Do you actually need travel insurance, and what should it cover?

Most people buy travel insurance, or don't, without really thinking about what it's for. It gets treated as a box to tick at checkout. Here's what it actually covers, when it genuinely matters, and what to look for before you buy.

What it actually covers

Good travel insurance is really three or four different things bundled together:

• Medical cover: treatment abroad if you get sick or injured. This is the one that matters most, a hospital stay abroad without insurance can run into tens of thousands
• Cancellation and curtailment: if you have to cancel before you go, or cut the trip short, for a covered reason
• Baggage and belongings: lost, delayed or stolen luggage, and personal items
• Travel delay: some compensation if your flight is delayed long enough

When it actually matters

If you're a UK traveller heading to most of Europe, the NHS Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) covers some emergency and necessary healthcare in EU countries, so it's easy to assume you're sorted. It isn't full cover though. It doesn't include mountain rescue, being flown home if you need it, or private treatment, and it doesn't help at all outside the EU. If something actually goes wrong away from home, insurance is what closes that gap.

It matters even more for anything adventurous (skiing, hiking, watersports), for trips further afield where healthcare is expensive (the US being the obvious one), and for anyone travelling with a pre-existing medical condition, where a standard GHIC or EHIC offers no real protection.

What to check before you buy

• Medical cover limit: look for at least £2 million for Europe and £5 million or more for worldwide trips, including the US
• Activities covered: skiing, hiking above a certain altitude and watersports are often excluded unless you add them specifically
• Pre-existing conditions: these usually need to be declared, and some policies simply won't cover them at all
• Single trip vs annual: if you're travelling more than two or three times a year, annual multi-trip cover is almost always cheaper overall

A straightforward option worth knowing about

For longer trips or anything more adventurous, we recommend SafetyWing's Nomad Insurance. It's built for people travelling for longer stretches or taking on activities like skiing or hiking that a lot of standard policies exclude, and you can buy it even after you've already left home if you forgot, or your circumstances changed. We're adding a cheaper option soon for shorter, everyday trips where you don't need that extra cover.

Whatever you go with, the main thing is not to skip it because you assume you're covered some other way. GHIC, a credit card's built-in cover and a standard EHIC all cover far less than people think.