Travel Insurance FAQs

At Allianz Assistance, we offer a level of insurance that’s appropriate for most travellers. Different policies provide varying levels of cover, therefore it’s important that you read your policy documents carefully and understand exactly what you’re covered for before you travel. If there’s anything in the policy documents that you’re not sure about, please get in touch – we’ll be happy to help.

Our Single Trip, Annual and Backpacker policies all suit different needs. Plus, we offer three different levels of cover - Bronze, Silver and Gold - so you can choose the cover with the claim limits that meet your needs. Depending on which policy and level of cover you choose, you’ll be have protection for:  

• Cancelling or cutting short your trip
• Emergency medical and associated expenses
• Loss of passport*
• Delayed personal possessions
• Lost, stolen or damaged personal possessions*
• Loss of money*
• Personal accident cover
• Missed departures
• Delayed departures
• Personal liability
• Legal expenses
• End-supplier failure**
•  
• *Not available with Bronze level cover
• **Only available with Gold level cover
  
• Terms and conditions apply.

Yes – some exclusions and conditions are specific to individual sections and general exclusions and conditions apply to all of our travel insurance policies. There’s also a health declaration with health exclusions that apply to the emergency medical expenses, cancellation, curtailment and personal accident sections of cover. When you buy a travel insurance policy, you should always read your policy document carefully to make sure that you understand what you’re covered for. You can cancel the policy within the given cancellation period, providing you haven’t travelled and are not making a claim, if you decide that the policy isn’t suitable for you. 

You should buy travel insurance as soon as possible after you’ve booked your trip. Remember that your travel insurance covers you for incidents that happen before you travel, as well as things that occur during your holiday. With cancellation cover, you’ll be reimbursed if you can’t travel due to sickness, for example. Your cover starts as soon as you buy your policy, and we’ll pay up to the amount shown in your policy documents for unused accommodation, transport, excursions and other travel expenses you have paid or will have to pay, and that you cannot recover from anywhere else.

Terms and conditions apply.

When you get a travel insurance quote, you’ll notice our policies come with an ‘excess’. This is the amount you agree to pay when you make a claim under certain sections of your policy. Once your excess has been paid as part of the claim, we’ll pay the remaining expenses up to the limit of your cover. It is important to be aware that the excess on our travel insurance policies applies per person, per claim and per section, so more than one excess may apply when you claim.

Most of our policies include cover against the loss, theft or destruction of your passport whilst on your trip. To claim, you must have an official letter from the consulate you reported the loss to.

Cover includes costs up to the amount shown in your schedule for extra transport, accommodation and administration costs you have to pay to get a temporary passport so you can return home. It also includes the remaining value of the original passport that is lost, stolen or destroyed (based on current standard replacement costs).

Exclusions and conditions apply so make sure you read your policy document carefully.

 

Most of our policies include cover for personal money and have a sub-limit for the amount of cover for cash. This cash limit applies even if you were looking after more than one person’s money when it was stolen. There is a summary of cover provided during the quote process and also full details in the policy wording.

 

Your baggage is covered in the ‘personal possessions’ section of your travel insurance policy. Most of our policies include cover against loss, theft or damage to personal possessions up to a specified limit, as stated in your summary of cover. Some policies also include cover against delayed arrival of your personal possessions on your outbound journey.

However, some policies do not include personal possessions cover, and in all cases, conditions and exclusions apply including limitations on certain types of items. Please read your policy document thoroughly to make sure that your needs are met by the cover level you’ve chosen.

Depending on how often you travel, you should decide between taking out a single trip or annual multi-trip travel insurance policy. A single trip policy is the best form of cover if you only plan on going away once in the near future. But if you’re thinking of going away twice or more in a year, it may be worth choosing an annual multi-trip travel insurance policy. You’ll need insurance each time you go away, and it can be cheaper and less time consuming to take out one annual multi-trip policy, rather than multiple single trip policies.

When you take out single trip travel insurance, you can travel to multiple destinations, as long as your trip does not last longer than 180 days. Whether you’re looking for single trip worldwide travel insurance or single trip travel insurance for multiple countries in Europe, we have cover options for you. You can tailor our policies to suit your plans by selecting just the countries you are travelling to. 

Please note that you will not be covered if you travel to a country or region that the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has advised against all or all but essential travel. 

Jet-off whenever you like with an annual multi-trip travel insurance policy, because it allows cover for an unlimited number of trips that each last up to a maximum of 31 days (over a 12-month period). There’s no obligation to tell us when you’re going away either, so you can pack your bags knowing you’re already covered.

You can choose the area of cover that’s most suitable for your travel plans, from Europe-only to worldwide. You can also choose a level of cover that suits you: Bronze, Silver or Gold. 

If you’re planning more than one holiday this year, you can save money by taking out one annual travel insurance policy, rather than buying multiple single trip policies. Our yearly travel insurance will save you time too, because you’ll have cover in place all year – no matter how many holidays you take.

Our Bronze, Silver and Gold levels of cover allow you to choose an option to suit your needs. Once you’ve found the right policy, you can either be covered straightaway or – if you don’t need your cancellation cover to start immediately – you can defer your start date by up to 31 days. Get a quote today to see exactly how much your policy will cost.

If you’re under 50 and planning a longer trip, such as a gap year abroad, you may want to consider taking out a backpacker travel insurance policy with us. Our backpacker insurance can last for a full 365-day period and also covers non-manual work, including professional, administrative and clerical duties (although claims under the personal liability section will be excluded). Our Backpacker insurance policies can protect you all over the world, as long as you don’t travel against FCDO advice. You can select just the countries you're travelling to, which will help make sure you only pay for the cover you need. 

Many sports and leisure activities are covered on our standard travel insurance policies at no additional premium. If you’re heading away and planning to take part in a sport or leisure activity that you can’t see on our list, we may still be able to cover you. Please phone us on 020 8603 9653 to check if you’ll be covered under your chosen travel insurance policy. If you’re planning to take part in winter sports like skiing, snowboarding or tobogganing, you won’t be covered by our standard travel insurance and will need to consider the additional protection that’s provided by our Winter Sports and Ski cover. This will not only help protect you while you take part in these activities, but also provide cover against risks that are unique to this type of activity, such as avalanche closures, unused ski-pack costs if you need to cancel or cut short your trip, delayed or damaged ski equipment and piste closures. 

If you’re heading on holiday to Europe, travel insurance is still important. While some reciprocal health arrangements are still in place following the end of the Brexit Transition period on 31st December 2020, these have changed slightly and not all medical costs are covered. The new Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) scheme entitles you to some state-provided healthcare and medical treatment within European Union countries, but won’t cover you for every scenario, such as flight cancellations, stolen belongings or private medical treatment. You can also visit our Brexit FAQ for more information.

We offer holiday insurance that specifically covers you for European travel and also comes with cover for lots of sports and activities, such as mountain biking and jet-skiing. Unlike some insurers, our European travel insurance even includes some destinations outside mainland Europe like Turkey and Morocco. So, if you choose to buy a policy with us, please take a look at your policy confirmation email to check your area of cover. 

Our ‘Worldwide (including USA and Canada)’ cover takes into account the higher cost of medical treatment in North America. In the United States and Canada, the cost of healthcare can be incredibly expensive. This is because there’s no equivalent of the NHS, and most residents have private health insurance. As a result, if you’re booking travel insurance for North America, your premium is likely to be higher.

If you choose ‘Worldwide (excluding USA and Canada)’, you’re protected for worldwide travel as long as you’re not visiting America and Canada. If you’re travelling worldwide but you’re not planning on visiting America or Canada, you may find that our worldwide travel insurance excluding USA and Canada offers you a lower premium.

We don’t currently provide a travel insurance product specifically for students, however you may find one of our policies meets your needs.

We are continually looking at how we can improve our customer offering so we may introduce travel insurance designed for students in the future. Keep checking our website for updates!

Whilst we don’t currently sell a travel insurance product specifically for seniors, both our single trip policy is available to those aged 80 or under and our and annual multi-trip travel insurance policy is available to those aged 65 or under. 

If you’re over the maximum ages for these policies there’s no need to panic. You may still find a specialist insurer who can handle your seniors travel insurance policy.

We suggest you contact: 

• The British Insurance Brokers Association: Tel: 0870 950 1790 (Lines open 9am - 5pm, Monday to Friday).

Yes! With our business travel insurance, you can choose between a single trip or annual multi-trip policy. We also have two levels of cover: silver and gold. Whichever level of cover you choose, our single trip and annual policies include business equipment cover, so you may not need to take out separate laptop travel insurance. We also provide cover to send a replacement business associate to complete your itinerary if you have to cut your journey short. For more information, visit our Business Travel Insurance page. 

Yes – we want to help you save money, minimise stress and give you the right support and advice when you need it most. By placing each family member on the same family travel insurance policy, you don’t need to worry about buying individual policies for each family member. And because we offer special rates for families, you’ll usually make some savings too.  

As long as your child is aged 17 or under at the time of purchase, they'll be considered to be a child for the purposes of buying your travel insurance policy.

With our annual family travel insurance policies, each adult can travel independently and still be covered by the policy.  Child independent travel is only covered if the child is travelling with at least one adult aged 18 or over and with the full knowledge and consent of an insured parent/guardian. 

From 5th May 2021 we are temporarily unable to offer travel insurance policies to cover people’s pre-existing medical conditions. This is only for the short term, while we make improvements to our online booking process. Please keep an eye on the Allianz Assistance website in the future so you are aware when we are able to offer this additional cover again. If you already have a policy with us and declared a pre-existing medical condition at the time of purchase, your cover won’t be impacted throughout this process and will be valid in line with the terms and conditions specified in your policy document.

In the interim you may be able to obtain an alternative travel insurance policy to cover pre-existing medical conditions by contacting one of our providers featured in the MoneyHelper directory of specialist travel insurance providers for people with serious medical conditions. Do take time to study and compare the terms and conditions to ensure you have the cover you need. To contact MoneyHelper for further details of the directory

Call: 0800 138 7777 (lines are open Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm or

Email: traveldirectory@maps.org.uk

No, our travel insurance policies only cover you if your main home is in the UK (including the Channel Islands and Isle of Man), you are registered with a doctor within the UK (including the Channel Islands and Isle of Man) and have not spent more than six months abroad in the last 12 months.

Whilst we are always looking at ways we can improve our offering to our customers, at Allianz Assistance we do not currently provide a travel insurance product for British Expats abroad.

However, our sister company Allianz Care might be able to help. You can get further information on our page Travel Insurance for Non-UK residents or take a look at Allianz Care website for further information.

Yes, we do have an age limit on our policies. Our Single Trip policy is only available to persons aged 80 or under and our Annual Multi-Trip policy is only available to persons aged 65 years or under.

Our Backpacker policy is only available to people aged 50 years or under.

If you’re older than the maximum age limit and therefore unable to buy from us, you may be able to obtain an alternative travel insurance policy from another provider.

We suggest you get in touch with the following for a quote:

The British Insurance Brokers Association Tel: 0870 950 1790 (Lines open 9am – 5pm, Monday to Friday).

No, you must purchase your travel insurance policy before you travel. Your policy will not be valid if you have already left to go on your trip.

No, we only provide travel insurance policies to UK residents with a confirmed return journey to the UK.