Icebergs can really spoil your day

Posted in: Travel in TravelWORLDMAN's Blog

The sinking of the MV Explorer in the Antarctic is a dramatic example of what can go wrong on holiday but, thankfully, these incidents are very few and far between. But as more travellers venture into more remote areas on the planet, there is an element of risk that will invariably attach itself to such holidays so using reputable tour operators and having adequate travel insurance cover is an absolute must. But returning this incident for a moment. Like the Titanic, the MV Explorer had next to no warning. The iceberg, or growler as it is called when in a submerged state, was invisible, it was dark at the time and the outside conditions below freezing. So the odds were heavily stacked against both ship and passengers. The evacuation and subsequent abandonment of the ship was handled extremely well resulting in no loss of life at all and is a credit to the well organised and professional ship staff. But what of the passengers? With very little time to prepare, they had to leave most, if not all, of their belongings onboard, brave the inhospitable polar seas, and, though not uppermost in their minds, curtail their holiday and return home.

To be honest, this is a small price to pay for surviving such an ordeal, but they will now be seeking some form of compensation from both the Tour operator and their travel insurance. This is such a good example on why travel insurance is so necessary when going on holiday. Most people tend to think about losing a bag or suffering a delay at the airport but travel insurance covers so much more. The list is almost endless. Passengers will be eligible for reimbursement of the rest of their holiday by having to curtail it short, any hospital costs from injuries sustained should be covered with repatriation included where necessary, personal belongings will be covered, legal costs should also be covered for any subsequent litigation and any lasting injury or death as a result could be covered by the personal accident part of the policy. Thankfully, this type of incident is rare but it does happen though the Tsunami in Indonesia and Thailand in 2005 falls into this category as another example of where it paid to have travel insurance. It won’t stop the incident occurring but will significantly ease the distress and pain in the aftermath.

So when deciding on purchasing travel insurance on your next trip, do think of the bigger picture rather than the loss on an ipod. Travel insurance is a bit like an iceberg. With an iceberg the damage is done by what you don’t see, whilst travel insurance comes into its own in the sections that you don’t normally read.