With the significant increase in demand for travel insurance, travelers seem to have understood the importance of guarding against health-related risks
The covid-19 pandemic interrupted the travel plans of many people, mainly due to the closing of the countries’ borders. Those who were about to travel abroad had to reschedule or cancel their flights. Airlines had to redraw their networks. Other sectors were equally impacted, such as insurance companies, which were forced to review their products.
The events related to the pandemic have surprised many, especially members of the insurance industry, which has paid out more than R$370 million in claims in 2020, exceeding the value of premiums. For 2022, the results promise to be positive: R$50 million in premiums were contracted in January this year, an increase of 141% over the same period last year.
There has been a significant increase in demand for travel insurance as the tourism industry already operates at pre-pandemic levels, with the difference being that travelers seem to have understood the importance of guarding against health-related risks. For the European countries that are part of the Schengen Agreement, for example, insurance is mandatory. The highlight goes to the hiring of this type of insurance for domestic travel. According to Braztoa (Brazilian Association of Tourism Operators), most travel insurance operators in Brazil have seen demand grow.
However, it must be said that events related to pandemics, epidemics and outbreaks, when declared by a local or international body, such as the World Health Organization (WHO), were not included in travel insurance policies. Travelers could only rely on health insurance (for those who had it) or on the coverage offered by eligible credit cards, both of which have a number of limitations when compared to the products offered by insurance companies.
In Brazil, Bill 2,113/20, which was passed into law by the Senate, states that medical or hospital care insurance, as well as total or permanent disability insurance, cannot contain a restriction on coverage for any illness or injury resulting from a public health emergency.
Even before the law was approved, many insurance companies opted to update their products. Thus, the policies contracted began to offer coverage for covid-19 related events, such as medical and hospital care in case of contamination, telemedicine, sanitary return, among others. Besides the travelers’ clear interest in this change, it is important to emphasize that several countries have begun to require this additional coverage to allow tourists to enter.
Before hiring travel insurance, it is important to check whether it has coverage for covid-19, as well as its scope, because some cover only medical and hospital care, while others include funeral insurance. There is also business travel insurance, which protects employees during corporate trips.
This and other types of insurance are offered by Pryor Global to its clients. Talk to one of our experts now and learn about the various types of insurance we offer.
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