Questor Insurance reveals that holidaymakers planning a stay in Florida may still need to secure an International Driving Permit (IDP)

Earlier today Questor Insurance Services issued the following Press Release which will bew of great interest to anyone taking a holiday in Florida, USA and who is planning hiring a car in the sunshine state.

Understanding road rules in the country you are visiting is imperative to ensuring that travellers’ can safely travel foreign roads, while adhering to local laws. 

Vehicle hire excess and travel insurance specialist Questor Insurance reveals that holidaymakers planning a stay in Florida may still need to secure an International Driving Permit (IDP), despite this requirement being recently overturned.

British people travelling to the US state of Florida earlier this year were shocked to find that their UK driving licence alone was not enough to enable them to hire a car.

Unbeknownst to scores of travellers and holiday companies, new laws were ushered in by the state on January 1st 2013, requiring drivers holding a non-US licence to produce an IDP alongside their home licence.

Although this law was repealed by the Governor of Florida just a few months later on April 2nd, car hire firms and insurance companies may still require drivers to obtain an IDP as part of their terms and conditions.

Florida attracts 1.5 million visitors from the UK each year who head to the state for year-round sunshine and attractions such as Disney World and Universal Studios in Orlando.

The state is also popular with holidaymakers looking for fly-drive packages helping them take in highlights of the state ranging from the Everglades to popular tourist hotspots such as Miami and Key West.


In order to ensure that UK travellers can fully enjoy their time in Florida, it may be best to take out an IDP as a precautionary measure.


Holidaymakers can apply for an IDP at selected Post Offices for a statutory charge of £5.50. Alongside their UK drivers licence (both the photocard and the paper counterpart) holidaymakers will need to provide a recent passport-sized photo signed on the back.


As UK travellers are unable to apply for their IDP more than three months in advance of their trip, it is important that they incorporate this into their holiday planning alongside taking out comprehensive car hire excess insurance and travel insurance.


Commenting, Questor Insurance CEO Andrew Lawrence, said: “Understanding road rules in the country you are visiting is imperative to ensuring that travellers’ can safely travel foreign roads, while adhering to local laws.


“As with any insurance policy you take out it is important to read and understand the full range of terms and conditions to ensure that the policy fully meets your needs.”


Questor Insurance’s ‘Be Holiday Savvy’ campaign is running from June to September and will provide travellers with a wealth of handy hints and tips to make the process of planning and executing their foreign holiday that much smoother. (Source Questor Insurance June 2013)

For more information on Questor Insurance products for Car hire excess insurance, Travel insurance and more...Follow this link

Cote d'Azur south of France featured in Staysure Insurance Lifestyle

Staysure Insurance are featuring destination to have your holiday homes in. The first is the Côte d'Azur in the south of France. The picturesque port on the left looks like Villefranche sur Mer just outside Nice.

Staysure says in the article that If you have a holiday home, know someone who does, or are thinking of purchasing a new second home, Staysure offer bespoke holiday home insurance so you can have peace of mind that your second home is safe and secure, all from £135 per year (check current prices and terms and conditions Here via Staysure link )

Staysure cover many second home destinations in Europe , including Italy, Portugal and Greece. Here, our travel expert discusses the Cote d'Azur in France, and the Costa del Sol in Spain, the perfect places to relax in your second home.



Fish art at Cagnes-sur-Mer

 They feature, Nice, St Tropez and talk about the Monaco Grand Prix and the Famous Tour de France that in this year’s Tour, one of the stages starts in Cagnes-sur-Mer (pictured left), in the heart of the Cote d’Azur between Nice and Cannes.

The town is also host to other sporting events such as the Women’s Tennis Open and horse racing at one of the most well-known race grounds in France, the Hippodrome de la Cote d’Azur.

You can also find out more about the area by visiting the Cote d'azur rental.com website Here It is packed with information about other events like the Juan Les Pins Jazz Festival being held next month in July and a lot more.

Meanwhile getting back to the Staysure Lifestyle article they also move over to Spain and provide this useful information.

Costa Del Sol

The Malaga Province is set amongst some of the most beautiful landscapes in Europe. Take in its rich cultural heritage, amazing beaches and sample some mouth-watering local Spanish cuisine.

Beaches
There are many beautiful beaches to choose from along this stunning coastline, with many being recommended for families:

El Pinillo Beach, Marbella – Extensive stretch of beach and greenery

El Morche Beach, Torrox – More than 1km long. Adapted for people with disabilities. Blue Flag status

El Faro Beach, Marbella – Situated in front of the city centre with the lighthouse standing prominent (Faro means lighthouse in Spanish) Adapted for people with disabilities.

Other beaches include: Del Bombo Beach, Mijas - Playamar Beach, Torremolinos - Las Yucas Beach, Benalmadena - Las Gaviotas Beach, Fuengirola

Culture
The beaches are not the only attractive part of this coast, many people also flock here for the cultural heritage, and there are many museums and galleries to visit:
Malaga-Museum of Popular Arts - This museum aims to preserve and study the ethnological heritage of Malaga and its province, and looks to offer an insight into local and historic activities like the art of tack making, vine growing or smithing.

Alameda –Roman Baths Visitor Centre - Situated next to an archaeological site containing old Roman baths dating back to the 1st and 4th Century BC.

Marbella –Spanish Contemporary Engraving Museum - Exhibiting a large collection of prints and specialising in contemporary art
Nature - Set in one of the most gorgeous coastal landscapes, it’s natural for wildlife to inhabit here and there are many Natural areas to enjoy.

Torcal de Antequera – Positioned just 12km from Antequera itself, these imaginary-like rock formations cover a total 12 square km of land. The limestone group of soft rocks were risen from the sea over 150 million years ago. Housing almost 700 different plant species amongst 100 families are catalogued here, and with a wealth of birds to view, a trip here will be an unforgettable one.
Maro-Cerro Gordo Cliffs, Nerja – This area of coastal cliffs is a striking sight with many lookouts, allowing marvellous views all the way to Africa on a clear day. Maro is a small town popular with tourists and features the watchtower of la Marquesa, appointed in the 16th Century to keep a watch for pirates. (Source Staysure June 2013)

If you do have a holiday home that you want to advertise, you can do this for only £12.50 per year at jmlvillas. You can also rent one as well. Find out more Here The same site has a feature on Staysure Holidays and it is well worth visiting.

Staysure the over 50's experts have a great range of products including  Health insurance,  Travel Insurance, Holiday Homes insurance, Home insurance,  Private Health insurance and Motor insurance

Enjoy the benefits of owning a holiday home soon, unless you already own one.

Latest edition of Rentguard Insurance News has just arrived

Just received the June Issue 3 of Rentguard Insurance News.

Here are a couple of the topics that caught my eye: We don’t shy away from ‘unattractive risks’ was the first item: They say that At Rentguard we try to be as flexible as possible to meet the individual requirements of both you and your customers. That’s why we are pleased to announce that we expanded our underwriting capabilities to cover more non-standard properties, including HMO housing, bedsits and unoccupied properties.

“We are getting more requests for unusual risks and are finding better ways to accomodate our clients,” said Ersin Yildirim, Risk Manager at Rentguard Insurance.

The next item  they said In addition to our existing insurer partnerships, they are delighted to have extended their underwriting capabilities to incorporate international insurers Canopius.
Formed in 2003, Canopius operate across the whole of the UK and Ireland, as well as Switzerland, Bermuda, US, Singapore and Australia. This new partnership will bring
a wealth of experience to RGA Underwriting Ltd and will be an exciting development in the
overall delivery of the Rentguard Insurance Products.


As a result of this new development, some of their policies will be jointly underwritten by Catlin and Canopius, both of which are underwriters at Lloyd’s of London.

Finally Rentguard Insurance  recently launched their new ‘Sport’ advertising - "be a good Sport"  campaign. It highlights some of the many qualities associated with Rentguard through various sporting images like the one on the left.

In a series of four advertisements - flexibility, communication, teamwork, and unwavering support are all illustrated, tying in with the excellent customer service and on-going client support they offer, as well as their competitive approach to pricing.

Further information on an excellent selection of Rentguard Insurance Products Here

German insurance company pays the price for recent flooding

Insurance Insight published a report today saying that German reinsurer Hannover Re said today its net loss from the recent flooding in Central Europe could exceed €100m.


In a statement released today the Talanx-owned reinsurer said: "Hannover Re has made an initial loss estimate based on its written reinsurance treaties. The company anticipates that its net loss may exceed €100m, but should remain significantly below €200m"

It added: "Hannover Re sees no threat to Group net income for 2013 despite flood losses."

If you are looking for insurance in flood affected areas of the UK visit our specialist Flood Damaged Property Insurance advertising page at  http://www.jml-insurance.co.uk/types.php?id=81&sec=1

'Be Holiday Savvy' campaign launched by Questor Insurance

Vehicle hire excess and travel insurance specialist Questor Insurance has announced today  the launch of its ‘Be Holiday Savvy’ summer campaign, arming consumers with the information they need to make informed choices about their summer holiday bookings.

Recent research from ABTA* has revealed that consumers are increasingly looking for value for money from their holidays, and Questor is using its extensive knowledge of the holiday insurance market to help guide Brits in the right direction for holiday savings.

Through a series of detail-packed articles and travel guides to be published on the site Questor’s ‘Be Holiday Savvy’ campaign will provide travellers with a wealth of handy hints and tips to make the process of planning and executing their foreign holiday that much smoother.

Running from June through to October the campaign will answer everything consumers need to know on topics ranging from securing the right level of travel insurance cover to getting the best deal on their car hire.

Whether UK travellers have yet to decide on their destination of choice for their summer getaway, or have their bags packed in readiness for another stint in their favourite foreign resort, Questor’s ‘Be Holiday Savvy’ campaign material will always prove to be an invaluable read.

Questor’s ‘Be Holiday Savvy’ campaign has also been created with the knowledge that holidaymakers are increasingly looking to social networking sites to guide their travel plans.

As an example, figures have shown that more than half (52%) of Facebook users have argued that their travel plans have been influenced by photos of friends’ holidays**. As a result Questor Insurances’ savvy campaign will also include bite size morsels of holiday savvy information in the form of Tweets, Facebook and Google+ updates to ensure that travellers are kept up to date with the information they need to make holiday bookings that fully meet their needs. A social media led holiday competition is also planned to launch later in the summer.

Commenting on the launch of the ‘Be Holiday Savvy’ campaign, Questor Insurance CEO Andrew Lawrence, said:  “At Questor Insurance we endeavour to support consumers in finding the right insurance products for their needs, and our commitment to customer service means that we want to extend this support to consumers’ wider holiday concerns.”

“The ‘Be Holiday Savvy’ campaign will give consumers the tools they need to make choices about their holiday plans that will reflect their needs, while being conscious of holidaymakers’ need to maximise the gains from their holiday budget during the current economic climate”.
Sources: *http://abta.com/news-and-views/press-zone/abta-publishes-2013-travel-trends-report

** http://www.tourismlink.eu/2013/04/the-future-of-social-media-for-the-travel-industry/
Questor Insurance PR 13-6-13

Find out more about Questor Insurance Services Products Here

See also:  Questor Insurance looks at figures which reveal that UK motorists are set to see a sharp rise in petrol costs across Europe this year