Traveling Abroad – Is It Really That Important to Have Medical Insurance?

Traveling abroad, is it really that important to have medical insurance? Does a bear poo in the woods? Yes! How important is insurance to us? We, personally, think it is pretty darn important. As we get older, we generally tend to have more aches & pains than the younger crowd. That is a part of life. Ouch! There are so many issues to address when you are moving abroad but Travel Insurance is definitely one of our top concerns.

In our “Top 20 Issues to Research When You Are Considering A Move Abroad” we included Travel Insurance as an issue to review for us. Lets talk a little more in detail here! I don’t know about you but for us just the word “insurance” is enough to make us roll our eyes and cringe! It is probably one of our largest expenses! We pay house insurance, medical insurance, auto insurance, life insurance, jewelry insurance, etc etc. I look at insurance as one of those necessary evils – you HAVE to have because as soon as you don’t, something will happen. That is just life folks.

We have done a bit of research on ‘travel’ insurance in trying to understand exactly what it is & what it covers? Here are a few things we have discovered in our research.

Pricing

The area you will be traveling will be a big determination of insurance cost. It seems from most reading that travel insurance normally runs between 4 to 10% of the total cost of your trip. What does that mean? According to InsureMyTrip basically if you have invested $10k on your trip, that trip coverage cost could be anywhere from $400 to $1,000?

Of course, please do your due diligence on your end for your circumstances. There are various things that will determine your insurance cost such as, again, your country of travel, ages of travelers, length of travel as well as simply the coverage you desire.

Using a Broker

You can do your own comparison online but it would probably be a lot less of a headache to use a Broker. He should be able to put together multiple quotes together so you can do all your shopping thru him/her. Examples of brokers would be InsureMyTrip which covers 22 carriers or Trip Insurance Store which offers side by side comparison of up to ten insurers!

According to an article I found, in a recent survey of 2,000 Americans, only one out of every five travelers opted for travel insurance. Forty-five percent of these same travelers, stated that since the Covid-19 pandemic has arrived, they would strongly consider buying travel insurance.

AARDY is another broker that gets high reviews by AARP – who does not sell travel insurance.

We are not promoting any one company in this post as we ourselves are still in the ‘just looking’ phase since we won’t be jumping off to our grand adventure until Covid calms down or next Spring, whichever comes first. But since we will be traveling on a budget, we need an idea of what that cost will be and what the coverage does & does not cover!

Which Insurance Company is Right For You?

To decide which company would be right for you start looking now for a quote. Ages, hobbies, various other concerns would be addressed in getting insurance paired to you. We are paying particular attention to our age group in this post. If you are an adrenalin junkie, there is an insurance plan for you but you will need to research that on your own. We are walkers and bicycle riders.

Under 70 Years Young

The Big Guy & I fit in this category. In the U.S. Medicare is our health insurance. Medicare will not cover us abroad. We know that. We are researching companies that insure under age 70 as that is where we fit in. I have heard nothing but good referrals about World Nomads so that is one of the places we will be checking into for a quote. Although AARP does not sell travel insurance they do recommend AARDY who also is a Broker & will get a closer look at by me!

Over 70 Years Young

In a few years, we will be in this category so we are looking at companies that provide insurance to that age group as well. Travel Guard offers coverage for pre-existing conditions & plans can be tailored specifically to your needs. Allianz offers coverage for both domestic & international travel & cruises, medical insurance, etc. AIG is another we may look at down the road.

What Should You Have Covered in Your Travel Insurance Plan?

Some companies offer travel packages that cover personal property, rental cars or any specific request you may have. You may be able to obtain cancellation or last minute changes that cause trip charges, emergency evac medical charges, lost baggage, accidental death or even insurance to cover a flight accident.

Having said that your main concerns for travel insurance are:

1. Trip cancellation charges – reimbursement for nonrefundable flights, any outside travel expense due to illness, death in family or any last minute conflicts that could affect your flight.
2. Baggage or Personal Effects – most airlines do have a lost baggage policy but better to be safe than sorry!
3. Short Term Medical – Does your medical insurance cover emergency evacuation from abroad? Read the fine print to be sure you are getting what you think you are paying for. Normally there are two types of medical offered- Short Term [5 dys to 1 yr] or Major Medical for longer trips of 6 months to 1 year. BE SURE TO READ THE FINE PRINT!
4. Accidental Death & Flight Accident Coverage – Your present life insurance policy may suffice for this but, again, review to be sure.

A Last & Very Important Word on your Travel or Medical Insurance –

Be sure to review your policy carefully & ask for clarification if you are unsure of any part of policy. Just be prepared. It is recommended that you get your insurance at a couple weeks in advance so that you will have time to review the fine print. Yes, most of the companies I looked at can work on a very short time frame, but why chance missing something in the fine print because you didn’t plan ahead. After all the money you will put out for this travel insurance you really want to be sure you are getting what you thought you were paying for! Make sure it fits you and your trip itinerary.

TIP: Smart Traveler Enrollment Program [“STEP“] recommends that as a precaution, travelers can easily file their travel plans with The State Dept thru its free registry website. If in case of emergency, family can be notified!