World travel guide Canada: INSURANCE, CRIME AND PERSONAL SAFETY

A typical travel insurance policy usually provides cover for the loss of baggage, tickets and - up to a certain limit - cash or cheques, as well as cancellation or curtailment of your journey. Most of them exclude so-called dangerous sports unless an extra premium is paid: in Canada this can mean white-water rafting and mountain climbing, though probably not kayaking. Read the small print and benefits tables of prospective policies carefully; coverage can vary wildly for roughly similar premiums. Many policies can be chopped and changed to exclude coverage you don't need - for example, sickness and accident benefits can often be excluded or included at will. If you do take medical coverage, ascertain whether benefits will be paid as treatment proceeds or only after return home, and whether there is a 24-hour medical emergency number. When securing baggage cover, make sure that the per-article limit - typically under £500 equivalent - will cover your most valuable possession. If you need to make a claim, you should keep receipts for medicines and medical treatment, and in the event you have anything stolen, you must obtain an official statement from the police. Bank and credit cards often have certain levels of medical or other insurance included and you may automatically get travel insurance if you use a major credit card to pay for your trip.

Travel agents and tour operators are likely to require some sort of insurance when you book a package holiday, though according to UK law they can't make you buy their own (other than a £1 premium for "schedule airline failure"). If you have a good all-risks home insurance policy it may cover your possessions against loss or theft even when overseas. Many private medical schemes such as BUPA or PPP also offer coverage plans for abroad, including baggage loss, cancellation or curtailment and cash replacement as well as sickness or accident.

Americans and Canadians should also check that they're not already covered. Holders of official student/teacher/youth cards are entitled to meagre accident coverage and hospital inpatient benefits. Students will often find that their student health coverage extends during the vacations and for one term beyond the date of last enrollment. Homeowners' or renters' insurance often covers theft or loss of documents, money and valuables while overseas, though conditions and maximum amounts vary from company to company.

Rough Guides travel insurance

Rough Guides now offer their own travel insurance, customized for our readers by a leading UK broker and backed by a Lloyds underwriter. It's available for anyone, of any nationality, travelling anywhere in the world, and we are convinced that this is the best-value scheme you'll find.

There are two main Rough Guide insurance plans: Essential, for effective, no-frills cover, starting at £11.75 for 2 weeks; and Premier - more expensive but with more generous and extensive benefits. Each offer European or Worldwide cover, and can be supplemented with a "Hazardous Activities Premium" if you plan to indulge in sports considered dangerous, such as skiing, scubadiving or trekking. Unlike many policies, the Rough Guides schemes are calculated by the day, so if you're travelling for 27 days rather than a month, that's all you pay for. You can alternatively take out annual multi-trip insurance, which covers you for all your travel throughout the year (with a maximum of 60 days for any one trip).

For a policy quote, call the Rough Guides Insurance Line on UK freephone 0800/015 0906, or, if you're calling from outside Britain on (+44)1243/621046. Alternatively, get an online quote at www.roughguides.com/insurance.

Police and trouble

There's little reason why you should ever come into contact with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), who patrol Canada in the form of provincial and metropolitan forces. In contrast to the US, there's very little street crime and even in Toronto, Vancouver and Montréal you shouldn't have any problems in terms of personal safety if you stick to the main parts of town, though it's obviously advisable to be cautious late at night. However, if you're drinking in one of the country's many rough-and-ready bars, don't be too surprised if there's a fight, though the males (very rarely females) involved will almost always be too busy thumping people they know to bother with a stranger - and hitting a woman (in this context) is almost unheard of. Theft is also uncommon, though it's obviously a good idea to be on your guard against petty thieves: always keep an eye on your luggage at bus and train stations, secure your things in a locker when staying in hostel accommodation, and avoid leaving valuables on a beach or in a tent or car.

Canadian officials are notorious for coming down hard if you're found with drugs - especially on non-Canadians. Stiff penalties are imposed, even when only traces of any drug are found, so don't even think about it.

If you are unlucky enough to be attacked or have something stolen, phone the police on tel 911 . If you're going to make an insurance claim or travellers' cheque refund application , ensure the crime is recorded by the police and make a note of their crime report number.

Should you lose your passport , contact the nearest consulate and get them to issue a temporary passport , which is basically a sheet of paper saying you've reported the loss. This will get you home, but if you were planning to travel on from Canada, you'll need a new passport - a time-consuming and expensive process.

Another possible problem is lost airline tickets . On scheduled and most charter flights, the airline company will honour their commitment on the lost ticket (especially if they can contact the issuing agent), but you may have to pay for a new ticket and wait a period (often as long as six months) for reimbursement once the airline is satisfied the ticket has not been used. Whatever happens, it's bound to involve hassle at the airport and afterwards. With some bargain-basement tickets, airlines will also make you pay again unless you can produce the lost ticket's number. Similarly, if you lose your travel insurance policy document, you won't be able to make a claim unless you quote its number. To avert both calamities, keep a copy of the numbers or documents at home. For lost travellers' cheques , if you've followed the issuer's suggestion and kept a record of the cheque numbers separate from the actual cheques, all you have to do is ring the issuing company on their given toll-free number to report the loss. They'll ask you for the cheque numbers, the place you bought them, when and how you lost them and whether it's been reported to the police. All being well, the missing cheques should be reissued within a couple of days - and you may get an emergency advance to tide you over.

Consulates and embassies

Dartmouth , 1 Canal St (tel 902/461-1381).

Montreal , Suite 4200, 1000 de la Gauchetière St W (tel 514/866-5863).

Ottawa , 80 Elgin St (tel 613/237-1530).

Quebec City , Le Complexe St-Amable, 700-1150 Claire-Fontaine (tel 418/521-3000).

St John's , PO Box 452, Station C (tel 709/579-2002).

Toronto , Suite 2800, 777 Bay St (tel 416/593-1290).

Vancouver , Suite 800, 1111 Melville St (tel 604/683-4421).

Winnipeg , 229 Athlone Drive (tel 204/896-1380).

Calgary , 615 MacLeod Trail SE (tel 403/266-8962).

Halifax , Suite 910, Cogswell Tower, 2000 Barrington St (tel 902/429-2485).

Montreal , 1155 St Alexander St (tel 514/398-9695).

Ottawa , 490 Sussex Drive (tel 613/238-5335).

Quebec City , 2 Place Terrasse Dufferin, CP 939 (tel 418/692-2095).

Toronto , 360 University Ave (tel 416/595-1700).

Vancouver , 1095 W Pender St (tel 604/685-4311).