Foreign Office warns Brits who prefer tea to travel insurance

Tea for travel? Image credit: Getty

Packing to go on holiday is always a bit of a trial. In my case, cramming the right number of pants, sandals, sun cream and trashy novels into a bag small enough to fit into the EasyJet hand luggage lockers can take anything from an hour to an afternoon. This invariably ends with my sprawling on the bed in defeat, only later remembering my trusty solution of wearing layers of everything I couldn’t fit in on the journey there.

But according to a new study by the Foreign Office British preoccupation with taking the right number of strappy tops and sunglasses is to the detriment of more serious holiday considerations such as travel insurance. It found that despite 12 million Brits planning to go abroad this year nearly half of young people haven’t taken out insurance and that they would prioritise tea bags over it when planning a trip.

While the importance of a good cup of tea when on holiday can’t be denied, a few scary figures from the Foreign Office about how much you might have to pay should you get into trouble when oversees might move that box of Red Label down your To Do list. An air ambulance trip in Australia will set you back £100,000, the same in Greece costs £15,000 and a broken arm in Spain is £5,000. If you have a heart attack in the United States you’ll be at risk of another one when they hand you a £40,000 bill.

Dean Churm, British Consul for Florida, said:  “What would your host appreciate more? A box of teabags or dealing with a hefty medical bill because you had an accident and were not insured? Getting comprehensive travel insurance means that whilst an accident may disrupt your holiday, it won’t bankrupt you in extortionate medical or repatriation bills.”

This Foreign Office video has information about what you need to have covered:

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