Hollard updates its travel insurance policy

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Authorisation for medical expenses while travelling has been a point of contention among customers, particularly given the nature of certain emergency situations, so Hollard Travel Insurance has recently updated its policy to take this into consideration.

“There are certain conditions in which travellers don’t have the time to sit down and phone for authorisation,” says Uriah Jansen, MD of Oojah Travel Protection which administers Hollard Travel Insurance.

As such, Hollard investigated which conditions are life threatening and have come up with a list, including cardiac arrest, strokes, seizures, constricted airways and heavy bleeding among others. In these cases, travellers would only need to gain authorisation for treatment given once they are stable.

Cancel for any reason

Hollard has also recently updated its cancel for any reason product to include cover for senior travellers. The product, which was first launched two years ago, enables travellers to cancel their trips for any reason.

Jansen explains that most cancellations must be unexpected and related to a specific event in order for payment to be refunded but with ‘cancel for any reason’ insurance, travellers could, for example, book a trip knowing their elderly parent is sick and then should they tragically pass away before the trip happens, they would be able to cancel and receive 50% of their money back.

The volatility of international travel at the moment makes this an interesting product for travellers to consider because should a terror attack occur at a specific destination, travellers are able to cancel should they be concerned for their safety.

The only condition is that travellers must take out this cover within 24 hours of booking their trip. She says travellers sometimes forget that travel insurance is the same as any other kind of insurance, pointing out that you would not be able to take out car insurance after having had an accident.