Travel Insurance for Senior Citizens

Standard Cover

Enhanced Cover

Travelling abroad for anyone can often be a source of stress, especially when it comes to the aftermarth of Brexit and the global covid 19 pandemic.

Having one of the UK government’s new GHIC cards will entitle you to some aspects of local state healthcare in some countries but as this is not a replacement for travel insurance, it is always still important to find travel insurance for your trips abroad which covers you for your needs.

Senior citizen travel insurance is often something which many insurers will not be able to provide, as they impose upper age limits on travel insurance covers. This is one reason why it is pays to take out travel insurance as you get older with a specialist in seniors travel insurance like Emerald Life.

We at Emerald think that when people become senior citizens , they should not be put off travel simply because of an inability to get cover. THis is exactly why we are proud to offer travel insurance for senior citizens, pensioners, and the elderly generally.

How Do I Get Travel Insurance as a Senior?

Getting travel insurance for seniors is not as tedious and expensive as some insurers would have you believe. with fast and fully confidential medical screening, as well as covering many pre existing medical conditions, Emerald Life specialises in providing the cover you might need for your next holiday or trip away.

Being a senior is a fantastic chance to travel, as many people find themselves with healthier bank balances and few obligations at home such as work and family. Also, today’s seniors are living prosperious and healthier lives than previous generations.

Travel insurance however, has simply not kept up with this, with senior travel insurance often expensive, especially if you have an existing medical condition.

If you are planning on traveling to a country with high medical costs such as the USA or the Caribbean, these costs can also multiply. Thats why it pays to find a travel insurance policy who is experienced with senior citizen travel insurance and understands that just because you may be a senior, that does not necessarily mean a lot of claims.

At Emerald Life we have two products which could provide the cover you need as a senior:

  1. a simple standard travel insurance product and
  2. a second product which is more suited to customers who are above 75 and/or have pre existing medical conditions which they would like covered. This product has no upper age limit associated with it so, regardless of your age, you should be able to get travel insurance cover.

Both these types of policies should be able to give you the peace of mind you need to travel , all the cover you need depending on your situation and allow you to enjoy your trip!

But what is covered generally in an Emerald Life policy? Here are some general points which apply to all forms of policy:

Medical Travel Insurance, Especially Emergency Medical Treatment

One of the most important aspects of a travel insurance policy is medical cover so that if you are ill or injured whilst abroad, your insurer can pay for your treatment. This could even extend to repatriation if you need transportation back home for further treatment. As medical cover is one of the most significant costs in terms of potential claims, travel insurance providers need to know about your pre existing conditions in order to price your travel insurance fairly. Depending on what medical condition you have, you may not have to pay a higher premium at all as a result. Cover is provided on the basis of your declarations at the time of your quotation and any situations where you are receiving medical treatment need to be noted on your quote.

Emerald is proud to provide cover with no upper age limits, unlike many other insurers. this means that you can get cover regardless of your age that may include emergency medical insurance and the peace of mind knowing that despite the fact that you’re getting older, you are covered on your policies with us if you need to make a medical claim when you are on holiday. Seniors who are older, particularly above the age of 75 often find it difficult to find competetive cover from insurance providers because of age limits.

It is also important to ensure that if the worst case scenario does arise you can get the support you need. This is why all Emerald travel insurance policies for seniors will include a 24 hour medical emergency helpline as standard so that if something does go wrong, you can get the help you need immediately.

What are Pre Existing Medical Conditions?

When you are a senior who is travelling aborad, it is vital to make sure that you have appropriate cover for medical conditions which you have such as angina or diabetes. These conditions need to be declared to ensure that the insurer is aware of the risks in providing you cover whilst you are travelling.

Some pre existing medical conditions you don’t even need to declare. However, if you have pre existing medical conditions that could affect your likelihood to claim, it is important that you declare them unless instructed to otherwise.

You can also cover your travelling companion on the same insurance policy.

Examples of an existing condition might include cancer, heart conditions, diabetes, stroke, epilepsy and many more. It is also possible to obtain a quote if you are on a current course of chemotherapy or radiotherapy or if you have a mental health condition.

When you get a quote for senior travel insurance, we will ask you a series of simple questions about your existing medical condition or conditions which will help us provide you with the appropriate level of cover for your holiday. It is all very simple and only take a couple of minutes.

Annual or Single Trip – Which Works for Me?

One of the most simple questions you will be asked when obtaining insurance for your travel is if you want an annual or single trip policy.

Single trip travel insurance

An Emerald single trip insurance policy will cover you for a trip of up to 94 days in duration. This is perfect for when you need to get one trip covered only and don’t intend to travel additional times in the same 12 month period.

Annual multi trip travel insurance

An Emerald annual trip insurance policy will cover you for unlimited trips across the whole year. These trips can individually be up to 31 days in duration. This kind of annual policy can end up be much cheaper if you travel often, or intend to.

Travel Insurance Cancellation Cover

Picture the nightmare that of you being ill or injured just before you planned your trip: all those plans and prepayments hang in the balance. It is situations like this where travel insurance cover can give you peace of mind.

Some of the costs that may be covered by cancellation cover are:

  • your portion of prepaid transport charges
  • loss of accommodation
  • foreign car hire
  • pre-paid
  • excursions booked before you go on your trip (up to a maximum of £250)
  • that you have paid or have agreed to pay, that you cannot recover from
  • any other source,

Additionally, if you have to cancel your trip because you, a travelling companion or close relative is ill, injured or dies before the trip starts, or your passport, or the passport of any people you were intending to travel with, is stolen during the seven days before your booked date of departure – rest assured you’re covered.

Do be aware though, that if you have to cancel because of the death or illness of a close relative, there should not have been any specific concern about that relative before you booked your holiday.

Personal Posessions Cover

Good travel insurance can also provide a lot of help with your personal possessions. In the unfortunate event that your baggage is delayed for at least 12 hours, whilst in the custody of your carrier on your outward journey, you can claim for the cost of buying replacement necessities.

You will also find cover as standard on all Emerald policies for your valuables if they are stolen or damaged, including personal belongings like laptops and mobile phones.

What is an Excess?

If you are in a situation that might result in you having to make a claim, most travel insurance companies will charge an initial fee which is deducted from a successful claim. This fee is referred to in the industry as an ‘excess’.

Whilst it can be tempting when buying travel insurance to just look at the final price, it is important that you check any excesses you have to pay.

That is because some cheap policies will have very high excesses which means any claims could be very expensive despite having the insurance. Sometimes excesses are so high it might not even be worth claiming. Therefore, make sure you find the best policy from an insurance provider that balances a good price, with a reasonable excesses that might apply to your own personal situation.

Most travel insurance policies will also include different excesses for different types of claim and you can find these in your policy documentation, but generally the medical excess is the most significant.