In today’s world of uncertainties everyone is looking for a way to feel safe, insured and cared for. The corporate world is taking advantage of this feeling and has come up with many products and services that cater to this need. Now a days we have insurance for almost everything; fires, car accidents, illness, theft and natural disasters to name a few.

These insurance providers claim to make life easier for us by covering us for any uncertainties or mishaps that may occur while sleeping, travelling or sitting, all for a little premium which we have to pay every month or every year regardless if their services came in handy or not. Whilst these payments seem as a burden when we are paying them, they suddenly turn into a blessing when we get a chance to reap their rewards. How many times have we thought to ourselves “thank god I have health insurance” after looking at the hospital bill, or after getting into a nasty car accident? It is a relief to think that someone else is footing your disaster bill, but we do not realize that it is actually just a small portion of our earning which we so prudently give away.

In most part of this world air travel insurance is mandatory included in the ticket expense, and cover items such as; missing baggage, missed flights, death, emergency and medical needs. Such type of insurance is made mandatory since it can prove to be very costly and extremely inconvenient.

Imagine falling extremely ill during a long flight and not having anyone to look after you or to foot your bill, with air travel insurance, it is the airlines responsibility to ensure the ill passenger lands on the ground safely and receives proper medical attention. Air travel insurance also comes in handy if you have missed your connection or in case of long delays, in which case the insurance policy covers your accommodation expenses for as long as required. Some passengers are unaware of the benefits that they can receive through their air travel insurance and suffer due to delays and lost baggage even after having paid their premiums every month.

As with most commodities in this world, there are some who exploit this opportunity and partake in something known as insurance fraud. People exaggerate the legitimate claims, and pocket the excess. Some times false claims are made, an airline passenger might claim that his baggage got stolen and exaggerate the contents of their baggage, in which case the insurance provider pays for the baggage.

Air travel insurance is not only for passengers, it is also for airlines and other parties involved in air travel. In the airline industry every aircraft and every flight is backed by insurance, so in case of a minor accident or a major crash, the airline would only have to pay a fraction of the cost, as the rest would be back by the insurance company. The premiums paid on these flights are quite high and part of it is incorporated in the passenger’s air travel insurance policy.