Travellers better off buying in advance

When it comes to buying travel insurance, many experts agree: it’s better to buy in advance. Although having some insurance purchased at the last minute is certainly better than having none at all, buying a policy as one of the first stages of planning a trip ensures that travellers obtain valuable cancellation insurance.

According to a recent survey conducted by Moneysupermarket.com, two out of every three British travellers travel without cancellation insurance, generally because they bought their insurance policies at the last minute.

The statistics indicate that up to a third of Britons could lose a lot of money if their holiday is unavoidably cancelled because of death in the family or a serious illness, for example.

Data collected by the price comparison website indicates that the majority of travellers are waiting until very late in the game to organize their insurance. Almost 47 per cent of travellers buy coverage the week before their holiday while 63 per cent do so only two weeks before travelling.

The head of insurance research for Moneysupermarket.com, Peter Gerrard, said: “It is worth noting you may not be covered if you have cancelled your holiday because of any pre-existing medical conditions, the death or illness of a pet, or if you have any travel phobias, stress or anxiety.”

In addition to problems at home which might cause a traveller to cancel a trip, airport strikes and political unrest in countries like Kenya have forced people to abandon travel plans in the past. Without cancellation insurance, travellers can be left with empty pockets in such cases.