Do I Need Scuba Diving Insurance When Diving the Nusa Islands?
Have you made the best decision of your life and booked that scuba holiday? AMAZING! Good for you. Now that you have booked your flights, you’re probably thinking about insurance. Travel insurance is definitely your friend when travelling anywhere in the world, but have you ever heard about getting insurance specifically for scuba diving? It’s something worth looking into.
What Does Scuba Diving Insurance Cover That Other Insurances Won’t?
Even though scuba diving has become safer and safer over the years, “normal” insurance companies still consider it to be a hazardous recreational activity. Therefore you might either have to pay A LOT extra to get yourself covered, or you might only be covered for a very limited amount.
We all know that as long as we dive safely, we will likely not have any accidents. But then again, we all know that even when we think we’ve done everything right, things can still go wrong. You might get stung by a jellyfish, scrape yourself on a coral, hurt your ears or you know, get decompression sickness. It happens! We expose ourselves to extreme conditions, high pressure, breathe air under that pressure, and sometimes we go real deep and looong.
Scuba diving insurance should cover everything your normal insurance won’t. On top of that, they have doctors and experts specifically trained to deal with scuba diving related injuries. In other words, those people know their sh*t!
Have you ever thought about the cost of a hyperbaric chamber session? Or a helicopter ride to the nearest chamber? No? Well, we can tell you it’s a TON of money. Money that you could use to dive every damn day for the next year or more. So, why risk it?
Have a look at some expenses you might have to deal with in a scuba diving accident:
Transport From the Dive Site to the Hospital
The most beautiful dive sites are usually remote. VERY remote. It’s not like you’ll be in a hospital within ten minutes if something happens. Oh, no. You might need to wait hours and hours, or in some cases, you might even need to be airlifted to another country if there isn’t a chamber in your location. How much is that? Well... you can probably guess it’s gonna be a small fortune.
Time is of the essence in scuba diving accidents. You wanna get to a hospital FAST. Scuba diving insurance companies know exactly how serious it is and will know exactly to transport you for the best care.
Medical Treatments and Hyperbaric Treatments in the Hospital
We did some investigating, and depending on your location, you might end up paying up to $750 per hour in a hyperbaric chamber. And if you do get decompression sickness, you’re gonna need “a bit” more than an hour in there. A common hyperbaric chamber therapy is actually eight hours per day over the course of four days. That adds up to $24,000.
Repatriation Costs
This might sound familiar to you as this is what normal travel insurance usually covers. If things go bad and you have to be flown home, they’ve got your back.
Gear Lost Due to an Emergency
You might lose some gear trying to help a fellow scuba diver or vice versa. Obviously, you’re not gonna panic over a lost mask at the time. But did you know that if you lose your gear in an emergency, your scuba diving insurance will cover it? They usually do!
Hazards While Diving
Scuba diving is an amazing and wonderful sport, but it can be a bit hazardous at times. Conditions might change, your gear might fail, your buddy might panic, or you might accidentally touch something you shouldn’t. Can you imagine accidentally grabbing a stone fish thinking it’s a rock? Bad, BAD mistake. Or maybe you’re diving without an exposure suit and you get stung by a venomous jellyfish. Ouch, and again, BAD. Real bad.
As carefully you might be planning your dives, we ALL know there is still a risk of decompression sickness. There are dozens of underlying causes for it, some of which you might not even know you have, so really, you just never know.
Ok, Where Can I Get It?
The good ol’ World Wide Web! That is the internet, of course.
Now, if you go on Google and type “scuba diving insurance” you are likely to find about a hundred different options. Don’t get overwhelmed. Take a deep breath and let us help you!
We’re gonna give you few tips about how to choose the perfect scuba diving insurance. After all, as we said already there are A LOT of scuba diving insurance companies out there. However, since we are really cool and want to make your life as easy breezy as possible, we will also give you a recommendation. Ready?
Divers Alert Network (commonly known as DAN) is a scuba diving insurance company that offers a variety of insurances for scuba divers. It is very, VERY popular within the industry. You can check them out and see if you vibe with them and their policies. We like them.
Anyway, if you prefer to do your own research, keep reading and find out some important things that you should look into before getting a scuba diving insurance policy.
Things to look out for when choosing scuba diving Insurance
Depth Limits
Will you be covered to just 12 meters or will you be covered all the way to 40 meters? It makes a difference. You wanna look out for one that covers you for as deep as you’re certified to dive.
Location
Will the cover be worldwide or just within your home country? Are any countries excluded? Or vice versa -- does it cover you in your home country at all?
Transportation Costs
As we mentioned before, sometimes you might need to be transported to another country for treatment. Will that be covered? Is there a limit for that? Are any countries excluded for treatment? Definitely pay attention to this.
Gas Blends
Are you EANx diver or maybe a tech diver? Make sure you choose scuba diving insurance that covers you when you dive using Nitrox, trimix, or whatever blends you’re gonna be on. Very important.
No matter which scuba diving insurance you choose, make sure it covers you for what YOU need. Reading insurance policies sure isn’t fun, but hey... neither is paying $24,000 for hyperbaric treatment, amiright?