Seat 19A on that international flight to London is starting to look more familiar
than your Lazy Boy. Before you realize it you’ve become a frequent overseas business
traveler. Most of the time your travel plans go smoothly, but how long before there
is a bump in the road?
What happens if you get injured or sick during your travels?
What if you require medical transportation?
What happens if you become ill while away and you’re out of your health plan’s network
coverage?
What if you’re in a foreign country?
What happens if there is a major weather event or disaster?
These and other scenarios are real possibilities. With the cost of international
travel, can your small business afford a travel mishap such as the above?
Fortunately, you can protect yourself through business travel insurance. Travel
insurance provides a method to manage the risk of international business travel.
Business travel insurance is more than just the policies offered by travel providers
or travel agencies. Your current employer’s workers’ compensation policy or health
insurance plan may not provide coverage levels you need in the event of a medical
or emergency situation either. Rather, travel insurance represents a comprehensive
risk management plan designed to protect you or your employees — and the investment
in traveling abroad.
Business Travel Insurance Types
There are five major types of business travel insurance coverages:
- Trip cancellation – Trip cancellation insurance provides coverage in theevent your small business trip is cancelled.
- Major medical and travel medical – Major medical insurance covers long-termor overseas travel, while travel medical covers medical care for short-term trips.
- Emergency medical evacuation – Should you or your employee need to be transportedto medical facilities, including being transported back to the United States, emergencymedical evacuation will cover those costs, which can be quite expensive.
- Personal belongings and luggage coverage – If your luggage is damaged, stolen,or lost during your international business trip, luggage and personal belongingscoverage covers related costs.
- Flight accident/Accidental death -As a result of a crash or accident, accidentaldeath/flight accident insurance provides coverage to your beneficiaries in the eventyou are killed during your trip.
Business Travel Insurance can be purchased to cover all trips made during a certain time frame or can be purchased per trip.
