Security Tips for Traveling Abroad

Many people enjoy traveling to learn about new and different cultures, history and traditions. As a result, many Americans seek out extreme adventures, with their destinations becoming more and more remote. As this type of travel increases, so does risk of kidnappings, muggings, hotel break-ins and other crimes around the globe. Knowing how to protect yourself is the first step in helping you, and your Michigan insurance policies, have a safe trip, too.

Health and Safety while Traveling Abroad  

• When possible, avoid using taxi cabs. Have your hotel’s concierge service book a driver or car service for you. If you must take a cab, do not provide information about your trip, its duration or its purpose to your driver.
• Place your luggage in the trunk of a cab by yourself after the driver gets out to open it for you.
  • When staying at a hotel, request a room on one of the lower floors, but not the first floor. Ground floors are the least secure, but floors above the sixth are too high for conventional fire equipment to service.
• Bring small door and window locks with you while traveling and use them in your hotel room.
• Do not give a limo company your last name to place on the placard when waiting at the airport; use a mutually agreed-upon code word.
• Bring a flashlight with you on your trip in case the power goes out.
• Always place the “Do Not Disturb” sign on your door and do not let anyone in, unless you know who they are from looking in the peep hole. When leaving your hotel room for the day, place the television on a local station and place the “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door. This gives the impression that you are a native speaker staying in the room, and that you are in relaxing.
• Place plastic connectors on your luggage when you leave. Though this does not prevent someone from opening your bags, it can alert you that someone has tampered with your luggage.
• Do not stay in hotels with hard keys; only visit those with key cards. They are safer and are not passed around as easily.
• Dress to fit in with the locals. Do not wear expensive jewelry, trendy clothes or carry an expensive purse. Also do not advertise your nationality by wearing T-shirts with slogans.
• Register your travel plans with the State Department at www.travelregistration.state.gov. This will help the government contact you if there is a family emergency in the U.S. or if you are in need of assistance abroad.
• Sign your passport and fill in all the emergency information.
• Leave copies of your itinerary and passport with loved ones at home.
• Familiarize yourself with local customs and laws, as you are subject to them while traveling.
• Contact the U.S. Embassies and Consulates at http://travel.state.gov or by calling the Office of Overseas Citizen Services at 888- 407-4747 for assistance while you’re away.

Do not get distracted while you are site seeing. Many times, thieves will work together to distract you while others steal from you. At the same time, always keep a hand on your purse or wallet to make sure that it does not get swiped as you are taking everything in.

To protect yourself while you’re away, consider purchasing a Travel Insurance policy for a nominal fee. These policies provide medical, security and travel-related assistance for Americans abroad.

Beware of Ticks!

Spending time outdoors is a wonderful way to bond with family and friends, and enjoy nature. Before you head out into the great outdoors, you need to be aware of a danger lurking not so deep in the woods — Lyme disease. This bacterial infection is contracted after coming in contact with a deer tick that has feasted off another infected animal. After a deer tick bites and attaches itself to your skin, the infected bacteria can transfer into your bloodstream and travel throughout your body.

It is important that you check yourself, your family and your pets for ticks due to the fact that these bugs can be brought into the house and cause an infestation. Removal of bugs such as ticks, bees, etc. may not be covered by your Michigan home insurance, so it’s important that you ALWAYS check your clothing, hair, etc. before re-entering your home.

Stages of Lyme Disease

• Early Localized Lyme Disease: A rash develops on the skin at the site of the bite within one to 31 days. It resembles a bull’s-eye and slowly expands followed by flu-like symptoms.
• Early Disseminated Lyme Disease: Skin, joint, nervous system and heart complications occur.
• Late Persistent Lyme Disease: Infected person develops severe joint, nervous system and heart complications.

Since Lyme disease symptoms mirror many other illnesses, it is important that you and your family take action to prevent coming in contact with a deer tick while outdoors.

Prevention

Michigan insurance carriers strongly advise preventing “pests” from entering the home, but it is also strongly advised to prevent pests from entering you. Your health is just as important. Here are some tips to protect yourself from ticks:

• Wear long-sleeved shirts and pants when in wooded areas and tuck your pant legs into socks or boots for added protection.
• Wear light-colored clothing to make identifying ticks easier.
• Spray yourself with insect repellent that contains the chemical DEET.
• Walk in the center of trails to avoid overhanging trees or bushes.
• Wash your body and clothing and inspect your body for ticks if you have been in bushy areas or worked in a garden. Inspect your dog’s coat too if he/she has been playing in a tick-infested wooded areas.
• Avoid sitting directly on the ground.
• Keep long hair tied back so that ticks cannot climb up your hair and attach themselves to your scalp.

Healthy Hints

Bacteria from a tick bite do not transmit into your bloodstream for 36 to 48 hours, which lessens your chance of contracting the disease if you find ticks and remove them immediately. To remove a tick from your skin:

• Use a tweezers to grab the tick firmly where it has entered the skin. Be careful not to squeeze its body, as it could cause bacteria to inject into your skin.
• Slowly, yet firmly, pull the tick directly outward. Do not try to twist it out because that could break the tick in half and leave the remainder in your skin.
• Once the tick is removed, clean the bite thoroughly with a disinfectant and watch the area for any symptoms.

Contact your Michigan insurance agent for more ways to prevent yourself and your home from ticks.