Is Annual Travel Insurance Worth It? – Technologist

When you’re planning a trip, your travel checklist probably has essentials like your clothing, toiletries and travel documents. But if travel insurance isn’t on your list, you might want to think again.

Money expert Clark Howard typically doesn’t recommend buying narrow insurance policies. Travel insurance is one exception to this rule.

But how do you know if you should get single trip insurance or annual (multi-trip) travel insurance? In this article, we’ll answer that question and more, including:

• What Is Annual Travel Insurance?
• What Does Annual Travel Insurance Cover?
• Where Can I Get Annual Travel Insurance?
• Annual Travel Insurance vs. Single-Trip Insurance
• Is Annual Travel Insurance Worth It?

What Is Annual Travel Insurance?

For better or worse, traveling is always an adventure. When things don’t go as planned — think delays or medical emergencies — it helps to have support and financial protection. This is where travel insurance comes in.

Travel insurance provides financial protection and a line of support for many of the unexpected events that can occur while away from home. Annual travel insurance is a form of travel insurance that’s also known as multi-trip insurance. Like the name suggests, this type of policy gives you protection for multiple trips taken within a single year. Your year is based on your policy’s effective date.

Typically, annual travel insurance plans have a maximum number of covered days for each trip. It’s common, for example, for insurers to restrict covered trips to a maximum of 30 to 90 days. And while annual trip insurance policies will generally cover all your trips (that meet the coverage criteria) within a single year, you won’t find coverage for a single trip that lasts a full year.

What Does Annual Travel Insurance Cover?

As with any type of insurance, coverage varies depending on your insurer and policy. But most standard annual travel insurance policies tend to cover some or all of the following:

• Baggage delays and/or lost or stolen bags: covers costs to buy what you need until your baggage arrives and/or reimbursement for personal belongings
• Emergency medical care: covers expenses for medical care and medications
• Emergency medical evacuation: covers emergency transportation to nearest medical facility that can meet your health needs
• Trip delays: covers food, lodging and transportation if your trip is delayed for a covered reason (ex: extreme weather results in flight delays)
• Trip interruptions: covers costs if your trip is interrupted (ex: you need to go home in the middle of your trip for a family emergency)

Policies can also offer protection for missed connections, accidental death and dismemberment, and repatriation of remains.

Even if something isn’t covered though, it’s possible for you to buy add-on coverage. For example, if rental cars aren’t covered by a basic policy that you’re interested in, ask about getting rental car coverage added on.

With this in mind, I have two caveats. First: Annual travel insurance policies don’t always cover trip cancellations. If they do, they will have a list of very specific events that are covered for cancellation.

You might be able to get Cancel For Any Reason coverage as an add-on or if your insurer offers different levels of coverage. Otherwise, you’ll need to look into buying the coverage separately if you’re interested.

My second caveat is this: Pay attention to the fine print. Whether it’s a list of exclusions, low coverage limits, or co-pays and deductibles on medical coverage, it’s important to know what your specific policy offers and expects of you.

Where Can I Get Annual Travel Insurance?

A few major insurance companies (like Nationwide) offer annual travel insurance. So, you can start by asking your home or auto insurer if they offer the coverage. But single-trip is the more common offering from companies that focus on the bigger lines of insurance.

Fortunately, there are lots of insurance companies that specialize in travel insurance and have annual policies. Here are a few:

• AIG Travel Guard
• Allianz
• Seven Corners
• Heymondo

Wondering how much you can expect to pay? According to an analysis by Business Insider, “annual travel insurance plans cost roughly between $125 and $700.” You can click here to read their breakdown of how costs for travel insurance vary depending on factors like your age, length of trip, and destination.

Of course, to get the best rate on annual travel insurance, you should shop around. Get quotes from a few different insurers. Clark is a fan of InsureMyTrip. He says:

“The reason I like InsureMyTrip is that it’s like an aggregation service or comparison site, and you can see all the different choices available.”

As you shop, pay close attention to what’s covered, what’s excluded and the coverage limits. Then go with a reliable company that can meet your needs at a price you’re comfortable paying.

Annual Travel Insurance vs. Single-Trip Travel Insurance

The most obvious difference between annual travel insurance and single-trip travel insurance is how many trips a policy covers. A single-trip policy is only good for a single trip. But assuming you take multiple trips and each trip meets your policy’s requirements, then annual trip insurance will cover all of your trips within a single year.

If you’re only going on one trip a year, then single-trip insurance is the cheaper option and makes the most sense. But if you take three or more trips, annual travel insurance is the more affordable option when you breakdown the cost of coverage per trip.

In addition to how many trips are covered and how much coverage costs, there are a few other differences between annual travel insurance and single-trip travel insurance. Take a look:

Annual travel insurance is typically less robust than single-trip insurance. Unfortunately, that’s because the more trips you take, the higher the likelihood that you’ll need your insurer to make good on their promises of protection. But many annual trip insurers offer add-on coverages if you’re willing to pay more.

Is Annual Travel Insurance Worth It?

If you’re someone who goes on one or two trips a year, then single-trip insurance is probably the better choice for you. But if you know you’ll be on the move, taking three or more trips, then annual travel insurance can be worth it.

Of course, there are other things to consider along with how often you plan to travel. Here are a few examples:

• How long are your trips? Do they meet the length requirements for annual travel insurance?
• Is there a chance you’ll need or want to cancel a trip, and can you get Cancel For Any Reason coverage?
• What type of trip(s) are you taking? Is there a higher risk for injury that might exceed the coverage limits of annual trip insurance?
• Are you traveling domestically or abroad? Does your healthcare insurance cover you in most of your destinations? (ex: You take ten trips in a year, but eight are domestic.)
• Are you a spontaneous traveler who books trips just before you travel? Will you have time to research travel insurance or do you want to know you already have a plan?
• Do you have pre-existing medical conditions? What, if any, pre-existing conditions are covered by any annual travel insurance plan you’re considering?

Finally, it’s worth finding out if any of your credit cards provide travel insurance! If they do, however, treat their offering like you’d treat any other policy and read the fine print. You don’t want to get stuck in a stressful situation with limited coverage that won’t meet your needs.

Final Thoughts

If you’re someone who travels often, then annual travel insurance can be worth it. In addition to saving money, you can save time with one policy that’ll cover you across the world for a year at a time.

Just make sure you’re familiar with your policy’s inclusions and exclusions. And when you’re ready to plan your next adventure, check out the travel section of Clark Deals!

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