Things to be aware of with FREE Credit Card Travel Insurance!!!
So you’re off on holiday and now need to plan your travel insurance, do you take our guaranteed provider or do you go with your free credit card cover?
Remember there’s a reason why it’s free, some handy tips you need to know about and check before you decide to take the free insurance offered.
How much do they offer for Medical/Hospital Costs:
Some credit card insurers DO NOT cover the required amount needed for Hospital / Medical evacuations, you will be quickly out of pocket if you need to be hospitalized or medically evacuated with only a limited amount of cover. You need to have UNLIMITED medical / evacuation / extra trip costs cover whilst overseas and for your companion. In some cases, medical evacuations can cost in excess of $1 million dollars and usually charged in US$ it pays to have comprehensive cover!!
Pre Existing medical conditions:
Credit cards MAY NOT cover for pre-existing medical conditions such as diabetes or asthma and they have lower age limits for medical claims.
Some also have caps on how much medical cover they include – this is something you don’t want to scrimp on.
Only the cardholder gets the benefits:
If you are a couple are you both covered? Also can put your dependents on the cover? Most credit card insurance usually only covers one of the card holders.
High Excess:
Credit card travel insurance often has extremely high excesses in comparison to stand alone insurance providers. So in reality the so called ‘free travel insurance’ is not exactly free when you go to make a claim.
Doesn’t cover lost items:
A large proportion of policies through credit cards exclude coverage for lost items.
Domestic Travel not covered:
Australia is a big place – Perth is a 5 hour flight from Sydney and that’s an expensive flight you’re going to want covered. Did you know credit cards insurance doesn’t cover domestic travel? Some do cover ‘inconvenience’ insurance, which covers extras like flight delays or missed connections.
For more information on our Insurance provider and inclusions please contact us directly on 1800 611 163