What Should You Do In The Event Of Medical Emergency/Damage/Loss?

1. Contact the medical and emergency assistance hotline
Certain travel policies cover 24-hour emergency hotline service which provides you with access to assistance such as medical advice, referrals, medical evacuations and travel related matters such as lost passport and baggage.

2. Notify the authorities
If your insured belongings are lost or damaged, you must take all reasonable measures to protect, save and recover them, and must also promptly notify the local police, hotel, transportation company or transportation terminal authorities, whichever is applicable.

3. Notify your insurer as soon as possible
You should submit the claim form with all supporting documents such as your original policy, the medical report, police report and any relevant documents to support the claim as soon as possible to your insurance company. You should check the time frame for claim notification stipulated in your policy.

via InsuranceInfo Travel Insurance Booklet

1. Personal effects
Check with your insurance company on the personal effects that can be covered under travel insurance as the coverage differs between insurance companies.

2. Beneficiary
You are advised to nominate a beneficiary and ensure that your beneficiary is aware of the travel insurance policy that you have purchased.

3. Multiple insurance
If you have purchased more than one travel insurance policies, in the event of your demise and disablement, you or your beneficiary, as the case may be, will be compensated for each policy. However, for certain losses such as medical expenses which are compensated on reimbursement basis, you will only be compensated once for the actual loss suffered.

4. Foreign affiliates
Ensure that your insurance company has a good network of foreign affiliates which can provide you with the necessary assistance when required.

5. Medical and emergency assistance
It is important to check whether your insurance company provides 24-hour emergency hotline service.

via InsuranceInfo Travel Insurance Booklet

Scope of Cover
The scope of cover and scale of benefits differ between insurance companies and you should shop around to ensure that you purchase a policy which best meets your requirements.

The coverage commonly provided under a travel insurance policy includes:
• Personal accident
• Medical and its related expenses
• Loss of baggage, personal effect and money
• Loss of passport
• Personal liability
• Delayed baggage
• Travel delay
• Hijacking
• Repatriation

You can take a travel policy for you and/or your family members. If you purchase a family policy, coverage for each family member is apportioned from the total sum assured. In the case of a claim, compensation payable will be in accordance to the portion allocated to each member and should not exceed the sum assured in total. Please note that if you are above a certain age limit, you may not be able to obtain a travel insurance policy.

Understanding the Policy Benefits
• Personal accident – you are normally covered for death and total permanent disablement for a period within 365 days after the occurrence of the accident. The compensation will be paid according to a scale of benefits and may differ from one insurance company to another.
• Medical and related expenses – coverage for hospitalization, hospital or surgical expenses, outpatient medical expenses, as well as daily allowances up to a maximum number of days, should you be hospitalized for more than 24 hours.
• Loss of travel deposit or curtailment of journey – you will be reimbursed for expenses incurred due to loss of travel or accommodation expenses paid due to cancellation or curtailment of the journey.
• Loss of baggage, personal effects and money – this covers accidental loss or damage to your baggage, clothing, personal effects, and even money, caused by the carrier.
• Loss of passport – you will be reimbursed for additional hotel charges, travel and other expenses incurred in the country you visited, while obtaining the replacement of a lost passport. Such loss must be reported to the police within 24 hours.
• Personal liability – should you cause accidental bodily injury to a third party or loss or damage to the property of a third party, the insurer will indemnify you for the legal liability.
• Delayed baggage – if your baggage is lost or misplaced for at least 12 hours from the time of arrival at your destination, you will be reimbursed for expenses incurred to purchase essential items of clothing or personal effects.
• Travel delay – you will be paid a sum of money, according to a schedule, if your flight or voyage is delayed for more than 12 hours due to reasons beyond your control.
• Hijacking – the insurer may make daily payments up to a specified maximum number of days, if your journey is interrupted for more than 12 hours due to an act of hijack.
• Repatriation – in the event of accidental death of the insured, the insurer will reimburse the insured’s legal representative for the cost of returning the remains home.

Policy Exclusions
Losses caused by certain events are excluded from the cover. Some common exclusions include:
• War risks
• Suicide and insanity
• AIDS
• Provoke murder or assault
• Childbirth or miscarriage
• Hazardous sports

In addition, there are exclusions involving events such as baggage delay and loss of baggage and personal effects due to seizure or destruction under quarantine or custom regulation. You are advised to always read carefully and understand your policy exclusions.

via InsuranceInfo Travel Insurance Booklet

Searching For Airfares Doesn’t Have To Be A Gamble

NEW YORK — Searching for airfares often seems like a game passengers are set up to lose.

Prices change from day to day, even minute to minute. Scouring multiple websites for the best deal can be overwhelming. And after you book, there’s no guarantee that you got the best price.

“You just don’t know when to pull the trigger. It’s not like buying anything else I can think of,” said George Hobica, founder of Airfarewatchdog.com.

Harriet Levy paid $179 for a recent round-trip flight on American Airlines between New York and Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Sitting just one row behind her, Shirley Harrison paid $215. A few rows back, Ellis and Dianne Traub paid $317 each. There were at least 12 fares on the flight, ranging from $169 to $360.

“There’s no rhyme or reason to it,” Harrison said.

Fares can fluctuate significantly in just a few hours. One Delta flight from New York to Los Angeles jumped from $755 to $1,143 from a Friday to Saturday in late April, then fell to $718 on Sunday.

The flight was one of a dozen The Associated Press tracked over three months for a July 16-22 vacation. The No. 1 finding: Avoid booking tickets on weekends. It’s the most expensive time to buy.

There’s no way to guarantee the best fare. But before booking, travelers should heed this additional advice:

— Book on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. That’s when airlines most often offer sales.

— Buy in advance, but not too early. The best time is four to six weeks before traveling. In general, prices for any given flight are highest eight to 10 weeks and two to three weeks in advance.
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— Embrace social media. Airlines are giving more benefits, like exclusive sales, to travelers who interact with them on Twitter and Facebook. Those specials are often gone within hours.

— The so-called discount airlines — JetBlue, AirTran, Southwest and Frontier — adjust their fares less frequently than other airlines, so you can feel more confident locking in a price. But their prices aren’t always the lowest. Researching multiple airlines’ fares is the only way to get a good deal.

It wasn’t always this complicated.

Before the airlines were deregulated in 1978, airfares were approved by the government. Prices were consistent and printed in timetables. But because air travel hadn’t been embraced by Americans and was something of a luxury, planes were often less than half full.

Deregulation allowed airlines to set fares and routes on their own. In the early ’80s, American Airlines started selling empty seats at a steep discount. The aim was to fill up planes and compete with new discount airlines such as PeoplExpress.

To prevent business travelers from trading down to cheaper tickets, the airlines required that fliers buy two to three weeks in advance and spend a Saturday night at their destination. The discount airline ticket was born.

Today, sophisticated computer programs analyze travel data and set a range of ticket prices so airlines can get the most money out of each flight. Prices are generally higher for seats sold at the last minute, which are usually bought by business travelers. Refundable tickets tend to be the most expensive, and cheap fares come with lots of restrictions.

Other factors go into the price, too: How fast are tickets selling compared with previous years? Is there a conference or special event in the destination city? Fares are often adjusted to match other airlines’ prices.

But there’s still a great deal of human intervention.

“To a degree, it’s trial and error,” said Greg Aretakis, vice president of revenue production at Frontier Airlines.

There can be as many as 20 prices on any given flight. Airline executives say that all that helps them boost revenue by 3 to 6 percent. If they price tickets too low, the airline can lose money. If prices are too high, seats go unsold.

“If that seat goes out empty, we can’t put it on the shelf and sell it the next day,” said American Airlines spokesman Tim Smith. “A seat that goes unfilled is like a banana that instantly spoils on takeoff.”

1. “In tough times we have to discount — creatively.”

For the hotel industry, 2009 was the worst year since the Great Depression, and last year was only slightly better. At its low, the average daily room rate was $97, down from $107 in 2008, and occupancy rates fell below 55 percent. “This recession has been so traumatic across the board for all types of hotels,” says Robert Mandelbaum, research director at Colliers PKF Hospitality Research. In turn, hotels have slashed staff and cut corners. Michael Aschoff, a retired compliance officer from Tampa, Fla., stays in hotels 30 to 50 nights a year and has noticed they’ve stopped replacing soap and providing body wash and mouthwash. “They have really cut back on little amenities,” he says.

But hotels are holding the line on rates, says Travis Rank, director of worldwide sales at Best Western International. Instead, some hotels offer free parking, gift cards or other perks, like a free extra night for customers who book a certain number of nights in a row. Check hotel websites to find these deals — which are likely to be available until 2012, when the industry is expected to recover.

2. “Book with us to get an upgrade.”

When you book your room through a third-party site like Expedia (Nasdaq: EXPE – News) or Travelocity, the hotel typically pays a commission — up to 30 percent. Through their own sites, hotels will usually match the best rates and may offer specials, and many will let you change your reservation without penalty if you’ve cut out the middleman.

What’s more, book directly with the hotel and your “chances of getting an upgrade are vastly improved,” says Rank. Hotels also like to save perks for their loyalty-program members. Chris Jones, the general manager of Hotel Indigo in San Diego, says he gives upgrades to about 35 percent of customers, with priority going to loyalty-card holders. “The hospitality industry is all about relationships,” says Fredrik Korallus, executive vice president for global revenue generation at Carlson Hotels. “If you want something, it never hurts to ask.”

3. “We can be sneaky about our best deals.”

Since most hotels are franchises, individual owners offer the best deals. They’re promoted online, via e-mail newsletters and, more recently, through social networking sites like Facebook and Foursquare. Hotel Indigo had 500 followers on Twitter before it even opened, and Jones says last fall he offered $185 rooms to followers for $99 — and booked 45 rooms in two hours. Robert A. Rauch, a managing partner at a San Diego Hilton, says he offers time-sensitive deals and restaurant or spa specials online. Hotels also offer discounts through partners like Visa (NYSE: V – News) or American Express (NYSE: AXP – News), but since hotels aren’t always enthusiastic about those, “sometimes it takes some effort” to find them, says Matthew Stone, a professor of travel and tourism at Prince George’s Community College in Washington, D.C.

4. “Your room won’t really look like this.”

There are plenty of places to find reviews of hotels, from newspapers and magazines to websites with traveler reviews. But when you want to see what the room or the pool looks like, you often have to trust the hotel — which may not be trustworthy, says Eli Seidman, founder of travel site Oyster.com. There, Seidman posts a hotel’s image next to one taken by his own photographers to show readers how deceiving hotel marketing can be. “It’s pretty bad, in varying degrees, across the whole industry,” says Seidman. And when it comes to the description of the room, “the square footage is complete nonsense,” he says.

Most hotels are not out to actively deceive customers. “We want to ensure that the images are accurate,” says Jeff Wagoner, president of Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. But, he adds, “we have no specific written guidelines.”

5. “Kiss your credit card data goodbye.”

Hotels have become a favorite target for credit card data thieves. According to digital-security firm Trustwave, 38 percent of the credit card hacking cases it worked on in 2009 were in the hospitality industry — far more than any other industry the company works with. Hackers (usually organized crime outfits) access a hotel’s network by guessing the administrator password, then place malware on the network, which then transmits guest’s card numbers back to them. They can also steal other info about you — home address, phone number, license plate number — to aid in identity theft. Nicholas J. Percoco, director of Spider Labs, a unit of Trustwave, says he had his own card data stolen and used just minutes after he checked into a hotel last year. “It can happen really quickly,” he says.

“This has become a priority in the industry,” says Wagoner. “We are putting a lot of effort and energy toward data security.” His company, like others, has basic requirements in place that franchisees are expected to follow. Visa has also worked with the industry to improve its data security. And things are getting better: Percoco says the hospitality industry fell to become the second most targeted industry in 2010.

6. “We need locals as much as travelers.”

With fewer people traveling, hotels that have bars, restaurants, spas and golf courses have been forced to look closer to home for help making up lost revenue. At the San Diego Hilton, Rauch says, 60 percent of the revenue from the spa and 70 percent from the bar come from locals. “Hotels need to learn to become the hub of the community,” he says. Korallus says the majority of customers at the FireLake restaurant in the Minneapolis Radisson are locals, and Carlson Hotels is launching two new restaurants designed to attract more local business. Wyndham hotels that usually cater to business travelers have likewise sought to lure locals by offering discounted weekend rates. Indeed, much of the industry has worked to boost revenue this way, says Mandelbaum. And while it has helped, it has not made up for all the lost room revenue in the short term.

7. “We’ll happily waive that fee.”

These days airlines have found a way to charge for just about everything, but it’s a different story for hotels, which have been losing revenue from once reliable sources. At one time, people paid exorbitant fees to use the room phone; now everyone has a cell phone. Revenue from pay-per-view movies is down significantly now that people bring movies with them on their laptops. Looking to add revenue, hotels have upped staples like parking charges (up to $40 a day) and the mysterious “resort fee” that some vacationers have seen tacked on to their bills (as much as $30). “Hotels are desperate to leverage up these fees,” says Rauch.

The good news: Hotels are pretty open to negotiating or even waiving some of these fees, says Stone. Unlike the airlines, where just a few companies control the industry, the hotel business is made up of more individual owners who are desperate for loyal customers and who are competing against other hotels that may not charge these fees. Bottom line: If you don’t like a fee, ask about it.

8. “We can’t do much about bedbugs.”

Hotels are a perfect environment for bedbugs — lots of turnover and lots of beds. And it has become a big issue for the industry. According to the National Pest Management Association, 67 percent of the pest-control companies it surveyed have received calls to treat hotels and motels. Unfortunately, there’s really nothing hotels can do to prevent travelers from bringing them in, since bedbugs are tiny and can hitch a ride on clothes or luggage. “The key is to find it and treat it as quickly as possible,” Jones says.

Travelers can use BedBugRegistry.com or the iPhone app Bed Bug Alert to search for infested hotels but should take these sources with a grain of salt — the cases haven’t been verified and, even if true, may have been treated already. Your best bet: On arrival, check the corners of the mattress for bedbugs or the telltale brown spots they leave.

9. “We obsess over online comments.”

Traveler-review sites have become a powerful force in the hotel industry. Too many bad reviews and business may start to slide — a fact those in the industry know all too well. “We highly recommend that hotel managers keep up with what is being said about them online, and not only respond but rectify any issue the customer might have had,” says Wyndham’s Wagoner.

For consumers, these reviews are bringing changes for the better. Korallus says some of his hotels have begun opening their gyms an hour earlier, thanks to online comments. And Jones says he brings online comments into staff meetings: “The more feedback, the better.”

10. “You can make a killing on points.”

A few years ago, Dave Weinberg, a Maryland-based consultant who travels a lot for work, became a platinum member of Intercontinental Hotel’s Priority Club Rewards program — without spending much time at the hotel. He signed up for the branded credit card, then benefited from generous point offers. “All hotels are trying to lure in travelers with extra point offers,” he says.

“This is the longest period of sustained hotel promotions we’ve ever seen,” says Tim Winship, publisher of FrequentFlier.com. Hotels are offering double and triple points to those who stay with them. As hotel points rack up, Winship says, travelers might think about swapping hotel points for airline miles, since airlines are raising prices while hotel rates are likely to remain low in many markets. “The way things are going, airline miles have more real value,” Winship says.

Two Royal Thai Air Force C130 aircraft left the Subang air force base near here around 5.03pm and were expected to arrive at their destination in two-and-a-half hours.

Pramualrat Phimpahu, 45, waiting to be carried into an ambulance at the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital to be taken to the Royal Malaysian Air Force base in Subang

Also onboard were 28 family members of the victims, and one passenger who was hurt in the accident. Three others were sent back earlier by ambulance.

Earlier, in Ipoh, Thai Embassy officials arrived at the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital mortuary at 8am to make arrangements to send home bodies of the Thai tourists killed in the bus crash along the Cameron Highlands-Simpang Pulai road.

Buddhist monks, Thai Embassy officials and family members kneeled and offered prayers before 25 coffins draped in white cloth which were arranged in two neat rows outside the mortuary.

Areena Songserm, 19, inside an ambulance which will take her Bukit Kayu Hitam where she will be received by Haadyai Hospital officers. With her is her mother Senah Songserm.

Joss sticks and yellow chrysanthemums were also offered to the deceased.

The coffins were then loaded onto a 25-tonne trailer to be transported to the Subang air force base.

An additional van had to be used as the trailer could not fit all 25 bodies.

Both vehicles, together with other vehicles ferrying embassy officials and family members, left the mortuary at 12.15pm.

Haadyai Hospital consultant Choowit Jiranivatanont said four patients in stable condition were also discharged from the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital.

Crash survivors Areena Songserm, 20, Rungnapa Klungsuwan, 53, Suchanchira Chaiaueai, 41, were transported to the Bukit Kayu Hitam border before being sent to the Hattyai Hospital.

Minmita Theenakun, 29, (second from right) being consoled by a family member at Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital where she claimed the bodies of her parents Phuwadit and Thanathon Tanasak Theenakun.

They left the hospital at 11.27am in two ambulances, escorted by a van with Thai embassy officials.

Another survivor, Pramualarat Phimpahu, 45, was taken to Subang air force base to be flown to Bangkok.

Thai Ambassador to Malaysia Thana Duangratana thanked the Malaysian government for its assistance.

Two police outriders and two police MPVs escorted the trailer with the bodies to Shah Alam.

2. Q: Who can purchase InsuranceOnline.my’s Travel Plan?
Locals or foreigners are eligible. In respect of overseas travel, the departure must be from Malaysia.

3. Q: What is the age limit for me to purchase InsuranceOnline.my’s Travel Plan?
a) ages of nine (9) days and above for short term local and overseas travel ;
b) ages of eighteen (18) to seventy (70), with policy renewal up to the age of eighty (80) for the annual overseas travel.
All ages referred to in this policy shall be the age as at the last birthday.

4. Q: When is the coverage for InsuranceOnline.my’s Travel policy effective?
a) Coverage for overseas travel shall commence 12 hours prior to your departure from Malaysia
b) Coverage for local travel shall commence upon the departure from your place of residence or stay in Malaysia (if different from the place of residence); whichever is later
For travel cancellation, unless due to an Accident, the insurance commences 24 hours from the date of purchase of the policy and terminates upon the commencement of travel.

5. Q: What is the maximum coverage period for each trip?
Domestic Trip Plan : shall refer to a policy for local travel up to maximum of sixty (60) consecutive days upon your departure from your residence or stay in Malaysia.

Per Trip Plan : shall refer to a policy for overseas travel up to a maximum of two hundred and ten days (210) consecutive days from the time of departure from Malaysia.

Annual Plan : shall refer to a policy for overseas travel up to a maximum of one hundred consecutive (100) days from the time of departure from Malaysia.

6. Q: I am holding a one-way ticket. Can I purchase InsuranceOnline.my’s Travel Plan?
Yes. For one way travel, cover terminates five (5) days upon your arrival overseas.

7. Q: Can I buy more than one InsuranceOnline.my’s Travel Plan policy for the same trip?
You can only purchase one (1) insurance cover for each trip.

8. Q: Will I be covered for an illness that I am already suffering from or have suffered in the past?
No. We do not cover any pre-existing conditions i.e. any illnesses or injury for which
(a) you have received or are receiving treatment; or
(b) medical advice, diagnosis, care or treatment has been recommended to you; or
(c) clear and distinct symptoms are or were evident; or
(d) the existence would have been apparent to a reasonable person in the circumstances.
occurring within ninety (90) days period prior to the policy effective date.

9. Q: Can I continue my medical treatment in Malaysia for injuries sustained overseas?
Yes. You will be reimbursed for the Medically Necessary Expenses incurred up to the number of days specified in the Schedule of Benefit provided that you seek treatment within 7 days from the date of return to Malaysia.

10. Q: If I was ill overseas but did not seek medical treatment, can I do so upon returning to Malaysia?
Yes. You will be reimbursed for the Medically Necessary Expenses incurred up to the number of days specified in the Schedule of Benefit provided that you seek treatment within 7 days from the date of return to Malaysia.

11. Q: I am pregnant, am I covered for any pregnancy-related matters?
This policy only covers miscarriage due to an Accidental Injury during the trip, which is not attributed to any natural causes and/or sickness relating to pregnancy or childbirth.

12. Q: Are dental expenses covered?
Dental expenses are covered as long as they are direct consequences of an Accident.

13. Q: I am not able to travel because my employer has cancelled my leave. Am I covered for travel cancellation?
No.
The trip cancellation benefit is only applicable for reasons indicated in the policy wording which includes, but are not limited to, unforeseen emergencies such as illness, injury or death involving you, your travel companion and/or an immediate family member.

14. Q: I need to cut-short my trip because my father is hospitalized in Malaysia. What am I covered for?
If you need to disrupt your trip and return to Malaysia due to covered reasons due to illness, injury or death involving you, your travel companion and/or an immediate family member;
We shall reimburse the :
• cost of travel and/or accommodation expenses incurred; and
• unused and non refundable part of the trip paid in advance.

15. Q: If my belongings are stolen as I left outside on a bench while I am in a queue to check in, can I claim?
No, because the property was left unattended.
The policy coverage requires you to take all reasonable care and precaution to safeguard your property.

16. Q: What if my trip is cancelled due to a strike/riot happening at my planned destination?
If the unexpected outbreak of Strike, Civil Unrest, Riot, Commotion occurring within fourteen (14) days prior to commencement of Trip, the company shall reimburse you the cost of travel and/or accommodation expenses. However, the policy needs to be purchased before the occurrence of such strike/riot.
Strike, Civil Unrest, Riot or Commotion in connection with a demand by any faction or group to have sovereign rights or control over an area of governance or people are not covered.

17. Q: What should I do if I lose money whilst aboard?
You must report to local police within 24 hours after the incident.

18. Q: Will I be covered if my belongings are pick-pocketed while traveling overseas?
Yes.

19. Q: Are activities such as winter sports & scuba diving covered?
All leisure sports are covered at no extra premium as long as it does not involve engaging, practicing or participating in any sport in a professional capacity or where income or remuneration can be earned from engaging in such a sport.

20. Q: How do I cancel my policy and get a refund of the premium?
No refund of premiums will be allowed once the policy is issued.

However, some travellers often ask if it is necessary to buy travel insurance when purchasing the air tickets. Well, if any airline can guarantee, among others, that your plane will be on time, your luggage will arrive safely on the same flight or you will not meet with an accident, then it is not necessary to purchase travel insurance.

For many though, travel insurance has eased the pain of cancelled flights, delayed travel and interrupted trips as witnessed recently with the Icelandic volcano eruption that caused havoc on international flights around the world and threw hundreds of thousands of travellers into a state of stranded chaos.

On the local front, both Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and AirAsia Bhd currently offer travel insurance purchase for customers buying air tickets via their web portals.

In 2008, MAS was the first full-service carrier in Asia to offer its travel insurance online. The MHinsure policy provides travellers comprehensive insurance coverage for unexpected losses during their journey with access to Mondial Assistance’s 24-hour worldwide assistance.

According to MAS general manager business development Visva Sabaratnam, the scheme has been well received with 25% of the carrier’s passengers purchasing it.

He said the comprehensive policy included overseas medical expenses, travel delays, trip cancellation, loss of baggage and personal effects, and home protection in case of damage to the home during the travel period.

“We promote MHinsure on our website, call centre and ticketing offices, From the response thus far, there is certainly good awareness of this service.

“We also see an estimated 30% of international policy holders who have purchased MHinsure more than once in 2009, indicating satisfaction with the product offerings and services provided, including claims experience,” he told StarBiz.

Apart from MAS passengers, those departing from Malaysia, Singapore and Australia on any other airline can purchase MHinsure from these countries on the MAS website.

MHinsure is currently available in Malaysia, Australia, Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Singapore and Sweden, and was recently introduced in the UK, United Arab Emirates and New Zealand.

With this, a total of 11 countries in the MAS network now offer online travel insurance. According to the MAS website, travellers need only to complete the online travel insurance application to be eligible for cover. There is no need for medical examination. MHinsure also offers travellers the same premium regardless of age. The premiums are based on travel duration and destination.

Commenting on its competitiveness, Sabaratnam said MHinsure was developed with the primary objective of ensuring high quality cover at affordable prices.

MHinsure Basic Plan starts from RM15 for domestic travel for a 30-day cover and RM23 for international cover for a five-day trip.

Sabaratnam said whichever international cover customers chose, MHinsure offered customers unlimited financial coverage in the case of an overseas emergency evacuation or repatriation. “This sets us apart from the rest.”

Meanwhile, AirAsia head of financial services and loyalty Johan Aris Ibrahim said AirAsia started selling travel insurance online in 2005 and the recent rebranding of its insurance product as AirAsia Insure from Go Insure had boosted public awareness on the offering.

“The rebranding exercise was prompted by AirAsia’s plans to expand the insurance services regionally and to reinforce its position as the only Asean low-cost carrier to offer travelling insurance coverage,” he told StarBiz.

He said the response had been “positive regionally” and guests were starting to be insurance-conscious when travelling, whether for business or leisure.

“We have gone from strength to strength in offering AirAsia Insure and the number of policies sold has been growing at 30% annually,” Johan said.

AirAsia’s plan starts from RM7.50 for the AirAsia Insure one-way cover for domestic travel to RM49 for AirAsia Insure return cover for international travel (11-30 days).

“Besides Malaysia, AirAsia Insure is available for travel from Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Macau, Hong Kong, China and Australia,” Johan said.

“By the end of 2010, AirAsia Insure will be available for most of our destinations and at our affiliated companies for purchase at AirAsia Megastore.com, AirAsiaredtix.com and AirAsiaGo.com.

“There is an option to purchase insurance online as a notification or prompter will alert customers on AirAsia Insure when they buy their tickets online. We have invested in strategic and targeted advertising and promotion activities,” he said.

Airlines aside, travel insurance is also offered by travel agencies, banks and insurers. In addition, credit card issuers often issue complimentary travel insurance policies to cardholders that charge ticket purchases to their cards

Chartis Vice President, Mr Wong Fu-tat, said at a press conference that as the incident was a special case, “the level of compensation for victims has been doubled from HK$500,000 to HK$1 million, under insurance covering accidents caused by public transport”. The insurer will also help with the cost of bringing the remains of the dead to Hong Kong.

Mr Wong adds that the injured stand to receive up to HK$1 million in medical insurance benefits. Chartis will also provide them with cover of up to HK$100,000 for six months of follow-up medical treatment in Hong Kong.

Separately, the Manila Bulletin newspaper reports that the victims of the hostage-taking crisis will receive insurance benefits from the Passenger Accident Management and Insurance (PAMI) Agency as the bus that carried the tourists is insured by the agency.

Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) officer-in-charge Assistant Secretary, Dante Lantin, said: “The families of the dead victims of the hostage are entitled to at least PHP60,000 (US$1,318) insurance claims each. As for the injured passengers, PAMI has committed to shoulder part of their hospital expenses,” he said. Apart from the eight Hong Kong tourists killed, the hostage-taker himself, former police officer Rolando Mendoza, was shot dead. At least seven others were injured in the incident.

It is the highest fine levied on a single firm for data security failings.

Margaret Cole, the FSA’s director of enforcement and financial crime, said: “Zurich UK let its customers down badly.”

Stephen Lewis, chief executive of Zurich UK, said: “This incident was unacceptable.”

The data on policyholders, including in some cases bank account and credit card information, went missing in August 2008.

However, Zurich did not become aware of the loss until a year later, when it then began notifying customers.

The information went missing during a routine transfer to a data storage centre in South Africa.

‘Oblivious’

The FSA said in a statement: “Zurich UK failed to take reasonable care to ensure it had effective systems and controls to manage the risks relating to the security of customer data resulting from the outsourcing arrangement.

“The firm also failed to ensure that it had effective systems and controls to prevent the lost data being used for financial crime.”

Margaret Cole added that Zurich “failed to oversee the outsourcing arrangement effectively and did not have full control over the data being processed by Zurich SA”.

“To make matters worse, Zurich UK was oblivious to the data loss incident until a year later.

“Firms across the financial sector would do well to look at the details of this case and learn from the mistakes that Zurich UK made,” she said.

Zurich said that it had no evidence the data had been misused. The firm said it had introduced new security measures, and had appointed a dedicated information security officer.

Mr Lewis said that the incident “served to remind us of the need to strive continually to improve the ways in which we seek to protect customers’ data”.

As Zurich agreed to settle at an early stage of the investigation the firm’s fine was reduced by 30%. Without this discount the fine would have been £3.25m.

Encryption

Experts said the size of the fine sends a signal that the authorities will crack down hard on data loss.

Rupert Casey, partner at Macfarlanes law firm, said companies and organisations had previously failed to take data loss seriously.

“That stemmed from the fact that data protection law never had any bite to it. That has all changed.

“What this fine should do is drive the issue up the agenda,” he said.

Better encryption of data, password protection, and measures to ensure large files cannot be downloaded to devices like memory sticks must all be improved, he said.

The FSA has previously fined HSBC, Nationwide and Norwich Union for data loss.