NEWS

Increase In Local, Outdoor Activities Prompts Expectation For Rescue Services

Lebanon, NH – December 16, 2020 – Global Rescue, the world’s leading integrated travel risk and crisis response provider, announced expansion of its field rescue service to include emergencies within 100 miles of individual’s home. Since its 2004 founding, Global Rescue has required members to be 100+ miles away from home to access rescue protection. But the pandemic has increased our time outdoors, and Global Rescue recognized an opportunity to provide expanded services to members – at no additional cost – by eliminating the 100-mile rule.  

“COVID-19 opened the door for people to explore and appreciate the great outdoors nearby, and people flooded through the doorway. But with an increase in local, outdoor activities there is a parallel expectation of the need for rescue services,” said Global Rescue CEO Dan Richards, the architect behind the Jamaica Cares traveler protection program, and a recent appointee to the U.S. Department of Commerce U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board.

Global Rescue is the first and only travel risk and crisis management company to make this high-value change. “Now Global Rescue is there for you, near home or abroad, whether you’re hiking, kayaking, snowmobiling, fishing or simply enjoying the outdoors and you get ill or injured and you’re unable to get to safety on your own,” he added. 

The groundbreaking local field rescue upgrade was unanimously supported by Global Rescue’s newly formed Mountain Advisory Council led by high altitude mountaineering legend Ed Viesturs and world-famous high-altitude climber, Nirmal “Nims” Purja.

“Outdoor activity worldwide is reaching unprecedented heights of curiosity and participation among beginners, experts and everyone in between. The Mountain Advisory Council will provide advice and guidance from world-class experts to ensure enterprise-level member services and overall sport improvement,” said Viesturs, the only American to have climbed all 14 of the world’s 8,000+ meter peaks and the fifth person to do so without using supplemental oxygen.

“We recognized an increasing need for the contribution of valuable expertise from elite mountaineering experts to improve the safety and excitement of the sport, and to cultivate and foster the knowledge, wisdom and experience of the leading authorities in the field,” said Purja, who climbed all 14 of the world’s 8,000+ meter peaks in the record time of six months and six days, beating the previous record by more than seven years.

In addition to Viesturs and Purja, Mountain Advisory Council members include:

• Wilderness and altitude sickness expert Dr. Eric Johnson, Global Rescue associate medical director, past president of the Wilderness Medical Society and member of the Board of Directors of the Himalaya Rescue Association
• Special operations and critical planning authority Scott Hume, Global Rescue vice president operations and former Chief Operations Officer of the 3rd Brigade 25th Infantry Division
• Former combat medic with the Singapore Armed Forces David Koo, Global Rescue senior manager operations and past operations manager of the Khoo Teck Puat Hospital in Singapore.

About Global Rescue

Global Rescue is the world’s leading provider of medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management services to enterprises, governments and individuals. Founded in 2004, Global Rescue has exclusive relationships with the Johns Hopkins Emergency Medicine Division of Special Operations and Elite Medical Group. Global Rescue provides best-in-class services that identify, monitor and respond to client medical and security crises. Global Rescue has provided medical and security support to its clients, including Fortune 500 companies, governments and academic institutions, during every globally significant crisis of the last decade. For more information, visit www.globalrescue.com.

KINGSTON, JAMAICA, October 26, 2020 –Jamaica Cares is a ground-breaking traveler protection and emergency services program set to launch next month. Jamaica Cares provides visitors access to first-of-its kind traveler protection and emergency medical and crisis response services for events up to and including natural disasters. The traveler protection and services program is a partnership coordinated and administered by the Global Tourism Resilience Crisis Management Centre, with support from the Global Travel and Tourism Resilience Council, Global Rescue, and leading international and national insurance companies.

For $40 USD, Jamaica Cares provides visitors access to compulsory traveler protection and emergency medical services, including:

• Case management, transport logistics, field rescue, evacuation, and repatriation for medical emergencies, including COVID-19 and other crises up to and including natural disasters
• International health coverage up to $100,000 USD for visitors traveling to and from Jamaica
• On-island health coverage up to $50,000 USD

“Jamaica Cares delivers an unmet need in the travel industry by providing primary medical coverage and medical evacuation services. Jamaica Cares is a comprehensive, mandatory program to increase traveler protection from the time they leave home until returning. The traveler knows they’re protected, and they know other travelers are, too. That’s what’s needed to give confidence to travelers when they are ready to travel,” said Hon. Edmund Bartlett, Co-chairman, Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre.

“Jamaica is the first country to facilitate a partnership for a comprehensive pandemic safety response program. Visitors to Jamaica are better prepared and protected because of the cooperative arrangement coordinated via the Global Tourism Resilience Crisis Management Centre with a leading travel crisis management provider and two travel health insurance firms,” said Dr. Taleb Rifai, Former Secretary General of the UNWTO and Co-Chair of the Centre and the Global Travel and Tourism Resilience Council.

“We have to protect both our visitors and the people of Jamaica,” said Professor Lloyd Waller, the Executive Director of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre.

The compulsory fee will be included as part of the Travel Authorization application, triggering automatic participation in the Jamaica Cares program. Participation is mandatory for all non-Jamaican passport holders.

Traveler attitudes consistently show a powerful willingness to pay for increased safety protections during travel. An international traveler sentiment survey, conducted by Price Waterhouse Coopers, revealed safety is paramount in making travel decisions for which consumers are willing to pay. A Global Rescue survey of more than 2,200 frequent travelers found they agreed by wide margins (90+%) they would feel safer if they – and all travelers – had services and protections for medical emergencies, including COVID-19, and door-to-door emergent coverage.

“If an emergency medical situation arises, including COVID-19, Global Rescue will support Jamaican authorities in executing established emergency action plans including: access to case management, transport logistics, evacuation and repatriation for any medical emergency, including COVID-19, and monitoring from diagnosis through repatriation,” said Dan Richards, CEO Global Rescue.

Gloria Guevara, WTTC President & CEO, said: “I would like to congratulate all those involved in the implementation of the Jamaica Cares program, which will no doubt help to restore traveler confidence and aid the recovery of the Travel & Tourism sector.”

About Global Tourism Resilience Crisis Management Centre

The Global Tourism Resilience Crisis Management Centre serves the worldwide travel industry, facilitating planning and preparation for crisis response, recovery and resilience issues. The Resilience Council is a network and forum for governments and businesses, bringing the public and private sectors together for the development of sustainable frameworks to enable business growth. For more information click here.
Contact: Prof. Lloyd Waller, Executive Director, lloyd.waller@gmail.com.

About the Global Travel and Tourism Resilience Council

The Global Travel and Tourism Resilience Council serves the worldwide travel industry, facilitating planning and preparation for crisis response, recovery and resilience issues. For more information click here.
Contact: Laurie Myers +1 949.742.9648 or email: info@resiliencecouncil.com.

About Global Rescue

Global Rescue is the world’s leading provider of medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management services. Founded in 2004, Global Rescue has exclusive relationships with the Johns Hopkins Emergency Medicine Division of Special Operations and Elite Medical Group. Global Rescue provides best-in-class services that identify, monitor and respond to client medical and security crises. For more information, click here.
Contact: Bill McIntyre at bmcintyre@globalrescue.com or +1 202.560.1195.

LEBANON, NH, September 22, 2020 –

Travelers overwhelmingly want mandatory COVID-19 protections and services — and they are willing to pay for it, according to a Global Rescue survey of its current and former members, who are among the most experienced travelers in the world. 

The survey found more than 60% of travelers are willing to pay from $50 to $100 or more for screening and testing services to minimize the effects of COVID-19 and – in the event of an infection – mitigation and remediation provisions for isolation accommodations, quarantine facilities, and ground or air transport.  

“The pandemic has taken an unprecedented toll on the world’s population and its economies. COVID-19 understandably tops the list of all traveler concerns. But the survey results send a clear message that travelers are eager to fight back with an overwhelming willingness for comprehensive, mandatory COVID-19 protections for themselves and all travelers. And they are willing to pay for it,” said Global Rescue CEO Dan Richards. 

Travelers agreed by wide margins (94%) they would feel safer if they had services and protections that cover pre- and on-trip COVID-19 testing, required quarantines, evacuation costs in the event of exposure or infection, and door-to-door travel insurance. 

“The majority (91%) of responding travelers were equally adamant in their support for mandating all travelers obtain the same COVID-19 protections for their personal safety, the safety of others, and to prevent adverse selection,” Richards said.  

“Eighty-eight percent of travelers want governments or organizations to step in and systematize programs calculated to beat COVID-19. But not every government or organization has the resources or the expertise to provide screening, testing, triage, quarantine facilities, ground and air transport, data collection and case management,” Richards said. 

“At the onset of the pandemic, Global Rescue recognized the threat and developed a new services program designed to defeat the threat of COVID-19 on behalf of governments and organizations,” said Global Rescue Vice President of Operations Scott Hume.  

The Global Rescue complete COVID-19 solutions program provides customizable COVID-19 case management remedies including:  

• Planning & Staffing: Emergency action planning, training, staffing and itinerary support; COVID-19-specific destination reports; triage and disposition facilities with medical and security personnel and equipment  

• Testing & Tracking: Access to rapid COVID-19 testing capabilities, screening and secure collection and retention of traveler history and test results. 
•  Response & Remediation: Quarantine and isolation accommodations, management of all ground and air medical evacuation, treatment for COVID-19 positive individuals, and real-time access to doctors for virtual consultations  

“Testing for active COVID-19 infection is a key part of the public health response to bring this pandemic under control.  Travelers are right to recognize this fact, and to want access to reliable testing with results that come back in a timely manner to facilitate safe travel for themselves and others,” said Global Rescue Medical Director Claudia Zegans. 

Global Rescue’s medical and crisis response capabilities are supported by the Johns Hopkins Emergency Medicine Division of Special Operations, Partners HealthCare and Elite Medical Group to provide a depth of expertise unparalleled in the travel risk management and crisis response industry.  

Traveler Safety Preferences 

• What Would It Take to Feel Safe Enough to Travel Domestically? (Respondents checked all that apply) 

• • 46% – government officials would need to lift lock down/isolation/stay-at-home orders  
  • 41% – a COVID-19 vaccine would have to be available 
  • 28% – a COVID-19 treatment would need to be available 

• • 23% – they would need to feel secure in their health, job, and/or finances 
  • 23% – they would need access to COVID-19 testing 
  • 17% – they would need to have the necessary insurance in case they get quarantined 
  • 16% – international health authorities would have to declare the end of the pandemic  

• What Would It Take to Feel Safe Enough to Travel Internationally? (Respondents checked all that apply) 

• • 68% – governments would have to lift travel restrictions and their preferred destinations would have to re-open their borders  
  • 50% – a COVID-19 vaccine would have to be available 
  • 35% – a COVID-19 treatment would need to be available 
  • 30% – they would need to have the necessary insurance in case they get quarantined 
  • 25% – access to COVID-19 testing would be necessary 
  • 25% – international health authorities would have to declare the end of the pandemic 
  • 22% – they would need to feel secure in their health, job, and/or finances  

• Would travelers feel safer during an international trip if they had medical/security safeguards that included: protection for any required quarantine; evacuation in the event of exposure or infection; pre- and on-trip COVID-19 testing; and door-to-door travel insurance. 

• • 94% agree – 54% strongly agree, 28% agree, 12% somewhat agree 
  • 6% disagree – 2% somewhat disagree, 2% disagree, 2% strongly disagree 

• Would travelers feel safer if everyone traveling to an international destination had the same medical/security safeguards that included: protection for any required quarantine; evacuation in the event of exposure or infection; pre- and on-trip COVID-19 testing; and door-to-door travel insurance. 

• • 91% agree – 43% strongly agree, 29% agree, 19% somewhat agree 
  • 8% disagree – 3% somewhat disagree, 3% disagree, 2% strongly disagree 

• Should governments and organizations provide required visitor programs designed to minimize the effects of COVID-19 and other medical emergencies?  

• • 87% agree – 34% strongly agree, 32% agree, 21% somewhat agree 
  • 13% disagree – % somewhat disagree, 4% disagree, 3% strongly disagree 

Traveler Expectations 

The survey results revealed that travelers lost a wide range of personal and professional opportunities due to the pandemic.  

• 64% gave up a bucket list/adventure trip  
• 53% missed out on a family vacation 

• 32% relinquished a business trip 
• 28% surrendered a couples’ getaway 
• 21% skipped an anniversary, wedding, honeymoon or birthday trip 
• 10% lost an ecotourism or humanitarian excursion 
• 9% missed out on a wellness trip 

• 21% responded “other”  

Travelers expect to make up for the travel they missed out on in a number of ways. According to the survey results, when travelers (who could choose all options that apply) think about their future travel plans between now and the end of 2021:  

• 52% expect to travel internationally where possible  
• 35% plan to go to more remote, less crowded destinations 

• 32% anticipate taking fewer trips 
• 22% said they’ll only travel domestically  
• 22% look forward to taking more time, or a longer trip 
• 20% think they’ll take advantage of discounts, deals and specials 
• 18% count on taking an extra trip  

• 13% look forward to traveling only to places with modern health care facilities 
• 5% said they were taking less expensive trip 
• 14% responded “other”  

Travelers envision making domestic trips sooner than international excursions. The survey found 60% of respondents said they would make a domestic trip before the end of the year, 13% said they would travel internationally by then. However, 86% of respondents indicated they would travel internationally in 2021.  

Contact 

Bill McIntyre at bmcintyre@globalrecue.com or 202.560.1195 to arrange an interview or for more information.  

About the Global Rescue Traveler Survey 

Global Rescue, a leading travel risk and crisis response provider, conducted a survey of more than 2,200 of its current and former members between Sept. 15-20, 2020. The respondents revealed a range of support for a variety of precautionary and protective safety measures in anticipation to a return to leisure and business trips domestically and internationally. 

About Global Rescue 

Global Rescue is the world’s leading provider of medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management services to enterprises, governments and individuals. Founded in 2004, Global Rescue has exclusive relationships with the Johns Hopkins Emergency Medicine Division of Special Operations and Elite Medical Group. Global Rescue provides best-in-class services that identify, monitor and respond to client medical and security crises. Global Rescue has provided medical and security support to its clients, including Fortune 500 companies, governments and academic institutions, during every globally significant crisis of the last decade. For more information, visit www.globalrescue.com. 

LEBANON, NH, July 16, 2020 – The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) today announced that Global Rescue, the world’s leading provider of medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management services, will help the LPGA and Symetra Tours safely return to play. 

Global Rescue will provide medical advisory support and crisis extraction services for LPGA Tour players competing at tournaments around the globe. “The first step the LPGA has taken in preparing for a return to play is to make certain an emergency action plan and safety protocols are in place,” said Dan Richards, CEO Global Rescue.

“The LPGA is thankful to have so many partners that have helped us prepare to go back to play safely,” said Kelly Hyne, LPGA Chief Sales Officer. “Keeping our athletes, caddies, staff and tournament partners healthy is our number one priority. We appreciate their expertise and guidance during this unprecedented time.”

The LPGA is working with Global Rescue and others to make certain protocols include secure collection of traveler history and health information, as well as COVID-19-based destination reports in hand.

“During the tour, the LPGA will have access to tracking and periodic screening, testing and treatment. Finally, we will have response mechanisms in place for emergency medical assistance, field rescue from point of injury or illness and global telehealth access,” Richards said.

Global Rescue’s integrated travel risk and crisis management solutions are supported by the GRID system (Global Rescue Intelligence Delivery), a proprietary traveler tracking, intelligence and journey management platform designed to protect travelers.

“The GRID system keeps track of individuals through smartphone GPS and automatically alerts them if there’s a dangerous development within their current destination,” Richards said.

The 2020 LPGA Tour season is scheduled to resume with the LPGA Drive On Championship, to be held July 31 to August 2 at Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio, followed by the Marathon LPGA Classic presented by Dana, to be held August 6-9 at Highland Meadows Golf Club in Sylvania, Ohio.

About Global Rescue

Global Rescue is the world’s leading provider of medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management services and has been the LPGA’s official travel risk and crisis management provider since 2017. Founded in 2004, Global Rescue has exclusive relationships with the Johns Hopkins Emergency Medicine Division of Special Operations and Elite Medical Group. Global Rescue provides best-in-class services that identify, monitor and respond to client medical and security crises.

About the LPGA

The LPGA is the world’s leading professional golf organization for women. Founded in 1950 and headquartered in Daytona Beach, Florida, the association celebrates a diverse and storied membership with more than 2,300 Members representing more than 30 countries. With a vision to inspire, empower, educate and entertain by showcasing the very best of women’s golf, LPGA Tour Professionals compete across the globe, while the Symetra Tour, the official development and qualifying tour of the LPGA, consistently produces a pipeline of talent ready for the world stage. Additionally, LPGA Professionals directly impact the game through teaching, coaching and management.

The LPGA demonstrates its dedication to the development of the game through The LPGA Foundation. Since 1991, this charitable organization has been committed to empowering and supporting girls and women through developmental, humanitarian and golf community initiatives, including LPGA*USGA Girls Golf, the LPGA Women’s Network and the LPGA Amateur Golf Association.

LEBANON, NH, July 16, 2020 – Global Rescue, the world’s leading provider of medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management services, hosted a highly anticipated webinar “Restarting Your Operation: Legal Liability and Duty of Care For Tour Operators During the Pandemic.” The exclusive webinar was open to thousands of travel tour operators, travel industry businesses and travelers. 

“Whether you’re a tour operator, traveler or government, the pandemic is forcing everyone to learn how to mitigate risk to restart their operations” said Global Rescue CEO Dan Richards. “The challenges we are confronting are unique and the insights from our featured speakers are invaluable as we all work to further understand the new travel risk management landscape,” he said.

Former President of Geographic Expeditions and Yosemite Park Ranger Jim Sano moderated the webinar and said a successful return to domestic and international travel will require four essentials from travel tour operators.

“Tour operators should consider having COVID-19 waivers. They should scrupulously maintain established practices to avoid disease spread. They need to enhance emergency response abilities. And it’s ideal to team up with an emergency travel risk medical provider to handle the responsibilities of medical emergencies,” he said.

The webinar focused on three core topics:

• Insurance – Approaching client risk and adhering to relevant guidelines
• Legal liability – Balancing common-sense precautions while protecting yourself from safety guarantees
• Medical and operations – Understanding critical resources for response and mitigation

Liability specialist for tour operators, Ken Whitman, is a senior program manager at AON, the world’s largest insurance broker. He said tour operators need to be careful during the pandemic not to take on or assume additional responsibilities or obligations that result in them assuming legal liability for things for which they are normally not responsible. “It’s better practice for them to put these obligations on the vendors that are providing the services, and to confirm they are fulfilling those obligations through proper vetting,” he said.

Jeff Ment, an attorney with expertise in travel related issues including legal liability and duty of care, said COVID-19 is a known danger and tour operators are moving quickly to prepare for that unparalleled liability exposure. “Waivers are a must, if you don’t have one already. If you do already have one, then having a COVID-19 specific waiver may not be necessary,” he said.

Ment added that the pandemic is adding more awareness steps to the travel process. “Tour operators need to know what their customers may be asked as the trip is happening. You need to know in advance if they’re going to be asked to sign something. You can’t hand something to travelers at the last second and expect them to legally be obligated to sign it,” he said.

Global Rescue’s Vice President of Operations, Scott Hume, said that as travel opens up internationally people must assess the medical capabilities and transportation infrastructure to get you to healthcare facilities at your destination in case you fall ill. “Just as important is who bears the cost should you get sick and stuck on the other side of a border with an illness and without the medical facilities or infrastructure to treat you,” he said.

Global Rescue’s Medical Director Dr. Claudia Zegans said tour operators need to follow established guidelines and steer clear of taking on responsibilities suited for medical experts. “Tour operators must rigorously adhere to basic guidelines like washing down high-touch surfaces and creating situations enabling physical distancing but they should not stray into the medical lane of conducting tests. They should leave that to others,” Zegans said. “When someone gets sick or injured, things go wrong quickly — unless tour operators partner with a travel risk and crisis management company so medical emergencies are handled by trained healthcare professionals,” she added.

A recording of the webinar is available upon request. To arrange an interview please contact Bill McIntyre at bmcintyre@globalrescue.com or 202.560.1195 (phone/text).

About Global Rescue

Global Rescue is the world’s leading provider of medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management services. Founded in 2004, Global Rescue has exclusive relationships with the Johns Hopkins Emergency Medicine Division of Special Operations and Elite Medical Group. Global Rescue provides best-in-class services that identify, monitor and respond to client medical and security crises.

(Lebanon, NH – April 27, 2020) Travelers grounded due to the pandemic are willing to take several measures many would have once found objectionable to reduce the risk of a renewed spread of coronavirus as a condition of restarting travel.  

“Many travelers are planning to hit the road again this summer and they are willing to share personal medical history and travel plans to help keep themselves and those around them safe,” said Global Rescue CEO Dan Richards.

Global Rescue, a leading travel risk and crisis response provider, conducted a survey of its members who revealed a range of support for a variety of precautionary measures if it meant a return to leisure and business trips domestically and internationally.

Safety Measure Tolerance

• 91% are willing to subject themselves to screening and testing
• 73% are willing to disclose medical conditions related to a compromised immune system
• 93% are willing to share their past 14-day travel history
• 58% are willing to have their physical location tracked and traced with data temporarily retained

Travel Expectations

The survey uncovered high expectations among most travelers to begin making trips again no later than early fall.

• 77% are expecting to make a trip by the end of October
• 41% expect to make their next trip by July or earlier
• 36% are planning their initial trip sometime between August and October
• Less than 9% believe their earliest post-pandemic trip will be during the holiday months of November and December
• Less than 7% expect to make their first trip sometime between January and March 2021
• 7% predict their next trip won’t be until sometime after April 2021

Respondents, who are among the most experienced travelers in the world, revealed their first travel itineraries will be domestic ventures by a two-to-one margin over international excursions. Nearly 75% of initial trips will be family vacations, leisure trips to visit friends, or destination getaways. Fewer than 10% expect their first trips to be for business only while 15% report their initial travel plans will be for both business and pleasure.

More than 42% of respondents reported they were forced to cancel their travel plans, 16% said they voluntarily abandoned trips, while 27% postponed their trips. Nearly 60% of respondents who canceled or postponed travel expect to book another trip as soon as they feel safe. Thirteen percent report they will reserve another trip to take advantage of travel discounts and deals. Less than 1.5% plan to spend their money on other things unrelated to travel.

About Global Rescue Survey

Global Rescue is the world’s leading provider of medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management services to enterprises, governments and individuals. The survey is based on 1,300 responses collected from Global Rescue members on April 23-24, 2020. 

About Global Rescue

Global Rescue is the world’s leading provider of medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management services to enterprises, governments and individuals. Founded in 2004, Global Rescue has exclusive relationships with the Johns Hopkins Emergency Medicine Division of Special Operations and Elite Medical Group. Global Rescue provides best-in-class services that identify, monitor and respond to client medical and security crises. Global Rescue has provided medical and security support to its clients, including Fortune 500 companies, governments and academic institutions, during every globally significant crisis of the last decade. For more information, visit www.globalrescue.com.

Lebanon, N.H. – Gender and age drive the biggest distinction among travelers, according to results of the 2020 Annual Global Rescue Travel Safety Survey.  

“The Global Rescue Travel Safety Survey reveals unexpected travel safety concern disparities between the sexes and among the generations,” said CEO Dan Richards.  

• Men are about 50% more concerned about family travel than women.  
• Travelers are “very concerned” about travel to the Middle East, but respondents between the ages of 40-59 are a third more concerned than their younger counterparts.  
• Forty percent of travelers under age 40 believe “health/medical issues” are the greatest threat while touring and exploring, compared to only 29% of travelers between 40-60 years old. 

Among the top survey findings:  

Likelihood of Travel: Consistent with results over the past several years, more than 95% of respondents are likely to travel in 2020, either domestically or internationally.  

Travel Concern Gauge: Thirty-five percent of respondents are “concerned” or “very concerned” about their travel safety in 2020 while 13% are “not concerned” at all. For the last three years, roughly 85% of respondents expressed some degree of concern for travel safety.  

Regional Fears: The Middle East is the region most troubling to travelers with 56% reporting they would be “very concerned” making a trip there. Trips to Asia and Africa were the next most worrisome for travelers. Sixty-four percent of travelers said they were “not concerned” about going to North America or Australia.  

“I think the Middle East gets a bad rap,” said a Global Rescue Operations expert and former Navy SEAL. “There are places you just can’t go like Syria and Iraq. But Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Israel, the UAE and other areas there are great. The Middle East is a good place.” 

Business or Pleasure Travel: Family and personal travel were nearly three times more concerning than business travel. Less than 13% of respondents consider business travel a concern or very concerning compared to 30% of travelers thinking about family or personal travel. One respondent explained the reason for the result.  

“If I’m involved in an incident or accident on family travel, it will likely affect not only my safety but that of my family members. On a business trip, my family of course will be affected by my injury or death, but they likely will not be with me and will not be involved directly in the calamity,” Bob M. of Arkansas said. 

Greatest Travel Threats: Travelers listed health/medical issues and street crime as the greatest personal threats while traveling, followed by terrorism, traffic accidents, civil unrest, and – more than halfway down the list – cyber security. One Global Rescue security expert believes cyber security should be a higher concern saying, “I’m worried about cyber security. It takes less than two minutes to draw everything off your laptop or smartphone. Public Wi-Fi is not secure.”  

A survey respondent concurred.  

“Cybercrime is a big concern, especially identity and credit card theft. I have had both hacked while traveling and the pain and suffering to try and fix the mess it creates was staggering. I am to the point of using a single travel credit card to ensure I can contain any cyber theft issues,” James B. of Texas said. 

Will You Change Travel Plans Due To Your Concerns? Nearly all respondents plan to travel in 2020 and most (85%) are concerned about travel safety. Yet, overwhelmingly (91%) say those concerns will not impact their plans. We discovered travelers are planning and researching and taking precautions so they can continue to enjoy their adventures. According to one respondent, you simply need to minimize your hazards.  

“In my case, my overseas travel will be via reputable airlines and reputable cruise company, traveling to places with low risk percentages of incidents. I still, though, subscribe to Global Rescue as my ‘back up’ because I feel assured with Global Rescue that if anything happened, in the States or abroad, they would be my best ally,” said Laurie R., Texas 

The 2020 Annual Global Rescue Travel Safety Survey was conducted January 22-28, 2020. The study results are based on a survey of 2,400 Global Rescue members. 

Lebanon, N.H. – Attacks and counter-attacks between Iranian and U.S. forces have escalated tensions in the region and put Westerners—particularly U.S. nationals—traveling or working in the Persian Gulf region at risk of retaliatory attacks.

“Leaders of both countries appear to be stepping away from further escalation. Nevertheless, violence directed at Westerners by individuals or groups sympathetic to Iran is possible, particularly in the vicinity of demonstrations. Threats are especially acute for expatriates working for Western transnational companies that have operations in the Middle East, namely Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar,” said Global Rescue CEO Dan Richards.

Global Rescue, the world’s leading medical, security, evacuation, travel risk and crisis management services firm, issued an alert to its members detailing the circumstances, current conditions, anticipated threats, and providing advice to exercise extreme caution.

“If you’re planning to travel to the region you should weigh the risks carefully. If you’re in Iraq, the U.S. Department of State has advised all U.S. citizens to leave. If you’re already in the region outside of Iraq then you should ensure you have functional communications, avoid traveling alone, keep a low profile, stay away from all protests and demonstrations to minimize the risk of exposure to incidental violence, and if you encounter unrest then exit the area as quickly as possible or seek shelter until the situation stabilizes,” Richards said. “Airports in the region are currently operating. You should have a plan in place for departure should the situation warrant,” he added.

About Global Rescue

Global Rescue is the world’s leading provider of medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management services to enterprises, governments and individuals. Founded in 2004, Global Rescue has exclusive relationships with the Johns Hopkins Emergency Medicine Division of Special Operations and Elite Medical Group. Global Rescue provides best-in-class services that identify, monitor and respond to client medical and security crises. Global Rescue has provided medical and security support to its clients, including Fortune 500 companies, governments and academic institutions, during every globally significant crisis of the last decade. For more information, visit www.globalrescue.com.