Checklist to compare travel insurance effectively

What matters when preparing to travel

What really matters when you compare  a travel insurance   against another one? It might be difficult to select the best travel insurance, and comparing them can quickly become a mess.

When  preparing to travel   such as a world tour, it is easy to forget about the travel insurance.

All we have in mind, is how we will be able to complete our map to mark visited countries, while being busy with other preparation: get an international SIM card,  compare prices   to book  cheap flights   and book hotels, say goodbye to everybody, find out how we will transfer money internationally, or which  money transfer solution   to use while travelling, get all the  travel articles   necessary for the trip, and finally get to suitcase packing...

Why is a travel insurance necessary

Doing all these things and keeping our mind busy, we most likely have forgotten about what is actually the most important of all: getting an international travel insurance.

If you don't get one, not only you might run into huge troubles in case of any issue occuring during your trip, even some of them that have nothing to do with you or your health, but you might also be forbidden to enter some countries in which an  international travel insurance   covering a wide range of issues is mandatory.

It might be the case that your  business travel insurance   is also covering your personal trips, or that you got an insurance from your credit card for international travel insurance.

However, these different solutions might cover everything, make sure to start by checking your  credit card travel insurance   limits and your  business travel insurance   policies, and compare them with the requirements of the destinations that you want to reach.

These requirements should be listed on your embassies consular websites. If that is not the case, then they will be able to give you more information by reaching out to the local consulates.

How to do a travel insurance compare

Now that you are sure that you need an international travel insurance, as your credit card for international travel and your  business travel insurance   do not cover your personal need, the question is how to compare travel insurance and select one.

First of all, check the countries policies that you are visiting. For example, in the USA, you will most likely need an  international travel insurance   that will cover more than $100000 of medical bills, but also to more than a million dollars for any kind of accident, and of course the medical repatriation if necessary.

To compare different travel insurance between each, these are the numbers to take in consideration.

It does not matter if another travel insurance is cheaper, if it does not cover one of those points to the mentionned values for example.

Even if it is cheaper, it will be useless, and in case of control, it might even lead you to being  denied boarding   at departure, or to be denied arrival on territory.

Selecting an international travel insurance

After having compared prices between the different travel insurances, made sure that it will cover everything necessary, from medical bills to personal liability through emergency repatriation, and that it will at least cover the minimum required amounts, then it is possible to do a price travel insurance compare.

If two prices are different for the same kind of  international travel insurance   that covers all these points, then it might be worth selecting the cheapest one.

Most of the time, the online providers will offer quotes in real time on their websites, and it is always worth calling them to have a chat with a real agent.

Takeaways from international travel insurance compare

Now that you are able to compare travel insurance prices and conditions, do not forget before buying it to double check the most important points:

• sufficent medical coverage,
• sufficent personal liability coverage,
• medical repatriation,
• international assistance.

Once this is done, you can now focus on  preparing to travel   for your  World Tour   or other trip, and finish with all the other tasks: getting all your  travel articles   for your suitcase packing, gettting an  international SIM card   ready, download an app to  transfer money internationally   or another money transfer solution, and finally get to update your map to mark visited countries!

Have you found your ideal international travel insurance? Did you ever run into troubles by using only a credit card travel insurance?

Let us know in comments, and have a safe trip!

Frequently Asked Questions

What factors should be included in a checklist to compare travel insurance policies effectively, and why are these important?

The checklist should include coverage limits, exclusions, deductibles, pre-existing condition policies, and customer reviews. These factors are important to ensure comprehensive coverage and understanding the policy's value.