Essay Topic 1 :

From the past till then, travelling has always been accompanied with various forms of risks, ranging
from minor situations like the loss of baggage to massive inevitable incidents such as air or natural
disasters. The risk involved in travelling naturally elevates when travelling to a more disaster-prone
country such as countries at the subduction zone because subduction zones are regions at
convergent boundaries, where the ocean lithospheric plane subducts under another lithospheric
plane and sinks into the upper mantle (Wikipedia, 2014), and these zones are especially prone to the
occurrence of natural disasters due to its geological structures. Hence with these additional risks, we
will be discussing in this essay why one should purchase travel insurance B, which includes the
coverage for losses or injuries due to natural disasters instead of one without, for a trip to a country
at a subduction zone, despite its price difference.
Travel insurance with coverage of natural disasters, is essential for travelling to country at or near a
subduction zone, given that these zones are especially prone to the occurrence of natural disasters
such as earthquakes, volcanoes eruptions, tsunamis, due to its geological structures. In addition, the
earthquakes generated at these zones are more likely to be massive ones that result in great
destructions and losses. This is evident by the fact that the minimum width of the subduction
megathrust is 150km, is much larger than the average width of slip-strike faults which is 10km, and
most importantly, the width is one of the factors, seismic moment equation, Mo , that measures the
size of the Earthquake. (ES8001 Lecture 6, slide 11, 2014) Hence, it shows that subduction zones
have a higher possibility of triggering a huge-size earthquake and this may lead on to another natural
disaster such as volcano eruptions or landslides. In this situation, travel insurance with the coverage
for losses or injuries due to natural disaster will be a blessing to have since it is also likely that people
will suffer from losses of belongings, injuries or even flight delays due to damaged in infrastructures.
Though the insurance cost slightly more, it will reduce your financial losses to the minimum in cases
of emergency which arises due to unforeseen circumstances. Thus, it will be better to purchase
travel insurance B, which includes the coverage for losses or injuries due to natural disasters.
Natural disasters occurring in modern day are resulting in more casualties and death than the past
despite the technological advancements that people have today, thus it is essential to purchase
travel insurance B, the insurance with the coverage of losses and injuries from natural disaster. This
situation is evident by the data from Cambridge University, that there has been sharp increase in the
earthquakes that caused deaths between 10,000 and 50,000 and death greater than 50,000 from
17th century onwards. (ES8001 Lecture 7, slide 70, 2014)This shows that despite having advanced
technologies and better facilities, the high rise infrastructures built today are less survivable in the
midst of the disaster and hence it is also one of the main reasons for high number of casualties and
death in recent disasters. Also, though there are more measures taken to counteract against natural
disasters and to reduce their impact, humans tend to underestimate the seriousness of the disasters,
and hence underestimate the required preventions. For example, in 2011 Tohoku,Japan, the tsunami
easily toppled the concrete barricades along the sea shores that are meant to withstand the
tsunamis and resulted in massive destructions and deaths. (2011 Japan Miyako tsunami
wall( Tutorial Lecture of Tsunami), 2011) Hence, it is actually worth it to pay 50% more for the travel
insurance with this coverage so as to prepare for the worst case scenarios, where you not only suffer
financial losses, but also require immediate medical attentions to the hospital by air, multiple

operations and long hospital stays, all of which requires a lot of money that one might not be able to
afford.
On the other hand, one would say that the more expensive travel insurance with the coverage for
losses or injuries due to natural disasters is unnecessary because such massive and highly destructive
natural disaster occurs once in a blue moon and one would not be so unlucky to encounter it on
such a short beach trip. However, one fails to realize that natural disasters are by the act of god, the
occurrence and seriousness of each and every natural disaster is unpredictable, and we can never
anticipate what kind of situation that these natural disasters might further trigger, that may results
in an even more catastrophic consequence. Hence, travel insurance with the additional coverage is
the best safeguard precaution against these unforeseen circumstances and should not be saved on
even though it may be more expensive.
All in all, travel insurance B, with the coverage for losses or injuries due to natural disasters, is
necessary for a trip to a country at subduction zone, to indemnify against unforeseen circumstances
that may result in massive financial losses that one could not afford. Like this idiom said, It is better
to be safe than sorry. Similar to buying insurance with more coverage, one should take sufficient
precaution in cases of unanticipated before it is too late.

Bibliography
2011 Japan Miyako tsunami wall( Tutorial Lecture of Tsunami). (2011). 2011 Japan Miyako tsunami
wall . Miyako, Japan.
ES8001 Lecture 6, slide 11. (2014). Earthquake Hazards .
ES8001 Lecture 7, slide 70. (2014). Earthquakes and Hazards .
Wikipedia. (2014, September 5). Retrieved from Subduction Zones:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subduction