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Travel Insurance for Senior Citizens

23 July, 2019

SENIOR CITIZEN TRAVEL INSURANCE PLAN

 

Senior Citizen Travel Insurance plans are designed for elderly travelers generally aged 71 years and above, to make their travel a safe and pleasant experience. The age limits are different for every insurer with some providing it for individuals above 60 years, and may go up to 99 years and even beyond.

 

There are many benefits of senior citizen travel insurance –

 

  • Emergency medical expenses

  • Reimbursement against trip cancellation

  • Personal injury and liability

  • Emergency monetary assistance

  • Loss of Checked-in Baggage cover

  • Cover against flight delays and cancellations

  • Dental treatment

  • Burglary at home while on the trip

 

It is compulsory in countries like the USA, UK, and Australia for every tourist to possess travel insurance before they are granted a Visa. Senior citizen travel insurance ensures that the elderly have a safe trip while meeting the legal Visa requirements of the destination country.

 

THINGS TO CONSIDER WHILE BUYING A GOOD TRAVEL INSURANCE FOR SENIORS

 

  1. Pre-existing Conditions – It is essential to ensure that travel insurance covers the existing illnesses of senior citizens. Many policies do not cover certain pre-existing conditions or certain serious diseases. If ignored, it can cause problems for the elderly to claim any emergency medical expenses made for the excluded condition during the travel.

  2. Sum Assured and Riders– Majority of the travel insurance plans provide a separated cover with sub-limits. That means there is a varied sum assured for dental expenses, emergency medical expenses, baggage loss, etc. It is imperative to assess the individual requirement of the elderly and buy a policy that meets those requirements. For example, an elderly, visiting children, needs a higher medical emergency sub-limit than a trip cancellation one.

  3. Just like sub-limits, what riders are taken as add-ons should also be determined by considering every trip separately. If a traveling elderly have people staying home, then buying a burglary rider doesn’t make sense.

  4. Renewal – Many insurers do not renew a policy if there is a claim during the policy term. It is imperative to buy a senior travel insurance policy for the maximum possible duration to ensure hassle-free travel and claim process.

  5. Medical Tests – Although it seems more natural to buy policies with no medical checks, it is advisable to purchase travel insurance that has compulsory medical tests. This ensures that all the pre-existing medical conditions are declared to the insurer beforehand, thus eliminating any problems during claim settlement.

 

THE INCLUSIONS OF A TRAVEL INSURANCE PLAN FOR SENIORS

 

The general inclusions of a senior citizen travel insurance plan are as follows –

 

  1. Personal accident and liability cover

  2. Emergency medical evacuation cover

  3. Checked-in baggage loss or delay cover

  4. Flight delay or cancellation cover

  5. Trip delay or cancellation cover

  6. Passport loss cover

  7. Travel document loss cover

  8. Emergency cash advance

  9. Emergency dental expenses cover

  10. Accidental death cover

 

THE EXCLUSIONS OF A TRAVEL INSURANCE PLAN FOR SENIORS

 

  1. Certain pre-existing illnesses

  2. Civil war or terrorism calamities cover

  3. Expenses caused due to alcohol or drugs

  4. Expenses caused by adventure sports

  5. Costs for treatment related to Ayurveda, Homeopathy, Cosmetic, and AIDS

 

 

BUYING THE BEST TRAVEL INSURANCE FOR SENIORS –

It is imperative to lay down a few points before purchasing a travel insurance plan for seniors.