Travel Insurance

Travel Insurance depends on the traveller's needs. Other rating factors include the destination, European countries are rated relatively low, worldwide cover is moderately priced and travel to America, Canada and the Caribbean the most expensive.

Age is (currently) a key factor in travel insurance. As expected, travellers under 50, are undisputedly less likely to suffer from medical conditions, hence the probability of having to cancel the trip prior to departure (one of the most common sections underlying a claim) is substantially less and, once on the journey, medical illnesses are less common, although accidental injury may be elevated. Once over 50, and particularly over 65 (the standard retirement cage), illnesses and conditions are more likely, resulting in increased costs and consequently more elevated premiums. Upon reaching 70 or 75 the body generally is becoming more fragile and less able to defend itself from the onslaught of bacteria and viruses, so costs further increase and when reaching the expected twilight ages of 80 or 85 there is an increasing risk of sustaining a life-threatening condition abroad, even for those in apparently good health on booking the trip.

When considering travel insurance, the possibility of taking part in activities with an elevated element of personal injury should be considered. The most typical, of course is winter sports, but even there the participant may be intending to be merely on-piste ski-ing, whereas the more adventurous may be looking forward to off-piste, not to mention other winter-sport derived activities, such as mono-ski-ing, heli-ski-ing, mountain ski-ing, randonee - there is a large and ever growing list of options. The winter-sports enthusiast should therefore read diligently the policy wording to ensure that their specific choice of activity is permissible or, at the least, possible to be included in the cover provided.

There are other activities that travel insurance may cover if needed and selected. Again be certain that cover is provided under the policy, cheap travel insurance policies may exclude many activities or restrict cover. A key example is SCUBA diving. Cover varies widely. It may be excluded, of not the usual restrictions are the depth (10, 18, 30, 40 ,50 metres), whether solo diving is permitted or if the diver must be accompanied, and what professional qualifications may be needed.

A major difference is if travel insurance for a single trip or an annual policy should be elected. For the younger, regular traveller, an annual travel insurance policy can represent substantial savings, especially if one or more trips will be of substantial duration e.g. close to a month, or to a higher rated area. For the elderly, however, the premium for annual travel insurance rises astronomically as a full year is, to be honest, a substantial part of the life expectancy and there may be a serious deterioration in health, especially towards the latter part of the year. Several single trip policies may suffice. Nevertheless, in many circumstances an annual policy may represent good value for money.

Two more points should be noted when comparing travel insurance for annual risks. The first is, if there is a family, to a) ensure that the family meets the policy definition. There may exist restrictions on the number and age of children - note that, usually, friends of children will be excluded and b) verify that independent travel (if required) is covered or whether the policyholder must be present for the policy to be in force. The second point is the difference between cancellation cover. In a single trip travel insurance policy cancellation cover commences immediately the policy is taken out. With an annual policy, cancellation commences on the cover start date. Unless competent, make sure that the commencement date for an annual policy, unless similar cover is existent, is as soon as possible.

The usual form of travel insurance is to cover short trips, either a package holiday or a self-built trip. These typically last for less than a month, although standard cover is usually available for 3 months if required. There are, however, many trips that will exceed 3 months. There are several varieties - gap year or backpacker policies for students, the 'Holiday of the lifetime', perhaps including an extended cruise and elderly parents/ grandparents visiting the family, who have emigrated. Each of these require differing cover levels so the purchaser should satisfy themselves that the level of cancellation cover, personal effects etc meet the expected potential losses. There is no point purchasing a backpacker policy when the potential cancellation costs are £10,000!

A final caveat for those purchasing travel insurance. Always check that medical conditions are covered. Many cheap policies exclude medical conditions as standard, others may have an online medical screening facility or a contact number to obtain cover. This may also apply to close relatives, whose serious illness or death could result in cancellation of the trip. Please note that a major change in medical condition between buying the policy and commencement of the journey will necessitate a review of the terms offered by the insurer.

As brokers, offering travel insurance, B Portwood & Co will offer advice if contacted or if you have any queries about any aspect of travel insurance.

Typical Rates

The travel insurance rates shown below are for a single person under 50 travelling up to 3 months. Quotes for older people, long stay travel insurance, annual travel insurance can be viewed by following the links at the page foot or, alternatively obtaining a direct online quote, with the option to purchase. Family rates are twice that of a single person - in effect children are insured free. Other than Economy, deleting baggage cover saves 15% and removing cancellation cover 20%.

UK
Days	Economy	Bronze	Silver	Gold
5	£2.79	£4.10	£4.82	£5.79
10	£3.17	£4.66	£5.49	£6.57
17	£3.96	£5.82	£6.85	£8.22
23	£4.94	£7.26	£8.54	£10.25
31	£6.19	£9.10	£10.70	£12.84
38	£7.72	£11.36	£13.36	£16.03
45	£9.26	£13.61	£16.02	£19.22
52	£10.79	£15.87	£18.67	£22.41
59	£12.33	£18.13	£21.33	£25.59
66	£13.86	£20.39	£23.98	£28.78
73	£15.40	£22.64	£26.64	£31.97
80	£16.93	£24.90	£29.30	£35.16
87	£18.47	£27.16	£31.95	£38.34
94	£20.00	£29.42	£34.61	£41.53

Europe
Days	Economy	Bronze	Silver	Gold
5	£5.07	£7.45	£8.77	£10.52
10	£6.33	£9.30	£10.94	£13.13
17	£7.92	£11.64	£13.70	£16.44
23	£9.90	£14.57	£17.14	£20.56
31	£12.36	£18.18	£21.39	£25.67
38	£15.45	£22.73	£26.74	£32.08
45	£18.54	£27.27	£32.08	£38.50
52	£21.63	£31.81	£37.42	£44.91
59	£24.72	£36.35	£42.77	£51.32
66	£27.81	£40.90	£48.11	£57.73
73	£30.90	£45.44	£53.46	£64.15
80	£33.99	£49.98	£58.80	£70.56
87	£37.08	£54.52	£64.14	£76.97
94	£40.16	£59.06	£69.49	£83.39

Worldwide Excluding USA/ Canada/ Caribbean
Days	Economy	Bronze	Silver	Gold
5	£8.89	£13.07	£15.38	£18.45
10	£11.10	£16.32	£19.20	£23.04
17	£13.87	£20.40	£24.00	£28.80
23	£17.34	£25.50	£30.00	£36.00
31	£21.69	£31.89	£37.52	£45.02
38	£27.11	£39.86	£46.90	£56.28
45	£32.53	£47.83	£56.27	£67.53
52	£37.94	£55.80	£65.65	£78.78
59	£43.36	£63.77	£75.02	£90.03
66	£48.78	£71.74	£84.40	£101.28
73	£54.20	£79.71	£93.78	£112.53
80	£59.62	£87.68	£103.15	£123.78
87	£65.04	£95.65	£112.53	£135.03
94	£70.46	£103.62	£121.90	£146.28

Worldwide Including USA/ Canada/ Caribbean
Days	Economy	Bronze	Silver	Gold
5	£9.87	£14.51	£17.07	£20.49
10	£12.34	£18.14	£21.34	£25.61
17	£15.41	£22.66	£26.66	£31.99
23	£19.27	£28.34	£33.34	£40.01
31	£24.09	£35.43	£41.68	£50.02
38	£30.12	£44.30	£52.11	£62.53
45	£36.15	£53.16	£62.54	£75.05
52	£42.18	£62.03	£72.98	£87.57
59	£48.21	£70.90	£83.41	£100.09
66	£54.24	£79.76	£83.84	£112.61
73	£60.27	£88.63	£104.27	£125.13
80	£66.30	£97.50	£114.70	£137.64
87	£72.33	£106.37	£125.14	£150.16
94	£78.36	£115.23	£135.57	£162.68

Redwood Travel Insurance

Summary of Travel Insurance Contract Limits

Typical Rates

UK

Europe

Worldwide Excluding USA/ Canada/ Caribbean

Worldwide Including USA/ Canada/ Caribbean

Specific Advice on Aspects of Travel Insurance