Travel insurance

It depends on the type of claim you're making. But for most claims you'll need to:

• Speak to your travel insurer as soon as you can, and the local authorities if it's that sort of matter. For example, if your belongings are stolen.
• Gather evidence. For example, save your medical bills or collect crime details from the local authority.
• Give your insurer as much information as possible. Generally, it's easier and quicker for insurers to assess your claim if you give them lots of information.

Yes, it has. Even though most countries don’t require PCR tests anymore, Covid-19 is still something that you have to consider when travelling, especially the cover you get as part of your holiday insurance. Since the pandemic, policies that include Covid-19 cover protect you against things including:

• Cancellation due to contracting Covid prior to your trip, preventing you from travelling
• Repatriation if you’re unwell and need to be flown home for treatment due to Covid-19 while you’re away
• Accommodation or travel costs if you need to stay longer or isolate as a result of Covid
• Medical expenses and emergencies as a result of contracting Covid or treatment required

Covid-19 is now something that should be considered when travelling. If you travel against FCDO advice, any travel insurance policy you have is void and you won’t be covered if you need to make a claim.

The level of cover you get varies depending on the policy, so it’s important to read the policy wording before you buy.

It's not a legal requirement, and probably not something people would think to buy, but UK travel insurance could come in handy. Particularly if you're catching internal flights or your trip is cancelled.

Top tip: Some travel insurers do stipulate that you need to be a certain distance from home, and be away for a minimum number of nights. So, it's worth checking the policy details of any cover you're considering, just in case.

While travel insurance isn't usually a legal requirement, we'd say it's worth considering. Your EHIC or GHIC card can give you access to state-level medical care in most European countries and the Schengen Area. But some countries can still charge for treatment, and you wouldn't be covered if your doctor decides you need to return home for treatment. Travel insurance can cover medical costs and repatriation, if needed.

Travel insurance covers you for other things too, not just medical treatment. For example, lost or stolen baggage and travel disruption or cancellation.

Travel insurance can act as a safety net when you're travelling abroad and offer financial support. As long as you've stuck to the policy terms, it can compensate you for costs related to these things:

• Lost or stolen baggage
• Travel disruption because of unexpected bad weather
• Cancellations in the lead up to your break
• Medical costs if you get injured or ill while you're abroad
• Repatriation if your doctor decides you need medical treatment at home

In some cases, you might have to pay a travel insurance excess. But your insurer usually takes this amount from the final claim.

You can choose from different types of travel insurance policy too, either:

• Single trip - this covers just one trip
• Annual travel insurance - this covers multiple trips throughout the year
• Backpackers travel insurance - this covers you for a longer trip to a few different countries

If you need to claim, you should report it to your insurer as soon as the incident happens. You can usually do this via an app or over the phone. If you need to, you can claim for different trips on an annual travel insurance policy. And you don't need to buy a new travel insurance policy every time you go on holiday.

Travel insurance excess is an amount you agree to pay towards a successful claim. The excess amount is normally deducted from your final payout by your insurance company. There are two types of excess, compulsory and voluntary:

• Compulsory or standard excess: Usually this excess is set by the insurer and varies depending on the claim. For example, you could pay £25 towards a claim for luggage, or £100 for medical expenses. Generally though, you could expect to pay between £50 to £250 per claim.
• Voluntary excess: You set the amount of voluntary excess when you buy your travel insurance. For example, you could choose a voluntary excess of £150. Setting this at a higher amount can bring the cost of your travel insurance down overall. But you should set it at an amount you'd be able to afford if you needed to make a claim.

It's important to remember that you usually have to pay both of these amounts towards a claim. So make sure you set your voluntary excess to a price that you can afford. It's also worth checking excess amounts before making a claim, as in some cases your excess might be more than your total claim amount.

You can buy no-excess travel insurance, which can mean you don't have to pay an excess. It's usually more expensive than a standard travel insurance policy at around £11.71⁵ compared to £2.80* for single-trip. And, for some claims, you might still have to pay an excess.

⁵The cheapest price for no-excess single-trip travel insurance. Based on 1 adult aged 30 with no pre-existing medical conditions, travelling in Spain for 1 week. Confused.com data, December 2024.

Yes, Brexit did change travel insurance. Because technically now there's a border in place, some travel insurance policies for Europe did get more expensive. Some regulations changed because of Brexit too, which also meant travel insurance got more expensive.

You can also no longer get a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), so you'll need to get a GHIC (Global Health Insurance Card) if your EHIC has expired. Your EHIC is still valid though as long as it's in date.

Even if you have a GHIC or EHIC, it's not a substitute for travel insurance. That's because it doesn't cover:

• Being airlifted or transported back to the UK - this is called medical repatriation insurance
• Mountain rescue if you're injured skiing for example (this is a job for winter sports travel insurance)
• Lost or stolen baggage
• Private medical treatment

Passport rules have also changed in the EU. Now, your passport needs to:

• Be less than 10 years old by the time you arrive in the EU
• Have 3 months left of validity by the time you leave

If you're confused by this, don't worry. Our passport checker tool can tell you if your passport is valid for travel to an EU country - and any other country for that matter.

The length of time you can stay in the EU has changed, too. Now, you can stay in the EU for up to 90 days within a 180-day period. But if you're staying longer than 90 days within an 180-day period, you need a visa. Travel insurance can be a legal requirement of this type of visa.

Mostly, travel insurance does cover pregnancy. But insurers don't usually offer cover if you're more than 37 weeks pregnant (32 weeks if you have twins). This is because there's more risk of you going into labour.

You don't usually need to let your insurer know if you're pregnant unless you've developed a condition specific to your pregnancy. For example, gestational diabetes or high blood pressure.

Travel insurance can cover routine, necessary maternity care. That includes unplanned labour and birth. If you're planning to give birth abroad though your travel insurance doesn't cover this.

It's worth noting that some cruise operators and airlines might not let you travel after 24 weeks. This can vary though so make sure you check with the company you're travelling with. If you try to travel after this point and are refused boarding, your insurance might deny your claim.

For more information, you can read our guide on travelling while pregnant.

You can buy travel insurance last minute, but there's often not a lot of choice and it's often more expensive. And you're not covered for anything that's happened before you bought the policy, for example, if you lost your luggage.

If you buy travel insurance when you're abroad, there's often a delay before the start of your coverage so that the travel insurance company can do fraud checks. You're not normally covered while they're doing this. That's why it's always best to consider buying insurance as soon as you book your holiday.

Some travel insurance providers let you do this, others don't. So it's best to speak to your insurer directly and check.

If your policy has expired, you might have to buy a new policy and if you're already abroad, but this can be expensive and tricky to arrange.

Travel insurance is a legal requirement for some countries. For example, travel insurance for Cuba is an entry requirement. If you're planning to travel to the Schengen Area and require a visa, you'll also need travel insurance.

For most countries though it's not a legal requirement but it's still worth considering. That's because it covers costs like unexpected medical treatment or the cost of being airlifted home. The costs of these can be a lot to pay for yourself.