Holidaymakers must not assume that travel insurance is unnecessary when travelling even in the UK, it has been warned. With a growing number of travellers opting to spend their holidays in the UK this year, according to a number of insurers, a majority of Brits are forging travel insurance assuming that it is not required if they are staying in the UK.
According to research by a price comparison website, only two per cent of holidaymakers planning to spend their holiday in the UK have sought travel insurance quotes. Steve Williams, head of travel insurance of the price comparison website said that “travel insurance should be seen as a vital part of any holiday.”
He said: "The number of UK insurance policies sold is dwarfed by that of European and worldwide policies, and in our experience fewer people shop around for UK cover.” Williams advised that travel insurance would be “vital” especially during the current financial crisis as although holidaymakers travelling in the UK would not be required to purchase the insurance for medical reasons, flight cancellations or airline failures could leave holidaymakers losing more cash than what they would have spent on the cover.
According to Direct Travel Insurance, redundancy is one of the common reasons of cancellations and without insurance, holidaymakers would be left with large cancellation charges.
news source : http://www.onlyfinance.com/Travel-Insurance-News/
ISLANDERS who fall ill or have accidents in the UK will soon have to pay for their treatment, Health announced today following confirmation that the UK is scrapping the reciprocal health agreement from 1 April.
Health Minister Jim Perchard was notified of the decision by Dawn Primarolo, the UK’s Minister of State for the Department of Health on Friday. Not only does the ruling open the possibility that Islanders will be left with huge bills for medical care if they do not have adequate travel insurance, it also leaves Health significantly out of pocket.
The JEP has learned that the agreement was extremely profitable for Jersey and will leave Health with a £3.9-million hole in its budget. Health’s finance director, Russell Pearson, has already warned that that could mean Jersey patients suffer. ‘Health and Social Services cannot afford to take a reduction of £3.9 million,’ he said. ‘We would have to prioritise and reduce services to manage that. The Council of Ministers are aware of that impact.’ As of 1 April, Islanders visiting the UK will only be eligible for free treatment in accident and emergency departments.
news source : http://www.thisisjersey.com/
KOCHI: The Ernakulam region of Life Insurance Corporation of India has been retaining the topmost position in terms of first premium receipts for several years. A boom in economy had prompted employees and businessmen to take insurance cover on a large scale. But the situation is not so bright now as the slowdown in the economy is taking its toll on the industry also.
About 40 per cent of the policyholders are postponing payment, says R. Sahasranaman, a senior member of the agency network of the LIC. The payment can be postponed for six months and will be accepted with interest. But there are many customers who want to surrender the policies as they are not confident of being able to remit the premium after a few months. The trend is more visible among those employed in the IT sector. About 20 per cent of his clients are interested in surrendering the policies, according to him. The policy-holders were being advised to hold the policies at least for a year so that the surrender value would be more, he said.
The people are not evincing much interest even in new policies. Jeevan Astha, a policy announced recently which had a minimum premium of Rs.25,000, could not get the expected support from clients, he said. Development Officer N. Muraleedharan too aired a similar view. The business generally goes up in March every year, but the expectations are moderate this time because of the meltdown, according to him.
news source : http://www.hindu.com/
BANGALORE: Battered by the current economic crisis, the Indian corporate sector is resorting to innovative methods to keep its balance sheet sound. One such method is scrapping of insurance benefits to the employees. Rising medical costs, slowdown and rising premium on employee health insurance policies are being attributed as the reasons, by the industry sources, behind the current decision. It is to be noted that healthcare cost is rising at an annual rate of 15 per cent in all metros and, consequently, premium for health insurance too.
An official of ICICI Lombard, which is the largest health insurance provider for the corporates, confirmed the development, “More than 75 big corporates have already asked for cancellation of group insurance policies.” The official who has to remain nameless, however, declined to name the companies owing to Lombard’s non-disclosure agreement with the companies. Another cost-cutting method that is slightly employee friendly is the co-payment method that has been introduced by the companies. According to this method, the employee will have to share 50 per cent amount. This scheme, however, cannot be availed by freshers among many other allowances that they are denied of owing to recession.
news source : http://www.expressbuzz.com/
Pam Knuth has worked at Kennewick's The Purple Parasol for nine years, but does not have employer-provided health coverage to show for her years of work at the bridal and special occasion store. "If you don't work for a big company you can't get medical insurance, and you can't afford to get your own," said the 45-year-old Kennewick woman. Knuth is covered by her husband's plan, but some of her co-workers haven't been so lucky. Shirley Giarde, co-owner of The Purple Parasol, which also has a Walla Walla location, said several employees have left because she hasn't been able to offer health insurance as a small-business owner.
"That's why we lose some of our really good employees. They need insurance," Giarde said. "I totally understand, but there's no insurance out there I can buy." And even Giarde pays more than $700 monthly for her and her husband's health insurance, yet still was more than $100,000 in medical debt after her husband was diagnosed with viral cardiomyopathy in 2007. Some small-business owners across Washington and the country echo Giarde's plea for government playing a stronger role in guaranteeing access to quality, affordable health coverage in a report released Thursday by the Washington Small Business for Secure Health Care Coalition, a group of more than 1,000 small-business owners and self-employed people who advocate for affordable, quality health care.
Taking the Pulse of Main Street: Small Businesses, Health Insurance and Priorities for Reform is based on a survey of 1,200 small businesses in 12 states -- with nearly 200 respondents from Washington and more than half of those from Eastern Washington. In Washington, 94 percent of small-business owners surveyed considered the affordability of premiums, co-pays and deductibles "very important," while 82 percent said the same about coverage for all necessary medical services, according to the report. Ana Ochoa, who owns La Estrellita, a Pasco children's clothing store, said her husband had to get a second job that provided health coverage for their family, which includes six children. But the coverage still doesn't cover many medical costs for her 5-year-old son who suffers from a disorder that causes medical problems like seizures. The family pays more than $7,000 yearly on his medical costs, Ochoa estimated
"And that's just one of my kids," Ochoa said. "If they do put (health insurance) out there, make sure it's worth it and it's affordable. You want it within reach." One-third of survey respondents said they offered health coverage to employees, and 81 percent of small employers with coverage estimated they pay 5 percent to 10 percent or more of payroll for health insurance, the report said. "We as small-business owners, we're the engines that drive this economy. But the health care crisis is driving us into the ground," Giarde said. "The country is looking to small businesses to create jobs and help revitalize our economy. We need a real health care fix to fulfill that promise."
Twenty-six percent of Washington survey respondents said they'd be willing to contribute 4 percent to 7 percent of payroll to quality health coverage, while 29 percent said they'd contribute 1 percent to 3 percent of payroll. Twenty percent said they wouldn't contribute, according to the report. "We are willing to contribute to health care, but we can't go it alone," Giarde said. In Washington, 54 percent of small-business owners surveyed said they supported a public alternative to private coverage, while 30 percent wanted the creation of more private plans.
A majority of state respondents also supported more public oversight of private insurers and believed government should play a strong role in health care, the report said. "For all that we've done in this country," Knuth said, "we can go to the moon but we can't figure out how to make health care work."
news source : http://www.tri-cityherald.com
Holidaymakers must not assume that travel insurance is unnecessary when travelling even in the UK, it has been warned. With a growing number of travellers opting to spend their holidays in the UK this year, according to a number of insurers, a majority of Brits are forging travel insurance assuming that it is not required if they are staying in the UK.
