Travel Insurane

Hi

 I used the search and it brought up almost as many links as using Google so apologies for starting yet another thread on the subject. Off to Marrocco for 10 days and will be running the Marrakech half marathon while out there. Anybody recomend some decent value holiday insurance that will cover us for this?

And  apologies for the impressive amount of typoes!

Many standard policies will cover you for running, even races, as long as you're doing it as an amateur and not an elite, but check with the provider to make sure. I know Trailfinders' standard policy covers marathon running as I used them last year - no idea what the service is like though, as fortunately I didn't have to claim on it.

I've got health and travel insurance through Axa PPP - they cover for running events abroad, including marathons, as long as I am competing as an amateur. (I think for elites there is a different level of cover).

there are many specialist sports insurance companies out there and their offerings can range from simple travel insurance cover for non-dangerous sports like running, through to extreme sports cover

we ski, bike (road and off road), do triathlon, climb so get a high level of cover to cover all eventualities, and for us it's easier to have one annual policy that covers all eventualities. we currently use dogtag.co.uk but have in the past used snowcard.co.uk - probably the best 2 of their type. I had to make a claim with Snowcard after a skiing accident involving helicopter rescue (that ain't cheap!!) - they sorted everything with one phone call. brilliant service but it's not cheap.

stick "sports travel insurance" into Google and you'll find loads of companies offering sports cover - but make sure you read the small print to make sure it covers what you want, and if in doubt always call. and don't forget that if you have any medical conditions, you declare these in advance or you may find that a claim could get refused if you haven't done so.

I'm an insurance broker (for my sins!) and one thing I would recomend is making sure you check the section about 'medical expenses' whenever you get quotes for travel insurance from anyone. With a lot of the online companies, you might think you're getting a great deal on price but when you check the cover for medical expenses you realise why. I looked at one recently that only gave a maximum payout of £250. This might seem ok but if you were to break a leg (for example) whilst abroad and were unable to fly home this would have to pay for all your costs, possibly including return flights, for as long as you're stuck there. As you can imagine, that's not going to stretch far, especially if you're there as a couple etc.

Worth bearing in mind!