Group Travel Insurance

>> Group Travel Insurance Gives You One Less Thing To Organise

For whole families heading back to 'the old country' or for a group of friends discovering a new country, for social groups, business conferences, families who just love to travel together, special interest clubs, gap year students heading off to the snow fields in Europe or soccer fiends heading to the UK, group travel insurance is the best way to go for all of you.

Often you can pick up fabulous group savings on accommodation, tours and travel - though the minimum number can vary before you're regarded as a group. Sometimes this number can be as few as four or must be no fewer than 10.

When you're travelling as a group think about these points to help it all flow a little smoother:

• This is one time when you're going to have to be organised and do a bit of preplanning or it could be a total headache if everyone goes off on their own without check backs and rendezvous times.
• Work by consensus rather than delegating one person to organise things (unless you're on an organised group tour of course) or things could turn unpleasant fairly quickly if no one has their say.
• Make sure everyone knows the costs up front - and when it comes to pooled money be fair. If one of the group just likes a single pot, and the rest like to down half a dozen, or if someone is a light eater and everyone else goes for entrees to desserts, then allow for that when it comes time to pay. Nothing turns things sour quicker than money unfairly managed.
• Get on to the Australian Passport Advice Service for some handy information. Check well in advance to make sure everyone has their passport and all necessary visas.

And of course when it comes to travel and medical travel insurance, don't insure each person separately, take out a group insurance policy - it's far simpler and way cheap.

We know you'll want to keep costs down and will be looking around for cheap travel insurance but we do advise you get a couple of quotes on your travel insurance. Australia has a number of top insurance companies, but because iTrek sells insurance direct and online - it's our customers that get the great savings and top cover such as unlimited overseas emergency and lost fees and deposits and up to $2.5 million in personal liability.

So, where else to get your group travel insurance but from a company that knows how to operate efficiently to keep their fees low and their cover high.

>> Security Savvy

• If the whole household (and that may just be you) is not going to be there, make sure you stop or divert your mail before you go and organise someone to pick up junk mail and the local rag. Nothing screams you're gone for ages than piles of papers on your lawn.
• Many people who remember the mailbox forget the phone. A phone that rings and is never answered right off is a sure giveaway too. Turn the ring volume down, and if you have an external answering machine turn the volume way down there too - and don't say how long you will be gone on your message.
• If you're gone for a long time, get someone to drop by now and then and park their car in the drive and make the place look lived in - someone you can trust!