Travel Insurance: What It Covers

The EHIC/GHIC card will get you some basic medical cover within Europe, but it’s not travel insurance. It doesn’t cover getting you home if you need special transport, it doesn’t cover private treatment, and it doesn’t touch cancellations or theft. Go anywhere outside Europe without proper travel insurance and you’re basically gambling. Healthcare bills abroad can be catastrophic.

What’s Covered

Travel insurance has a few different parts, and they all matter.

The medical bit is the main reason you need it. It covers emergency hospital treatment, doctor visits, prescribed medicines, emergency dental work, and crucially, repatriation - that’s getting you home if you can’t fly normally.

Policies offer medical cover ranging from £2 million to £10 million. For a European trip, £2 million is normally fine. For the US, aim higher - £5 million minimum - because American healthcare is spectacularly expensive.

Repatriation is genuinely important. An air ambulance from Thailand will cost you £50,000 or more. Flying you home in a bed instead of a seat can be £10,000. This is what bankrupts people who travel uninsured.

Cancellation cover pays out if you can’t go because you’re ill or injured (you or a close family member), someone dies, you get jury duty, you’re made redundant, you’re needed as a witness in court, or there’s a home emergency like a fire or flood.

Typical cover is £1,000 to £5,000. Check it actually covers what you’re spending. If your holiday costs £3,000 and your cancellation cover is only £1,500, you’re not covered properly.

Curtailment is similar - if you have to come home early for the same reasons, you’re covered for unused accommodation and travel, plus extra costs to get home early. Usually has the same limits as cancellation.

Baggage and personal belongings covers loss, theft, or damage to luggage, clothes, electronics, and personal items. Limits tend to be £1,500-£3,000 total, with single items capped at £200-£500. That fancy new camera? Probably not fully covered unless you specifically declare it.

Single items are usually capped at £200-£500, total baggage around £1,500-£3,000, valuables £300-£500, and cash £200-£300. If you’re taking anything expensive, declare it specifically and pay extra for better cover.

Travel delay pays a fixed amount for each hour you’re delayed beyond a threshold (usually 12 hours). It might also cover meals and accommodation. You’re looking at £20-£30 per 12 hours, up to a maximum of £100-£200. It’s not much, but it helps when you’re stuck at an airport.

Personal liability covers you if you accidentally injure someone or damage their property abroad. This covers legal costs and compensation. Typical cover is £1 million to £2 million - you’d need it if you caused a serious accident skiing, for example.

Legal expenses covers legal costs if you need to pursue a claim against someone else (like for an injury caused by someone’s negligence). That’s usually £25,000 to £50,000.

What’s Not Covered

Policies won’t pay for pre-existing health conditions you had before you bought the insurance. They won’t cover injuries while you’re intoxicated. Dangerous activities like skiing or scuba diving are usually out unless you add them. Countries with FCDO travel warnings aren’t covered. Leaving your bag unattended on the beach while you swim? Your fault. Booking after a hurricane warning has been issued? Not covered. Just not feeling like going? Definitely not covered. And if your doctor told you not to fly and you flew anyway, that’s on you.

Pre-existing conditions are the big one. If you’ve got asthma, diabetes, heart problems, anything like that, you need to declare it. If you don’t, and something happens related to that condition, the entire policy can be voided - not just claims related to that thing, but the whole lot.

Some insurers will cover pre-existing conditions for an extra premium. Others won’t. Shop around.

FCDO Travel Advice

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office issues travel advice for every country. It ranges from “no restrictions” to “exercise increased caution” to “reconsider your need to travel” to “do not travel.” Most policies won’t cover you if the FCDO says don’t travel to where you’re going. Some also exclude places where they say to reconsider.

Check the advice before you book anywhere risky. If the advice changes after you’ve already booked, you might be covered for cancellation.

Single Trip or Annual?

Single trip covers one holiday. Annual (multi-trip) covers unlimited trips in a year, though each trip is usually capped at 31-45 days maximum.

Single trip for a week in Europe might be £10-£35, or £25-£70 for worldwide. An annual policy is around £30-£80 for Europe, or £70-£170 for worldwide. If you take three or more trips a year, annual makes sense. But check the per-trip duration limit - if you’re planning a two-month trip, an annual policy that only covers 31-day trips won’t work.

When to Buy

Buy it as soon as you’ve booked. Not the day before you leave. The reason is cancellation cover. If you book a trip six months in advance and something happens in month two, you need the policy to already be active. Buying last-minute means you’ve got no cancellation protection for all those months.

Activities That Need Extras

Standard policies exclude hazardous activities. Skiing and snowboarding are common ones, and off-piste is often excluded even if you pay for winter sports cover. Scuba diving is usually covered to 18 metres, but deeper and you need to pay extra. Motorbike or moped riding is often excluded or limited to low engine sizes. Bungee jumping usually needs separate adventure cover. Mountain climbing above certain altitudes needs extra cover. Contact sports like football or rugby might need adding.

Check what you’re planning to do before you go. Adding activities is usually just a few pounds extra.

Making a Claim

If something happens abroad, here’s what to do.

Medical emergency - call the emergency number on your policy documents. The insurer might direct you to specific hospitals. Keep every receipt and bit of documentation.

Theft - report it to the police within 24 hours, get the written police report, tell your insurer, and keep proof of ownership (receipts, photos).

Delay or cancellation - get written confirmation from the airline or operator, keep receipts for what you’ve spent, and submit the claim with all documentation.

Claims get rejected for: not disclosing a pre-existing condition, incidents related to alcohol, not enough evidence of what was lost, activities not covered, or trips to places the FCDO has advised against.

Comparing Policies

Don’t just grab the cheapest option. Check the medical cover limit (especially if you’re going to the US). Check the cancellation limit is actually more than what your trip costs. Look at the single item limits for baggage. Check how they handle pre-existing conditions. See what activities are covered. For annual policies, check the trip duration limit. See what the excess is per claim.

A policy that’s £20 cheaper but has a £1,000 lower cancellation limit isn’t actually cheaper if your trip costs more than the cover.

Does Your Bank Card Cover You?

Some fancy bank accounts include travel insurance. But check whether it’s actually any good (lots of them have pretty low limits), whether you’re covered automatically or need to register, whether everyone travelling is covered or just you, and what’s excluded.

Bank travel cover is often quite basic. Read the terms properly rather than assuming you’re all set.