No, it's not essential to take copies of your travel insurance documents with you.
It's always a good idea to have a copy in your bag or on your phone. More importantly save the link to our travel claims hub so you can report a claim to us online 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Also make sure you have our 24 hour assistance telephone number with you, so you can contact us if you need our help while you're away.
If you're travelling to Europe, make sure you have a Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) as well as travel insurance. Take a look at our guide to a Global Health insurance card (GHIC) for more information.
Remember, if you have an apple device you can save your documents to ibooks.