Very little about insurance is straight-forward. There are so many clauses, sub-clauses and exclusions to consider it's a wonder anyone gets the coverage they need. So before applying for any kind of insurance, it's best to read the terms and conditions thoroughly to find out if any of the exclusions would apply to you.
The main types of insurance are car, travel, life and home insurance. Payment protection (PP) insurance and boiler insurance, also called heating cover, are becoming more commonplace too. Each insurance type will have different exclusions which may apply, and just to make things more confusing, not all exclusions will apply on each policy. Only by reading the T&C carefully or asking the insurer will you know for sure.
Perhaps the number one exclusion which affects travel, life and PP insurance is pre-existing conditions. When taking out one of these policies, your insurer should ask you a number of health-related questions. If they don't, it's your duty to inform them of any past or current health issues. Anything from diabetes to the fact you quit smoking 3 years ago should be declared otherwise a subsequent claim could be rendered invalid. Even though the insurer may not probe deeply into your medical history at the time of application you can rest assured they will go through it with a fine-toothed comb if you try to make a claim. Omitting any details at the start could cost you more than a possible increase in premium.
A little known fact of travel insurance is that if you travel to a country which is currently classified as a 'war zone' - such as Iraq or Afghanistan, you won't be covered. Checking the Foreign Office website will inform you of countries which they advise against visiting, and would therefore invalidate your insurance should you do so. A number of travel insurance policies actually exclude any terrorism-related problems; if your luggage is destroyed or your hotel is bombed in a terrorist attack you may not be able to claim.
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