Comparing 6 Top NZ Travel Insurance Companies

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Do I need Travel Insurance?

Many of us consider going away overseas whether it be for a holiday or to work. There are many things to consider and one of these things is travel insurance.

Is Travel Insurance really necessary or can you travel without it?

To be frank there is no law that says you have to have travel insurance however you do take a big risk travelling without it. For example lost luggage or cancellation of flight can make a holiday memorable for all the wrong reasons. And of course you can always fall sick whilst your away and falling sick can be quite a big expense for you if you consider the costs of say having to be flown home for surgery or medical treatment. If you take precaution from the start and take out travel insurance it just means that you can relax more and be covered.

Many companies provide Travel Insurance and there are a lot of cheap deals out there?

There certainly are cheap deals and not many people know this but a lot of banks offer a credit card that provides Travel insurance. The way it works is that you purchase the tickets on your credit card so that the total cost or 75 percent of the cost of the ticket is through your card and automatically you are approved for travel insurance. The downside to this is the credit card fee you pay every year can be quite high. I think its $100 with Westpac gold card.

What’s important is that you actually do your research and check out what really is a good deal for you. You can do your research on the internet and read what other people have to say about the travel insurance company, compare the policies on offer and prices.

What about people with Pre-Existing Medical Problems?

Some policies don’t cover pre-existing medical conditions like World Nomads for instance, so if you do have a medical condition check your policy to make sure it actually covers your pre-existing medical condition.

What about things that cause inconvenience to you such as lost or stolen luggage?

This is a pretty common scenario and you ll find most policies will offer cover for that under personal baggage claim. what is imperative is that your most expensive items, such as your laptop, jewellery, camera, that you take with you. Therefore it is advised that you find out the level of cover that you have on your policy for those items incase you have to take out extra cover. Most importantly ALWAYS read the fine print especially looking at what the actual criteria is around the travel insurance paying out.

Claims Paying Ability

Insurance Companies (Ratings Inspections) Act 1994.

Does your insurance company have the financial strength to be able to pay out on any claims you might make? That s the question which big ratings firms like Standard Poor s or AM Best ask. Each of the six travel insurance companies reviewed here have been given a letter rating shown in the table above.

The rating scale is:

AAA Extremely Strong BB Marginal