To massively decrease your chances of suffering a holiday catastrophe resulting in a six-figure travel insurance claim, take a leaf out of Cinderella's book.

"Nothing good ever happens after midnight," says Craig Morrison, the chief fujian attraction executive of Southern Cross Travel Insurance (SCTI), the country's largest travel insurer.

That's when the incidents that generate the majority of SCTI's big claims occur, Morrison says.

But, just as you need to make smart decisions while overseas to stay safe, SCTI says New Zealanders need to have their wits about them when shopping for travel insurance.

That's because not all travel insurance policies are xiamen travel created equal, and where one may pay to cover a claim, others may exclude it.

Travel insurance policies are generally 10 or more pages long of dense type, which is not surprising because travel insurance is essentially a mix of life insurance, disability insurance, medical insurance, personal liability insurance and asset protection insurance.

Not reading policies when shopping around for cover means it is easy to fall victim to what are known in the travel insurance industry as "illusory" benefits trumpeted in the "quick cover guides" at the front of policies, while losing sight of more Wuyi Mountain meaningful limitations on cover which could leave a traveller exposed should a drama become a crisis while overseas.

THE PERSONAL LIABILITY ILLUSION

The biggest of the "illusory" benefits offered are very high "personal liability" limits. SCTI has a limit of $1 million, though that looks positively mean by contrast to other policies.

"A number of insurers offer this in the millions," says Morrison. "But in over 30 years of underwriting travel insurance, SCTI has never had a personal liability claim of more than $200,000."

The main reason for that is that travel policies exclude any claims for personal liability caused by the use of cars and other motor vehicles. Take that out of the equation, and the main tool for causing injury and mayhem abroad ceases to be a source of claims for the insurer. Exclusions for guns, intentional acts, and reckless acts also limits the likelihood of doing anything you can be sued for.

The biggest SCTI claims have been by people who accidentally burnt something down.

DELAY COVER

Morrison says some travellers to Bali delayed by the August Wuyi Mountain volcanic ash cloud would have found they used their maximum travel delay cover very quickly.

Often policies provide only a per trip limit of $1000 to $2000. Morrison says when the Icelandic ash cloud grounded many planes in Europe in 2010, Paris hotels put up their room rates from around 200 euro to around 1000 euro.

"Our average claim from the Bali volcano was $2000, so if your limit was $1000, you are out of pocket by at least a grand," Morrison says.

ADD-ONS

Add-ons are extra bits of cover you have to pay extra for.

For example, if you're planning on riding a scooter, snorkelling, sailing, or partaking in any activity that carries a degree of risk, it is vital you check if you will be covered by the policy you are considering buying, says Morrison.

Really hazardous activities tend to be excluded from policies, but it is easy to sleepwalk into buying a policy that does not cover something you intend to do if you compare policies by focusing on price.

The costs could be very high indeed. "It's not uncommon for a serious scooter accident in Asia to rack-up hospital costs in excess of $100,000," Morrison says.

"UNLIMITED" MEDICAL AND EVACUATION BENEFITS

While being able to replace a stolen camera is great, being able to pay the bills of hospitals overseas is what travellers really need to insure themselves against.

But while the sky is the limit on most policies, Morrison warns people to look carefully at the exclusions and any sub-limits put in the policies.

An example might be policies excluding any claims related to pandemics, while others allow medical claims related to illness caught during a pandemic.

Such exclusions can lead to unwelcome outcomes, such as delays in accepting a claim while an insurer decides whether your symptoms are those of the disease that is spreading in the pandemic. A blanket pandemic exclusion can also mean an insurer refusing to pay to have your mortal remains returned to New Zealand.

Medical cover also provides a defence against overseas bill-padding.

Morrison warns people to take especial care where there are sub-limits on travel fujian medical and evacuation claims. "Sometimes policies will have an evacuation limit of $100,000. That's a danger. It's not enough if you need a stretcher repatriation with two nurses and a doctor," he says.