Travel insurance excess

How does a travel insurance excess work?

A travel insurance excess is the amount you agree to pay an insurer if you end up claiming on your policy. Take for example, a travel insurance policy for a week in Bali. The same policy could cost you $60 with a $200 excess, $72 with a $100 excess or $108 with a $0 excess. As you can see, choosing a higher excess can save quite a bit.

That's the good news. The bad news is that you'd have to pay that amount before you could claim anything. Say you lose your phone that's worth $500 and you have a $200 excess. Once your insurer approves your claim, you'll have to pay the excess amount, which means you'd only get $300 back. Another potential shortfall of this option is for lower value claims, where the claim amount would end up being comparable to that of the payable excess.

Choosing the higher excess option is slightly riskier if you end up needing to claim but if you're just looking to save some coin in the short term, it's not a bad way to go.

Compare policies by their default excess

When calculating your travel insurance quote, Finder uses the travel insurers default excess option, which means you can sort your results from lowest to highest excess option.

Compare your travel insurance quotes

Brand	Lowest excess option	Excess Option 2	Excess Option 3	Excess Option 4	Apply
	$0	$100	$250	n/a	Get quote
	$100	$200	$300	n/a	Get quote
	$100	$200	n/a	n/a	Finder Award Get quote
	$100	$200	$500	n/a	Get quote
	$200	n/a	n/a	n/a	Get quote
	$200	n/a	n/a	n/a	Get quote
	$0	$100	$200	n/a	Get quote
	$0	$200	n/a	n/a	Finder Award Get quote
	$0	$100	$200	n/a	Get quote
	$0	$100	$250	n/a	Get quote
	$0	$100	$200	n/a
	$200	n/a	n/a	n/a	Get quote
	$0	$100	$250	n/a	Get quote
	$100	$200	n/a	n/a	More info
	$100	$200	$500	n/a	More info
	$0	$100	$250	n/a	Get quote
	$0	$100	$250	n/a	Get quote
	$0	$100	$250	$500	More info
	$0	$100	$250	n/a	More info
	$100	$200	$500	n/a

Note: This information was last updated July 2025

Types of travel insurance excess

Standard excess

A standard excess is the set amount stipulated by the insurer that you must pay if you make a successful claim.

Voluntary excess

Many insurers will give you an option to select the excess amount on your policy. The price of your premium (policy) will change depending on which excess amount you select. As mentioned earlier, the higher your excess, the cheaper your premium.

Additional excess

This isn't as common but can apply to certain benefits – for example, ski-related claims.

When do you have to pay your excess?

How and when you pay an excess will depend on the policy and the insurer. Some insurers require you to pay the excess upfront before they will pay the claim, while others will simply deduct the amount of the excess and pay out the remainder of the benefit.

Does multiple claims mean multiple excess charges?

Claiming on multiple sections of the policy does not generally mean you will pay multiple excesses. Most of the time you're charged one excess for an event even if you are claiming on multiple benefits.

The same goes if you're claiming on a family policy, even if that event impacts multiple travellers such as both parents and children; you'll only pay the excess once.

Get a free travel insurance quote

Travel insurance FAQs

• Why do travel insurance companies charge an excess?

  Travel insurance companies charge an excess to share the risk with policyholders. By paying a portion of the claim yourself, insurers can offer lower premiums overall. It also helps to discourage very small claims, which can be costly and time-consuming for insurers to process.

• What happens if my claim amount is less than the excess?

  If your claim amount is less than your chosen excess, you will not receive a payout. For example, if your excess is $200 and your claim for a lost item is only $150, you are responsible for the full cost of the loss as it falls below the threshold for an insurance reimbursement.

• Do I pay an excess if my claim is unsuccessful or denied?

  No, you do not pay an excess if your claim is unsuccessful or denied. The excess only applies if your claim is approved and a payout is made by the insurer.

• Does credit card travel insurance have an excess?

  Yes, many credit card travel insurance policies do have an excess. The specific excess amount can vary significantly between different card providers and policy types, so you should always check the Product Disclosure Statement for your card's insurance.

• Is the travel insurance excess charged per person or per event?

  Typically, the travel insurance excess is charged per event, not per person. This means if an incident affects multiple travellers covered under the same policy, such as a family, you will generally only pay one excess for that single event.

• Can I choose a zero excess option for my travel insurance?

  Yes, some travel insurance providers offer a zero excess option. While this means you will not pay anything out of pocket if you make a successful claim, it usually results in a higher upfront premium for your policy.

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 572 Finder guides across topics including:

• Health, home, life, car, pet and travel insurance
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