In this exclusive iPMI Magazine interview, Christopher Knight, CEO, iPMI Magazine, met with Michael Nole, Executive Vice President Sales And Marketing At World Travel Protection. They discussed in detail the range of travel risk management services on offer from World Travel Protection, and how they provide vital support for business travellers and expats.

Please introduce yourself and background in the international private medical insurance market:

I am Mike Nole, Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing, at World Travel Protection. I am based in North America. I joined WTP in March 2022 from Cigna Global, where I spent 12 years, most recently as the Head of Business Development for the Americas. I was responsible for growing the global IPMI business through broker distribution and strategic partnerships.  During my time at Cigna, I worked as a Business Development Manager for the Western US and Canada with Global IPMI and as a New Business Manager for the Individual and Family Plan Segment from 2009 to 2013.  Before my time at Cigna, I worked as an insurance broker at Health Benefits Direct and was a school teacher prior to that.

In March 2022, you were appointed as Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing at World Travel Protection. Congratulations! What does the role involve?

I lead a rapidly expanding marketing and sales team across Australia, North America and EMEA, providing the best in-class class travel risk management solutions to businesses, governments, scholastic travellers and NGOs. 

As travel returns in 2022, it is our job to prepare and support organisations in the changed travelling landscape since the pandemic. Travellers face increased risk globally, from personal health and wellbeing concerns to a rise in criminal activity and terrorism as well as growing incidences of climatic and natural disasters.

World Travel Protection’s expertise and world-class technological solutions allows us to protect and keep travelling teams safe. Our over-arching vision is to provide the best possible service to our customers and this is what gets me out of bed every day.

Who is World Travel Protection?

World Travel Protection is a leading global travel risk management company - part of the Zurich Insurance Group. We deliver world class technological solutions to organisations, supported by our 24/7 emergency assistances, which help and support over 20 million travellers a year via our Command Centres in London, Brisbane, Toronto, and Buenos Aires (via our sister company Universal Assistance),

We provide travel assistance to both leisure and business travellers, giving them access to 24/7 emergency medical, security and travel assistance services. Emergency assistance encompasses medical case management, evacuation and repatriation together with providing access to virtual care services (telehealth) and security intelligence. Our Global Care Network gives our customers access to over 20,000 providers worldwide.

In addition to support services for medical, travel, and security emergencies, World Travel Protection educates and trains businesses before travel to limit the risks associated with travelling abroad.

Can you walk us through the core service offerings World Travel Protection provides to international private medical and travel insurance markets?

Travel risk management companies go above and beyond traditional travel insurance providers to provide vital support for their business travellers and expatriates.

Our global medical, travel and security assistance services can be split into eight core offerings as detailed below:

Medical and Travel Assistance: Our global services provide travellers with access to 24/7 medical and travel support using the best-in-class medical personnel, resources and procedures.

Security Assistance: Our security experts continually monitor global threats to help prevent or mitigate risks and keep our travellers safe. In the event of a security incident, we will evacuate travellers.  

Travel Risk Management Tools: Our Travel Assist App and Travel Assist Portal help to keep travellers – and those responsible for them – safe and informed using real-time global updates and alerts on their destination.

24/7 Emergency Assistance: Our Command Centres help travellers in need 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. When an emergency arises, our team of practising medical professionals and security experts are immediately on hand.

Trauma Counselling: In the event that a traveller is exposed to a traumatic incident while travelling, we are here to provide counselling and care through our sister company Benestar who offer telephone trauma counselling and access to experienced clinicians.

Telemedicine: Our telemedicine service helps travellers resolve non-urgent medical issues from the privacy of their hotel bedrooms, if they choose. We connect travellers with doctors who can provide medical support via phone or video call or help locate a suitable nearby medical facility if required.

Medical Cost Containment: Thanks to our pre-negotiated discounts and global buying power, we can provide quality medical care and pass on savings.

Inbound Assistance Services: Other medical and security assistance providers often use us to deliver their assistance services because of our established capabilities, global footprint and over three decades’ experience.

World Travel Protection is seen as a leader in Travel Risk Management. But what exactly is Travel Risk Management?

When it comes to corporate travel, there are a lot of moving parts, many of which are out of a traveller’s control, and unfortunately things can and do go wrong. It doesn’t matter if it’s a broken leg or a cancelled flight to being caught up in a terrorist attack or a natural disaster, unforeseen issues can adversely affect even the best planned business trip.

Travel risk management companies offer services and care that go beyond traditional business travel insurance policies, which often only cover costs in the event of an accident or incident. They also take on the responsibility of foreseeing where incidents may occur in addition to providing medical, travel and security assistance in case of an emergency.

For companies or institutions with a culture that goes beyond basic duty of care, corporate travel risk management companies help provide vital support for their business travellers, expatriates and employees.

Our travel risk management solutions support, protect and keep travellers safe on the ground, and the risk managers responsible for their safety and wellbeing. Travel risk management companies help reduce stress for both risk managers and travellers by supporting them pre-, during and post-travel.

How can technology and digitisation improve the Travel Risk Management journey?

For companies and institutions with travelling employees or personnel, it’s incredibly important HR or risk managers know exactly where their travellers are at all times. If they don’t provide this duty of care, it’s hard for them to know if their travellers are in imminent danger should a security threat or natural disaster happen.

World Travel Protection’s geo-location technology allows travel risk managers to know exactly where their travellers are. Using our Travel Assist Portal and App, risk managers and their travelling personnel can communicate with each other as well as our team to help ensure they receive the support they need.

Our travel risk management app gives travellers 24/7 access to our emergency assistance Command Centres and location-specific travel alerts. The Command Centres are constantly monitoring international threats and will alert travellers of any potential risks based on their uploaded itinerary and geo-location feeds, helping them to travel safely. Also, by simply pressing the ‘emergency’ button, travellers can reach our team immediately if they feel in danger.

We also provide organisations with pre-travel information, using our intelligence on a country or specific location, allowing informed assessments to be made of whether its people are safe to travel there in the first place and what preparations should be taken if they do.

As we return to travel in 2022, what are the major risks travellers and organisations are facing?

Perhaps the greatest take-away from the pandemic is how quickly situations can change. Receiving accurate and timely information is more important than ever to ensure traveller safety. At World Travel Protection, we can help travellers and their risk managers make wise and confident decisions.

COVID has altered the risk profile for many parts of the world, particularly those suffering economically. It’s important this is identified during a general and COVID travel risk assessment – especially for business travellers – so the appropriate travel safety precautions can be put in place.

One risk, for instance, that has risen exponentially is cybercrime. A UK-based fraud awareness leader, Crowe, estimates that cybercrime has risen by 90% during the pandemic. For instance, we are advising our travellers to take extra care to reduce the threat of cyber-crime, to not use Wi-Fi hotspots, and to be very careful about giving away personal data. Vigilance is more important than ever to ensure that travellers are not scammed or fall foul of more sinister online attacks.

COVID 19 has had an unprecedented impact on travel and global mobility? How do we live with COVID 19?

For travellers, it’s essential that they know and understand the rules on COVID-19 in the area they are visiting, as they can differ even within a country. Travellers need to know, for instance, the entry rules and requirements as well as the rules around mask wearing and social distancing. It is important that travellers act lawfully as well as respectfully, as some countries have suffered greatly during the pandemic.

We describe this as the ‘COVID culture’ of a country, whereby depending on its own experience of dealing with COVID new social norms have developed. It’s essential to follow this new etiquette to ensure that no offence is given to locals and business associates while travelling. For instance, not maintaining social distance could be perceived as rudeness as well as extending a hand to shake in greeting.

It’s also important to remember that COVID-19 hotspots can still emerge very quickly and restrictions introduced with little or no notice. Last-minute travel amendments may become the norm for all travellers.

We had a case not long ago where one of our business travellers was mid-flight when their destination country announced new quarantine measures for people arriving in the country. We were able to reach the traveller before they had exited the transit area and book them on another flight. If they had exited, they would have been put in quarantine. Having the support of an emergency travel assistance organisation, like World Travel Protection, allows travellers to stay ahead of potential issues during this ever-changing environment.

Are Governments and Organisations prepared for the next pandemic or global catastrophe?

Very few organisations were prepared for COVID and those who were caught out need to learn from their mistakes.

Two years ago as the world started to be impacted, many organisations dusted off their business continuity plans only to realise they hadn’t been tested in years and they didn’t work. Leadership who had steadily ignored the need to test themselves in a crisis situation opted to bury their head in the sand and hope that the Corona Virus would go away. Those same companies that struggled to manage the response to COVID are no better placed now.

Those organisations who did manage their response to COVID well had a system in place. They had a defined process to follow and leaders who could make informed decisions. The successful companies engaged subject matter experts to inform their decisions and developed recovery plans to help them return to business as usual when the opportunity presented.

Many have referred to COVID as a 1 in 100-year happening. If that is to be believed then the next catastrophic event is likely to be a natural disaster or a manmade event such as terrorism or a major economic downturn. With the myopic nature of many organisations, all future events (in the short-med term) will be seen through the prism of their response to COVID and they will find that the response they used to a global health crisis won’t be sufficient.

For many governments their key metric for how well they managed COVID was how popular their decisions were. It became the hallmark of conservatives to follow the "freedom" model, whilst progressives went with much tighter measures. No one country got it right.

Some of the infrastructure developed during COVID can be used by governments, should we be exposed to another global pandemic, but any event other than this type will feel like a fresh set of challenges. Governments move slowly and learn selectively, the focus on economics will also hamper any response in the short term.

Now from a healthcare perspective, yes governments and organisations are more prepared due to the global pandemic nature of COVID. Previous outbreaks of Coronavirus SARS (e.g., swine or bird flu), Ebola were geographically localised epidemics, rather than global.

COVID has affected the healthcare spectrum namely:

• Vaccine development speed;
• Public Health directives e.g. PPE / Testing / Isolation and Quarantine / Disease tracking with Tech (mobile Apps);
• Hospital surge capacity / different ways of working (virtual care) / rapid field hospital establishment;
• BAU while battling the pandemic, albeit with cancellation of elective surgery / outpatients etc.;
• Novel follow-up ways and virtual wards;
• Multi-national / International co-operation re vaccines, healthcare strategies and treatment guidelines.

Finally: if you could live anywhere in the world, on land or at sea, where would it be? 

Vancouver, I just love it there. 

 

 

 

Generali Global Assistance and its affiliated companies (“GGA”) announce that it will be supporting upcoming smart vaccination and digital health pass initiatives by adding custom options to their Travel Insurance offerings and endorsing the Good Health Pass and the World Health Organization’s (“WHO”)  Smart Vaccination Certificate Working Group initiatives.

Generali Global Assistance, one of the leading travel insurance and service provider organizations, according to U.S. News & World Report, will tailor certain travel insurance offerings to accommodate numerous new entry requirements across the globe. GGA also endorses various smart vaccination and digital health pass initiatives that provide customers with a reliable source of information for continuously-changing country requirements. Successful implementation of these initiatives will allow travelers to verify their coverage prior to departure and give them an opportunity to update certain coverage limits, such as medical coverage, in accordance with the destination country’s requirements. GGA will also continue covering epidemic-related illnesses as a covered reason to cancel or interrupt a trip, along with reimbursements for emergency medical care, emergency medical transportation, change fees, and loyalty points redeposit fees.

Chris Carnicelli, CEO of Generali Global Assistance, commented on the news, “As a travel insurance provider, we want to play a leading role in creating a seamless travel experience for our customers. As a result, we chose to endorse some of the leading smart vaccination and digital health pass initiatives while tailoring our offerings to accommodate the growing number of new entry requirements around the globe. We look forward to adding value to these cross-sector initiatives by leveraging our extensive experience mitigating risks for individuals and institutions to help facilitate the return of international travel and reinvigorate the global economy.”

GGA will also be endorsing some of these smart vaccination and digital health pass initiatives to provide customers with a reliable source of information for the continuously changing country requirements. GGA will be supporting the Good Health Pass, an open, inclusive, and cross-sector initiative, bringing together leading companies and organizations from the technology, health, and travel sectors. It will also be supporting the WHO’s Smart Vaccination Certificate Working Group, a consortium focused on establishing standards for a common architecture for a digital smart vaccination certificate to support the anticipated vaccine(s) against COVID-19 and other immunizations.

Carnicelli concluded, “As a company focused on caring for our customers during their most difficult moments with products that directly impact their travel experience, we felt it was our duty to play a proactive role in promoting a smooth return to travel through these initiatives.”

About Generali Global Assistance 

Generali Global Assistance (GGA) is a leading brand comprised of Travel Insurance & Assistance, Medical Risk & Home Care Management, Identity & Cyber Protection, as well as other care services. GGA is part of the Generali Group, which for over 190 years has provided peace of mind to its clients and their customers and is now supported by more than 72,000 employees worldwide. Our success has been built on establishing trust by putting the customer at the core of everything we do, offering assistance and protection during our customer’s most difficult and stressful situations.

To learn more about Generali Global Assistance’s Travel Insurance Offerings, please visit: www.generalitravelinsurance.com.

Please introduce yourself and background in the international medical and travel insurance market:

My name is Gitte Bach, and I am the President and CEO of New Frontier Group.

I started my career in 1990 with International Health Insurance, Denmark. I led the company’s entry into Latin America, helped introduce our new 24/7/365 Alarm Centre and was then asked to help build a new department with a cost containment focus to handle the company’s large medical insurance claims.

In 2002 I left Denmark and went to California, where I founded New Frontier Group. I wanted to create an innovative, solution-oriented company offering multiple, customizable services. We now work with some of the biggest names in the industry.

New Frontier Group provides award winning international medical cost containment. What does award winning cost containment look like?

We never, ever, just sit back and look at the business day to day, but we continuously think about ways we can improve. What is going to be next, how can we develop so that we are always evolving?

We have been doing that both from a technology and a product offering standpoint and we have also developed our employees to live up to that same philosophy in everything they do.

April 2020 and New Frontier Group launched an extremely valuable Telemedicine solution. Can you walk us through the new service and how you see it developing?

We launched NFGtelecare just as the pandemic hit and the world went into lockdown. It was a godsend for many of our clients when access to traditional healthcare was neither safe, nor in many cases, available at all.

Now however, telemedicine is truly established and here to stay. It enhances the service proposition, encourages traveler interaction and ultimately reduces costs.

As well as routine healthcare consultations, we can arrange appointments with a specialist to discuss existing conditions or to get a second medical opinion. We can prescribe and deliver medication via our in-house pharmacy program, Onyx™Rx and if the physician feels that the patient would benefit from further tests or treatment, we can help direct them to a suitable facility nearby.

We need to realize that in this industry telecare is here to stay. Access to healthcare will never revert to how it was before. Telemedicine is now accepted by all our clients.

November 2020, and New Frontier Group wins Industry Supplier of the year at the ITIC Awards. Why did you win this coveted industry award?

Whilst somewhat overshadowed by the current pandemic, we were still extremely proud to have been recognized again at the International Travel Insurance Journal Awards – this time in the new, expanded category of Industry Supplier of the Year.

The award is testament to the continued efforts of our teams in California, South Florida and the UK, in always putting our patients, clients and partners first. From a service perspective, we think that the innovation that most likely impressed the judges was our integrated medical triage, telemedicine and pharmacy concierge service that sits ‘in front’ of our array of cost containment and network solutions. This combination of immediate and low cost access to medical advice and prescription medication, backed up by market leading cost control, is both extremely current and as far as we know, unique in the market.

For international medical payors managing the risks and healthcare of expatriates and people living overseas, what can New Frontier Group provide?

We offer our clients real time, ‘on-the-ground’ expertise and are involved on a daily basis in providing assistance with access to healthcare for expats, students and international travelers. We ensure that the services are appropriate, convenient and of course, part of our extensive network to ensure favourable rates for the payor. This is all part of our service offering and we are also available 24/7 to answer questions or address urgent issues as they arise, irrespective of what time zone our client may be in.

COVID-19 has crashed the travel market as we know it. Travel insurers are washing their hands of COVID-19 risks. Airlines are asking for bail outs. IATA say 25 million jobs are at risk in the airlines and aviation sector. What does the future hold for the travel market?

It has been devastating, both for the travel industry and associated sectors such as travel insurance and assistance. Everyone has had to dig deep and try to ride it out somehow – and we will!

People love to travel and businesses need to travel. There are already some encouraging signs and if these vaccines are rolled out quickly and prove successful, then I think we’ll see a surge from huge, pent-up demand for flights and holidays, with the positive knock-on impact to our industries. Roll-on 2021 is what I say!

Last, but not least, if you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

I have been extremely fortunate to live in many different countries and have visited even more! I find every single one unique and I don’t have a particular favourite although I do love the Spanish/Latin American language and culture so that would probably have a strong bearing!

I do know one thing for certain, no matter where I am, I have always made it my clear mission to live every single day and get the best out of it, no matter where you are in the world!

 

 

 

CEGA, a Charles Taylor company, and AXA are driving innovation in the travel insurance sector with the Travel Health Calculator.

In October 2019, the Travel Health Calculator was launched by travel insurer AXA. Enabled by technology developed by claims and medical assistance providers CEGA, a Charles Taylor company, the online tool offers a unique solution to travel insurance uncertainty. In short, it helps to empower people with pre-existing medical conditions to find the right travel insurance at a suitable price.

Background: addressing a market need

It was important to address the need for travel insurance transparency for individuals with pre-existing medical conditions.

To put this into context, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) estimates that there are up to 14.1 million consumers with a pre-existing medical condition (PEMC), who are looking to purchase travel insurance each year. The FCA recently launched a consultation on proposals designed to help consumers with PEMCs have better access to travel insurance products. In addition, recent industry revelations1 show that three fifths of consumers believe that the responsibility lies with insurers to make sure customers purchase the right level of cover.

The solution

The Travel Health Calculator now provides simple and easy-to-access medical assessments. A traveller with one or more pre-existing medical conditions can use the tool to enter details of these online. They will then receive immediate digital feedback, with travel insurance tips that take these conditions into account; covering everything from single trip vs annual policies, to the importance of checking with their GP that they have declared all that they should. They will also receive a list of brokers and insurers who specialise in providing travel insurance cover that meets their specific medical needs – or, if these needs are less complex, they may be directed to price comparison sites.

To assess the level of risk related to each user’s medical history, the Travel Health Calculator is supported by CEGA’s specialist automated medical screening solution, Antidote. This provides medical ‘thresholds’ for over 3,000 conditions; from asthma and high blood pressure, to diabetes and heart problems.

Wider benefits

Benefits offered by the tool extend beyond increasing consumer choice and reducing the risk of medical and other emergency costs abroad. They also include access to general guidelines about buying travel insurance; not least the importance of checking that a policy includes travel disruption cover and of updating ongoing cover in line with any health changes.

Feedback

Nel Mooy, Travel Director, AXA Insurance, says of the Travel Health Calculator, "As insurers, we want to help customers understand their cover options regardless of their previous or existing medical conditions. While in some scenarios, certain channels such as specialist brokers or underwriters may be more appropriate than others, our aim is to empower travellers so they can find cover that is right for them. Many people see health as a barrier to finding insurance, but our new tool can help make things that much clearer.”

Angela Smith, Head of Propositions at CEGA, says, “We’re thrilled that AXA are leading the way in the implementation of this innovative new tool. As always, we’re committed to providing end-to-end solutions that support insurers and their customers alike and look forward to continuing to play a pivotal role in the insurance sector’s innovation agenda.”

See the Travel Health Calculator in action here: https://www.axa.co.uk/travel-insurance/travel-health-calculator/

1 Figures obtained from research commissioned by AXA of 2000 UK adults. The research was carried out by OnePoll in July 2019.

Thousands of tourists have been left with cancelled flights, or stranded in airports around the world after a staff holiday mix up by budget airline Ryanair.

Manager of Travel insurance at comparison website, Compare Cover, Simon Williams, says there are a few lessons that DIY travellers can learn from this incident.

“What has happened with Ryanair has affected thousands of people and will continue to do so for the coming weeks, but what it does show is the importance of having a travel insurance policy that helps provide protection when you have made your own travel arrangements. Having travel insurance doesn’t override an airlines’ duty of care to you as a customer and travellers cannot claim for the same expenses twice, but having adequate travel insurance can give you peace of mind that you are protected should there be a cancellation. Circumstances like these are rare and hopefully most of the people affected will be fully compensated for money and time lost. Holidays are an important part of our lives so it’s worth protecting them with the best insurance cover to suit you and your budget.”

He suggests travellers who organise their holidays themselves, rather than a package holiday, could consider these five top tips before buying travel insurance:

• Keep a note of the date your flight was cancelled. If it was cancelled more than two weeks before departure, then under EU rules the airline doesn’t have to pay you compensation, just a full refund of the cost of the flight. You could then look to your insurance policy to seek reimbursement of financial losses caused as a result of the cancellation.

• Buy your travel insurance at the same time as booking your holiday, or at least in advance of your trip. If you don’t have travel insurance in place, you won’t be able to claim for consequential losses.

• When you take out travel insurance, check if the policy covers you for consequential losses. These are the financial losses you may suffer as a consequence of your flight having been cancelled, for example hotel bookings, car hire fees and any reasonable expenses that have been incurred as a direct result of your cancellation. Also, be sure to save any receipts for spending that has resulted from the cancellation.

• You might want to consider seeking the policies which include “cancellation for any reason” which does what it says on the tin; covers you if any part of your holiday is cancelled for reasons outside the normal parameters of cancellation cover.

• The next time you buy flights alone, consider paying for them on your credit card. You will be covered under section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act for purchases between £100 and £30,000.

iPMI Magazine Travel Insurance News. Avoid forking out thousands of pounds to be repatriated in an emergency, book mid-floor rooms in hotels to escape break-ins and take out insurance that covers all your summer sports. This is just some of the advice for holidaymakers being given by global assistance and claims management company CEGA, as part of its summer campaign to increase awareness of lesser known holiday risks and encourage uptake of travel insurance.

CEGA's advice comes in the wake of new data from ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents) showing that over 25% of travellers set off abroad without travel insurance in the last year; up 3% on the year before.

Dr Tim Hammond, CEGA's chief medical officer, says, "We are increasing awareness of the fact that, for a small outlay, travel insurance could save holidaymakers tens of thousands of pounds if disaster strikes in a far flung corner of the world.

"Every year we repatriate hundreds of holidaymakers who have become ill or seriously injured on holiday overseas, some from very remote areas. Not all of them have travel insurance, but none would risk setting off abroad again without it."

CEGA's other warnings to holidaymakers include advice that ice cubes used to chill drinks in developing countries can cause diarrhea, that having an accident after a night of heavy drinking could invalidate a travel insurance claim and that the EHIC (European Health Insurance Card) only covers basic state medical care.

CEGA's research into travel insurance claims for 2016 shows that gastroenteritis is among the most common causes of claims from holidaymakers in developing countries and that France, Spain and Turkey top the list of European countries producing summer claims.

CEGA's Special Investigations Unit reports close to a 20% rise in the number of fraud savings made on travel insurance claims over the last 12 months.

The achievement follows CEGA's considerable investment in fraud awareness initiatives and training across the company's entire travel claims and assistance operation. This has included preparing multi-disciplined staff, both within and beyond its fraud unit, for fraud investigation qualifications.

"Maximising fraud awareness and skills amongst both our investigators and our front-end staff has been fundamental in increasing our investigations and number of client savings," says CEGA's Head of Special Investigations, Simon Cook. "The results are testament to the value of our integrated in-house claims, assistance and fraud investigation provision."

Future Generali India Insurance Company Limited (FGII), a joint venture between Future Group and Generali has announced the launch of two online travel insurance products for the international travelers - Future Easy Travel Worldwide and Future Easy Travel Schengen. The plans are specially designed keeping in mind the uncertainties of today’s times right from loss of documents to sudden illness while on a foreign land.

The benefit of both the online products include cashless claim settlement, Universal International Free phone number (UIFN), Worldwide emergency, medical and travel assistance along with the flexibility to choose from different plans in each product category as per one’s requirement. A significant feature embedded in all the plans is that complete medical care like bearing of medical expenses, emergency medical evacuation, repatriation of remains, continuation of medical treatment in India and daily hospital allowances are included in all of the plans. The age criteria for purchasing the policies range from six (6) months to 70 years old thus encompassing the entire family in a single proposal. Trip delays/ cancellations, emergency dental treatment, loss of check in baggage, burglary at home while travelling and financial emergency assistance are few of the additional benefits that one can avail, depending on the plan that the policy holder opts for.

Shreeraj Deshpande, Head of Health Insurance, Future Generali India Insurance Company Limited said, “India is one of the fastest-growing outbound travel markets in the world today. The well informed Indian traveler today looks for a combination of ease of buying, value as well as experience while buying insurance. We believe Future Group’s understanding of the Indian mindset together with the international experience of the Generali Group have helped us design these online products that will reiterate and reflect the importance of travel insurance”.

The Future Easy Travel Worldwide product can be purchased for travelling to different countries worldwide and includes some of the favorite personal/professional destinations like US, UK, Canada, Singapore, Australia and Hong Kong. There are 12 different plans in this category that one can choose from and enjoy the Future Generali Advantage of Global knowledge and indigenous expertise.

The Future Easy Travel Schengen plan is specially designed for customers travelling to Europe on a Schengen visa and covers the 26 countries included in the Schengen visa. There are Six (6) comprehensive plans to choose from for the discerning traveler.

These two travel policies are the first exclusive online products launched by Future Generali India. One can buy the products through the company’s website. The company is planning to launch more such online products in future to strengthen its position in the digital insurance market in India.

Allianz Global Assistance Canada announced its plans to test a new and innovative way for travellers to pay for medical claims while travelling.

A first in Canada, the unique solution will allow for payment of eligible outpatient medical expenses in real-time, eliminating any out of pocket expenses for the traveller and removing the typical claims process and paperwork which travellers are accustomed to.

Customers who purchase a travel insurance plan included in this limited program will receive a payment card for no additional fee to take with them on their trip. If they require emergency medical help while travelling, they call Allianz Global Assistance, which will transfer funds to the card and provide a referral to the nearest medical facility.

The traveller can then proceed to the medical facility for treatment where they present the card to pay the bill. The claim is settled immediately, in real-time, with no out-of-pocket expenses, paperwork or claim process for the traveller.

The program is being offered through a partnership with PassportCard.

"This solution is unlike any other offering available in Canada or North America today. Using PassportCard's technology, we can assist travellers more effectively and efficiently, making their life easier in the process. This directly aligns with our mission of helping people anytime, anywhere," says Gino Riola, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Allianz Global Assistance Canada. "With this solution, we're not only setting ourselves apart in our industry as innovators and leaders in customer experience, but also increasing the value travellers place on and receive from travel insurance."

"When setting out to extend the offering in North America, we were searching for the leading and most innovative market players. Allianz Global Assistance Canada's solid reputation for delivering top-notch travel insurance and assistance services made them an ideal choice as a partner." says Sharon Haran, CEO of PassportCard "We were already familiar with Allianz Global Assistance's capabilities having partnered with their German Business Unit to offer PassportCard to travellers."

PassportCard is a real-time claim settling solution available with the purchase of travel insurance policies associated with this program. Associated travel insurance policies are underwritten by CUMIS General Insurance Company, a member of The Co-operators group of companies.

During the limited program launch phase, PassportCard will be offered with select products on a limited basis. Once the limited program has proven successful, Allianz Global Assistance intends to make it available to its distribution partners on a broader scale.