Tips about traveling in Japan: 3 Apps to protect yourself from earthquakes
An earthquake of magnitude 7.1 occurred offshore of Miyazaki Prefecture in Japan earlier, and the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) issued a megaquake warning on August 8.
For the earthquake affected by the outbound travel insurance compensation, Hong Kong Federation of Insurers chief Selina Lau said that if one had taken out an insurance policy before August 8, or if he/she was in Miyazaki Prefecture on August 8, and the earthquake affects the early end of the trip or the trip is delayed, the travel insurance can play a role in protection.
What should people do in case of extreme weather and natural disasters? This article hereby organizes the details of travel insurance and the tips of the 3 major apps for disaster prevention and avoidance.
What are the exclusions of travel insurance?
The Hong Kong Federation of Insurers (HKFI) points out that any pre-existing illnesses or conditions, including known weather conditions (e.g. typhoons) and natural disasters (e.g. earthquakes or tsunamis) are excluded from travel insurance. Therefore, if a travel insurance policy is taken out after an earthquake has occurred or when the earthquake warning has been widely reported, although the policy is still valid, all losses related to the earthquake will not be covered.
According to HKFI, if travelers who have taken out travel insurance before the earthquake decide to cancel their trip after the issuance of the outbound travel alerts (OTA), a few insurance companies will provide partial compensation, and the percentage of compensation will depend on the level of the OTA and the details of the policy.
HKFI points out that except for known risks, other travel insurance coverage will not be affected, such as medical expenses incurred in case of cold and flu in the travel destination.
What are the circumstances under which the insured person can claim for compensation?
1. Trip Cancellation: If the insured person has to cancel the trip due to a natural disaster (including earthquake or tsunami) at the destination within a specified number of days prior to departure, the insured person will be entitled to reimbursement of the paid but unreturnable travel expenses including air tickets, overseas accommodation and transportation costs.
2. Early termination of the journey: the insured person must interrupt his/her journey and return directly to the place of origin due to a natural disaster (including earthquake or tsunami) at the insured destination, and will be reimbursed for the loss of paid but unreturned airfares or accommodation costs, or additional airfares or accommodation costs incurred as a result of such an event.
3. Journey Delay: If the insured person's journey is delayed due to a natural disaster (including earthquake or tsunami), the insured person will be entitled to a cash allowance based on the number of hours of delay according to the terms and conditions of the policy, or will be reimbursed for reasonable additional travel expenses, such as hotel or airfares, incurred as a result.
Top 3 Japan Disaster Prevention Apps to help tourists
The public can download the following 3 Japan Disaster Prevention App before traveling, in the event of an earthquake, tsunami and other disasters, you can be the first to receive notification and timely grasp of the information to avoid disaster.
1. Disaster prevention information "National Evacuation Center Guide"
The app contains more than 150,000 disaster evacuation shelters and evacuation sites designated by the Japanese government. It can automatically search for shelters near the user's location and provide directions and evacuation guides. The app records the current location and up to three areas, and sends various disaster prevention information notifications such as evacuation information and weather information for the relevant areas.
2. Safety tips
Safety tips provides alert information including earthquake flash reports, tsunami alerts and other Japanese weather alerts, etc. In addition, there are graphic tutorials explaining disaster emergency actions, disaster emergency Japanese dialog, and links to disaster-related websites, etc. Safety tips provides information on earthquakes, tsunamis, and other disasters.
3. Disaster Prevention Information App
This app allows you to search and view the location of various disaster prevention facilities on a map and create a personal evacuation route in advance, and the map of the location can be viewed offline after downloading. Tokyo Disaster Prevention App will broadcast the latest disaster information, including disaster information, meteorological information, earthquake information, tsunami intelligence and volcano information.
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Caution urged for Hongkongers in Japan following megaquake advisory
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