Stephen Ebbett of Protectyourbubble.com, said: “Children can’t wait for the long summer holidays to start. Working parents, on the other hand, often find it a source of worry and stress as it can be difficult to find suitable, affordable childcare that the kids will enjoy. For some, a grandparent or friend offering to take your child on holiday can be the perfect solution. However, it’s worrying that a third could be travelling without insurance. This is a big risk. What if the child was involved in a medical emergency abroad? Clearly that would be distressing enough, let alone the stress of finding the finances to cover the cost.”
Travelling with children – especially ones that are not your own – is a whole different ball game. Protectyourbubble.com offers some safety advice:
Take with you a signed and attested consent letter from the parents for you to travel with the child, especially if the name of the child’s passport is different from yours. You are more likely to be asked for this in countries where overseas adoption and/or child trafficking is common.
Ensure that everyone travelling has the correct visas and vaccinations.
Make sure you are aware of any allergies or medical conditions the child may suffer from and that you know what to do in an emergency. You might want them to travel with a card that specifies, in the language of your destination, what they're allergic to and how serious the condition is. Allergy UK produces cards in 27 different languages (http://www.allergyuk.org/
Talk to the children about what to do if they get lost. In each new place, especially busy places like airports, designate a meeting point in case anyone gets separated from the group. You could give each child ID badges or wrist bands – there are some funky designs that they might enjoy wearing!
Regardless of the regulations in your destination, always use children's car seats whenever driving with children. If the car hire company cannot guarantee you one then take your own. For more information on child car seats go to: childcarseats.org.uk.
If you are spending time outdoors don’t forget sun hats, sun block, insect repellant and first aid kit. Children dehydrate faster than adults so make sure they drink plenty of fluids.
Take out travel insurance for everyone travelling and give yourselves peace of mind to enjoy the holiday.
Protectyourbubble.co.uk offers FREE insurance for all children travelling with an adult. The policy includes emergency medical cover for up to £5,000,000, supplier failure cover for up to £2,000 and personal luggage cover for up to £1,500. Protectyourbubble.co.uk is a new ethical insurer that donates £1 to The National Holiday Fund for Sick and Disabled Children for every travel policy sold or renewed.
- ends -
Notes to editors
Research conducted amongst 501 UK adults by Aurora Market Research (May 2009)
