Insurance
 

(The following information is additional and extracted from the 'before you go' section, related to backpackers travel insurance, click on the link to read full info if you wish).

It goes without saying you need travel insurance for any trip, but it's not something you should be sorting out at the last minute as policies vary significantly and you need to spend a little time reading all the small print. For example, to find out if cash and indeed any of your valuables are covered - which they are often not on the very cheap policies - and how much the excess is that you would be expected to pay should the worst happen.

The key features you should be looking....   Medical expenditures: this should be minimum million USD that it includes any possible rescue mission and ambulance costs to get you treatment. This sometimes includes dental which is useful but sometimes costs extra.   Repatriation costs: Money to cover bringing you back home in a worst case scenario.   Lost of valuables: here the important one, Lost of money, digital camera, luggage, etc. But don't expect too much, there will be a limit on your claim and certainly a limit for any one item. You will need a police report and your receipts to make a successful claim that will probably see you getting back half what you lost. Obviously this is where the most fraud happens. Nevertheless it's good to have and some companies are better than others.   Cancellation costs: if your flight has been cancelled and you are left behind you'll be provided with a hotel, new tickets, etc.   Countries of coverage: some countries like USA, Canada and Japan are excluded because the medical costs are high.   Price of the policy: shop around, prices vary enormously between different companies. There is plenty of competition.

Personal liability: should you be in need of legal assistance (say you rent a bike, have an accident and a third party gets injured), you'll be insured up to a certain amount. The standard is 1-2 million USD.   Policy excess: the initial amount you pay per every claim. This is normal and there is no getting away from a reasonable policy excess.   The underwriter: Always read the fine print searching for the underwriter. The underwriter guy behind the scene who will pay up. You are looking for a big international insurance house, a secure, established, well-known institution.   Contact number: make sure they have a 24hours free hotline you can dial in case of an emergency. You will need to call first before accepting any medical assistance.   Extendibility: on some policies you can, should you decide to travel for a little bit longer than expected, buy new months of coverage once on the road. This is well recommended.

Cheap policies are fine for the important health cover aspect, but don't expect to have your $200 camera covered or any previous medical condition. Conversely on expensive policies, don't expect your $2000 camera to be covered unless you have made special measures for it.

One recommended and well-known crowd are Columbus, but new companies are always coming onto the scene (e.g. Globe Link) and the market is very competitive. One such newer start up that comes highly recommended from several e-mailed comments and personal experience is World Nomads. They claim to be set up with backpackers in mind. You can do things like extend policies indefinitely and/or make claims online whilst still on the road. They offer a money back guarantee, cover the likes of surfing, diving, trekking and bikes (which many don't as standard) and you can buy from any country in the world. All of which is useful and worth checking out. It can also be said (after years of comparison) that their terms and rates are favourable.

It is also worth noting that benefits vary depending on the country you buy their policy from, for example in the USA their maximum item cover is lower than elsewhere - however there are solutions to get around this, see comment.

Whatever policy you buy, the geographic regions included may vary the price; try to get a policy that excludes North America or just a Europe policy that covers places such as Israel, the Caucasus, and North Africa. Be warned that starting a new policy for another geographic region is often not possible during your trip (i.e. having a cheap European policy and then travelling into Africa/Asia). Only a few companies will give you cover on-line while you are away (i.e. extend the length of your policy if you don't know how long your trip will be). Multi-trip year long policies limit the length of your trip to 30 or 60 days (although 90 days can be found), making them fairly useless for many long haul trips. Good insurance with loads of protection is normally quite expensive. Again, the cheaper policies will not cover personal possessions, only medical costs.

You can get a quote direct from World Nomads site by clicking here, or otherwise you can use the form below. Either way you are always advised to shop around. You could probably find cheaper, but perhaps not better. 

(Please note: the following information is in part replicated from information from the World Nomads site)...

 

World Nomads travel insurance Recommended by Travelindependent and many others including Lonely Planet, World Nomads travel insurance is designed for adventurous independent travellers. With cover for overseas medical, evacuation, baggage and activities such as skiing and snowboarding, you can buy, extend and claim online even after you've left home. Unlike many companies how have strong regional boundaries WorldNomads insurance is available to travellers from over 150 countries and cover a wide range of adventurous activities. Some great features we really liked are: Buy online while away from home Available to people from over 150 countries Designed for student and gap year travellers Patented online claims and extensions Covers overseas medical, evacuation and baggage Covers adventure activities such as skiing & snowboarding Underwritten by Allianz among others (depending on where you are from in the world), World Nomads offers good value travel insurance in over 150 countries. With 24/7 assistance anywhere on the planet provided and online claims and extensions from anywhere in the world while you are still away.   Low cost. Great value. World Nomads offers some of the best value online travel insurance available. The prices reflect both the efficiencies of the internet and the level of cover, which has been designed to meet the needs of young, adventurous, long-term travellers.   World Nomads travel insurance. More than you expect. Worldwide cover The level of worldwide cover in our travel insurance policy recognises the needs of young, independent and adventurous travellers. So there is cover for skiing and diving rather than for travel delays and missed connections, which most world nomads take in their stride as part of the trip. And of course, everything is online. From changing your details to making a claim, you can do it all online. Cover your Adventure World Nomads travel insurance covers every country in the world, and from Bungee Jumping in New Zealand to white-water rafting in Nepal or skiing in Colorado, we also cover most adventure sports. Find out if what you want to do is covered with our simple guide to adventure. Extend and claim online, while you are still away Travel plans often change. That is what's exciting. Unlike other insurers, who don't allow you to extend or purchase again outside your country of residence, World Nomads allows you to extend your policy indefinitely. And since you will probably be away for a while we recognised that you can't wait until you get home to make a claim, so we put it all online. You can submit claims, but more importantly also liaise with the claims department until it is settled. And you can do so 24/7 from anywhere in the world. Digital camera's, iPod's and computers Because it's your duty to make your friends mad with envy, you probably travel with a digital camera to email your pictures back home. It's why we cover such items as well as iPods, laptops and other valuable equipment 24/7 Global Emergency Assistance 24/7 Global Emergency Assistance is provided by Mondial Assistance, the largest travel assistance company in the world, with over 35 call centres in 28 countries. Underwritten by Allianz For peace of mind, World Nomads travel insurance is underwritten by Allianz Australia Insurance Limited (ABN52097227177. AFS Licence No.245631).

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