So you’ve booked your flights, accommodation and even your hire car without too many problems, and are looking forward to a laid-back, stress-free holiday. Unfortunately, there’s one thing left to do on the checklist before you can relax – sorting out your travel insurance. Not the most enthralling of tasks, and somewhat daunting to the first time buyer as there are so many questions surrounding it.

Where do you buy it from? Who will offer you the best deal? What do you need to have covered? And, above all else, is it really worth it? Underestimating the importance of travel insurance can be the cause of untold stress for many out there – here are 5 tips to help explain the importance of travel insurance, and to guide you in your decision.

1. Don’t think you can travel without it. When the process of buying travel insurance seems like one extra headache that you could do without just before your holiday, it can be tempting to think ‘what’s the worst that could happen’? This, however, is a bad move. You may well have a holiday that goes off without a hitch, but there is always the possibility that something could go wrong – be it minor or major – and leave you with unnecessary stress and an empty wallet.

2. Consider how frequent a traveller you are. You may just be planning the one holiday at the moment, but before buying single trip insurance it’s wise to consider whether you’ll be travelling frequently and therefore better off with annual cover. Annual insurance policies can be very reasonably priced and are often better value for money if you intend to travel twice or more during the year.

3. Think about what sort of traveller you consider yourself to be. An additional factor with travel insurance is that many companies provide policies catering to various diverse sorts of traveller – backpacker, snowboarder, golf enthusiast – meaning you’ll need to think about what you want to be covered when you’re sorting through the different policies on offer. For instance, a holiday by the beach won’t need the same amount of accident cover as a winter-sports trip where there are more potential risks, so insurance will accordingly be somewhat less expensive.

4. Do some research. Don’t be tempted to grab at the first insurance policy you come across because you’re not enjoying the process of sifting through everything that is available. Ok, it might mean a bit more time and effort if you widen your research, however you’ll be sure to profit from it as there is so much variation amongst policies when it comes to cost and features.

5. Don’t leave it to the last minute. Above all, buying your travel insurance shouldn’t be something that you do in a panicky rush – a cool head and time for research is the best way to get a great deal.

Though it’s not the easiest process to get your head around, searching for your first travel insurance policy shouldn’t be too difficult as long as you know what to expect. Always do your research carefully, and read over the policy so that you can be sure you’re covered for all your needs.