Travel Insurance For Seniors

A Guide to Senior Travel Insurance

Have you discovered that travel insurance premiums have increased now that you’re a senior? Or that the insurance provider you’ve been with for years is now declining to renew your policy because you’ve reached a certain age?

Frustrating isn’t it! But we’re here to tell you that age doesn’t need to be a barrier to enjoying future holidays abroad, and better still, we can help you find a suitable senior travel insurance provider who will be able to cover all of your needs.

Do I need senior travel insurance

Travel insurance is a necessary precaution to protect you if things don’t go to plan – and therefore should be high up on the list of priorities when arranging any trip abroad.

Travel insurance for senior citizens can cover a range of eventualities, from cancellation, personal accidents, emergency medical expenses, repatriation back home, personal belongings, travel delay and more. Most insurers will also provide a 24-hour emergency helpline, so help is only a phone call away no matter where you are!

Comparing travel insurance for seniors with pre-existing conditions

Such is life that as we age, we’re more than prone to age-related illness such as arthritis, blood pressure, type 2 diabetes to name but a few, and in many instances older people are prescribed precautionary medication to keep such conditions at bay.

It’s important to declare all of your pre-existing medical conditions, and the medical reasons why you take preventative medication – even if they have little impact on you daily living. This allows insurance providers to offer a senior citizen travel policy that will meet your individual needs and give you protection in the event your existing medical conditions cause you any complications during your trip (terms and conditions vary).

If you’re declaring medical conditions on behalf of a family member or an elderly friend, do make sure you’re aware of their medical history, and the reasons why medication is prescribed. In particular, ask if they have EVER been diagnosed with any heart, respiratory, circulatory, stroke or cancerous conditions, as most insurance providers require applicants to declare these as part of their medical history.

It’s always worth considering the medical benefits included within the policy over the cost of the policy itself. It should never simply be a case of getting the cheapest possible cover out there.

You want to ensure that your covered for every possible eventuality, however likely or unlikely – in order to give you the peace of mind to enjoy your holidays as you should.

What does senior travel insurance cover?

You can reasonably expect a senior travel insurance policy to include the following standard benefits:

• Cancellation
• Curtailment
• Lost, stolen or damaged personal belongings
• Personal Accident
• Emergency Medical Expenses and Repatriation
• Personal Liability
• Legal Expenses
• Travel Delay

However, as the likelihood of claiming arguably increases as you get older, you’ll often find that these benefits are extended to provide you with even more cover.

Obviously, insurance cover can change based on what pre-existing medical conditions you declare too. Depending on what type of holiday you’ve booked, you can also find specialist senior ski travel insurance and senior cruise travel insurance in some cases as well. You can read more about what type of cover you’ll receive on their respective pages.

UK travel insurance for senior citizens

If you’re planning a staycation and booking two or more nights away in the UK, you may want to consider getting travel insurance to protect the money you have paid out for accommodation, travel and excursions.

When getting UK senior travel insurance quotes – make sure you check the excess.

There’s little point buying UK cover if the excess on the policy is higher or the same as the cost of the holiday, because there will be little or no money to actually claim back in the event of cancellation.

International travel insurance for seniors

The same principle applies to international travel insurance for seniors – only in this case, you’ll be covered for different things, such as lost luggage or flight delay or cancellation.

International travel insurance will take into account the country/countries you’re visiting to provide the best possible cover based on the cost of medical expenses there, as well as the cost of repatriation if you need to fly home for whatever reason.

Don’t forget your travelling companions

Lastly, we urge you to add your travelling companions to your policy. Being insured on the same policy protects your companions should you or your medical conditions cause any trip complications and vice versa.  When insured separately you run the risk of falling out of pocket should you need to cancel the holiday (terms and conditions vary).

Finding the best travel insurance for senior citizens

With Medical Travel Compared, you can access a range of different specialist medical travel insurance options for seniors. Believe it or not, but when you reach the age of 50 – your travel insurance premium can shoot up. Although this is unfortunate – we would always advise that it’s more than worth the extra expense in the long-run – especially if you’re considering taking out an annual policy.

Our free, independent online comparison service has been set up to help seniors find the best value travel insurance easily and quickly. Simply use our quoting facility by clicking the ‘Get a Quote’ button located at the top of this page.

Then, enter your holiday details and, if necessary, answer some medical questions to compare senior travel insurance quotes from our panel of insurers that are specifically targeted at OAPs and senior citizens.

Having reviewed the search results, you can then select a policy that meets your needs and proceed to pay securely online. Your documents will then be sent to you direct from the insurer. It couldn’t be easier!