5 July 2012

Abrupt insurance hikes face older travellers

New research has revealed that a number of travel insurance providers raise their premiums once an individual has reached their 65th birthday.

**New research has revealed that a number of travel insurance providers raise their premiums once an individual has reached their 65th birthday. **

Product review service, Which?, conducted research that revealed it is, in fact, common for travel insurance premiums to rise for people aged 65 and over.

According to the research, 15 out of the 48 annual worldwide travel insurance policies for people aged over 60 can increase dramatically without much notice at all.

However, the report showed that a considerable number of reputable travel insurance providers do not raise the premium for those in their 60s.

Therefore, experts are encouraging older travellers to shop around for a good policy when they look into the idea of travel insurance.

The report suggests that as individuals get older it can be more difficult to obtain a travel insurance policy from their current provider.

The survey showed that out of a total of 80 annual policies, 97% of providers will not offer cover to customers of a certain age.

Only 9% of insurance providers offer travel cover for people in their 80s.

Like the majority of insurance policies, travel cover becomes more costly as people get older.

For instance, the report showed that an individual under the age of 55 could pay £33 for an annual policy, while someone's over 65 could have no other choice but to pay more than double at £74.

On average, the cheapest annual cover for somebody at 70 years is £109, while £349 is the cost somebody over 80 years of age can expect to pay for a yearly policy.

This again reinforces the need for consumers to shop around for better rates and not necessarily stick with their current provider.

A yearly medical travel insurance policy will not be required by people who travel just once or twice a year. Therefore, people who do not travel a lot should look in to single-trip policies which can be less expensive.