{"id":157,"date":"2019-01-17T12:00:56","date_gmt":"2019-01-17T12:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nomadicmatt.com\/?p=151588"},"modified":"2019-01-17T12:00:56","modified_gmt":"2019-01-17T12:00:56","slug":"why-you-should-get-travel-insurance-when-you-travel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ourfunjourney.com\/index.php\/2019\/01\/17\/why-you-should-get-travel-insurance-when-you-travel\/","title":{"rendered":"Why You Should Get Travel Insurance When You Travel"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nPosted:<\/strong> 1\/17\/2019 | January 17th, 2019<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve written about buying travel insurance a lot. I\u2019ve talked about how to find the right policy<\/a>, discussed why World Nomads is my favorite company<\/a>, and answered a few of the most common questions on the subject.<\/a><\/p>\n

But while I\u2019ve talked about the practical \u201chow-to\u201d part of getting insurance, I’ve never really focused on the why<\/em> of travel insurance. <\/p>\n

So let\u2019s talk about that today.<\/p>\n

Why<\/em> should you buy travel insurance? <\/p>\n

Why is it important? <\/p>\n

What\u2019s in it for you? <\/p>\n

Peace of mind.<\/p>\n

And the potential not to go broke.<\/p>\n

And the ability to get care when you need it. <\/p>\n

Many of us believe we\u2019re invincible: we think we\u2019ll never get sick on the road, robbed, or be involved in an accident. As someone tweeted to me “I’ve traveled extensively for more than a decade and never once ever *considered* buying travel insurance. Still no issues.” <\/p>\n

But the past is not prologue. <\/p>\n

I never thought I\u2019d break my camera or pop an eardrum while scuba diving. My friend never thought he\u2019d break his back. My other friends didn\u2019t plan on bike and car accidents, or getting their stuff stolen, or their dad dying and having to suddenly fly home. <\/p>\n

But all those things did<\/em> happen. <\/p>\n

And travel insurance was there for each of them. <\/p>\n

You\u2019re not Superman or Wonder Woman. You can\u2019t fight off criminals, bend steel, or fly. You can\u2019t fall from the sky and walk away. <\/p>\n

When you\u2019re a budget traveler, spending a few hundred extra dollars on something that only might be used can be a hard pill to swallow. When every penny counts<\/a>, the temptation is to just roll the dice and hope nothing happens. <\/p>\n

I can give you thousands of examples of people who bought travel insurance and were thankful they did.<\/p>\n

I can also give you thousands of examples of people who didn\u2019t buy it and regretted it when something went wrong. <\/p>\n

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Travel is all about the unknown \u2014 and that unknown is a double edge sword bringing exciting adventures or disaster.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t fall for the logical fallacy that because something hasn\u2019t happened before, it\u2019s not likely to happen in the future. <\/p>\n

The past is NOT prologue. <\/p>\n

Just because you haven\u2019t gotten sick on the road<\/a> doesn\u2019t mean you won\u2019t get sick in the future. If you\u2019ve never had something stolen from you, it doesn\u2019t mean it won\u2019t happen in the future. <\/p>\n

Getting sick happens all the time. <\/p>\n

Getting robbed happens all the time. <\/p>\n

Getting injured happens all the time.<\/p>\n

Getting delayed in transit happens all the time. <\/p>\n

Breaking something happens all the time. <\/p>\n

Travel insurance will be there in all those situations. It is comprehensive coverage that will protect you when you get sick or robbed or hurt, suffer an accident, have your flight delayed or canceled, or need to cancel your trip because of an emergency. <\/p>\n

Travelers also often think, \u201cWell, insurance is cheaper in other parts of the world, so I can just pay for it out of pocket. It\u2019s all socialized health care, right?\u201d <\/p>\n

Wrong.<\/p>\n

U.S. health insurance doesn\u2019t cover you overseas. Neither do all those socialized medical programs in other countries. <\/p>\n

When you travel, you\u2019re not covered. You\u2019re still going to have to pay out of pocket, and if you\u2019re seriously ill or have to go home, those costs will add up! <\/p>\n

When you need casts and airlifts and serious medical attention, it\u2019s not cheap. I mean, here are just emergency medical evacuation costs in some popular destinations around the world:<\/p>\n