Insuring Your Vacation Property

Even though you don't live there year-round, it is a smart idea to have good coverage on your vacation property.

For the most part, insurance coverage for a holiday home works the same as the coverage on your primary residence. There are, however, a few key differences in the type of coverage you can select for a second home based on how often and for what purpose you use the property.

Some things you will want to consider when deciding which coverage is right for you include:

1. Do you only use the property during the summer months? 

2. Do you make regular weekend visits? 

3. Do you rent to other occupants throughout the year?

Keep in Mind: 

1. In contrast to the comprehensive policy on most primary residences, insurance coverage for a holiday home typically includes Named Perils coverage instead of All Risk coverage. This limited coverage only insures against the risks specified in the policy, such as fire or windstorm. 

2. Many insurers will require that you insure your primary residence with them before they will insure a holiday home. 

3. Because you only occupy your holiday home part of the time, you will likely pay more for coverage against risks like water damage, burglary or vandalism. 

4. Typical Exclusions from Vacation Property Insurance

The following items are usually not covered in an insurance policy for your home away from home: 

1. Sewer back-up 

2. Perishable foods stored in the freezer 

3. Fence and yard equipment 

4. Landscaping items such as trees and plants 

5. Choosing the Right Coverage

Four types of coverage you should consider for your holiday home include: 

Personal Liability Coverage

Protecting yourself against accidents that might happen to people on your property is the primary function of personal or third-person liability coverage. This coverage also protects you if a fire happens at your vacation property and spreads causing damage to surrounding property.

Contents Coverage 

This coverage protects any items you keep at your vacation property. Any items that you transport back and forth from your primary residence to your vacation property would be covered under your primary home insurance policy. This type of coverage may automatically be included with your secondary home insurance package, but if your belongings exceed the value of that coverage, you can purchase this additional coverage. The perils insured for your vacation property will generally be less inclusive than on your home.

Detached Private Structure 

Detached structures on your holiday home like garages, sheds or boat houses may have limited or no coverage under your vacation property insurance package. This additional coverage will help ensure you have adequate coverage for these structures.

Replacement Value 

This coverage allows you to replace covered items at current market prices without deduction for depreciation.

If you have any questions about insuring your vacation property, please feel free to give us a call.

There is only so much that you can do to prevent damage to your home. Accidents do happen, and you need to make sure that you have the right insurance coverage, at the most affording prices. Even though they are the recipient of the Readers Choice Award in 2011 and 2012 for best insurance company, Steele and Ferraro Insurance Brokers doesn't sell you insurance, they help you buy it! They help you find the exact coverage you need, at the best price available in the market. Discover how Cambridge insurance brokers can save you money on all of your insurance need

Tips to Purchase Your Travel Insurance

Buying travel insurance is not as simple as you think. Firstly, it is way more different than buying an article you've long desired and wait for its price to drop soon. It's even different from buying an airplane ticket where you go online and do a price comparison to look for the cheapest one.

People who are new to it often find it very hard to get their way around it. Firstly, they struggle with the idea of whether they really need to get it or not. Most travelers believe they don't really need it and coverage is simply spending more money unnecessarily.

To solve your confusions, here is an ultimate guide to buying travel insurance.

1. Do You Need Insurance?

To begin with, there are many countries that won't let you in if you don't have it. But the chances are that you'll get away with many destinations that allow you to get away without it.

So do you wonder why you still need that? You're right in thinking so. But it's mandatory to be traveling with valid travel insurance. You plan a vacation because you want to escape all the stresses of life and have the time of your life. That is great thinking, but might not always end up being how you've planned.

Accidents never come with an invitation and are never welcomed. But they can become very bitter if you're not prepared to battle with them. This is where travel insurance comes extremely useful.

2. Buy it Early

We all refrain from buying travel insurance because it is expensive. One of the sensible ways of saving on your buy is to get your travel insurance early. You'd still be only paying for the time you're traveling. 

However, you would still be covered for that time free of any charge.

So if you choose to purchase your insurance three months prior to flying, any changes to your travel plans are likely to be covered by your insurance company. It's better not to wait last minute for things to go wrong and get your insurance beforehand.

3. Purchase Online

Nearly all of us admire online purchasing simply because there are plenty of discounts available. This is why it may be a great option to buy your insurance cover online.

However, this is not as simple as it may sound. Online purchases are mostly done with a low price indicator. But when buying travel insurance, there's way more than just looking at the price. Before making the purchase, it is a must to carefully examine your policy and ensure you've studied it in depth.

Domestic as well as international traveling must be worry free if you truly wish to enjoy it. But when you purchase your insurance cover, it is very important that you can fully trust your company with their policies and know exactly what you've opted for. Once you experience this, you'd never go anywhere without travel insurance!

How To Buy an Insurance for Travel?

An often overrated yet essential part of any kind of vacation preparation is the inquiry of insurance policy. Many holidaymakers, having had initial- or second-hand experience of the lots of caveats the market can toss at an unsuspecting purchaser, prefer to pass it up altogether; a lot of the remainder are just too mystified by the distinctions of most plans to be able to create an option.

But, acquiring some form of plan before taking a trip is vital, in order to safeguard oneself against any sort of eventuality that might occur throughout the travel. This is specifically important in the case of travel insurance policy for family holidays, as these include children; the security of their kids against crashes or illness will definitely be front as well as centre in the majority of parents' minds, making the acquisition of a policy of this kind paramount.

Nevertheless, parents and also guardians which locate themselves in this sort of scenario must not simply choose the first type of traveling insurance for family breaks they can discover. Similar to every little thing else in this area, it is very important to carry out some research in order to discover the best match for their needs among the options on offer. Hereof, one of the most crucial aspects to keep in mind is destination, as visiting different parts of the globe might cause the need for not the same sorts of stipulations to be consisted of in the plan.

Health And Safety

As with every sort of vacation, the most important facets to take into account when buying travel insurance coverage for family vacations are health and wellness, particularly where the youngsters of the group are worried. It is common knowledge that the majority of claims, whether effective or otherwise, revolve around healthcare or physical accidents, and also father and mothers specifically will want to make sure these areas are covered.

That is why it comes to be particularly important to do localized study into the location in which the vacation is to happen. European or North American destinations could not be as well questionable or existing anything uncommon here, however the situation alters rather should the vacation be planned for an Eastern, African and even Caribbean or South American location.

This is because, obviously, the kinds of diseases discovered in those continents and places are considerably not the same from those found in the Old World, as well as for that reason call for special sorts of therapy. Parents seeking to insure their youngsters need to consequently take this right into consideration when getting a plan

The Right Insurance for a French Family Walking Holiday

France's varied countryside, dotted with picturesque villages and rolling hills, makes it a perfect place for a walking holiday. Choose somewhere with easy terrain and plenty of things to visit nearby, and you can have an idyllic - not to mention cheap - holiday, as suitable for pensioners as it is for young children.

By their gentle nature, walking holidays have a low injury rate, but, as with any holiday, accidents can and do happen. Thankfully, these injuries are usually minor, but walkers can present with sprained ankles, minor fractures, Baker's cysts and other repetitive strain injuries, as well as (depending on the area and the time of year), environmental complaints such as hypothermia or heatstroke. Most injuries tend to affect heavier or older people with more wear and tear on their joints, while the latter two tend to affect younger members of the family who are physically smaller and whose bodies are less adept at controlling their internal environment.

For this reason, for UK travellers, every member of the family, regardless of age or walking experience, should be equipped with an EHIC to cover any emergency treatment. The EHIC, however, may not cover every eventuality, so even if you're travelling on the cheap, family travel insurance should be set in place in order to avoid any unexpected medical costs.

Visits to the Doctor or the Hospital

While the majority of your holiday will be spent happily exploring French villages and the countryside with the family, there's always the possibility that you'll need to see a doctor - whether for a walking related injury or an unrelated complaint. If you do have to see the doctor, EHIC or not, it's possible that you'll need to pay up front and claim a refund later. If this happens, you can either present your EHIC and any relevant paperwork at the local Caisse Primaire D'Assurance Maladie (CPAM) office, or you can claim your refund upon your return to the UK.

You should be aware that it's possible you'll only be eligible to be refunded a percentage of the cost (up to 70%), meaning that, while you won't be completely out of pocket, what you do have to pay may not be cheap. A cheap family travel insurance policy can cover emergency doctor visits, but it's worth checking the details before you travel, or your low-cost walking holiday could end up more expensive than anticipated

While we all hope to have an incident-free and healthy holiday, sometimes visits to the hospital are, regrettably, necessary. If this happens, simply present your EHIC and in many cases you won't have to pay anything refundable up front - saving you the bother of having to chase a refund later. There may be a non-refundable payment comprising 20% of the total cost required, however, which you will have to pay even with presentation of an EHIC. This is not always the case, but even if it is, even a cheap family travel insurance policy should cover it. If you're unfortunate enough to have to stay in hospital for a few nights, there's a charge of 16 euros per night that's not covered by EHIC.

Prescriptions

If you're prescribed anything by a doctor while you're on holiday, the cost of filling the prescription should fall within EHIC's remit. Just be sure to fill the prescription at a pharmacy that operates within France's national healthcare system so as to ensure that EHIC will cover it. Pharmacies are very easy to find in France and there are usually several in all but the smallest villages.

As long as you cover your bases appropriately with both an EHIC and private travel insurance for your family, any unforeseen health issues you may encounter on your French walking holiday should not leave you too much out of pocket.

Cancelled Trip: Can Travel Insurance Help?

Imagine yourself flying to South Korea to finally watch a K-pop girl group for the first time, in person. The concert ticket was bought and you're ready to catch the fever and enjoy this unique and exquisite musical experience. Unfortunately, upon arriving to Seoul, you were informed that for a certain reason, the concert won't push through.

What if you are attending a Digital Start-up Conference in Berlin, but before you board the plane, you were informed that for a number of reasons, the organizers were prevented to set up and it cannot push through.

In cases of events cancellation, travel insurance can definitely help as it offers coverage for cancelled events.

For a claim to be valid, the following conditions should be met:

The event cancellation should be beyond the control of the insured.

The event cannot take place before your flight back to your home country.

The organizer should provide a written confirmation that the event was cancelled.

There are two (2) circumstances that can occur when availing this insurance coverage. These are:

Event was cancelled before departure - If you were informed before travelling to the venue, the maximum sum insured per person shall amount to £400 for Unused Event Tickets and specific limits as indicated in the insurance policy that covers unutilized travel arrangements such as flights, accommodations, and excursions, as well as other additional travel expenses associated with the trip.

Event was cancelled after arrival at the country/city of destination - For this case, up to 50% of the travel costs and seven (7) days of accommodation will be covered by the insurance policy.

Since this is an additional cover, do check if your standard or comprehensive policy has this feature. If it doesn't, you can always contact the insurer to include this feature.

It's noteworthy that your claim cannot be considered if the event is re-scheduled before your flight back home. Also, the insurance should only indemnify those that are not reimbursed by the organizers. The claim also doesn't include costs of food and drink, as these are regular, recurring, everyday expenses.

To experience an event cancellation, specially one you have financially and emotionally (significantly) invested in it can be heart-breaking. That's why it's worthwhile to ensure that we are able to recover our pre-payments upon the occurrence of this cancellation and one can do that through the purchase of the right travel insurance policy with event cancellation cover.

Delayed Flight - Only Insurance Can Cover You

If you are an airline traveler, chances are, you have experienced a delay.

Of course, a delay in airplane travel can mean different things to different people. For some, it is a bothersome inconvenience. Still others incur more than this. Business people can lose deals and related money; holiday travelers can lose days of their adventure, students, miss classes and the individual list of damages goes on according to the person.

If you think you have one iota of a chance of a lawsuit, think again.

Airlines do not legally owe you one cent of compensation for any suffering or loss if your scheduled flight is delayed. This is due to the fact that the airlines do not guarantee flight schedules. Of course, doing this would get them in deep trouble because like all of us, they are not capable of changing wind or hail patterns or averting snow storms, hurricanes or any form of bad weather that can interrupt air travel, departure times, as well as arrival hour. Moreover, mechanical troubles can appear, seemingly out of nowhere.

Liability for the above events is out of the picture when it comes to scheduled flights.

"It's simply out of our control," says everyone in the airline industry, from the executives to the pilots and flight attendants, to the maintenance men and booking agents.

While an airline may go out of its way to provide food and drinks during a flight delay - or even coupons for a discount at the local hotel or motel, it's a rare event that sees them compensating a passenger for a postponed airplane ride, regardless of the passengers' important meeting or lost vacation time.

So, how does a traveler protect him or herself from the losses incurred by a delayed flight?

The answer, my fellow air traveler, is travel insurance that includes travel delay coverage.

Designed to compensate the delayed air passenger for food and shelter costs during a covered layover, this type of insurance protects when the delay is due to:

• Bad weather that prevents accurate departure and arrival time 

• Missing important documents of a passenger, like a passport of visa 

• A sick passenger that needs to be quarantined 

• Skyjacking or hijacking or terrorism 

• Sudden airline employee strikes 

• Natural disasters or catastrophes 

• Civil unrest 

• Travel shutdowns imposed by government officials as a result of a state of emergency or weather conditions.

Travel time is never a guaranteed surety. Nonetheless, acquiring the right type of insurance coverage can protect you from the related losses.

Speak to an experienced independent agency about travel insurance that includes coverage for airline delays.

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Tips On How To Save Money On Your Travel Insurance

Travel insurance should be part and parcel of any holiday plan. This type of insurance can give you peace of mind while you are travelling and when you are already on your vacation. However, a lot of people (and possible holidaymakers) decide to avoid getting travel insurance for one particular reason: its rate. Travel coverage can indeed be expensive, especially for people who will be investing in one for the first time.

There are some tips that you can follow though to save some money on the travel insurance you will get. These helpful tips include the following:

Think about whether your trip is expensive or extensive enough to warrant buying insurance. If you will just be spending a couple of days for a vacation or business trip to a nearby city, you won't really need coverage. But if you will be travelling to a different country for at least a week for business or leisure purposes, it would be wise to get insurance.

Shop for different insurance policies online or with the help of your insurance broker. Different insurance companies offer various types of coverage and rates. Don't be contented with the first policy you see or read about on the Internet or the one recommended to you by your broker. Compare and study the product prices. You will then be able to find a coverage that falls within your budget when you research well and make the most out of all available resources.

Research and take advantage of member discounts offered by health insurance funds. There are various health insurance funds that offer member discounts. If you already have health coverage, find out if your provider also offers travel insurance and if you can get discount when you acquire this from them as well.

Don't be afraid to negotiate prices. You can always try to bargain with your insurance broker to get the coverage you want and the one that fits within your budget. You can also negotiate deals with the insurance company as well. You will find that some companies are very flexible with their rates. And you can work out a deal with them that suit your needs.

Finally, if you will be going on several trips every year, consider getting a multi-trip policy. Multi-trip coverage comes at lower rates when compared to getting insurance valid for only one trip. Although the initial outlay can be higher, you will still save money in the long run by investing in multi-trip insurance. And you won't have to worry about finding and investing in the right coverage every time you travel.