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Know the facts for winter sports travel insurance

14th November 2011 Print

People planning a winter sports holiday are being urged to ensure they have cover for all of the activities they plan to undertake whilst on holiday.  A number of winter sport activities are not covered as standard in winter sports travel insurance policies which could leave travellers in difficulty if they need to make a claim.

Specialist insurers, World First Travel Insurance are warning travellers to check their policy documents for exclusions.  Resorts can now offer much more than skiing and travellers may wrongly assume they are covered for all of the activities provided by the resort. 

Martin Rothwell, Managing Partner at World First Travel Insurance says, “Many people take out standard winter sports cover when planning a winter break but not all of them read the key facts document and fully understand what they are and are not covered for. When buying a policy it is always worth considering what you might do to make sure you have maximum protection in case anything goes wrong.

“It is important to really understand what exactly you are buying in your winter sports policy as there are so many options.  A standard winter sports travel insurance policy from World First covers a range of activities and can be added to with additional sport package options.”

World First Travel Insurance covers skiing, ice skating and tobogganing. Unlike many other insurers it also covers off-piste skiing and boarding. The policy can also provide cover up to the value of £400 for unexpected piste closure due to bad weather and travellers can reclaim up to £400 for their ski pass if illness or injury means they have to curtail their holiday.

Activities that are not covered as standard include ski jumping, ice hockey, skeleton or bobsleigh, and any form of competing and climbing.

It is possible to amend travel insurance cover whilst on holiday. If, once at the resort, there are more activities on offer than previously thought, such as heli-skiing, travellers should be able to phone their insurance provider and add additional cover to the existing policy.  Changes to the cover will incur charges but the costs will be minimal compared to the costs if no cover is in pace.

Standard annual multi trip travel insurance from World First includes cover for up to 17days for winter sports and covers people from theft or damage of equipment as well as up to £5 million for medical costs. World First can provide winter sports cover for people up to the age of 69 and, as a specialist medical insurer, can cover most pre existing medical conditions.

Prices start from £85 for an annual family policy with winter sports cover included, and £70 for individual cover.  Single trip policies start from £40.

For more information, visit first-world.co.uk.