Travel exposes you to a number of risks that can cause substantial monetary loss and severe inconvenience. Some of these risks may arise because you're traveling, while the consequences of other risks, not specific to travel, can be particularly difficult to deal with when away from home.

Five identified risks specific to travel include trip cancellation or interruption; default of air carrier, cruise line or tour operator; loss or theft of baggage and personal effects; extra costs of medical care and emergency transport home; and collision damage to your rental car. Your regular garden-variety of risks that are aggravated by travel abroad include serious illness or injury, personal liability for the injuries and losses of others, and minor legal and other problems.

Although your normal medical, accident, homeowner/personal property and auto insurance policies probably cover a number of these risks, major gaps remain in most travelers' coverages. Eager to fill these lapses, the travel and insurance industries have developed programs to supplement your regular coverages with benefits specific to travel. These targeted policies generally can be divided into two broad groups: travel-risk and emergency services.

Under travel risk falls trip cancellation/interruption/default insurance, geared to compensate a traveler for losses incurred when 1) unforeseeable injury, sickness or death, 2) unforeseeable circumstances outside the traveler's control, or 3) financial default of a travel supplier cause the cancellation or interruption of a trip. Policies are offered by insurance carriers that specialize in travel-related protection.

DO YOU NEED IT?

But before you plunk down 5 to 8 percent of the maximum cash benefit for this type of coverage, answer only one question. Can you comfortably — financially as well as emotionally — accept the loss of thousands of dollars if you had to cancel a trip within the travel providers' penalty periods? If your answer is no, then you definitely want to purchase TC&I insurance. I never leave home without it.

Keep in mind that the majority of tour operators and cruise lines will retain a partial or full portion of your trip payments if you cancel within 120 days to the day of departure. And many common air tickets, whether retail or discounted, are so rigidly restricted that untimely cancellations, or even minor changes, can put a death grip on your wallet. If your financial exposure is substantial, trip cancellation and interruption insurance may be coverage you simply can't afford to be without.

WHEN IN DISTRESS ...

Risks not peculiar to travel, but aggravated by being away from home, are covered by medical and emergency services policies. These provide payments and offer services to travelers if they become ill or suffer a serious accident anywhere in the world. Such specific coverage will include emergency medical care and evacuation and may also offer personal services — like organizing plane reservations, bail bonds, document translations, etc. — to assist the traveler in distress.

An important feature of most travel insurance policies is the waiver of the standard exclusion for pre-existing medical conditions. Many carriers offer this bonus provided that 1) the insured is medically stable at time of purchase and 2) policy is purchased to cover full price, up to a maximum limit, of travel arrangements within seven to 14 days of trip deposit. This waiver is invaluable to the elderly and to those in less-than-robust health.

With the exception of Medicare, which provides no coverage outside the U.S., many standard medical insurance programs offer similar worldwide protection for less. However, travel policies for medical and emergency assistance do have two major advantages over conventional health insurance: foreign medical bills are usually paid on the spot, or guaranteed, on your behalf, and these travel assistance programs maintain 24-hour telephone lines all over the planet with personnel trained to respond to any kind of emergency. This access can literally save your life when traveling abroad.

CHECK YOUR CAR INSURANCE

Since few policies, either travel risk or emergency, cover collision damage waiver for rental cars and personal liability, ask your insurance agent to check your exposure. And review carefully your bank credit card benefits to see what kind of CDW, luggage loss and emergency protection they may offer. American Express, Diners Club, Visa Gold, MasterCard Gold and others have a package of comprehensive travel protections that are free or of nominal cost to cardholders. When evaluating your options, determine if the policy provides the more desirable primary insurance or if any claim payments would be paid secondary to claims against your automobile/homeowner policies.

Irene Croft Jr. of Kailua, Kona, is a travel writer and 40-year veteran globetrotter. Her column is published in this section every other week.