This half-term, thousands of Britons will be travelling abroad, but a large number of travellers to second homes will go on holiday without travel insurance, according to new research.

A survey by a health insurance site found that over a quarter (28.8%) of second-home holidaymakers do not take out any travel insurance, compared with just one in 33 (3.2%) people on package holidays.

People who did not intend on taking out travel insurance said that they felt it was unnecessary, or that they would rather spend the money on other things, according to the report.

An insurance specialist stated: “There are a number of costs associated with going abroad, and many people feel that travel insurance is one expense that can be avoided if necessary - but if anything goes wrong, that could turn out to be a false economy.

“Plus, many people will find it`s nowhere near as expensive as they`d expected. There can be a huge difference between different insurance deals, in terms of price as well as the level of cover provided.”

Lee Griffin, business development director at the firm, said: “A worrying number of British holidaymakers are going abroad without travel insurance and the group putting themselves most at risk are those travelling to holiday homes.

“Staying in a home away from home may feel safer than if you were staying in a hotel but you are still just as prone to illness, accident, theft or travel delays as someone on a package holiday. No matter where you go or how you travel, insurance should be on your holiday shopping list,” he said.

Holiday must-have

However, despite the weak welcoming when it comes to travel insurance, statistics have proved that cover on holiday is vital.

Three out of five tourists are significantly delayed on their flight on average and 19% have required medical attention after illness or injury.

Worryingly, over 19% have had a camera, satnav, mobile phone or watch lost or stolen or had an item of baggage lost on an outward or return flight.

Nearly 1 in 20 people (4.6%) have been assaulted by another holidaymaker or local resident whilst on holiday.

And nearly 1 in 50 people (1.8%) responding to the survey have had to be medically evacuated home after an accident or severe illness abroad.

Travel insurance also protects holidaymakers against the threat of a travel agent or airline going bankrupt.

Griffin added: “Things can and do go wrong on holiday and a surprisingly high number of British holidaymakers have encountered circumstances where they'd have probably made a claim on their travel insurance policy.

“ Medical expenses can run to thousands of pounds in some countries, tens of thousands if you need to be repatriated home for treatment. If you have an accident or fall ill and you're not insured, you could end up in the ludicrous position of having to sell your holiday home to settle your medical bill.

“For the sake of saving a few pounds on your holiday costs, is it really worth the risk?” he said.