Comprehensive travel insurance

What is covered by comprehensive travel insurance?

24/7 medical assistance

Most comprehensive travel insurance policies cover you for unlimited medical expenses and 24/7 medical care, including repatriation.

Delays and cancellations

Comprehensive travel insurance can cover you for cancelled or delayed flights. This is the most common reason for claims. According to Finder research, 29% of Australians, equivalent to around 5.8 million people, have had their flight delayed or cancelled in the last 12 months.

COVID-19 expenses

Comprehensive travel insurance policies now cover COVID. This includes medical expenses, cancellations and rearrangement costs.

Luggage and personal belongings

Unlike a basic policy, comprehensive policies typically cover lost and delayed luggage and personal items. They also come with high limits so it can cover all of your expenses.

• Full list of what comprehensive travel insurance can cover

  • Accidental death
  • Overseas emergency dental expenses
  • Hospital cash allowance
  • Loss of income
  • Overseas emergency assistance
  • Unlimited medical and hospital expenses
  • Permanent disability
  • Resumption of journey
  • Alternative transport for special events
  • Cancellation and amendment fees
  • Travel delay expenses
  • Daily delayed luggage allowance
  • Lost or stolen luggage and personal belongings
  • Theft of cash
  • Personal liability
  • Rental car excess insurance
  • COVID-19 medical expenses
  • Rearrangement costs if you get COVID-19

Is comprehensive travel insurance worth it?

Almost 1 in 3 Australians, equivalent to 3.5 million people, suffered a travel mishap while abroad in the past 12 months, according to a July 2023 Finder survey. 14% have endured travel delays, while 8% lost personal items. Comprehensive travel insurance can cover this but a basic policy often won't.

Reasons you might need better cover

• If you're travelling with family. Because there are more of you travelling, there's more chance something could go wrong – and when it does, it's often very expensive.
• If you're going on an expensive holiday. Planning that trip of a lifetime to North America or Europe costs a lot of money before you even get there. Cancellation cover here is vital. Can you imagine getting a bad flu or COVID a few days before take-off and your doctor advising against travel?
• If you're going to a country where medical care is expensive. Making sure you have unlimited medical cover can be hugely important in countries such as US, Japan and Singapor.
• If your luggage is expensive. Travelling for a longer period or as a family usually means your luggage is worth a lot. If it was to get lost, you could be out of pocket for hundreds or maybe even thousands of dollars.
• If you're going to a country where petty crimes are common. It's so important to see different places in the world but that can sometimes mean theft and petty crimes are more common. A comprehensive policy can cover you for things like a stolen passport, phone or camera.

Basic vs comprehensive travel insurance

Basic travel insurance is cheap and affordable, but it doesn't cover you for everything that's available in a top policy. Cheap travel insurance will generally cover basic medical costs, and some extra travel related costs, like delays or cancellations. However, a basic policy won't cover everything, and might have lower claim limits on some benefits.

Comprehensive travel insurance is a little more expensive, but still quite affordable for most people. A top policy will likely offer higher limits for common claims, and cover more of the 'nice to have' benefits like luggage delays, resumption of trip and more.

Frequently Asked Questions

• What is covered by comprehensive travel insurance?

  Comprehensive travel insurance is the highest level of cover you can buy. It typically covers medical expenses, cancellations, lost or damaged luggage, personal liability, family emergencies, alternative transport expenses, hospital cash allowance and dental expenses.

• Does comprehensive travel insurance cover pre-existing medical conditions?

  If you have a pre-existing condition, travel insurance can often cover you for that condition while you're travelling. You'll likely want a comprehensive travel insurance policy, and you'll need to declare all of your pre-existing conditions when you sign up - if you don't, you risk not being covered. You can often get cover for your condition at no extra cost, but more complex conditions may increase your premium.

• Which travel insurance company has COVID cover?

  Most comprehensive travel insurance policies now cover COVID related medical expenses and cancellation or rearrangement costs.

To make sure you get accurate and helpful information, this guide has been edited by Tim Bennett as part of our fact-checking process.

Written by

Gary Ross Hunter

Journalist

Gary Ross Hunter has over 6 years of expertise writing about insurance, including life, health, home, and car insurance. Having reviewed hundreds of product disclosure statements and published over 800 articles, he loves simplifying complex insurance topics for everyday readers. Gary has contributed to major outlets like Yahoo Finance, The Sydney Morning Herald, and news.com.au, and holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in English Literature from the University of Glasgow, along with a Tier 2 General Advice certification, ensuring his work adheres to ASIC’s RG146 standards. See full bio

Gary Ross's expertise

Gary Ross has written 576 Finder guides across topics including:

• Health, home, life, car, pet and travel insurance
• Managing the cost of living