Health and Travel Insurance for Those Living Abroad

A look at why it’s important for Britons to ensure that they have the health and travel insurances in place for when they move or travel abroad

As a race the British have always had a bit of a reputation abroad.  We’re not considered quiet like the Swedes or polite like the Japanese, and if there’s any requirement to form a conga at 3 in the morning it is usually a Brit at the head of the line! 

But whilst we have a reputation as international “bon viveurs,” we should still be taking better care of ourselves and ensuring that our health and travel insurance cover is up to date and covers the destinations we’re travelling or moving to.

So, in order to ensure you stay safe and well overseas, here’s our guide to health and travel insurance for those living abroad.

Foreign Office figures show that during the period between April 2006 and March 2007 8,304 Brits needed assistance during trips to America, 6,710 passports were lost in Spain, 602 Brits were hospitalised when on holiday in Greece and 1,591 died in Spain.  Add to these rather worrying figures those from a recent Nationwide study that show that one in three Brits are taking holidays abroad without taking out travel insurance.  The Foreign Office is concerned that this figure will rise due to the current credit crunch.  All very worrying indeed…

Of those going abroad who do take out travel insurance, 70% elect to buy single trip policies although half of them go on more than one trip a year, so by buying an annual travel insurance policy you can reduce your costs.  After all, many expatriates who do move abroad make the most of the opportunity and travel around the other nations and places of interest in their new vicinity.

When we have reached our very own ‘place in the sun,’ we tend not to be very sensible about storing our valuables.  The majority of holiday hotels will have some form of safety deposit box or safe, but 36% of us think that keeping our valuables in our pockets or stuffed down our boxers is a better option!  But then it probably is a better option than the 12% who leave them in a suitcase, the 9% who leave them in a drawer - and it’s definitely better than the 2% who leave them on the bedside cabinet.  Think on!

Brits are also becoming more adventurous with their annual forays into the outside world and travelling to more ‘exciting’ and off the beaten track destinations according to a Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) survey.  During the last 5 years around 12% of Brits have travelled to locations listed on the FCO “don’t go” list.  A further 8% are planning on visiting destinations on the list within the next 12 months!  While this may be classed as “extreme adventure tourism” it can also provide some interesting cultural exchanges, with around 50% of travellers visiting FCO “don’t go” list destinations surprisingly becoming the victims of some sort of crime.  But ignorance as ever is bliss! 

If your holiday destination appears on the FCO list it’s likely that your travel insurance is invalid anyway, 50% of the people surveyed didn’t know about the list and the other 50% stated that even if they did know they’d go anyway.  Brits….don’t you just love ‘em!

The upshot of all of this is that wherever you’re travelling to or thinking of living abroad, you should consider getting yourself covered for all eventualities just in case you can’t fight off your natural instincts and you end up getting yourself into trouble!