If you plan to take to the mountains for a skiing holiday soon, you’ll need an insurance policy which covers you sufficiently to give you piece of mind that you’ll be protected if anything goes wrong. Your travel agent may well give you an offer, but you should always see what else is available. You may find something out there which is cheaper or which gives you better cover.
When you look around however there are certain things that are important to pay close attention to. Some policies will offer you 24 hour assistance, giving you support round the clock should you have any emergency. In the event of an emergency this is enormously helpful, as it will give you one point of contact who will promptly pay any medical bills or doctors fees and who will arrange for repatriation if necessary.
However you should take care to note that ski insurance which offers this kind of support usually carries with it a requirement that you notify the assistance company within 24 hours of any injury or hospitalisation.
If you don’t follow the terms precisely, you may lose your right to claim. Some insurers will automatically cover under-18s for free under their parents’ policy. If your family takes skiing holidays on a regular basis, this will be helpful in reducing your costs. However it’s possible that this free addition may only cover children when they are actually travelling with parents: if your children take a skiing holiday as part of a school trip for example they may not be covered by the policy.
Again, study the terms carefully. Ski insurance usually gives cover for your equipment if it is stolen from outside bars and restaurants, but you might find it is not covered if you leave it out overnight and not properly locked away in a safe place in your hotel. You have to do all you can to deter thieves as your equipment is expensive. But make sure you follow the terms of your policy when it comes to keeping your equipment safe so that if anything is stolen you are in a better position to make a claim.
You should also study your policy to see how you’ll be reimbursed if you do make a claim. Generally, stolen equipment is not replaced with new, but rather you’ll be recompensed with a figure calculated from the age and current value on the market of what is stolen. Normally, liability cover will be included in your ski insurance. However you will find that different policies incorporate different levels of cover.
Make sure you know what level of liability you are covered for, and if it is insufficient then you should look into extending it. This all shows how important it is to study your policy and look it at with great care to find out what your terms are. That way you can ensure you are well covered, so that you can enjoy your holiday without worry.
