Does normal travel insurance cover business travel?

[Ari]

I've always had 'Annual Multi-Trip Silver with Business' with worldwide cover from Allianz Assistance, however they have stopped providing travel insurance.

I'm struggling a little to find business travel insurance (most of my international travel is business related). I've always assumed that it's a little like car insurance, in that you need to specify Business use, but is just normal travel insurance perfectly sufficient?

Also, any recommendations for travel insurance? (I'm after something good, not something cheap - the business pays for it, not me).

Any advice much appreciated!

[Sheepshanks]

You should do current checks but I always used LV=, who have been owned by Allianz for a few years. It just covers the travel, baggage and medical etc part - I don t think there s cover for business equipment etc. There s some sort of replacement colleague cover.

[Ari]

Thank you. I'm not bothered about covering business equipment (it's mostly just a laptop, I'd have that anyway), I just want to make sure that anything important (medical bills, repatriation or whatever) is not going to be refused because 'you're on business, and your policy is for leisure travel'.

As I say, I do equate it to car insurance where you need to stipulate business use or you are potentially uninsured, but I know little about travel insurance.

[Sheepshanks]

It doesn’t cover you if doing any kind of manual work, of course.

As far as I know, most policies will cover for the usual business trips.

[Griffith4ever]

Grab a policy wording and look for the specific exclusion - it won't take you long. I can't imagine travel insurance would treat illness from holiday vs illness from going to a meeting any dfferent. The car and the travel market are rather different - for a car you are increasing your mileage and hence risk exposure - whereas travel - you pay for the time you want covered, and what you are doing, so long as it's not physical, makes no difference to anyone. Time away is time away.

In fact... going on holiday, jet skiing, getting pissed, eating too much, etc, is prob far higher risk that a meeting in Dusseldorf with some sandwiches and a train link from the airport :-)

[Sheepshanks]

Griffith4ever said:

Grab a policy wording and look for the specific exclusion - it won't take you long. I can't imagine travel insurance would treat illness from holiday vs illness from going to a meeting any dfferent. The car and the travel market are rather different - for a car you are increasing your mileage and hence risk exposure - whereas travel - you pay for the time you want covered, and what you are doing, so long as it's not physical, makes no difference to anyone. Time away is time away.

In fact... going on holiday, jet skiing, getting pissed, eating too much, etc, is prob far higher risk that a meeting in Dusseldorf with some sandwiches and a train link from the airport :-)

You say that, but on business you could be travelling much more frequently. I was going to the US four times a year - some people are travelling weekly.

Like car insurance, it can be weird though - I did a quote for daughter and her little family for a holiday in Kos the other day, and, with the same insurer, an annual policy was £100 cheaper than the single trip.

[Insurancejon]

Ari you could have just whatsapped;)

most annual travel policies allow for "non-manual" business travel.

happy to read through policy wordings for you.

as an aside, an amex platinum gives this, and many travel benefits, if you need a referral with extra points just drop me a message