about what theirtravel insurance gives them, and find that when they need to make aclaim their policy is not as good as they thought when they originallybought it. Ultimately what is important is that you always look aroundthe market for the best deal, and never simply accept what your travelagent or tour operator puts in front of you.