What changes will occur with Travel insurance in 2022?

Beware traveling in 2022: in this article, 3 new travel and health insurance requirements for visitors to any country should know related to Covid compulsory insurance for Vietnam, similar to the Thailand Pass.

Treatment in Covid vaccination + Tests + Sandbox/Quarantine + travel health insurance confinement hotels or hospitals is common

Vietnam travel requirements usually follow Asean best practices, especially what Thailand is doing as best-in-class when it comes to tourism management.

Travel requirements are changing by the day and the latest victim is Novak Djokovic, World tennis #1 player. In Vietnam, as of 01 January 2022, the country should be ‘opened to visitors again’, the reality is much more random. 

As an average Covid hospitalisation exceeds 12 nights of Intensive Care Unit and sometimes reanimation, many countries have made it mandatory to be insured medically with a minimum of US$50.000 for travellers or expatriate residency. The list as per August 2021 is now extended: https://www.forbes.com/advisor/travel-insurance/countries-requiring-travel-insurance/

Here are are 3 things you can check:

  • before you purchase your air ticket: what is current requirements as ticket issuance date
  • is the insurance travel or expatriate health at least matching your trip duration -you may be rejected as your insurance is not valid for the full duration of your stay + what is the minimum limit of coverage.
  • upon departure, what is the latest applicable for your departure country, tests 48h/72h, quarantine places or insurance’s minimum limits/duration will be applied.

An example of the Thailand pass: Thailand – The world reference in tourism economy country – is implementing and modifying their post-Covid visit Thailand procedure to get back on their feet: https://tp.consular.go.th/en/plan

There is a 73% chance of travel disruptions, delays and cancellations 

Let’s face it, 2 years of lockdown is over, in Vietnam and most developing countries. The economy and the people won’t survive it and politically, the governments as well. The vaccines make hospitalization a bit of a remote perspective now. Dying of no income and hunger is most likely for many now.

You will have additional foreseeable costs for days in quarantine upon landing in your host country, plus regular tests to attend events or site visits.

But additionally, here is a list of probable costs should think about when traveling. 

The main travel disruptions you and insurers have been facing to pay:

  • air ticket cancellation
  • delayed flights in transit
  • F0-F1 contamination quarantine -preventive or real contact-
  • sudden ban to new variant countries
  • events and shows limitations

Beware! Some travel insurers stopped covering Covid related claims 

Since March 2020, 2-out-of-3 trips have known a disruption of some kind: delays, cancellations, lockdown, missing Covid visa documents, you name it. This has wiped out the travel insurance business with very limited traveling but more importantly.

Some insurers, like AIG travelguard -the world largest insurance group-, opted out of issuing new travel insurance policies or they are issuing a travel policy that does not insure fully as they used to do. The business has become too risky. 

For a few dozen dollars, they would incur a high chance to refund claims for a few thousand dollars -the refund of an air ticket is just that kind of loss-. 

Not only purchasing an insurance policy has become compulsory, but you also to read what is included and what is excluded. An example of detailed exclusions: https://www.travelguard.com/travel-news/coronavirus-advisory

Two years into the pandemics, travel and hospitality needs to breathe life again for people in hotels, restaurants, bars and showbusiness to get back to an income and a normal life. Most countries have now adopted the ‘live with it’ as there is no way back, sometimes to avoid political unrest and famine.  

UNWTO and IATA have collaborated on the Destination Tracker in a bid to restart international travel and to “to boost confidence and accelerate recovery of the tourism sector when borders reopen.” Source: https://www.unwto.org/unwto-iata-destination-tracker

What should you do to comply with Vietnam or Asia country regulations that change by the day?

IIA-Blog 18 Jan 2022-5

How much a Covid treatment costs in average of:

  • 5 days medical supervision confinement
  • 7 days treatment in hospital constant monitoring
  • 7 days recovery surveillance confinement (19 days)
  • 10 days for reanimation if needed intensive care (29 days)

The mandatory insurance will avoid you a 15-20,000$ cost, but more importantly get you access to an international standard hospital in countries like Vietnam where The mandatory insurance with a limit of $50,000 gives the government and yourself peace of mind in the ‘new normal traveling’.

Click on the link below to learn more and contact us!

For your next trip check UNWTO/IATA country tracker: Updated Travel News.

Contact us for Covid compliant Travel Insurance depending on your travel destination.

Picture Source: From the Internet.