5 Common Reasons for Unsuccessful Travel Insurance Claims

If you ever had your travel insurance claim declined, then you probably are wondering whether you should have taken the insurance cover in the first place. But as it is said, we should always learn from our mistakes. You need to understand some of the common reasons why your claim could be denied. Most people make travel insurance claims for medical reasons. Studies indicate that the second common claim is based on holiday cancellations followed by travel delay, loss of luggage and missed flights. Travelers facing the aforementioned dilemmas take consolation in travel insurance.

But some holiday makers get a rude shock when their claims are denied. However, it is important to understand that taking holiday insurancedoes not automatically mean any resultant claim must be honored. There are some reasons why your claim may be denied. Understanding them well would put you in a safe position. The following are some 5 reasons why a claim may be declined.
1. Undisclosed known medical condition
As mentioned, medical reasons top the list of travel insurance claims. Insurers always require that you disclose any pre-existing medical conditions that you have as you take travel insurance. Failure to do so means that any claim related to the undisclosed condition will not be honored by the travel insurer. It is therefore important to make such disclosures as you take the insurance. It is better to pay more for the insurance than having to bear all the medical costs and lose on the insurance amount you paid.
2. Purchasing inadequate cover
When buying travel insurance, it is important to read through the fine print and understand the extent of the cover. Always consider all possible eventualities during travel and make sure they are included in the cover you buy. Again, extended coverage may come at a higher price than insuring for just one situation but it is eventually worth it. Consider the top most possible claims and insure for all of them.
3. Insufficient evidence
For your travel insurer to honor your claim, you must produce all possible evidence for the claim. The evidence must also be credible otherwise the claim may be denied. If for example you lose luggage, you must produce a police report of the loss and also sufficient evidence that the lost luggage was yours. This is especially important when you travel abroad.
4. Being intoxicated when incident occurs
Travel insurers may also refuse to honor your claim if the incident in question happens when you are intoxicated with alcohol or other similar drugs. You must therefore maintain sobriety while travelling so as to be able to look after yourself and your property well. Therefore, if you plan to go partying while on travel with the possibility of taking alcohol, you must be very careful to ensure no incident happens that may compromise your insurance claims.
5. Fighting
If an incident from which you are making a claim is as a result of a fight, your travel insurer may not be willing to pay. Mostly, it is assumed that most fights result from people being intoxicated with drugs or alcohol. Therefore, if a claim results from being involved in a fight, you must prove beyond reasonable doubt that you were not intoxicated and that you fought purely for self defense.