Hospital pass: don't get tackled without insurance

World Cup fevered rugby fans planning to make the trip to France this month should make sure they obtain insurance before travelling, warns Halifax Travel Insurance.

As most trips to the World Cup will be short breaks many fans might not feel the need to take out travel insurance. However, whether you're going on a short trip or a long holiday, many of the same risks still apply. And if you're planning another holiday in the next twelve months, it can make more sense to take out annual cover.

Contrary to popular belief, the general price difference between a single trip policy and an annual trip policy can be very small. In fact, for some foreign holidays, it works out cheaper to get an annual trip policy than a single trip policy.

Vicky Emmott, senior manager of underwriting for Halifax Travel Insurance said: “Excited rugby fans travelling to France this month will no doubt check, double check, and triple check their passports and match tickets before they go, but one thing that often gets overlooked is travel insurance."

"With more and more of us taking short breaks abroad, annual travel insurance is proving a more attractive proposition for many people. With little difference in price and in some cases actually cheaper, it makes sense to take out annual cover."

"The main benefit of annual cover is that you only need to take out your policy once a year to be insured for as many trips as you like within a 12 month period, allowing rugby fans to focus all their attention on getting to the game!"

Rugby World Cup trivia

The Rugby World Cup 2007 is set to run for six weeks from September 7th until October 20th and is likely attract hundreds of thousands of visitors.

The first tournament was held in 1987, hosted by both Australia and New Zealand, and is now contested every four years.

The inaugural match took place on May 22nd between New Zealand and Italy at Eden Park in Auckland, a match the hosts won convincingly 70-6.

France host the sixth Rugby World Cup since the quadrennial tournament began in 1987.

England are the current World Champions, after their dramatic 20-17 win over Australia in 2003.

Australia has lifted the William Webb Ellis Trophy more times than anyone else – winning the World Cup on two occasions. The other winners include England (2003), South Africa (1995) and New Zealand (1987).