Travel Insurance: Everything You Need to Know and How to Choose the Best One

Quick Guide: How to Choose Travel Insurance

• The basics are medical expenses and repatriation. The coverage limit should correspond to your destination and the potential costs of medical care.
• Check the exclusions. This is especially important if you plan to go skiing, scuba diving, rock climbing, or engage in other high-risk activities.
• Consider liability insurance. Damages caused to another person can be very high when abroad.
• Depending on the type of trip, add coverage for luggage or trip cancellation. The same level of additional coverage isn’t right for everyone.
• Don’t base your decision solely on price. A cheaper option may have low coverage limits or significantly broader exclusions.

Has an insurance company refused to reimburse you for medical treatment, property damage, or another insured event? If you’re unsure whether they’re following the policy terms correctly, our attorneys can review their decision and the relevant policy provisions.

What Is Travel Insurance

Travel insurance, sometimes also called vacation insurance or trip insurance, is designed to protect you against financial losses and risks associated with travel. If you’re planning to travel abroad, international travel insurance is a must—whether it’s a weekend trip or a month-long vacation by the sea. This insurance provides security and support in the event of unexpected incidents that may occur during your trip, such as illness, lost luggage, and so on. It is designed to mitigate the impact of these unforeseeable events and enable you to quickly and easily resolve any issues that may arise outside your home country. If you’re planning to travel abroad, international travel insurance is a must.

What Good Travel Insurance Should Include

What a good travel insurance policy should include depends primarily on your destination and mode of travel. The absolute essentials are typically medical expenses and assistance services:

1. Medical treatment and health assistance: Coverage for medical care abroad, including hospitalization, outpatient care, medications, and repatriation if necessary.
2. Assistance services: Typically a 24/7 emergency hotline, including advice and support for resolving problems during your trip.

Among the additional services—which are usually available for an extra fee—you’ll also find:

• Baggage Insurance: Compensation for the loss, damage, or theft of baggage and personal belongings.
• Liability insurance: Coverage for damages caused to third parties during your trip.
• Flight Delay or Cancellation Insurance: Compensation for flight delays, cancellations, or missed connecting flights.
• Insurance for high-risk sports and activities: Coverage for medical expenses and liability when participating in adrenaline-fueled and extreme sports, such as skiing, scuba diving, rock climbing, and others.
• Extended health insurance: Coverage for medical care costs beyond the scope of basic health insurance, such as dental treatment or pregnancy-related expenses.
• Legal Assistance: Assistance and coverage of legal service costs abroad in the event of legal issues.
• Pet Travel Insurance: Coverage for costs associated with veterinary care, damage caused by pets, etc.
• Trip Interruption Insurance: Compensation for costs if you must interrupt your trip due to illness, injury, a serious family event, or other unforeseen circumstances.
• Calling a Caregiver: Coverage for the costs of calling and transporting a loved one to join you abroad if you are hospitalized or find yourself in another serious situation.

You can now easily purchase all these types of insurance online—it only takes a few clicks. Buying insurance online saves you time and stress, especially if you’re packing at the last minute.

Why You Shouldn’t Forget About Travel Insurance

Simply because for just a few dozen crowns a day, you can save hundreds of thousands. Most importantly, travel insurance pays off, especially if you’re traveling to expensive countries where medical costs can reach astronomical amounts. And this applies not only to distant destinations. Travel insurance—or vacation insurance within Europe—is worth it even if you’re “just” going to Austria or Croatia.

Healthcare is particularly expensive in some countries. For example, an X-ray in the U.S. can cost up to 22,000 crowns, and a one-day hospital stay averages 65,000 crowns. So how much would an emergency appendectomy, for example, with a subsequent hospital stay of several days, cost you? On average, you’ll pay 300,000 crowns just for the surgery itself, and on top of that, you’ll have to add three to five nights spent in a hospital bed. And just like that, you’re half a million poorer!

And you’ll hit your wallet just as hard even in cheaper countries, such as Thailand. There, you’ll have to go to a private clinic; otherwise, you most likely won’t be able to communicate. And in Thailand, in particular, you’re never far from a motorcycle accident or contracting an exotic disease for which you definitely don’t have immunity.

You might think you don’t need travel insurance when traveling within the European Union—after all, you have the universal blue European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). But this assumption could end up costing you dearly. This is because individual European countries can vary significantly in terms of local coverage for medical expenses. Many procedures may therefore be subject to fees, even if they’re covered by your insurance back home. The total amount can ultimately easily climb into the tens of thousands. Furthermore, you may need to be examined at a private hospital, in which case your EHIC is of no use to you, as you’ll have to pay for the entire examination out of your own pocket. Within the EU, you’re only entitled to basic, essential medical care. This coverage does not apply to repatriation or assistance services at all.

Although it may not be obvious at first glance, travel insurance is worth it even when traveling within the Czech Republic. This does not apply to medical expenses, which are automatically covered, but it typically includes additional services such as baggage insurance, accident insurance, and liability insurance.

Travel Insurance Requirements for Visas and Stays in the Czech Republic

If you are a non-EU foreign national planning a longer stay in the Czech Republic, you need to pay special attention to the requirements for international travel insurance. When applying for a short-term Schengen visa, it is sufficient to have travel insurance with a coverage limit of at least 30,000 EUR.

For stays exceeding 90 days, special requirements apply to foreign nationals subject to this obligation, in accordance with the Act on the Residence of Foreign Nationals in the Czech Republic. Travel health insurance must meet the scope specified by law, and the coverage limit must be at least 400,000 EUR per insured event. However, specific requirements also depend on the type of residence permit and the foreign national’s circumstances.

This is particularly important because this is not just standard vacation insurance, but comprehensive coverage capable of covering even very costly medical care, hospitalization, or repatriation. Foreign nationals must therefore carefully verify, when selecting an insurance company and a specific product, that their policy meets the legal requirements. Choosing the right travel insurance for a trip abroad is therefore a key prerequisite not only for a worry-free stay but also for successfully obtaining a visa.

The Cost of Travel Insurance

Several factors influence the cost of travel insurance. The main ones include:

• Destination: Travel insurance is usually more expensive for trips to countries with higher healthcare costs (e.g., the U.S., Canada) or to high-risk areas (e.g., countries with political instability or the presence of dangerous diseases).
• Length of trip: The cost of insurance naturally increases with the duration of the trip.
• Age of the Insured: Older travelers usually pay higher premiums because they are at a higher risk of health problems.
• Health condition: If the insured person has pre-existing health conditions, this may increase the cost of insurance or require special coverage.
• Type and scope of coverage: Comprehensive insurance with higher coverage limits and more additional services will be more expensive than basic insurance.
• Activities During the Trip: Participating in high-risk sports and activities (e.g., skiing, scuba diving, rock climbing) increases the cost of insurance because these activities carry a higher risk of injury.

How to Choose Travel Insurance for Overseas Travel

If you want to purchase insurance online, most insurance companies now offer the option to buy coverage directly online, which you can easily arrange from the comfort of your own home. For example, you can even arrange it right as you’re heading out on vacation. However, the selection is vast, and many people aren’t sure what criteria to use when choosing. That’s why we’ve put together a list of key factors you should consider when making your selection:

• Details of the trip: Is it a business trip, vacation, study abroad, or adventure trip? Where are you traveling? Some areas may require special coverage. Are you planning a short trip or a long-term stay?
• Scope of Coverage: Check whether the insurance covers emergency medical treatment, hospitalization, repatriation, etc. Also consider whether it’s worth adding coverage for other unexpected situations, such as lost luggage or trip cancellation.
• Other specific requirements: Are you planning to participate in extreme sports or other high-risk activities? Make sure your insurance covers them. If you’re traveling with a dog, it’s worth insuring your pet as well. Veterinary costs can reach astronomical heights, as can the damage your pet might cause.
• Insurance Coverage Limits: Check the maximum amounts the insurance covers for individual claims (medical care, luggage, liability, etc.). Make sure these limits are sufficient for your destination and your needs.
• Exclusions and limitations: Carefully review what the insurance does not cover (e.g., pre-existing medical conditions, certain activities, or specific destinations).
• Assistance Services: Find out exactly what the assistance services include (24/7 hotline, help with lost documents, legal advice, remote medical consultations, etc.).
• Insurance Price: Compare prices from different insurance companies, but don’t forget to compare the scope of coverage and terms as well. It’s best to avoid the cheapest options if they don’t provide sufficient coverage. In this case, it might not be worth it, and the difference is often only a few dozen crowns.
• Insurance Company Reviews and Reputation: Read reviews and experiences from other travelers regarding the insurance company in question. Check how easy it is to file a claim with that specific insurance company.

We know from experience that exclusions tend to be one of the most important issues in a dispute with an insurance company. A typical problem, for example, is when a traveler considers a certain sporting activity to be a normal part of their vacation, while the policy terms classify it as a high-risk sport that isn’t covered by the basic plan. That’s why it’s not enough to just check the coverage limits—be sure to review the exclusions and definitions of individual activities before you travel.

Did the insurance company deny a claim, citing an exclusion you weren’t aware of when you purchased the policy? Have a lawyer review the policy terms and the reason for the denial.

If you’re planning to purchase travel insurance, it’s important to focus not only on the price but also on the scope of coverage that your international travel insurance offers.

Summary

Choose travel insurance based on your destination, length of stay, and the activities you plan to do during your trip. Good travel insurance should have a sufficient limit for medical expenses, include repatriation, and provide high-quality assistance services; depending on the situation, it may also be worth adding coverage for liability, baggage, trip cancellation, or high-risk sports. Before purchasing a policy, always check not only the price but also the coverage limits and exclusions. Even when traveling within Europe, the EHIC does not replace comprehensive travel insurance. Special rules apply, for example, to certain foreign nationals applying for a visa or long-term residence in the Czech Republic.