The Expat Life: Are You Properly Insured?

Posted on 26. Mar, 2009 by Emmanuelle Archer in Blog, Expat Life, Relocation
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For the first 6 years after I moved to Vancouver, I had no insurance. No home insurance, no disability insurance, nothing apart from the provincial health coverage and employment insurance that are standard in Canada.

Now this is completely out of character for me. I tend to be fairly thorough with this kind of things, not to mention being a bit of a worrywart at times. So what happened?

I thought that I was an isolated case of expat carelessness and inertia. Alas, this article clearly states that lacking proper insurance is something of an epidemic among expats.

I guess it is easy to overlook insurance matters when you relocate. For one thing, you may simply feel overwhelmed- too many tasks competing for your attention, too many details to look into and who are you going to purchase insurance from anyway?
There may also be a sense that your situation is temporary and that you might as well wait before getting insured. Why bother insuring your rental apartment if you are looking for a house to move into? Why base disability coverage on your current earnings when you are striving to get a better-paid job?
Finally, as a newcomer your budget might be on the tight side, without much room left for monthly premiums.

The obvious counterargument is that accidents and disasters do not discriminate- expat or not, temporary situation or not, you never know when you may need coverage. In fact, if your budget is tight or your savings are dwindling, being properly insured becomes all the more critical, as you cannot afford unexpected expenses.

A note of caution: if you do not get insurance right after arriving, chances are you will keep procrastinating after you settle in. This could lead to further complications, especially if you have never been insured before in your host country.

When I finally started shopping around for home insurance, one company flat out refused to insure me and another was quite suspicious of my motives for wanting to buy a policy after 6 years in the country without coverage. [The fact that I could not remember the street number for my previous address probably did not help either, but that is beside the point.]

So don’t delay! Write a list of the types of insurance you need (home, health, disability, critical illness, life, travel, car, business) and start making arrangements. If you are already insured, take a few minutes to review your policies- your situation may have changed and you may wish to adjust coverage levels and exclusions accordingly.

Emmanuelle