Qatar Travel Insurance: Update
Once again, it seems, half the population of Qatar are getting ready to leave the country. If you are like me, your thoughts may turn to everything that has gone wrong in the past, or nearly went wrong, or could go wrong in the future... In any case, as we have not done a post on travel insurance for Qatar residents since 2007 , here is an update.
Qatar Travel Insurance
We last looked at this in 2007 in our post Qatar Travel Insurance, when we recommended Columbus Direct. At the time we felt Qatar Insurance Co., though far cheaper, did not offer sufficient cover. In addition, Qatar Insurance are rather inflexible - having booked and paid for travel insurance you can not change the dates of the insurance; your only option is to take out a new trip.
Qatar HSBC Travel Insurance
Another alternative is HSBC travel insurance. They offer travel insurance for "around" QAR20 a month, offered via the AMG Memsa insurance company. This does seem to be excellent value. However, I don't think the maximum cover ($50,000) is really sufficient - the British Foreign Office say that air ambulance back to the UK can cost up to £45,000 (currently around $75,000). However, if you feel $50,000 is sufficient you can ring them on +974 442 4722.
World Nomads
A major factor in my own choice of travel insurance is ease of booking. I don't want to have to visit HSBC or Qatar insurance, find a parking space, walk through the summer heat and then sit around twiddling my thumbs for an hour. So one insurance company I am checking out this year, again on recommendation, is World Nomads, which can be booked online, came to me recommended...
