Travel insurance for Australians over 50

This cover is great for travellers who don’t travel far from the hotel or aren’t travelling far from home. It’s typically the most affordable and includes the most basic features of travel insurance. You often won’t be able to take out optional extras with this level of cover.

There are usually limits, conditions and excess payments that vary depending on the travel insurance provider. Basic policies typically include cover for:

• 24/7 emergency assistance
• Overseas medical and hospital expenses
• Repatriation and medical evacuation
• Personal liability (if you accidentally injure someone else or damage their property and it’s your fault).

Mid-level cover is great for travellers who are a bit more adventurous.

It has a broader range of cover than basic policies but will still have certain limits, conditions or excess payments. Standard policies can include cover for:

• 24/7 emergency assistance
• Personal liability cover
• Overseas medical and hospital expenses
• Repatriation and medical evacuation
• Lost deposits and trip cancellation fees if you need to cancel to due to an unexpected event covered by the policy
• Stolen, damaged or lost luggage, personal belongings and valuables.

High-level cover suits people who want peace of mind from having comprehensive coverage for a wide variety of unexpected events, including injuries, cancellations and theft. One of the biggest differences between standard and comprehensive can be the claim limits of a policy, as a higher level of cover may offer higher limits for your benefits.

Coverage will vary between insurers, and there may still be certain conditions, limits and excess payments. Comprehensive cover can generally include:

• Unlimited overseas medical cover and 24/7 assistance services
• Personal liability cover
• Cancellation cover
• Luggage cover
• Coverage for travel expenses if you’re significantly delayed, such as meals and additional days of accommodation.

It may cost more but adding some optional extras to your travel insurance can provide additional coverage, typically for different kinds of trips. Some options that may be available to you include:

• Winter sports cover. This covers medical bills for injuries from skiing and snowboarding, and many policies provide cover for winter sports equipment if its stolen or permanently lost, as well as covering lift passes if they cannot be used due to bad weather.
• Cruise cover. A classic choice for travellers over 50, some insurers offer cruise cover as an add-on to cover medical bills and evacuation while at sea. On the other hand, other insurers may offer purpose-built policies that include cruise cover in the standard price.
• Adventure sports cover. Just because you’re over 50, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’re no longer looking for adventure. Adventure sports can cover hiking, kayaking, archery, cycling, scuba diving and much more. Many insurers will include a selection of activities as standard and offer additional cover for a more extensive selection of more extreme sports.
• Car rental excess cover. If you have an accident while driving a rental vehicle overseas, your car hire excess cover can help cover the cost of damages. Some insurers will include this automatically in their policy, while others offer it for an additional premium. However, if you’re travelling domestically, most travel insurance policies will automatically cover this.

The specifics of exactly what’s covered will differ between policies and insurance providers. You can check the PDS for details on a specific policy.

The cost of travel insurance will vary between insurers and is based on a number of factors, including your:

• Destination
• Age
• How long your trip is
• Desired coverage (including optional extras)
• Whether you’re travelling by yourself or with others (e.g. dependants or your spouse).

If you’re around 50, you generally have nothing to worry about when it comes to getting covered, as travel insurers typically cater to anyone in this age bracket. It might just cost more for Australians to get covered the older they get, as they represent a greater risk for insurers (or if they have a particular pre-existing medical condition to cover).

For those over 65, you might find it slightly more difficult to get travel insurance for seniors. It’s common for older travellers to be away from home for longer and take more of their possessions with them, adding to the chance of suffering a loss and impacting the size of an insurance claim.

Travel insurance for over 50s with pre-existing medical conditions may cost a bit extra, but it can help cover medical expenses resulting from your pre-existing health conditions. If you have a pre-existing medical condition, you will need to declare it to your insurer when applying for a travel insurance policy.

Although some pre-existing medical conditions can be automatically covered by travel insurance (like diabetes or high blood pressure), more serious conditions like some forms of cancer or mental illnesses may require paying an additional premium for full coverage. Insurers may not provide cover for some severe medical conditions, like terminal illnesses.

It’s important to check with your insurance provider if your health condition is covered and apply for a policy with pre-existing condition cover if you need it.

Not many travel insurance companies offer cover when you’re already overseas. Of those that do, this cover may come with extra costs, waiting periods and more limits. It’s recommended that you purchase travel insurance right after you book your tickets and well before you pack your bags.

As comprehensive policies include cover for cancellation, you can maximise the value from your travel insurance purchase by buying a policy as soon as you pay any deposits or final payments. Making sure you take out travel insurance as soon as possible can save you a whole lot of money and stress in the long run.

Travel insurance exclusions are typically the same regardless of your age. While specific details and exclusions might differ, most travel insurance won’t cover claims if they involve the following:

• Illegal or reckless behaviour. Keep in mind that your insurer may reject your claim if you were acting recklessly at the time of the incident. Also, while other countries have some laws that differ from Australia’s, recklessly and knowingly breaking them can still void any travel insurance claims.
• Being intoxicated. If you plan on enjoying a glass of bubbly on your holiday, it’s wise to do so in moderation. Otherwise, your insurer may deny your claim if your loss occurred while you were under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs.
• Travel to a country with an active travel warning. If there’s an active travel warning for a country before you buy your airfares, accommodation and travel insurance, your insurance may be rejected. You can view the latest travel warnings for different countries around the globe on DFAT’s Smartraveller.

Read the PDS for the full details on the list of exclusions, limits and sub-limits of your policy.

There are age limits on travel insurance, though this will differ between travel insurers. For example, some overseas travel insurance for senior citizens will cover travellers up to the age of 75, while others may provide cover for those in their 80s or even 90s. If you’re over 50, your age can affect what kinds of travel insurance you may be eligible for. For example, some insurers may not sell annual multi-trip policies if you’re over a certain age, but you may still be eligible for single trip policies.

Likewise, optional extras can be limited to customers of a certain age. The exact ages will differ between the types of policy, but insurance providers may not offer winter sports or adventure cover add-ons based on your age.

Read the PDS of any policy before purchasing to understand the full extent of your coverage, and whether the policy suits your travel needs.