Brits go mad for adventure holidays

As winter sports fanatics prepare to strap on their skis and snowboards and the thoughts of many others turn to planning summer trips, research from travel insurer MORE TH>N reveals that one in eight of us are planning to go on adventure holidays such as safaris, scuba diving, ice-climbing or dog sledding this year.

And it’s not just the young age group that are taking up these holidays; the research reveals that one in eight of the over-45 age group are planning on going on an adventure holiday this year.

Yet the research reveals that one in eight holiday makers still don’t have travel insurance to protect them. And it’s the young age group that are the worst for having no cover, with one in six never taking out travel insurance, either because they forget or because they simply think they don’t need it.

Not being covered can be a costly gamble. MORE TH>N reveals that the average travel claim is £440, with some winter sports claims costing as much as £15,000 for a broken leg in the United States of America.

To make it easier to get affordable cover, MORE TH>N has launched a new travel insurance policy offering three levels of protection - Economy, Standard and Premier - designed to meet the various needs of the UK’s ever changing travelling habits.

The new travel insurance starts from £8.93 for Economy cover, £10.21 for Standard cover and £11.03 for Premier cover for single trips. The cost of the average holiday for Brits in 2006 was £500 so cover works out at around only 2 per cent of the holiday cost. For those who take more than one trip a year annual cover is also available and customers can choose an individual policy or family travel insurance.

Both the Standard and Premier policies can be upgraded include the following so adventure holidaymakers are protected:

Winter sports – covering extras such as piste closure
Golf cover – covering extras such as golf equipment and pre-paid green fees
Business Traveller – offering higher baggage delay and personal baggage limits.

Keira Clark, head of travel insurance at MORE TH>N, said: “As a nation, we’re going on more adventurous and more risky winter holidays now than ever before. But our statistics show that despite this, one in eight holiday makers are still not taking out any form of travel insurance. Cover is absolutely crucial with these types of trips. We have developed a brand new range of cover for travel insurance to make sure people are protected – even those on a tight budget.”

The Standard and Premier annual policies can also cover holiday-makers for up to 90 days per trip for those that might be taking a sabbatical or extended vacation. Premier policies also include extras such as cattery and kennel fees cover for those leaving pets behind.

To help get trips off to a great start, MORE TH>N also offers customers preferential deals on airport car parking, airport hotels and lounge upgrades via its website or by phone. For more information on MORE TH>N travel insurance visit, morethan.com/travel.