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Insure Your Travel – Do You Need Travel Insurance?

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Travel suppliers try to up-sell you to take a trip cancellation plan when you book travel with them. If you are like most travelers you are not sure if this is a good idea or not. The answer depends on your personal needs. A person who is going to spend 6 months to a year abroad has a totally different insurance need than a person making a single short vacation trip.

It is a good idea to plan for the unexpected and this is the reason for your travel agent suggesting the purchase of travel insurance. (Of course, they get paid for it just like they do for booking the trip). Again there is nothing wrong with their suggestion or your purchase of trip cancellation insurance. I personally have purchased it at times and at other times have not. When my wife had been ill and we had a 3 week trip planned for a visit to China a few years back, I felt it was a necessity to get travel insurance. At the time of the trip she was fine and we did not need to use the trip cancellation insurance, but we were glad we had it. Whether you need or buy the insurance is a matter of personal preference and how important to you the completion of your planned trip is.

Travel insurance serves many purposes and should be designed to meet your individual needs. Insurance plans are most commonly gotten by travelers going on single trips like cruises, tours, flights, etc. For this purpose, a traveler usually gets a Package Plan which covers trip cancellation, baggage, medical, dental, emergency evacuation, baggage delay, accidental death coverage, and often additional items. But there are other additional types of travel plans you might wish to consider.

Travel Medical Plans – Similar to the package plans but cover cover travel up to a year in length
Flight Accident Plans – Flight accident plans, usually for a single trip
Multi-Trip Medical Plans – Covers multiple trips, with individual trips having length restrictions
Medical Evacuation Plans – Provide emergency medical evacuation to an appropriate care facility
Business Package Plans – For individual business travelers and small companies with traveling employees
Major Medical Travel Plans – For travelers going abroad for at least 6 months who need more permanent insurance
Accidental Death Plans – Usually written for a specific trip
Each type of insurance may be underwritten by various insurance companies. You can research the types individually, looking up each insurance company who offers a particular type (not the best use of your time when preparing for a trip), or you can use a service which offers comparative plans from several insurers.

An example of such a service is InsureMyTrip.Com. At the time of writing this article, they represented 18 different companies from which you could get comparative quotes. You can get quotes and actually purchase the different types of travel insurance from this site or you can use it to gather further information. The worst that can happen is that you become more educated on travel insurance.

Good luck on your travels and may the wind always be at your back.

Lamar Ross is an author, educator, photographer, internet entrepreneur, and international traveler. He has a special interest in training individuals for expatriate living and providing information on unique travel destinations. He has lived in the United States, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and India and has traveled extensively in 29 different countries. He speaks both English and Spanish fluently and has a basic ability in several other languages.

Here’s Why You Need to Charge Your Electric Vehicle At Home

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It is no wonder BMW is at the forefront in making both stylish and functional vehicles that never compromise safety. Charging your electric vehicle with a home charging station has more benefits compared to public charging stations. With BMW’s electric model ranges, you will experience an entirely new driving experience. No feeling is better than gliding silently through urban and rural traffics. All of this is free of fumes and harmful emissions that impact the planet. Going electric with BMW is one of the best things you can do for you.

While BMW iX3 Charging Station is available in many places and shopping malls in Australia, it is a good idea to invest in home BMW charger as it offers a plethora of benefits. In fact, charging your electric car with a home charging station has benefits compared with public charging stations.

Here’s why you need to install BMW home charging station:-

Save money

Instead of buying battery power from a third-party source every time you need to charge your BMW, it is a good idea to pay a flat fee for a residential BMW charging station and have unlimited energy from the same source that keeps your house warm and other electric appliances running. Of course, you would see a spike in electricity bill. But, you’ll save money by saving yourself from frequent trips to the public station and paying for recharging your car. Home charging stations pay for themselves in the long run.

Finding your home charger is affordable too. There are many electric vehicles charging station providers in Australia from whom you can buy and rely on them for support. There are three different types of home chargers, including level 1, level 2, and level 3. Based on the type of charger you buy, the cost will be anywhere between $300 and $2000.

Convenient

On average, it takes anywhere from four to six hours to fully charge your BMW with a level 2 charger. Let’s imagine that you need to drive 50miles to attend a meeting and your EV is running low on battery. If you have to wait the whole night, take your vehicle to the nearby charging station, recharge, and then drive. Wouldn’t that consume your productive hours? The same scenario is much more manageable if you have the home charger installed. All you need to do is, plug the car in and go to sleep. By the time you wake up, you’ll have a fully charged BMW ready for the drive.

Safe

Charging at home is much safer than public charging stations for a range of reasons, including the safety of you and your vehicle. You’ll have to wait for a long time in the public charging stations to charge your EV, and there’s no safety, especially if you are in the middle of high way.

As you see, they’re less expensive, more convenient and completely safe as long as it is installed properly.

The Financial Benefits of Owning an Electric Vehicle

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Although electric vehicles are expensive, the long-term price of owning one is lower than compared to gasoline cars. Yes, trading in your existing diesel or petrol car for the long-term benefits of an electric car is a good idea. Not only are electric vehicles the future of road travel, but the government is considering a decent incentive who upgrade to electric. Both hybrid plug-in and fully electric vehicles can help improve fuel economy, lower fuel costs, and reduce emissions.

However, the cost is typically one of the major considerations for drivers deciding on what kind of vehicle to purchase. In fact, one of the top reasons that people hesitate to switch to an electric vehicle is the relative price compared to gas-powered cars. But, you must understand the fact that owning an electric vehicle offers more monetary benefits than gasoline vehicles. Take a look at some of the financial benefits you’ll reap by owning an electric vehicle:-

EV Owners Are Eligible For Tax Deductions

Yes! Going electric despite the higher upfront cost is considered as an act of being socially responsible. The more drivers switch to an electric vehicle, the less greenhouse gas will be emitted into the atmosphere and reduce its impacts on the environment. This, in turn, brings the global temperature down and contributing to make the world a better place to live in for us and our future generations. For these reasons, electric car owners are eligible for a tax deduction of up to $7,500.

However, the deduction amount varies from one state to another and based on the capacity of the battery used to power the vehicle. On the other hand, there are no tax deductions for gasoline cars, and from a tax perspective, going electric with Nissan is a financially smart option. All you need is electricity and Nissan leaf charging stations to recharge your vehicle.

Low-Cost Maintenance

Gas-powered vehicles consist of lots of complex moving parts and generally require more maintenance than electric vehicles. Petrol and diesel cars need frequent oil and transmission fluid changes, whereas, EVs don’t require it. Fixing gas-powered vehicles can take time and drives up labour costs from the mechanic. On the other hand, EVs come with regenerative brakes. Yes, they use the kinetic energy of the vehicle to decelerate. This, in turn, causes less wear and tear on the brakes, which result in reduced need for brake maintenance as well. Overall, the maintenance cost of EVs is less than petrol and diesel cars.

Costs Less To Power

Petrol and diesel rates are increasing day by day. One of the major benefits of owning an EV is that you don’t have to refuel it. All you need is Nissan leaf charger or Nissan leaf home charger to charge the car. You can charge your Nissan EV anywhere from the comfort of your house, office, or anywhere. It is as simple as that.

EV is the future of the automobile industry. Embrace it and reap the many benefits of being a proud owner of an electric vehicle.