Many travelers underestimate the importance of travel insurance until they experience emergencies such as illness, accidents, or lost baggage in a foreign country, where costs can be extremely high. This article provides a complete explanation of what travel insurance covers and how to file a claim during an emergency to ensure you receive maximum protection.
What Is Travel Insurance?
Travel insurance is financial protection that covers various risks during a trip, including health issues, accidents, lost baggage, trip cancellations, and emergency evacuation. Travel insurance provides peace of mind, allowing you to focus on enjoying your journey without worrying about potential financial losses that could drain years of savings.
Main Coverage in Travel Insurance
Medical coverage covers medical treatment, hospitalization, emergency surgery, and evacuation with limits ranging from IDR 500 million to several billion rupiah. Trip cancellation or delay due to illness, accidents, or force majeure is covered, including non-refundable ticket and booking costs. Loss or damage of baggage (limits IDR 10–50 million), personal liability for legal responsibility, and loss of documents such as passports are also compensated.
How to File an Insurance Claim in an Emergency
First Step: Contact the Insurance Hotline
Immediately contact the 24/7 hotline of the insurance company listed on your policy, explain the situation in detail, and note the case number provided for claim reference.
Medical Claims: Cashless or Reimbursement
Most insurance companies already partner with international hospitals for cashless treatment. However, if you need to pay upfront, keep all original receipts for reimbursement.
Documents to Prepare
Prepare complete documents: claim form, insurance policy, boarding pass, original receipts/invoices, medical report for medical claims, or PIR and police report for baggage claims.
Claim Submission Timeline
Claims must be submitted within 30–90 days after the incident, with the verification process usually taking 7–30 working days—document completeness greatly affects approval speed.
Tips for Choosing and Using Travel Insurance
Choose travel insurance with medical coverage of at least IDR 500 million for Asia or IDR 1 billion for Europe/America, as medical costs in developed countries are very expensive, and carefully read exclusions such as pre-existing conditions or extreme sports that are not covered. Purchase insurance immediately after booking tickets so trip cancellation coverage applies optimally, and make sure it meets destination requirements such as the Schengen rule requiring a minimum of €30,000 as a visa requirement.
Travel Insurance: An Investment for Safe Travel
Travel insurance is not an additional expense but an important investment to protect yourself from major financial losses while traveling. Medical coverage, trip cancellation, and baggage loss provide comprehensive protection that can save you from losses of tens to hundreds of millions of rupiah, so don’t skip travel insurance for your next trip for peace of mind and a safer travel experience.
