Annual Travel Insurance Deciphered

Posted on | November 29, 2009 | 9 Comments

Annual travel insurance is the perfect policy for frequent travellers and people travelling for business. Designed to cover a number of small trips within one year, backpackers and long term travellers can often be fooled by its misleading name. Australian annual travel insurance typically covers multiple trips of up to 31 days when the traveller is departing from within Australia. There are, however, some policies that cover up to 60 or even 90 day trips.

Also referred to as multi trip travel insurance, backpackers are advised to take caution when purchasing an annual policy online. Its name is easily misunderstood to mean year long cover; however, most long term travellers will find that this plan does not suit them at all. This type of cover is suited to people who plan to make several journeys from home throughout the year, whether they be holidays or business trips.

As with all other forms of travel insurance, annual cover is easily purchased online. Without the cost of travel agent commission it also works out to be cheaper for you! It is important to read the terms and conditions of your policy to make sure that the benefits will cater to your type of travel. Like any policy purchased online, make sure that it is underwritten by a reputable company.

When purchasing annual cover online check that the website you’re using has appropriate security. You will often find these details in the FAQ section of the site. Credit card details are not legally allowed to be stored without your permission so you won’t have to worry about them being viewed if you go through a legitimate site. Purchase over the phone is usually available; however, you’ll find that most will process your information over the website anyway.

Online annual travel insurance will generally cost somewhere between $250 and $500 depending on your individual policy and circumstances. Some likely cover inclusions are:

Medical expenses (including hospital and emergency)

Cancellation fees and lost deposits

Travel and luggage delays

Loss of income

Personal liability

Accidental death

Theft

Alternate travel expenses

Permanent disability

Some leisure activities and sports (e.g. skiing and golf)

Some policies won’t include adventure activities such as skydiving and scuba diving, but if you shop around enough there are some companies that will offer cover for these. Most policies will also offer family packages that aren’t much more of a price difference than individual packages.

Comments

9 Responses to “Annual Travel Insurance Deciphered”

SaberBlade
November 29th, 2009 @ 10:25 am

I think that you will find a great deal on Moneysupermarket.com thats where I got my travel insurance, and they actually had to pay out on my policy as I ended up in a French hospital.

My insurance was about 40pounds, and it was for annual insurance! I think from memory you could go away for up to 94 days at a time, or 17days at a time if you included winter sports.

Hope this helps – just remember to read the small print about how many consecutive days away from the UK you are covered for! Happy Travels!
ouleixia
November 29th, 2009 @ 11:07 am

Here are some links-
I had a similar situation- I was living in the Caymans Islands, no longer a Canadian resident, and wanted to travel for the summer. But every policy required that Canadian citizens be insured in their home privince, which I no longer have as non-resident. IMG was the only one I found, but as you DO have Canadian insurance, this will be easy for you. There are lots of short-term plans.

https://www.imglobal.com/travelinsurance/index.cfm?show=&&CFID=1718830&CFTOKEN=d9392e2d0226f2d2-EC75C061-1143-EBE5-76B31862584AA777

http://www.internationalsos.com,
http://www.travelexinsurance.com,
http://www.ijet.com,
http://www.travelassistance.com,
http://www.wallach.com,
http://www.travelguard.com,
http://www.independenttraveler.com/resources/article.cfm?AID=48&category=8,
http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/tips/insurance.htm.
Normandie
November 29th, 2009 @ 11:41 am

Try this site for a quick quote on travel medical insurance. TravelEx allows for pre-existing conditions. —> http://www.travelex-insurance.com/index.asp?location=07-0018
scuba snack
November 29th, 2009 @ 7:59 pm

You can get a refund if your insurance covers illness as a reason for cancellation. Different policies cover different contingencies. The way you would prove illness is by a note from your physician.

InsureMyTrip.com is one site that has comparisons among policies. I'm sure there are others.
genteel41
November 30th, 2009 @ 8:45 pm

There are some good travel insurance companies. Get ones that pay your expenses or pay you in cash. Dont get ones that make you take another trip or give you a voucher to travel again with them.
I only buy insurance if the trip is WAY more than I can afford to lose.
Read the fine print of the policies before you purchase.
buttercup
November 30th, 2009 @ 10:56 pm

Checkout their theft rider, and the link for a free quote. http://www.travelex-insurance.com/index.asp?location=07-0018
Edward Appleby
December 2nd, 2009 @ 12:18 am
Rick B
December 2nd, 2009 @ 11:24 am

It could very well be true. Although they are different countries to where you are, we are in the UK and when we book to go to Ireland the company we book with insists on having our insurance details. Besides, as the first answerer says…they would be daft to travel without it as the cost of treatment is far more than the cost of the insurance. Accidents do happen…believe me, I broke an elbow last year, and a few weeks after that was healed I broke my foot…if I had been abroad I would have been in sh*t street without insurance!
glitter
December 2nd, 2009 @ 5:42 pm

healthquotes.awardspace.info – here is my health insurance plan. As I remember they can provide such a service.

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Annual Travel Insurance Deciphered

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