TRAVEL agents are urged to brush
up on their knowledge of travel
insurance policies – particularly with
new requirements implemented by
states following increasing concerns
about the spread of Ebola – as
misinformation can lead to costly
mistakes.
TNW recently received information
from a traveller who had booked an
expensive tour to China, Kyrgyzstan
and Uzbekistan on a South African
passport. All three countries require
‘Letters of Invitation’ before visa
applications can be submitted. When
the traveller was advised that the
Uzbekistan Letter of Invitation was
verbally denied “for fear of Ebola in
Africa”, the traveller decided to cancel
the trip. Her travel agent advised
her to get in touch with her travel
insurance provider, as she would be
able to claim for the cancellation
costs. However, what the agent
didn’t know is that her client’s claim
would be denied, as no actual visa
application had been submitted
The traveller told TNW: “I
question the value of travel
insurance when the policy
wording leaves gaps and
creates confusion that [leads
to] misunderstanding by the
purchaser of the policy, their
brokers and travel agents.”
These kinds of
miscommunications can
have costly implications
for the travel industry, says
Uriah Jansen, md of Oojah
Travel Protection. She says
that in terms of the FAIS
(Financial Advisory and
Intermediary Services)
Act, travel agents should
restrict their services to
giving factual advice on
the procedure for buying
the travel insurance policy.
“Advising a client that a
claim is covered or not
covered is seen as providing
an intermediary service for
which neither company is
licensed,” she says.
Jason Veitch, head of TIC,
says it is only a matter of
time before South Africa
will move towards a model
where only certified travel
agents can offer advice and
sell policies. Non-certified
agents will then only be able
to promote travel insurance
products without actually
being able to sell them. “I
anticipate that we are at
least two to three years away
from this being a reality.”
He says in a case like this
the insurer will undoubtedly
be the responsible party but
that there is always a degree
of responsibility that lies
with the person who made
the incorrect statement, and
this could compromise the
agent’s relationship with
their client.
Jason adds that the travel
agent’s responsibility does
not lie in telling the client
what is included in the travel
insurance. Insurance policies
can be technical in nature,
so it is always best to refer
matters to the specialists,
he says.
He says it is the travel
agent’s duty to understand
everything about the territory
that they are sending their
client to so that they can
ensure the client has a
successful journey. “With
the increased worldwide
concern about Ebola, travel
agents need to make
doubly sure they know all
about the access to certain
destinations.”
According to Uriah, insurers
have a difficult time getting
agents involved in muchneeded
travel insurance
training. “Training is
perceived as boring and
agents usually feel they
‘know it all’. They don’t give
the representatives from
the insurance companies
enough time to transfer their
knowledge. But providing the
client with your opinion could
lead to a fine of up to R10m
or even 10 years in jail. We
don’t want to see someone
being fined, for the industry
to ‘wake up’,” she says
