Youth Talk: New direction to travel insurance

Dev Karvat, Managing Director, TrawellTag Cover-More India (Winner of ‘Best Travel Insurance Provider’ at the South India Travel Awards), might just be 35 years old, but that has not deterred the young and ambitious MD from challenging one of the overridi

Travel agents should be provided with a comprehensive training package to learn about raising their income by selling travel assistance packages

If I become the Tourism Minister of India

Our country offers culture and heritage, lush nature, bustling city life, tranquil beaches, ecotourism, etc. You get to experience everything on the same plate. However, when it comes to promoting our culture & heritage, I feel that we are lagging behind compared to other countries. We need to develop systematic tourism even at the remotest destinations.

Three things I look forward to in a vacation

Comfort, safety and gratification are the three most important things for me. I love Chicotera in Italy for its natural surroundings and good food and London for its culture, cosmopolitan lifestyle, historic buildings and parks.

Potential of sports tourism in India

Considered as a niche segment, sports tourism has been flourishing in India over the past few years. The trend was kickstarted with the ICC Cricket World Cup 2003, followed by IPL T20, offering exclusive exposure which Indian spectators never witnessed before. The F1 Race circuit in Greater Noida is also one its kind to attract tourists and F1 enthusiasts. Nowadays, water rafting, kayaking, skiing are also gaining popularity. Moreover, from organising to the successful execution of the sports events create immense

potential.

Challenges in promoting film tourism

We have seen several international films being shot in India in recent times. Eat Pray Love, Slumdog Millionaire, Mission Impossible 4, and Life of Pi are some of the more renowned ones. However, compliances from government bodies create hindrances in getting permissions for film shootings in India. This is one of the key reasons why even Indian filmmakers prefer outbound locations over Indian locations despite the fact that our country offers exotic places. The same applies for foreign filmmakers as well. We also have to understand that the craziness of travelling to Switzerland just to visit the locations where Dilwale

Dulhania Le Jayenge was shot is not present among foreign tourists. Considering all these facts, I can barely say inbound film tourism is increasing.

Technology is vital

Technological advancement in travel industry allows us to make our travel plans on our own terms. Because of the convenience factor, we are now able to book flight and train tickets instantly. We get

travel-related informa- tion and tips online and plan our trip. In essence, technology has made travelling comfortable and convenient. TrawellTag Cover-More deploys technology to the best advantage of the end-user. We provide ancillary services under ‘TravelTag Assist’ which uses technology at various touch points.

My contribution to our company and the travel industry

We have grown from a small enterprise of 10 people to a full-fledged organisation with staff strength of 500 across 53 branches in India in seven years. Our partnership with Australia’s Cover-More has propelled our growth. Today, as a result of our marketing efforts with increased awareness and demand for luxury travel, we are able to tap a larger segment.

New industry trends

There are now travel-related apps which help customers get information at the click of a button. The traveller is willing to experiment and leans towards adventure holidays.

Industry practices that have become redundant and should be done away with

Any practice which adds to the paper-work and requires tracing documents in the offline world would make it more cumbersome and increase the customer turnaround rate. Introducing IT infrastructure systems and regularly updating the same will make the customer lifecycle easier and also for the people associated with the travel industry.

Changes that I want to bring in the industry

Travel insurance till date is regarded as a commodity and a difficult process to manage. I hope this perception changes so that people look upon travel insurance as an essential ingredient in their travel itinerary. The friendly local travel agent has to be well-informed with plans available at a client’s disposal. For this, we provide training programmes to educate the agent on the possibilities of a hike in revenue/ income by selling such travel assistance packages.