How Insurance works
There seems to be an expat insurance product for everything; insurance for your life, your health, your car… the list goes on. However, many avoid purchasing insurance because they believe that they are too young, perfectly healthy or that bad things won’t happen to them – they happen to other people. It can be made more complicated when trying to find insurance for expats.
Questions like “why do I need to buy life insurance in my 30’s?” or “is it a waste of money to protect my business with an insurance plan?” often come to mind – overconfidence is the enemy of good thinking.
Do I need an expat insurance plan?
Although it is the right thing to do, many people avoid taking out insurance. Contrary to popular belief, everyone requires insurance, regardless of how healthy they are or how well they are doing financially. Insurance acts as a safety net, protecting us and our loved ones just in case something unexpected does happen.
The wisest course of action is to never take anything by chance when there are easy, simple ways to lessen risks, especially when such risks are related to the well-being of you and your family members.
Making the right decision to have insurance policies in place gives you and your family peace of mind that, if an unexpected event such as loss of life, personal accident or income loss happen, financial worries aren’t mixed in with the grief or sadness. Insurance allows us to focus on living after life-changing events happen.
How to choose the right insurance for expats
Choosing the right type of expat insurance is not always an easy task. The financial industry offers a vast array of insurance products and different levels of cover to suit each and every need. Finding a suitable insurance policy to match your financial plans requires careful market research and detailed evaluation.
Factors such as your age, your health, your available budget and the level of cover required play an important role when it comes to choosing the right insurance product that is in line with your financial plan.
Since only a few of us have the necessary financial knowledge to identify which insurance broker offers the best insurance coverage for your hard-earned money, requesting assistance from a fully qualified and experienced adviser would be the optimal solution and is something Expat Advice Asia can help you with.
What are the different types of expat insurance?
There are many types of insurance and even more insurance products offered by insurance brokers, aiming to ensure that you reap the benefits of financial stability if anything sudden happens that would change the way you live.
As an established full-service broker, Expat Advice Asia has access to a broad range of insurance solutions that will help you achieve your financial goals and minimise the stress and effect of any potential downturn.
Expat Life Insurance
According to statistical data published by Statista, only 1 out of 3 Brits have life insurance. Another set of data revealed that 1 out 4 UK households with mortgages don’t have life insurance. But is this really a wise choice? Many people often ask the question of whether life insurance is worth it.
The answer is clearly no. Taking out an expat life insurance policy ensures that your family are protected should the unthinkable happen. A life insurance policy is an agreement between two parties; you and an insurance broker. The insurance company takes the responsibility to pay a lump sum to your beneficiaries after you pass away in exchange for premium payments. There are even some insurers who offer life insurance for children. If you’re a new parent, you can read more from our blog about whether new parents should consider life insurance.
Expat Health Insurance
Sometimes we can’t predict a health problem. You may be paying regular contributions to the health system of your country, but this might mean in the case of a medical emergency that you don’t get the medical treatment you deserve, as state health systems are usually underfunded and underpowered in terms of personnel and equipment. People who do not have medical cover are in an even worse position as they don’t have access to their local healthcare system.
The question is, how can you have the medical care and the comprehensive cover you need in case your health deteriorates? What if you have a pre-existing medical condition? Medical expenses can be quite high in case of an emergency, especially if you are abroad and you need to attend a private hospital.
An expat health insurance plan solves the problem for you as it minimises the effect of medical expenses on your budget. Taking out a health insurance policy gives you the opportunity to choose a level of cover depending on your circumstances and budget. An expatriate health insurance policy expert such as a Expat Advice Asia adviser can work with you on which policy is best suited and provide you with any additional cover that you can include in your insurance package.
Income Protection Insurance for Expats
For some people, a monthly salary is the only source of income that covers their needs. What would happen if you lost the ability to earn your monthly income due to an unexpected problem? It is almost certain that expenses such as mortgages, bills and food would reduce your savings to a minimum, causing uncertainty and severe stress.
Income protection insurance acts as a safeguard. Taking out an income protection policy means that your insurance provider pays you a sum of money each month, thus replacing a part of your lost income. The best way to make sure you make the right choice is to get advice from a financial adviser who can take you through the details of the various policies available. You can read more about income protection insurance here.
Critical Illness Insurance for Expats
Unfortunately, health emergencies such as cancer, heart attacks and strokes are part of life. A health emergency not only puts your life at risk, but it could also jeopardise your financial plans and have an effect on your family’s way of life. The high costs of emergency treatment and hospitalisation combined with recuperation costs are not easy to manage if you don’t have a safety net.
Critical illness insurance supplements your health insurance coverage by providing you with a lump sum to use as you want. Maybe it’s to pay for medical costs like cancer treatment, or perhaps to take that holiday of a lifetime that you want to tick off your bucket list. Our critical illness insurance experts will be able to suggest the most suitable expat insurance quotes and review policy documents with you, and even debunk some common myths around critical illness insurance.
Getting insurance for expats
Moving abroad is a big decision that should be made after careful consideration. There are several factors that should weigh in on your decision. One of them should be having insurance cover for you and your family members. Living abroad isn’t easy, especially if an unexpected health problem reduces your monthly income.
Living as an expat means that, although you might be paying your national insurance contributions back home, you may not have access to your local health system. Even if you do, the offered services and costs are not the same in every country. Any health emergency may cause unwanted expenses and stress so having comprehensive insurance is imperative.
Insurance for British expats in the EU
On January 1st 2021, the UK left the European Union. The UK-EU withdrawal agreement allows UK residents who owned a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) to use it in European countries until its expiry date. The UK government announced that a new Global Heath Insurance Card (GHIC) replaces the European Health Insurance Card for most UK citizens.
The GHIC card covers chronic or existing illnesses as well as emergencies. However, treatments such as dialysis or chemotherapy have to be pre-arranged to ensure they are available where you live. The GHIC card also does not cover the patient’s transfer from European countries back to the UK or any other type of private medical healthcare.
Partnering with the best insurance brokers, Expat Advice Asia’s fully qualified advisers can suggest a wide variety of comprehensive insurance policies with many optional add-ons to satisfy the needs of British expats who’d like to continue living in the EU.
Insurance in Thailand
Almost 60 million people live in Thailand, with 90% of them being expats. Bangkok and Phuket are the two cities that most expats live in, offering high standards of living and many job opportunities.
According to the portal of Thailand government, insurance in Thailand is required to be paid and provided by employers. Sponsors are required to get insurance cover for their resident dependents. Rules regarding insurance in Abu Dhabi are slightly different as “employers and sponsors are responsible for providing health insurance coverage for their employees and their families (1 spouse and 3 children under 18 years).”
There are many insurance products that could make sure that you will be able to continue living the life that you want, during or after an emergency situation. Comprehensive insurance should be the cornerstone of every expat’s financial plan.
The right insurance policy at an affordable price
With a small additional cost to your general expenses, you can make a big step towards safeguarding the well-being of your family. Get in touch with Expat Advice Asia to learn more about the best expat insurance products available in the market today.
