Booking your next holiday overseas? Before you head off abroad, Mozo’s expert travel insurance comparisons can help you find some great value deals to make sure you’re covered in case anything goes wrong on your trip. Compare more than 250 travel insurance policies from 50 insurers to help you find travel insurance that matches your needs.
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Amazing customer service when originally taking out the travel insurance and then when we needed to submit a claim. Extremely reliable and efficient
Amazing customer service when originally taking out the travel insurance and then when we needed to submit a claim. Extremely reliable and efficient
Astrid, Western Australia, reviewed 6 days ago
Ben, New South Wales, reviewed 7 days ago
Had gold cruise insurance used them a few times and never had to claim on the last cruise. I dropped my $500 camera into the sea, made a claim, filled in all the forms they sent, and was told that my claim has been rejected because I didn’t have a...
Had gold cruise insurance used them a few times and never had to claim on the last cruise. I dropped my $500 camera into the sea, made a claim, filled in all the forms they sent, and was told that my claim has been rejected because I didn’t have a police report. I tried to explain that there where no police on the ship. Made no difference, still rejected.
Paul, Victoria, reviewed 12 days ago
Had insurance for broadway tickets in June. They canceled the show and closed the city, denied my claim because fear of travel and pandemics were not covered by their insurance. After reading the fine print it turns out nothing was covered. ...
Had insurance for broadway tickets in June. They canceled the show and closed the city, denied my claim because fear of travel and pandemics were not covered by their insurance. After reading the fine print it turns out nothing was covered. Should have saved the $50. Would not even refund my cost for the insurance let alone the $637 for the show. Very disappointed that Ticketmaster would allow them on their site. This is only the second time in my life I felt compelled to write a bad review. Their customer service was appalling. I warn any and all of my friends and family to read the fine print and see for themselves why Allianz is not for them.
Matthew, Northern Territory, reviewed 12 days ago
My policy covered me for cancellation due to a pandemic but InsureandGo refused my claim even though my trip was cancelled due to government travel restrictions, giving the reason that I "cut my trip short". Following intervention by the...
My policy covered me for cancellation due to a pandemic but InsureandGo refused my claim even though my trip was cancelled due to government travel restrictions, giving the reason that I "cut my trip short". Following intervention by the ombudsman, InsureandGo suddenly had a change of mind and paid my claim. Communication was terrible, at no time was I permitted to talk to my Claims Officer, and whenever I requested a call back it never eventuated. They might be good for price, but beware for claims!
John, Victoria, reviewed 13 days ago
Mozo may receive a payment from financial providers listed on the site. Customer reviews are in no way affected by any commercial relationships Mozo has with providers. Reviewers may receive a voucher from Mozo in exchange for their review. Vouchers are given to all reviewers who meet our review guidelines regardless of the sentiment of their reviews.
Tuesday 11 August 2020
As a direct result of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Australian travel insurance industry has seen a sharp decline in growth, a new report from GlobalData finds. Read more...
Tuesday 07 July 2020
Mozo’s latest report has found that Covid-19’s impact on travel remains a top concern for many Australians. Some would-be holidaymakers are still reeling after losing significant funds because of cancellations, while others are already planning post-isolation holidays. Read more...
Thursday 12 March 2020
From the nationwide devastation caused by the Australian bushfire emergency to a global state of panic struck by the current coronavirus outbreak, 2020 is off to a very grim start. Read more...
Wednesday 29 January 2020
From sailing the high seas with the family to taking a solo trip around Europe, no Aussie travels the same. But if there’s one common interest most travellers share, it’s taking out travel insurance before kick starting their holiday. Read more...
Thursday 16 January 2020
For many Aussies, the turn of a new year - or new decade for that matter, brings fresh opportunities to travel, but things are starting to look little different and so are travel insurance policies. Read more...
While travelling overseas is something many of us look forward to, it’s not always rainbows and sunshine. Losing your luggage, getting food poisoning, having to cancel your trip at the last minute - the list of unexpected bumps you could encounter along the way are endless.
Equipping yourself with suitable travel insurance before you depart means you’ll have peace of mind that even if a mishap occurs, you won’t suffer a huge financial loss and you can get back on your feet a lot more quickly.
Travel insurance is a type of insurance that provides cover for any unfortunate events that may occur while you are travelling overseas, such as medical illness, flight delays, lost luggage or theft. If purchased well in advance, travel insurance can also cover you for trip cancellation costs.
What are some key travel insurance benefits you should keep an eye on? Let’s take a look.
We’ve all heard the horror stories of travellers coming home from a holiday, only to find they’ve racked up a massive medical bill that they can’t pay off. Thankfully, most travel insurance policies provide generous medical care, with many of them actually offering unlimited cover.
A lot of insurers also provide emergency assistance alongside medical cover, giving a range of support to customers who have fallen ill or injured themselves overseas. This includes benefits like:
But an important thing to note is that most travel insurers have rules around which pre-existing medical conditions they cover and which they don’t. You can find a full list of conditions that are automatically covered on your insurer’s Product Disclosure Statement (PDS).
And if your condition isn’t listed, don’t panic - it could still be covered once you’ve disclosed it to your insurer, completed a medical assessment and paid any extra premiums that apply.
However, some conditions aren’t covered at all, so be sure to check with your insurer about any exclusions. Medical care overseas can run into thousands of dollars if you are not insured and when compared with the insurance cost, it's really not a risk worth taking.
Nothing dampens the start of a trip like landing in a foreign country only to find that your luggage has vanished. Thankfully, cover for lost luggage and personal effects can lend you a hand in those times of need, so that you’ll be able to - at the very least - replace the basics needed to complete your trip.
You could be covered for belongings that a third party has stolen, lost or accidentally damaged. And depending on which travel insurance policy you go with, your baggage cover could be as high as $15,000 per traveller!
But do remember, you won't get anything in cases where you lose unattended baggage left in a public place or unmanned vehicles. In other words, if you’ve left your phone behind in a restaurant or forgotten to take your bag out of a taxi, your insurance won’t cover you.
Usually, insurers will require you to report any loss or theft to the appropriate authority, whether that’s the airline, hotel or police, within 24 hours of discovering that your belongings have gone missing. Don't forget to ask for a written report too, as you’ll need this later on when you file a claim.
Life happens, and you could find yourself in a tough position of having to cancel your travel plans. Luckily, travel insurance could cover you for any lost deposits and cancellation fees, although the amount you’re compensated for depends on the policy.
Top notch insurers, like the Mozo Experts Choice Award Exceptional Quality Travel Insurance winners, provide unlimited cancellation cover, although restrictions and extra conditions may apply in some circumstances (for instance, you may not be covered if your cancellation is due to a relative’s pre-existing medical condition).
Just be mindful you’ll only be covered for situations that were ‘unforeseen’, or unexpected and out of your control. This includes instances where:
Keep in mind that if you can get your money back from the vendor - for instance, your airline or tour company - then your insurer might not accept your claim. But if the vendor only gives you a partial refund, your insurer will usually pay the difference.
Dental care: Most providers include emergency dental care, but you would need to take care of any ongoing treatment and costs once you are back in Australia.
Accidental death and injury: In the terrible circumstance that you become permanently disabled or die while you are travelling, you or your estate will receive money for repatriation or loss of income.
Personal liability: Unfortunately, accidents could happen not just to you, but also because of you. If you are legally responsible for causing someone else’s injury or damage to their property while you are travelling, you would need personal liability cover to help you pay for any costs.
Cash: Not all travel insurance policies cover cash, but some policies do cover about $100-$200. However, most clauses require you to have had the money on you at the time of theft.
Rental car excess: Most policies cover any rental car excess, so if you are renting a car on your trip, make sure you don't double up and pay the car rental company extra reduction insurance.
Airline and holiday insolvency: In the rare event that your prepaid holiday company (such as a hotel or airline) goes bust, an end supplier insolvency insurance would cover your prepaid expenses, including accommodation and plane tickets.
Now that you’re across the different kinds of cover you could expect from travel insurance, you might be wondering how you should go about picking the right travel insurance for you. It might be tempting to go with the cheapest travel insurance you can find - we all love to save a few bucks here and there - but that could actually be a big mistake because you could end up paying for something that doesn't really cover your needs.
Going through hundreds of travel insurance policies and reading the fine print is a tedious task, but to get you started, we’ve put together a quick overview of the basic types of travel insurance, to help you identify the one that aligns with your needs the most:
If your international travels are limited to one family holiday a year, then standard single trip travel insurance could be the way to go.
But if you are one of those jetsetters who take off on holidays two or more times in a year, or if your work means you travel across the world frequently, you should consider annual multi-trip insurance that covers a number of trips. This means you won’t have to buy a new policy every time you travel, which helps you save both time and money.
And in cases where you purchase multi-trip insurance for the entire family but also need to make individual trips during this period, you will still be covered under your multi-trip policy.
Fine print: Usually, there is a cap of 30 to 90 days for every individual trip for multi-trip annual policies, so it’s not designed for a year long jaunt around the world.
If you’re planning to ski down some slopes with friends on your next trip overseas, then snow travel insurance is a must.
Sure, snow clad mountains make for the most serene settings, but come a snow storm and you could be in for some seriously violent weather. With many standard policies not covering “extreme sports” like skiing and snowboarding, it’s a good idea to get snow travel insurance before you leave. That way, you can protect yourself and your ski equipment from any snow related accidents or bad weather!
Fine print: It's one thing to hurt yourself because of an avalanche, but your insurance won't cover an injury you incur while skiing under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
While skiing, snowboarding and snowmobiling are usually covered, you may have to pay an extra premium for off-piste or cross country skiing. Some of the more dangerous winter sports like heli-skiing would most likely not be covered at all.
Did you know that once your ship leaves the port, your medical expenses will no longer be covered by Medicare? The sea is known for its unpredictable nature, so it's definitely a wise move to get insurance for your cruise. Cruise insurance will cover you for medical emergencies and cancellations in the case of bad weather, and also protect your possessions on board.
Fine print: If you are planning on indulging in adventure activities like parasailing or scuba diving, you will have to check if your insurance covers these or if you need to pay extra.
The golden years are a great time to travel and explore the world, visit children and grandchildren, or take off on a luxurious cruise. The great news is: more and more Aussie insurance providers are raising the age limit for their policies, making it easier for seniors to travel with insurance.
For seniors wanting the broadest and most generous cover, a comprehensive policy could be the way to go. And if you’re worried about money and don’t want to fork out too many dollars for greater coverage, you’ll be pleased to know some travel insurance products offer a lot more than the basics at a very reasonable price tag. Check out the Mozo Expert Choice Awards Exceptional Quality Travel Insurance winners to find out more.
Fine print: Keep in mind that the premium generally keeps increasing as the age bracket goes up, so you can expect to pay more for travel insurance once you’ve hit your retirement years.
For seniors in their 70s or older, things might get a bit complicated. Further limits and terms and conditions may apply, so remember to always read the PDS before taking out travel insurance to make sure you’re eligible.
Not all travel insurance policies cover pregnancy, so if you are planning to travel during pregnancy, it’s definitely worthwhile doing some legwork to see which ones do.In general, your travel insurance should cover a pregnancy up to the end of the second trimester or until 26 weeks of gestation.
What if you’re pregnant with twins or more? It’s likely you won’t be covered then, but there’s no harm double-checking with your insurer so you can avoid any nasty surprises around the corner.
Fine print: You must carefully understand all the exclusions, for instance, if you've had past complications or conceived through assisted reproductive services. In such cases, you might be able to pay an extra premium and still be covered.
When you are backpacking across exciting uncharted paths, you may encounter more hurdles than the average traveller. That is what makes Backpacker's travel insurance essential because it covers you for longer periods of time than standard insurance and can also include extreme sport cover so you can tickle your adventurous bone with activities such as bungee jumping and hang gliding.
Fine print: A backpacker's travel insurance policy is usually valid up to 12 continuous months, but if you break your trip and come back home during that period, the insurance often won’t pick back up when you get back to the trip.
Once you’ve decided on the type of insurance for you, it’s time to start looking for a policy that suits you. But don’t worry, you won’t need to spend hours upon hours researching far and wide. Mozo's comprehensive travel insurance comparison tool makes your search easier, so that you can find the best travel insurance policy for your needs, with the ideal combination of features and price.
Simply plug in your travel details (destination, duration of travel, extra covers, etc.) to see quotes from top insurers and compare policies. Features you can compare include overseas emergency medical assistance cover, overseas emergency hospital expense cover, luggage & personal effects cover, cancellation fees and maximum excess.
As with any purchase you make in life, you might decide that the policy you thought was perfect isn’t so fitting after all. That’s okay - most insurers understand that this can happen and give their customers a cooling-off period, usually around 14 days. As long as you cancel your policy within this cooling-off period, you’ll be able to get back a full refund, provided that you haven’t started your trip yet.
So if you have started your trip, or it’s past the cooling off period, then chances are you won’t be able to get a refund on your policy.
Mozo publishes travel insurance reviews by real customers to give you the low down on things like claims process, value for money and customer service. Hearing about the personal experiences of people who have used a particular travel insurance provider can help you feel more comfortable about taking out the policy, or in some cases, steering clear of any lemons! Read how Australian travellers rate different insurers on various criteria such as medical claims, baggage loss and delays. You can browse the latest travel insurance reviews here or search reviews by insurer.
Written by: Katherine O'Chee, Mozo money writer
When you are travelling, some of the best memories come from the most unexpected moments. But sometimes, these very unpredictable moments can also land you in a financial pickle. Whether it's an unforeseen medical emergency, misplaced passports or lost baggage, it is always advisable to protect yourself from possible unfortunate circumstances.
That’s why taking out travel insurance is always worthwhile - you could save yourself a lot of trouble in the long run if things do unfortunately go south while you’re overseas.
So if you’re planning your next international trip, spend a few minutes with us at Mozo as we help you compare more than 250 policies to pick out the ideal travel insurance plan based on your travel details.
That’s a loud and resounding yes! Medicare and private health insurance only applies as far as the borders of Australia, so the moment you go overseas, you’re no longer covered for any illnesses or injuries.
In addition, travel insurance covers more than just emergency medical treatment. You could also receive cover for lost luggage, cancelled flights and medical evacuation or repatriation.
That said, some health insurance policies could help with pre-travel costs like vaccinations.
Australia also has Reciprocal Health Care Agreements with 11 countries worldwide: Belgium, Finland, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, the Republic of Ireland, Slovenia, Sweden and the UK. So if you’re travelling to one of those countries, you will have access to some health services and subsidised medicines, although it won’t cover all health care needs and doesn’t replace the necessity of travel insurance.
Don’t wait until you’re overseas! Add ‘travel insurance’ to your to-do list before you fly off. You should buy your policy as soon as you’ve made travel plans and paid for any flights and accommodation. You can buy insurance up to 12 months before your departure date.
Although there are policies you can take out after you leave Australia, the rule of thumb is: the earlier you buy your policy, the better. Why? Firstly, you could benefit from having cancellation cover for a longer period of time. Secondly, you could be covered for any unexpected expenses before you even leave Australia; for instance, if an earthquake were to strike your destination after you took out a policy, you could receive compensation for cancellations and other costs.
Another money-savvy move would be to buy travel insurance before your next birthday, as the older you are, the more expensive your premiums tend to be. This premium price is calculated according to your age when you buy your policy, not your age when you travel.
The short answer is: everywhere! No matter where you’re headed and how safe the country is, it’s always a good idea to take out travel insurance, as you never know what could go wrong on your trip. With the right policy under your belt, you’ll be prepared for any emergency, whether that’s a natural disaster, lost or stolen baggage, or medical treatment.
Even if you’re travelling to popular tourist destinations like USA, Europe and Japan, you’ll need travel insurance to protect yourself from any unforeseen circumstances.
Depending on the policy, your children and grandchildren could be covered for free, although they would have to meet an eligibility criteria, including
They’ll also have to be travelling with you for the duration of your trip and be listed on your Certificate of Insurance to receive free cover.
If you don’t meet these criteria, you may like to look into a family travel insurance policy, or, if there’s just two of you, a duo policy.
That’s a tricky one. While most insurers won’t cover cancellations due to a typical pregnancy, you could receive cover if the cancellation is due to a complication caused by the pregnancy. For instance, you could be reimbursed if you’ve been forced to cancel your trip the day before departure because you’ve been hospitalised for severe dehydration after vomiting too much because of morning sickness.
You’re in luck! If you’re travelling and think you’ll be overseas for longer than expected, most travel insurers will let you extend your policy, provided that it’s a single-trip policy (not multi-trip) and it hasn’t expired yet.
However, you will need to watch out for other terms and conditions - for instance, some insurers have a maximum age limit, so you’re over 60 or 70 years old, you may not be able to apply for a policy extension.
Others things to keep in mind include:
We cannot stress enough how important it is to read the fine print before you purchase a travel insurance policy. You must know exactly what your insurance covers and what it leaves out. Here are some tips on how to read between the lines and avoid those sneaky traps:
Know your destination: One of the key deciding factors for your choice of insurance would be your travel destination. For example, if you are going to the United States, you would need comprehensive medical cover, but for a place like New Zealand, medical limit would not be as crucial and there's no need for you to spend that extra money. Instead, you might be looking at a policy that covers adventure sports.
Check the excess: You should check if the policy requires you to pay an extra amount while making a claim. This would vary for different policies based on the claim type. For example, you might have to pay $1,000 excess for a medical claim but only $200 for a luggage delay.
Report pre-existing conditions: You must mention any pre-existing conditions that you might have to make sure you know exactly how much you are covered for in case of an emergency. Most travel insurance covers a number of pre-existing conditions such as asthma or high blood pressure and exclude others like cancer or cardiovascular diseases.
Read the inclusions and exclusions: This goes back to our mantra of ‘always reading the fine print’. While some policies might exclude certain circumstances like a pre-existing health condition, there could be other cases where you might not even realise that you are already paying for a service. For instance, your policy might be covering your car rental insurance, saving you that extra buck.
Report incidents promptly: In the event that any incident occurs, it’s good to inform your insurer as soon as you can to ensure they’re aware of the claim you are going to make. By doing so, you also give your insurer the opportunity to notify you of any specific paperwork or proof, such as receipts, doctor fees, police reports and cancellation emails, which you might need to submit when you register your claim.
Don't drive unlicensed vehicles: While you may be covered for accidents, you must remember that if you get hurt or damage a vehicle that you are not licensed to drive in a foreign country, your insurance won’t cover it. So if you’re in Bali and don’t have the licence to drive a scooter, don’t drive it!
Drink wisely: Now we’re not trying to be pedantic here, but your insurance company will not cover an injury incurred under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Say, even if you are covered for skiing, but if you hurt yourself while skiing and are found to have been under the influence of alcohol, your insurance provider could refuse to reimburse your claim.
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