When to buy travel insurance? | Allianz Global Assistance (2024)

FAQs

When to buy travel insurance? | Allianz Global Assistance? ›

If you buy travel insurance within 14 days of your first trip payment, and meet certain requirements, you can be covered for existing medical conditions. Just don't wait too long. Travel insurance can't cover foreseeable events or travel disruptions that have already occurred when you buy your plan.

If you're wondering when you should buy travel insurance, the simple answer is as soon as possible. Ideally, you'll buy coverage no later than 15 days prior to your trip.

When to buy travel insurance can depend on the trip or trips you're taking and the kind of policy you choose to suit them. Usually, though, it's best to get cover in place for your holiday as soon as you've booked or made a financial commitment to it.

Because of this, the effective date of the plan will be one minute after midnight the day after you bought the plan. If you purchased your travel insurance on April 26th at 4:13pm, your plan will go into effect on April 27th at 12:01am. This will allow you to utilize your trip cancellation coverage if needed.

For most travel insurance plans, you must file your claim within 90 days of the incident, also known as the timely filing limit. Submitting your claim outside the timely filing limit could result in your claim being denied.

It could be particularly useful if: You've spent a lot on prepaid, non-refundable expenses. You're traveling internationally where your health insurance won't apply. You're traveling to a remote area.

You can purchase travel insurance any time before the date of your departure. However, your plan choice may be limited if you wait until the last minute.

Unlike other aspects of your travel experience like airfares or hotel-room rates, the price of travel insurance doesn't increase the closer you get to your travel date. There's no financial penalty if you wait to buy travel insurance (except for those bonus coverages, of course).

The good news is that you can buy travel insurance at any point–even if you already started your trip. However, you might not get all the coverage you were hoping for. Your coverage options become more and more limited the longer you wait. The price typically stays the same no matter when you buy travel protection.

Travelling against medical advice or to get medical treatment. If your doctor says it's not safe for you to travel, then you won't be covered. Similarly, if you go abroad to get planned treatment, sometimes called 'medical tourism', a standard policy will not cover this – you'll need specialist insurance instead.

Does travel insurance cover cancelled flights? ›

Cancellation cover is a common inclusion with most standard travel insurance policies, but you can take it out separately if it doesn't offer enough cover. Alternatively, if you only want cancellation cover to protect you against cancelled flights rather than baggage protection, you can get it for that.

The short answer is: Yes you can. Many insurers provide policies that you can buy after you've left home for your trip. Just remember that travel health insurance that you buy after departure won't cover anything that happened before you bought the plan.

Describe what happened, explain your losses, and upload supporting documentation, such as your travel itinerary and receipts. Then, choose how you want to receive payment for an approved claim.

By far, the most common and often most significant travel insurance claim is for medical emergencies. A sudden illness or injury during your trip can not only ruin your plans but also cause a severe financial strain.

The most common reasons for a denied claim include: There's insufficient documentation or evidence to support a claim. These include a lack of receipts, proof of payments or proof of the incident that you're making the claim for, such as a cancellation, necessary medical care or anything else that cost you money.

While you'll likely get better coverage if you buy a policy soon after making an initial payment on your trip, it's still possible to buy a plan if your trip is days away — or if you've already departed.

The short answer is: Yes you can. Many insurers provide policies that you can buy after you've left home for your trip.

Can I add a flight travel insurance plan after I book my trip? You can purchase a travel insurance plan with coverage for your flights within 24 hours of your trip departure date (even later than that with our Pack N' Go plan).