Travellers 'dismiss insurance'

One in five travellers have admitted to not taking out insurance when going abroad in the last six years, research by the Bank of Scotland has revealed.

Some 38 per cent of Scottish expatriates and holidaymakers have suffered problems including lost baggage, healthcare emergencies or cancelled flights, the study found.

Despite this, half of those who had suffered such an incident did not have any travel insurance in place at a time, leaving them open to risks such as being out of pocket over non-recoverable items.

The research serves as "a sharp warning" to the 38 per cent of expats and holidaymakers who have yet to take out an insurance policy, the bank said.

Lisa Stephenson, head of customer experience, marketing and communications, noted that it is easy to dismiss the idea of securing cover against an incident that might never happen, but warned: "The cost of not taking out insurance can far outweigh the cost of being well prepared."