People bang on and on about having insurance, or not having it as well. Some tell you not to bother and some are insistent but who should you listen to? Well, we’ve teamed up with Bandon Hospital to tell you why YOU SHOULD HAVE TRAVEL INSURANCE.
Even the strongest most healthy non risk taking human could find themselves out of action with a fever or in an accident that they didn’t cause and you want to be covered and to know that things can be taken care of when you are far far away from home.
We spoke to Bee from Bandon Hospital who deals with insurance to get you the best information…
Tell us why Travel Insurance is so important…
That’s a good question, people think that when they go out of their home country for one or two weeks, if they’re strong they will have no problems but when you are out there are certain things like changes in weather or accidents and the cost to the hospital is not cheap.
If you have insurance then that will cover it and you won’t have to spend your money on the hospital.
Some people may have a serious condition and will need to get back to their country, to be evacuated and as long as you have insurance this can be organised, they will get you back home. Without insurance it is difficult so make sure to buy it before you leave for Thailand.
In the worst case scenario, without insurance, what would happen?
If you don’t have insurance then the only thing we can do is the very first treatment. The we have to ask the patient what they want to do, we can send them to the Government hospital as the cost is cheap, if not there then we contact the family or the embassy and ask for help.
It’s very important to get insurance before you come!
Have you ever dealt with a bad case?
There was a patient in Samui and she came in and could not remember anything, did not know anyone etc. We had to give her treatment, good treatment and then contact the tourist assistance there who help people get home if needed. Whilst we were waiting for her to get a ticket she suddenly remembered everything, that she owned a boat here and had lots of money so it ended up simple in the end but was worrying!
Do travellers need to think about different types of insurance?
They should just buy travel insurance for their travel period, to cover them from when they step out of their country to when they return.
Also try to make sure it covers motorbikes, jet skis and other activities.
The staff at any hospital want you to have a safe and healthy trip and to make your life and their lives easy it really is worth getting travel insurance. You may have nothing go wrong but just in case you do it is worth knowing that you are covered and you can enjoy the rest of your amazing visit to Koh Phangan!
For your holiday in Thailand, travel insurance is important. If anything unfortunate happens, you're likely to be covered for those heavy medical bills. Without it, your dream trip could become a nightmare. And if you believe it is an option to miss out on the doctor’s bill, think again. Invest in some peace of mind and obtain travel insurance for your holiday in Thailand for a few extra dollars a day. You can, after all, buy travel insurance if you can afford to travel to Thailand. In some cases, it is now becoming mandatory to have Insurance to come here, check with your Embassy.
Phanganist recommends Safetwing travel insurance. It gives an easy solution to some of the most common hassles.
Can sign up even if your journey has already started.
Your insurance automatically extends every 28 days from your chosen start date until you pick an end date. Just like a subscription.
After being abroad for 90 days, you keep your medical coverage for 30 days in your home country if something happens while there.
Keep updated with phanganist.com by following our Facebook page.
