Travel Insurance
It seems mundane and travel insurance only seems to be necessarily when something goes wrong, which is why many people prefer not to think about it. (Currently a quarter of Britons travel abroad knowingly or unknowingly without insurance). Insurance, like many other industries, is undergoing rapid change, not least due to the Internet. Price comparison websites will continue to be influential, although the convenience of booking everything at once should not be underestimated. What we are likely to see, however, is more holidays-makers buying insurance ‘on the fly’, which not only means via a mobile device sitting in departures, but also halfway up a mountain when the conditions turn nasty.

For example, if you suddenly fancy some off-piste skiing, but the snow conditions look a bit risky, in the future you will be able to instantly buy cover whilst sitting on a ski lift. If you are using a smart mobile the insurance company will be able to pinpoint your exact location and local snow conditions and assess your risk. You will be able to pay via your mobile and a digital cover note will be issued within minutes for the duration of your descent.

Holiday makers of the future might also wish to consider personal weather insurance (you get paid if it rains essentially) or perhaps indulge in a bit of holiday spread betting (you pay lots if the weather is glorious but very little if it’s nasty). Other emergent forms of insurance might include not only digital device cover, but insurance against lost for things that only exist in cyberspace (digital photographs, digital music collections and so on).

To be continued…