Do You Need Travel Insurance? A Plain-English Guide

Travel insurance is easy to skip because you only find out whether you needed it when something goes wrong. The honest answer is that it matters far more for some trips than others. Here's how to decide, and what to look for if you do buy a policy.

When travel insurance matters most

• Travelling to a country with expensive healthcare. A hospital stay or emergency evacuation abroad can cost more than the rest of your trip put together. This is the single biggest reason to be insured.
• Non-refundable bookings. If you've paid up front for flights, tours or accommodation you can't cancel, cancellation cover protects that money if you're ill or a family emergency stops you going.
• Adventure activities. Skiing, diving, trekking at altitude and similar activities are often excluded from basic policies, so check before you go.
• Long trips. The longer you're away, the more likely it is that something (illness, theft, a missed connection) will happen.

When you might not need it

For a short domestic trip with refundable bookings, you may already be covered by your normal health insurance and the booking's own cancellation policy. Some premium credit cards include travel cover, but it's often limited: it may only apply if you paid for the trip with that card, and medical limits can be low. Read the card's policy document rather than assuming.

Health cards are not travel insurance

Schemes such as the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) or the UK's Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) give access to state healthcare in participating countries on the same terms as locals. They're worth carrying, but they don't cover private treatment, getting you home, cancelled trips or stolen belongings.

What a good policy should include

• Emergency medical cover with a high limit, including repatriation (getting you home if you're seriously ill).
• Cover for any existing medical conditions, declared honestly when you buy. Undeclared conditions are a common reason claims are refused.
• Trip cancellation and interruption, if you have non-refundable bookings.
• Cover for the activities you actually plan to do.
• A clear excess (the amount you pay yourself on each claim) that you're comfortable with.

Single-trip, multi-trip or subscription?

A single-trip policy suits one holiday a year. If you travel several times a year, an annual multi-trip policy is usually cheaper overall. Long-term travellers and digital nomads often prefer subscription-style cover, such as SafetyWing's Nomad Insurance, which renews automatically and can be started while you're already abroad.

Always read the policy wording before buying. Cover, limits and exclusions vary between providers and countries. To get a quote, compare SafetyWing and EKTA.

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