What travel insurance really means

Re:What travel insurance really means by markbnj on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @11:51AM (#17550518)

When our daughter visited Bali with a friend last year she was also in a motorbike crash. I guess a lot of people think it will be fun to ride a motorbike in Bali. Her hand was badly cut and needed stitches. We had to transfer the cash to her friend's debit account so it could be paid out on the spot, but once that was done the ER docs did a great job sewing her up, and $700 seemed like a hell of a bargain compared to what a visit to the ER and some stitches probably would have cost in the U.S.

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Re:What travel insurance really means by latchkey on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @12:10PM (#17550700)

"I guess a lot of people think it will be fun to ride a motorbike in Bali." --

I am from California, but I live in Vietnam now for nearly two years. Riding a motorbike here is almost a necessary part of the culture. I've also been to Bali, which has a similar, but not as extreme culture.

Unless you have prior expert experience on two wheels (I raced bicycles for 8 years and have ridden motorcycles on all terrains, for 10), or you are just really talented, the last thing you should do is get on two wheels in countries like these. You'll get injured or killed at some point.

I have World Nomads insurance and I really hope to not have to use it, ever.

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Re:What travel insurance really means by yks on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @12:21PM (#17550806)

I’ve been motorcycling both in SE Asia and the US, always feel much safer in Asia because the speeds are low, bikes are low-powered and abundant so the drivers expect them.

And majority of expats get by fine without motorcycle racing experience, the biggest issue is as always driving while drunk.

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Re:What travel insurance really means by latchkey on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @09:44PM (#17555007)

I kind of feel safer in Asia, not because of the speeds, but because the way that traffic works. It is a system of avoidance, kind of like how a school of fish works. You are expected to avoid the people around you. If everyone avoids everyone else, then nobody gets into an accident. There is also very little road rage here. Showing signs of anger is considered culturally inappropriate.

In the US, you are literally a target. Road rage is a thing. Someone turning left or right on you happens all the time. In Vietnam, cars turn really slowly and usually in a predictable manner.

Now, the issue is that when things go wrong, they go really wrong. Vietnam has one of the highest rates of road deaths in the world [1] [2]. I think these numbers are actually low, because not all deaths even get reported. Also, not everyone dies... non-fatal accidents happen constantly here.

The other issue is that this is a relatively young country for people behind the wheel of a car. Cars have only been widely accessible here for the last ~10 years and it is growing. The level of skill for drivers is extremely low, the education testing is a joke. There is constantly videos of people driving their car/bus/truck through a group of people, house or off the road because they mistake the gas for the brake. Or even worse... side effect accidents... [3]

[1] https://e.vnexpress.net/news/news/traffic-accidents-kill-ove...

[2] https://tuoitrenews.vn/news/society/20180220/179-killed-in-t...

[3] https://www.facebook.com/vieclamtaixelaixe/videos/1972940609...

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Re:What travel insurance really means by moltar on Wednesday July 18, 2018 @06:27AM (#17556975)

You just can’t avoid stupid. Here’s a “fun” compilation of accidents in Chiang Mai. Another nomad hub. Most of these at least one person had no control of the outcome:

https://youtu.be/HR9coYSkOPE

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Re:What travel insurance really means by forgot-my-pw on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @11:56AM (#17550568)

I'm very suspicious that the article mentions $22,000 hospital bed cost for 5 nights stay (excluding surgery).

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Re:What travel insurance really means by FireBeyond on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @12:07PM (#17550681)

That hospital stay was in Singapore, not Indonesia (where he got told to take a taxi to the hospital, rather than 'wait' for an ambulance, and that the surgeons felt that he needed urgent surgery, but there was no-one around that night, and there was a holiday tomorrow, so 'day after tomorrow... maybe').

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Re:What travel insurance really means by rsbadger on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @01:06PM (#17551246)

so glad somebody gets it

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Re:What travel insurance really means by caymanjim on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @12:14PM (#17550732)

In Singapore, with first-rate hospitals, and the highest cost of living in the world? That's not even a little surprising.

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Re:What travel insurance really means by idontpost on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @12:54PM (#17551131)

> the highest cost of living in the world

Singapore is not THAT expensive. Yes, it's first-rate, but not even close to highest COL[1]

[1] https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/compare_cities.jsp?cou...

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Re:What travel insurance really means by caymanjim on Wednesday July 18, 2018 @10:58AM (#17558998)

Cost of living is complicated and lifestyle-dependent, and living in the city core vs. the suburbs makes a huge difference in most places. According to Forbes and The Economist, Singapore is #1. San Francisco may have laughably-high rents, but the cost of consumer goods, food, and many other things is far cheaper in San Francisco than in Singapore, for example, and it heavily skews the results.

Singapore is a "top 10" city by any metric and that was the main point.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2018/03/19/the-ci... https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2017/03/21/measurin... https://www.thrillist.com/news/nation/most-expensive-cities-...

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Re:What travel insurance really means by forgot-my-pw on Tuesday July 17, 2018 @12:16PM (#17550756)

I see. That makes more sense now.

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