People should carefully check the details of their travel insurance policy before signing on the dotted line, an industry expert has said.

Michael Tarling, a spokesperson for the Association of British Insurers (ABI), says that most insurance policies don't cover extreme sports - so anybody who might get involved in such an activity should check their small print before they jet off.

"If you're thinking of getting involved in some of the dangerous sports, which many people will do when they go on holiday, the first thing you need to do is to check your policy before you actually sign on the dotted line," he commented.

"If you're planning to go white-water rafting down the Colorado River or something, your bog-standard travel policy won't cover you."

And you normally won't be able to amend a policy so that it includes cover for a certain activity once you've left the UK, Mr Tarling states.

"If you take out a policy, many policies will, for example, have an exclusion on dangerous sports, and that's why you need to think very carefully before you go, exactly what it is you're going to be involved in when you're travelling," he added.