Another little-known fact of travel insurance is that the majority of policies which cover lost or delayed baggage will only apply on the way out. If you arrive back in the airport after a holiday, and your luggage fails to make an appearance on the carousel, there may be little you can do. Your insurer might not include inbound luggage loss as part of their standard policy, but you should be able to obtain cover if you inquire about it, and pay extra.
Payment protection insurance is perhaps the most exclusion-riddled insurance of all. Commonly offered at the time of taking out a loan, mortgage or a catalogue order, PP insurance is usually optional, but can be a good idea if you have dependents and/or several financial commitments. The premiums are typically high, so if you decide to take out PP, read the TOS very carefully to make sure you could claim if necessary; otherwise you could waste your money.
Not many people know unless they've had a claim refused, but if you have to take time off work due to common condition like stress or backache, you won't receive a payout from your PP. Even if the condition didn't exist at the time you took out the policy, a claim won't be accepted by the majority of insurers for loss of income due to the most common complaints. Your PP may also be invalid if you are self-employed or have been at a place of employment for less than 12 months on a permanent contract.
No matter what type of insurance you take out, it's important to read through all the paperwork carefully to make sure you could make a claim if necessary. Check all the terms and conditions, all the exclusions, and ask your insurer if there's anything you're not sure of. You generally have a week or two in which to check all the documents before you're tied into a policy, so make use of this time to familiarise yourself with the small print and make sure the policy is right for you.
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