Legal Issues While Travelling
People always ask me what they have to remember when travelling. As a personal injury lawyer I can give you some good concrete advice.
First, always make sure you have insurance. People always assume they are covered by their credit card for medical emergencies. That is not always the case. If your condition was there in the 90 days before travel you are not covered. Also most credit cards on cover you for 7 days, some even less. Before you leave the country make sure you and your family are protected. Emergency medical coverage is usually extremely reasonably priced and imperative to have.
Second, make sure you have car insurance. While most auto plans will cover you if you are driving outside of Canada not all do. Again, do not assume that your credit card will cover you as well. Before renting a vehicle you need to know what you are covered for and what is the limits of coverage. You may be covered for damage to the car but not liability (which is when someone is injured). Certain U.S. states have no limits on liability, which means if you are driving in Nevada and you hit someone, they can sue you for millions of dollars and go after you personally.
Third, make sure you have a photocopy of all travel documents. Keep these in a separate place then you do your travel documents. No one I know has their passport information memorized so keeping this information on hand is imperative for an emergency.
We often do not think of the above until after and then it is too late. So use caution, be safe and be preventative in case of any emergency.