Here at Best Beach Clubs Bali, we love Bali for the fun and experiences it brings. But we have to concede that even if you never leave your posh 5-star resort’s daybed by the pool throughout your time on the island, things can and often do go wrong.
That’s why we always recommend that you take our travel insurance for Bali before you come on your Bali trip. Then, whatever happens to your travel plans, from needing medical expenses paid or travel documents replaced, or even accommodation expenses covered because of volcanic ash delaying your flight, you’re going to be fine.
Yes, we know, everyone thinks that nothing will go wrong and they either avoid travel insurance entirely or, worse, buy cheap travel insurance that doesn’t really cover much of anything. But as many a traveller has learned the hard way, a good travel insurance policy can save you tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars if the worst happens.
So, here’s our guide to travel insurance (and please note, we don’t sell travel insurance for Bali – we just want our audience to have the best general advice on the subject so their holiday in this dream destination isn’t ruined) and everything you need to know to make an informed decision.
TL; DR?
- A travel insurance policy should be essential for anyone who wants to be certain of not risking their financial situation on a Bali holiday. In particular, you should get full details of the overseas emergency medical cover, as being made to cover unexpected medical emergencies in Bali from your own pocket can be much more expensive than you think,
- A good policy covers more than just hospital expenses; it may cover rental vehicle excess, personal effects, adventure sports activities, natural disasters, and other unexpected events.
- It’s very important to be able to afford to be able to pay the excess on your policy. Insurance cover is worthless if you can’t activate it when you need it. Higher excesses lead to lower premiums, but must be paid in full before the insurance cover pays a single penny.
Why We Think Everyone Should Have Bali Travel Insurance
We’re all about partying or chilling by the pool at one of Bali’s many amazing beach clubs, but we think everyone should explore Bali, at least a little, while they’re here, and things can go wrong anywhere.
Travel insurance for Bali gives you peace of mind for everything from lost passports or flight delays right out to medical bills from motorcycle riding and even for permanent disability or accidental death. We hope those last two things never happen to our readers, but getting through life with an impairment or even shipping a body home for burial is incredibly expensive.
We’d encourage you to remember that it’s easy to fall sick or have an accident anywhere in the world. But at home, if you go to hospital, that will be covered by your government or private insurance; here in Bali, treatment can be very expensive, and unless you have travel insurance (ideally with unlimited medical cover) you will have to cover medical expenses out of your pocket, and they may refuse anything except emergency assistance until you pay.
And losing a passport, or having your bags get delayed, or your personal effects stolen, can happen to anyone too. If you have good travel insurance (and you may need to pay an additional premium for such coverage), then the costs of making this right will be massively reduced.
One thing everyone should know is that it’s best to buy your travel insurance as soon as you book your flights and hotels. That way the entire trip duration is covered, and the travel insurance will cover any trip cancellation if something unexpected arises before you fly.
Overseas Medical Expenses Can Become Overwhelming
Don’t take our word for it; overseas medical expenses can be huge in Bali. Medical costs can start at just a few bucks for some basic treatment for Bali Belly, but look at this – $18,000 to fly a body home, £55,000 for recovery due to disability, $200,000 to get someone injured home for proper treatment.
Medical bills are no joke, and not every GoFundMe appeal succeeds. If you have coverage for overseas medical expenses, then if you need help on your Bali trip, you can pay for your treatment. You will be able to cover ambulance transfers, the cost of medicines and even, in the worst-case scenarios, medical evacuation.
Your travel insurance plans should ensure that you are covered for the widest possible range of issues you might encounter in Bali. From overcoming Bali Belly or Dengue Fever, to injuries from scooter accidents (note: scooter cover is only valid if you’re completely legal to drive and wearing a helmet when you have the accident, so make sure you are) and any other overseas emergency medical expenses that you might incur.
One thing that many people don’t know is that your travel insurance for Bali won’t typically cover pre-existing medical conditions, and if you don’t declare your pre-existing medical conditions, you may invalidate your Bali travel insurance as a whole. Your insurer can either exclude those conditions or may offer to cover them for a larger premium.
Your travel insurance cover will also usually include access to a 24-hour hotline service for emergency assistance. This is a really useful resource as getting help from a source like the Australian government will usually take a lot of time, but these hotlines can usually arrange anything from a hospital admission to the translation of important documents and records. It’s also much better than a policy which only allows you to claim online.
Always Consider Search And Rescue Coverage In Bali
Indonesia is an archipelago; that is, it’s a collection of lots of islands. And that means that it’s very challenging for the government here to provide rescue services. Many parts of Bali and particularly the Nusa Islands are too remote for easy access to emergency assistance from local healthcare providers.
And if you get swept out to sea, or find yourself in an accident stuck in Bali traffic, or get lost while hiking in the jungle, you may need Search and Rescue (SAR) to help you out.
The generous folks at FINNS Beach Club help to sponsor this service in Bali, but you should ask your insurer about coverage. You might have to pay a small additional premium for it, but if you need SAR services, it will be very much worth it.
We wouldn’t consider a travel insurance policy for Bali without this coverage.
If You’re Feeling Adventurous – You Need A Bit More
And on that theme, if you’re coming to Bali to do more than just let your hair down dancing at FINNS or chilling on a daybed at Mari, you should consider these additions to your travel insurance cover.
- Motorcycle riding/scooter coverage – the number one reason to need medical assistance on the island is Bali Belly; number two is scooter accidents. However, a travel insurance policy is not enough; you must also be road legal (that means having a motorcycle endorsement on your driving license, an International Driver’s Permit and a helmet) or you can claim on your travel insurance in the event of an accident.
- Adventure activities – if you want to go hiking, scuba diving, snorkelling, surfing, bungee jumping, ATV tours, climbing Mount Agung, etc., then you need to talk to your insurer and ask them if your activities are covered and if not, you need them to add them to your travel insurance cover (for a fee). These activities are typically excluded from travel insurance, and yet, you want them to provide cover because you’re more likely to need medical care if you do take part in these activities.
- Rental car coverage – if you rent a car or bigger vehicle, make sure your travel insurance has rental vehicle excess coverage. You see, while your rental company will provide cover of their own, it almost always comes with a very high (to the point of punitive) excess, and if you don’t pay it, you can’t leave Bali. If you have rental vehicle excess coverage, then your travel insurance pays instead.
- Quad Bikes/ATVs – these are extremely dangerous activities, and you must have insurance cover before you go riding. In addition to medical cover, you want coverage for personal liability as you could be sued for injuring someone else or damaging someone’s property when using one.
You Should Also Consider Your Personal Belongings And Other Benefits
We love having luggage and personal effects insurance when we travel. It means if something is lost or stolen, it gets replaced (airlines do offer some minimal protection for lost luggage, but it’s a very low sum; travel insurance makes sure you don’t end up out of pocket).
However, you should always purchase separate cover for expensive items such as cameras, laptops, jewellery, etc., as they often have very low sub limits in a standard travel insurance policy.
One final benefit to look for is personal liability insurance, which ensures that if you end up in any legal trouble (not of your own making) then the insurer will fund your costs.
A Nice Addition Is Coverage Against Trip Cancellation And Flight Disruptions
We strongly advocate including trip cancellation coverage in your policy. This is because it’s so easy for something unexpected to crop up at home and cause you to have to reschedule everything, which is often very expensive.
A death in the family, a sudden illness, or any other circumstance detailed on the policy will not cause you financial pain if you’re insured.
Flights are regularly disrupted by airlines, by airports and by natural disasters; if you have the right coverage, you may be eligible for cash for meals, etc. after a few hours and for hotel costs and transport costs if trapped overnight somewhere.
It’s also nice to have your travel documents protected in case of loss or damage. Replacing a passport overseas is often incredibly expensive and time consuming, lettting the insurer deal with the expense is one less headache.
How To Minimise The Impact Of Natural Disasters (And Where To Find Government Advice)
We don’t expect you to encounter a natural disaster, but then, nobody does. However, Bali’s part of Indonesia, a region of intense volcanic and plate tectonic activity. Volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis, etc. are part of life here.
Now, it’s highly unlikely that you will get hurt in such an event. But you may find that your flight is delayed (volcanic ash regularly grounds flights in Bali and around the archipelago) and you may even need assistance for additional hotel costs, food, etc.
So, you want to ensure that your policy covers these issues.
We also recommend that you follow local alerts while you’re in Bali and that you also follow something like the Australian government’s Smartraveller, which offers guidance on what might be happening and what to do if it does.
The team at Best Beach Clubs Bali doesn’t treat government advice as gospel; it’s often heavy-handed and over the top. But it’s always useful to know what might happen so that we can plan accordingly.
Insurers Who Provide Coverage For Bali
You do not need an award-winning insurance company, but you do need to use a company that has the professional capacity to provide cover in Bali and which has a reputation for delivering when it’s needed.
You can work with an insurer directly or with an authorised representative (who can explain any relevant product disclosure statement to you, if you need them to).
As we said before, Best Beach Clubs Bali isn’t in the travel insurance business, and that means our recommendations are simply made based on reputation and happy customers.
We’d recommend that you check out Allianz, Medibank or Cover-More. Note: these are all suitable for travellers coming from Australia. If you’re coming from somewhere else, we’d recommend taking a look at what’s on offer in your own market.
How To Choose The Right Travel Insurance Bali
It’s very important that you don’t just sign up for the first travel insurance that you see. You need to take responsibility for which kind of coverage you need for a trip to our island paradise.
Consider:
- The budget you have for travel insurance – it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, but “cheap” rarely equals “good”. A low-cost policy may not be of any use when an unforeseen natural disaster strikes, or may have a huge excess or very strict eligibility criteria. Your objective is to balance the cost of your policy with the costs you might face if something goes wrong. Food poisoning or lost luggage might not be that difficult to deal with, but having to change your departure date for a funeral might cost a fortune. Only you can know what you need from your travel insurance and thus, what it’s worth to you.
- What you’re doing in Bali and how long you will be here – then look at the individual benefits and whether they’re important to you. Everyone should have overseas medical expenses, but not everyone needs cover for their travel documents or trip cancellation. Make sure to ask your insurer if your travel plans include activities they don’t cover as standard.
- Check the eligibility criteria – possibly the most important of these is whether you’re a resident of the right country for Bali travel insurance. If you’re living in Bali, travel insurance is not the right insurance for you. If you live in Australia, your local insurers will be much better equipped to help than an insurer in the US. And so on… but always make sure you’re eligible for cover. And don’t forget you must have the appropriate licence and IDP for any vehicle you want to drive.
- Pay attention to sub limits – these are cheeky little clauses designed to make a big headline amount of coverage much harder to access. You may have $5,000 of luggage coverage, but if they’ll only pay out a maximum of $200 per item as a sub limit? Your laptop, jewellery, phone, camera, etc. may not be properly insured.
- Read everything – and make sure you understand it all. If you don’t know what the policy means by unforeseen circumstances or natural events, ask the insurer or their agent to explain it to you. You should also check the full geographic coverage of the policy: does it only cover mainland Bali, or can you travel elsewhere in Indonesia? (This is important if you want to visit the Gili Islands, for example, as they aren’t in Bali).
- Consider multi-trip insurance – if you’re going abroad more than once this year, it can be cheaper and easier to arrange multi-trip insurance.
Some Safety Tips To Help You Avoid Claiming On Your Travel Insurance
We’ve got some general tips that we think can help you avoid claiming on your travel insurance policy, though we can’t help you avoid a volcanic eruption or other natural events.
- Make sure that you’ve had your routine vaccinations before you visit Bali. That way you won’t face any hospital bills for any issues that could have been easily prevented.
- Stay hydrated. It’s so hot and humid here on the island that it’s easy to end up sweating out all your fluids. Heat stroke is real, and it’s so easy to avoid a trip to the hospital by drinking enough fluids and taking in enough salts.
- Drink bottled water. Ice is fine, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise; it’s legally mandated from a clean source, but the tap water is not safe to drink, and if you want to avoid Bali Belly, start with the water.
- Use good hygiene. Wash your hands before you eat. Make sure to eat in warungs that are clean and where the food is prepared fresh, rather than sitting around in the sun all day long.
- Never ride without a helmet. You only have one brain, and if it hits the tarmac at 40 mph? You may not have much of a brain afterwards unless you’re wearing a helmet. Even if this weren’t essential for your travel insurance policy, it should be common sense. No, we don’t care if it messes with your hair; carry a hairbrush.
- Pick a good tour operator. Pick an operator with great reviews and a solid reputation. Saving a little cash on a trip often means accepting more risk than you might be aware of. There’s a going market rate for activities for a reason.
- Don’t break the law. It goes without saying, but if you break the law, you may need more than travel insurance to make things right. You should also respect the local culture and customs.
- Use insect repellent. Preferably use one with a DEET base. This keeps mosquitoes away and reduces your chances of getting Dengue or some other mosquito-borne disease.
Things To Do Before You Come To Bali
Our team has also put together a basic checklist for you before you come to the island to ensure that you have the best holiday possible but are always prepared if things go wrong:
- Research and select your travel insurance for Bali as soon as you book your trip. Compare different policies and customise them as necessary for things like adventure activities.
- Make sure that you check the eligibility criteria and declare any pre-existing medical condition, plus any specific activities you’ve planned. Be aware that premiums may rise if you’re doing something particularly risky or want coverage for your current medical issues.
- Make sure to download, install and register on your insurer’s app; this is often the easiest way to get in contact with them in an emergency situation. But don’t leave it to chance; also keep a copy of the policy number and their contact number in your phone and a hard copy in your wallet too.
- On the day you fly, visit Smartraveller and check the latest advice from the Australian government. This is a really easy way to prepare yourself for any delays or inconvenience.
- Get your passport out as soon as you book your holiday and make sure that it will have 6 months’ validity from the date you enter Indonesia and that you are OK to get an Indonesian visa.
- Put together a simple first aid kit and put any medications you use regularly in a clear plastic bag; make sure to bring copies of any prescriptions you need (Indonesia is very strict on this)
- Make certain that you know how to make a claim on your insurance if the need should arise
Wherever possible, have the insurance policy number on hand; it makes claiming so much easier and faster.
Final Thoughts On Travel Insurance Bali
There’s no such thing as a risk-free holiday anywhere in the world. That doesn’t mean you will ever encounter a problem on a Bali holiday; many people don’t.
However, if things do go wrong, it’s best to have some insurance. That way, you don’t end up paying for a holiday misadventure for years to come. It also means if you need help, you can focus on getting well rather than stressing about paying for things.
So, trust us, at Best Beach Clubs Bali, we don’t sell travel insurance, but we do recommend that you buy some all the same.
That way you can travel knowing that no matter what happens, you’re going to be OK and that feeling is priceless.
