Travel Insurance for over 65
Edited by Kathy McGraw, Maria Quinney
Retirement is meant to be an enjoyable time when you can do the things that you never had the time or resources to do when you were younger, like spending the summer traveling throughout Europe. But the fly in the ointment for many seniors is the cost of travel insurance, which in some cases cost double the rate of a policy for younger persons. The question then becomes should you go without it or suck it up and pay the excessive premium?
Why is Travel Insurance More Expensive for Seniors Over 65?
Unfortunately, the older you get, the more likely it becomes that you will become ill or injured, and for this reason, insurance companies like to hedge their bets by charging you higher premiums than they would charge someone who is younger. Even if you're in perfect health, the insurance companies will still ding you because of your age.It's not fair, but insurance companies generalize their risk of insuring certain groups based on the risk pool of that group.
Do You Need Travel Insurance?
No one likes to think that anything bad will happen to them while they are on vacation, but that Murphy didn't exempt vacations from his law about things going wrong. Even if the only glitch in your trip is that your luggage ended up in Singapore while you landed in France, travel insurance will still come in handy when it comes to recouping the expenses of the items you lost. On the other hand, you'll be especially glad that you took out a policy if you accidentally drank some bad water in Mexico and resulted in you having to spend the day at a Mexican emergency room between running back and forth to the toilet.
What Does Travel Insurance Cover?
Travel insurance blunts financial losses you may suffer while you are traveling abroad. It compensates you for everything from the cost of your airline tickets should you miss your flight to the costs of having to cancel your trip altogether. It also covers you for things such as lost luggage and emergency medical expenses, which can add up quite quickly.
- 1Trip cancellation covers the costs of your trip, from your airline tickets to your hotel room, car rental, and any tours that you've pre-booked if you have to cancel your trip.Trip cancellation.
- 2Trip interruption pays for the unused portion of your travel expenses if you have to return home early. Covered expenses can include the remainder of your hotel stay, the remainder of your car rental, and any tours or shows for which you have pre-paid.Trip interruption.
- 3If you become injured or get sick during your trip, this coverage will pay for your medical expenses, which include the emergency room visit, and hospital stay, if necessary. It will also pay for the expenses associated with returning you home if it is medically necessary to do so.Emergency medical costs and travel back home.
- 4If your baggage gets lost or stolen, this coverage will pay for the value of your lost or stolen items. Make sure that you buy enough coverage if you are bringing expensive items with you, such a laptop computer or video camera.Lost baggage and stolen items.
- 5If you damage someone else's property or injure them on accident, this coverage will pay for the resulting damage or medical costs.Personal liability.
- 6If you miss your flight or if it's delayed, this coverage will compensate you for our expenses, such as paying for an interim hotel room while you wait for another flight.Missed or delayed departure.
What About Pre-existing Conditions?
All travel insurance policies require that you disclose any medical condition that is present when you apply. Of course, they do this so that they can exclude coverage for medical claims resulting from that condition, which reduces their risk; however, some pre-existing conditions may be covered under the terms of the policy. To find out if your medical condition is covered, consult your policy documents find out from your insurer. While it may be tempting not to disclose your pre-existing conditions, you should be aware that if you have a claim resulting from that condition, not only will your claim not be covered, your entire policy will be void, and you will forfeit your premium payment.
Single or Multi-trip Travel Insurance?
Single trip travel insurance covers you for the duration of one instance of travel while multi-trip travel insurance covers you for multiple instances of travel. If you plan to take multiple trips in a single year, then it may be cost-effective to buy a single multi-trip travel policy rather than purchasing a single trip policy for each trip separately.
How Can I find The Cheapest Over-65 Travel Insurance?
The best way to find a travel policy that is affordable and meets your needs is to shop around online. There are many insurers that offer travel insurance for seniors, and you may even find a policy or two where the age cut-off for higher rates is much older than your current age. For instance, some insurers may not start charging extra until a person hits the age of 70, or even 75. The following are websites where you can get information about and purchase travel insurance:
- Travel Insurance Review (travelinsurancereview.net)
- USI Affinity (travelinsure.com/products/plans-for-us-citizen-and-residents)
Tips
- Always include any pre-existing conditions you have on your insurance application
- Make sure your coverage is high enough (policy limits of $1,000,000 or more)
- Buy enough protection for your expensive items
- Shop online for the best policies with the lowest prices
- Don't buy insurance based on price alone; make sure that it provides enough protection
If you have problems with any of the steps in this article, please ask a question for more help, or post in the comments section below.
Comments
Article Info
Categories : Travel & Leisure
Recent edits by: Kathy McGraw