Working Whilst Away from the UK
Many people include either paid or voluntary work into their travel plans, especially if they’ll be away from the UK for an extended period of time. This can be a great opportunity to integrate into a community, share your expertise, gain some valuable work experience, or simply earn some more money to give your travel budget a boost.
It’s essential that your chosen travel insurance policy will cover you to do the kind of work that you’ve lined up, so that you have peace of mind. You need to select a policy that will provide the reassurance that if you are injured at work, your chosen policy will cover your medical expenses, including repatriation back to the UK, if appropriate - as well as the other benefits of comprehensive cover. Different jobs involve differing levels of risks and responsibilities, so the correct policy and Work Pack (if applicable) should be chosen, to avoid any issues if a claim situation does arise at work.
If you’re working, then the work that you plan to do, will dictate the appropriate policy. This applies, if you are working for all, or just some, of your time away:
Do your work plans solely include bar, cafe, waiter/waitressing, retail or office work?
Then our standard policies including the Walkabout and Walkabout Plus policies would be suitable, as these are primarily aimed at leisure travellers, but they can cover the kinds of low-risk occupations specified above. If you are initially planning to do either bar, cafe, waiter/waitressing, retail or office work, but there is the potential to find work in another area, then you may still choose the Working Holiday policy, which offers greater flexibility at the outset. Also, the maximum duration which can be offered under the Walkabout policy, is 18 months, for the Walkabout Plus and the Working Holiday policy, it is 2 years.
Find out more about the Walkabout and Walkabout Plus policies, and get a quote
Are your work plans anything other than the above?
If you plan to do any form of work outside of the above, then you will need to look at our Working Holiday policy and see if the job that you plan to do is listed under any of the 4 Work Packs. If the job that you plan to do,isn’t listed, then get in touch to ask us if we can cover your job role. The Working Holiday policy can be taken out for up to 2 years away from the UK, and 2 return trips back to the UK (for up to 21 days each time) are included as standard - you can also opt to upgrade your policy to include up to 4 return trips of up to 21 days at a time.
Find out more about the Working Holiday policy, and get a quote
There are a few forms of work that we can't cover under any of our policies. These are:
• Working Underground
• Working at heights above two storeys
• Lifting weight in excess of 25kgs
It’s also important to note that there are a couple of sections of cover under any of our policies, that aren’t in place whilst you’re working:
There would be no cover under the personal liability or personal accident sections of the policy. The personal accident section provides a lump-sum payment in the case of serious injury or death and is different from the emergency medical expenses section of the policy. For example, if whilst working, you lost a limb, your medical expenses would be covered, but you wouldn’t receive the lump-sum payment associated with loss-of-limb.
If you’re unsure about the type of policy that you should choose, please complete the quote enquiry form and we will then provide you with a quote or advise you about your options. If you have a question, or would like to speak to someone, please give us a call in the office (9am till 5pm, Monday to Friday) on 01424 223964, or you can ask a question via our Live Chat facility or contact us.
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