Business travel has changed the world in the last decades. With the ease of traveling and faster transportation modes, traveling for pleasure or for business has never been easier. Still, many will face different obstacles, and the complexity of today’s world plays a significant role in the paths of many business travelers.
Any responsible company and employer will want their workers to feel safe and to protect their workers from harm. At that point, business travel insurance comes in. This type of insurance will protect the worker in many different situations, covering all from injury, illness, theft, lost baggage, and other things. With this type of insurance, it is genuinely to be better safe than sorry. In this article, we will go through some of the main reasons this type of insurance matters.
Before we start, we need to know what can business travel insurance cover?
These are some of the main things this insurance will cover: Some benefits include:
- Medical and injury care coverage will make sure that any medical emergency will be included in the policy and that any expenses won’t pose an issue later on
- Trip delays and cancellations coverage can happen at any time, and this part will reimburse the main things about it, going from accommodation to alternative methods of transportation
- Business and sports equipment coverage that may be lost. If you lose your work laptop, or it gets stolen, you need money on the spot to get a new machine that will ensure a successful presentation or work
- Personal possessions and baggage coverage that you may lose, damage or have stolen, but be aware that this usually depends on the policy, some items may not fall under this category
This will, of course, differ from company to company. Still, these are some things that are important in business travel insurance. The US State Department recommends that a good travel policy should include medical insurance, medical evacuation, health policies, and trip cancellation.
What’s the difference between travel insurance and business travel insurance?
You may ask yourself, what is the big difference between a standard travel insurance policy and a business one? It’s easy to travel to a place that has a lot of tourists and visits. Parts of the world that are developed and that may speak English or some other common world language. Still, a big mining company will sometimes have to send their worker far away to some remote jungle or mountain in a foreign country. There may be no established guide books or protocols to follow, so ensuring that the worker is safe and the sound gets a lot more complicated. This has made insurers like Allianz Assistance find new ways to ensure the safety of their clients.
The person may find himself in a foreign country with a language barrier posing as a significant obstacle. The traveler may fall ill or get injured while on the trip. At this point, the possible insurance would include a multilingual person who would be available 24/7 that will help the traveler in the hospital.
Many things can arise, and the traveler may simply miss a plane because of bad weather. The insurance comes in and offers money for the hotel or accommodation. Imagine a scenario where a worker is heading back after an exhausting work trip that took weeks, and on the last flight, the plane doesn’t take off. Will the company pay out of its pocket for the accommodation and food or will they have the insurance kick in and cover it all? Ensuring workers in this way is a way of risk management and possible damage control. These are extreme cases, but this type of insurance can even cover concierge fees or travel guide fees, so you can really focus on the job and don’t lose any energy on other things. Failure can be expected sometimes, and insurance will cover this and more.
Every big or international company will, of course, have business travel insurance. Still, even small business owners who have global connections and travels may want to consider this. One trip or one bad step can make a lot of damage and, we repeat, better safe than sorry. This will really reduce the risk of exposure to catastrophic failure situations. The good thing is that usually, these stay unused.
You also need to understand that sometimes the company won’t be liable for specific events. If one needs it, it would be good to get the insurance for themselves. So getting this insurance for a dangerous trip could be highly valuable and minimize any risk to you or the company you work for. Don’t let anything ruin your business meetings or important dates. With this type of insurance, one can really focus on what’s essential for a job well done.
