Cheap travel insurance

Like all insurance policies, there are a number of things that providers won't pay out for. Here are some of the most common:

• Dangerous sports. If you're doing something a bit unusual, such as ski jumping or snowmobiling, check the terms and conditions of your policy first. If you find you're not covered as standard, or via an optional extra,  specialist providers such as BMC and Snowcard may be able to offer you cover.
  

  Alternatively, specialist brokers can help you find insurers that cover non-standard trips. To find one, see the British Insurance Brokers' Association website.
  

• Alcohol-related injury. You may be on holiday to unwind but if you are badly injured while you are more than just a little tipsy, your insurer is likely to reject your claim. The same goes for drugs. Insurers have different classifications of 'drunk', with some using blood alcohol limits, so check your policy carefully before you buy.
  

• Medical conditions. Insurers will often cover you if you have existing health conditions, but if you fail to tell your insurer and then need treatment for that condition, or a related condition, you won't be covered. You may also struggle to get a claim paid if you ignore advised medication or jabs needed to enter a country.

• Refused entry (to visiting country). No one wants their holiday to end before it begins, but most standard policies won't cover this type of scenario. Insurance policies have a list of scenarios they do cover (for example, theft, medical assistance).
  

  It's your responsibility to check your travel documents are valid and you meet the entry requirements. Always check the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) website for the entry rules of the countries you're visiting well before travelling and give yourself plenty of time to get your paperwork in order.

• Unattended possessions. Travel insurance will cover your personal possessions when you're abroad but it doesn't mean you can be gung ho with your gadgets. If you leave your items unattended and they are then stolen, your insurer will not pay for their replacement.

• Travel to dangerous countries. The FCDO outlines which countries it deems are unsafe for travel. If you travel to a country on its list, your cover is likely to be invalid. Check out its current travel advice for more.

• The excess. This is the amount you have to pay towards any claim you make. For example, if you cancel a trip and are entitled to £3,000 back from your insurer but have a £500 excess, you will only receive £2,500.

  However, many holiday insurance products have separate excesses for different sections of the policy. For instance, some providers may make you pay an excess on both stolen cash and luggage. So if your suitcase was nicked and your wallet was inside you would have to pay an excess on both.

  It's important to check all excesses so you know exactly what you will have to pay if you make a claim.

• Private hospital treatment. Only some insurers will cover you, others won't, so double-check your policy – whether out of curiosity or if you need to make a quick decision on which to go to.
  

  Of those we asked, it was a mixed bag. For example, if you're overseas and know you need to go to hospital to check out a chest pain, LV says it would cover you in a private hospital, but not all the insurers we asked would.
  

  However, if you're in an emergency, for example, you've a ruptured appendix or had a serious accident and are taken to a private hospital by emergency services without your knowledge, you're more likely to be covered by insurance, though there is still a chance of rejection.
  

  If rejected and you're unhappy, you can always go to the Financial Ombudsman Service, which can arbitrate.

The thought of having to declare health conditions can be daunting but travelling without making your insurer aware of any issues can result in any claim you make being rejected.

Just let the insurer know, even if you don't deem it particularly important, especially as each insurer will have its own list of conditions it deems as more serious.

Make sure you give a full and frank rundown of all the health problems you have, or have had – including any Covid-19 related health issues – usually in the last five years. You'll need to tell the insurer if you're pregnant.

For much more, including tips, tricks and how to find the cheapest deals, see our Pre-existing medical conditions travel insurance guide.

Insurers will classify your trip as 'European' or 'worldwide'. This is often further broken down to include or exclude the US, Canada, the Caribbean or Mexico. Selecting the option to include these countries increases the premium due to the high cost of medical treatment – particularly in the US – and possible repatriation.

Annual European travel cover isn't just for Europe

If you're travelling just outside Europe, you don't always have to select worldwide cover. Many insurers actually allow you to use their European cover in a handful of non-European countries too.

If you're visiting Egypt, Morocco, Turkey or Tunisia, it's worth getting a quotation for European cover first and then checking the policy's geographical area definition to see if the country you're going to is included. The following insurers – Allianz*, Insure and Go and Coverwise* – all class Egypt, Morocco, Turkey and Tunisia as Europe.

It's also worth noting that not all insurers automatically include Spain (and the Balearic/Canary Islands) in their European cover – you may have to pay extra to include Spain if you plan to travel there.

Check if the Foreign Office is advising against travel to your destination

The FCDO has a list of countries which it feels are unsafe for travel. Usually, this covers areas where there's war, terrorism or other reasons not to travel, such as natural disasters or a pandemic.

So, when you're booking, and in the weeks leading up to your trip, check the FCDO website for the latest on whether you'll be able to travel as things can change quickly. You should also see if the country you're planning to travel to has restricted entry – you can usually do this via its UK embassy website.

If one or the other means you can no longer take your trip, see if you can rearrange it, or if the provider will give you a refund. 

If you still want to travel (though note we're not encouraging you to do so), you'll need a specialist policy as standard insurers won't cover you, even if travel was allowed when you booked your trip.

Try Battleface*, or, for European trips, Insurefor.com* and Staysure* (with its 'European Foreign Office travel advice extension' optional add-on). 

The free European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) and its replacement, the Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC), which has been sent to new applicants since 1 January 2021, entitles you to treatment in state-run hospitals in the EU at the same cost as a local would pay. So if they pay nowt, you pay nowt.

Also worth knowing that though Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein are not part of the EU, you'll still be entitled to treatment in state-run hospitals when you use your EHIC or GHIC in these countries.

How do I get a GHIC?

The card is free so if a copycat site pretending to be the real thing advertises a fee (often about £35), run a mile. For full info and how to get it for free from the legitimate NHS site, read our Free EHIC/GHIC guide.

Some providers will let you buy a policy now for a holiday that's as much as 18 or 24 months away, but only for a single-trip policy (not an annual or multi-trip policy). If your holiday is within the next 12 months then you'll have a greater choice of insurers – including some of those in our Cheap Travel Insurance Finder.

If it's an annual or multi trip travel insurance policy you want, most insurers will only let you start the policy up to 30 days ahead – with some up to 90 days ahead. Though you're unlikely to be offered discounts for buying in advance, it's important to buy as soon as you book a trip to ensure you're covered for all eventualities. 

Here are the insurers who will let you buy cover well in advance:

If you know you're going to travel at least twice in a 12-month period, consider an annual policy, often known as a multi-trip policy. This is because annual cover can work out cheaper than buying two single-trip policies. But always do the maths.

Of course, this varies depending on where you're travelling and for how long, but if you get an annual policy you also have the added comfort of knowing if you have a third trip within that 12-month period, you already have the cover in place.

Multi-trip cover will insure you for an unlimited number of trips over a 12-month period. However, the number of days you can be on holiday for per trip may be capped – it can often be as low as 17 days, with others setting the limit at 31 or 45 days but it can sometimes be as high as 90.

You may already have travel insurance without knowing. Some bank accounts that charge a monthly fee offer extra benefits such as holiday insurance. If you think your account offers insurance as a sweetener, check the terms to see if it is appropriate for your trip.

While travel insurance with these packaged accounts is a decent perk, do NOT confuse it with a benefit offered with credit cards called travel accident insurance. This only covers accidents on a train, plane or in a hire car paid for on the card. Never think travel accident insurance means you're completely covered.

For accounts that offer travel insurance (and other perks), see our Top packaged accounts guide.

Cold-weather sports can be dangerous, so as soon as you've splashed out on your break, make sure you are insured on the slopes. As well as covering you for the basics you'd get under a standard travel policy, you'll also be insured for any injury that happened while doing the activities, and your equipment.

You're usually covered for:

• Medical costs if you have an accident. Medical expenses if you get injured on the slopes can be extortionate, so it is essential to have the right cover. The Association of British Insurers has said one Brit required £90,000 of treatment for a fractured rib and punctured lung. Even a smaller injury, such as damage to a knee ligament, cost as much as £3,800 to treat.
  

  Add being airlifted from the mountain to hospital, repatriation if you need to be flown home injured from the US or Canada and this would significantly increase the claim.

• Piste closure. If your piste closes (usually due to lack of snow or an avalanche) and you're unable to hit the slopes, your insurer may give you back a set amount a day. This can range from £10 to £50 – up to a limit of £200 to £500.
  

• Loss of or damage to your ski equipment. Most policies will cover you for accidental damage, theft or the loss of equipment. Different providers offer different limits so think about the value of your stuff and pick your policy accordingly.

  If you've hired ski equipment, it may be covered by your insurer if it's lost, stolen or damaged. Some providers insure any rented kit as part of your baggage up to a certain amount; others only pay up to 50% of the sum insured for hired equipment. Some ski equipment providers may also cover their gear for you so it's worth checking with the resort before you buy your cover.
  

  Alternatively, if you've paid for a full ski pack – including ski school fees, a lift pass and hired ski equipment – in most cases, this will be covered. The amount can range from £150 to £500, but can be as high as £5,000. As always, check your policy closely for any potential exclusions.

• Public liability (if you crash into someone and injure them or damage their property). Travel insurance policies tend to have about £2 million worth of public liability insurance. Having a cold-weather sports add-on means that this will apply if you injure someone or damage their property while skiing. If you haven't told the insurer you'll be skiing or snowboarding, any damage you cause usually won't be covered.

You'll generally be covered for skiing or snowboarding on the piste, and some policies will cover you for going off-piste if you're with a qualified instructor as part of a lesson.

If you are doing something a bit more unusual, such as ski jumping or snowmobiling, check the terms and conditions of your policy first for full peace of mind you'll be protected if something goes wrong. If you are planning to take part in something even more wild – such as luging or stunt skiing – specialist providers such as BMC and Snowcard may be able to offer you cover.

Quick questions:

• I am skiing twice this year. Should I get an annual policy with winter sports cover?

  Lucky you. It may be cheaper to take out an annual policy with a cold-weather sports add-on. However, check the price against the cost of covering single trips to ensure you're getting a bargain.

• What happens if I don't wear my skiing helmet and have an accident?

  Check your policy carefully before you buy. If you go skiing ignoring weather warnings and – with some providers – go skiing without wearing a helmet, your claim could be rejected. In some countries, it's also a legal requirement to wear a helmet, so don't fall foul of the rules.

Most regular travel policies will only cover you for loss or theft of goods and medical costs while you're on a cruise. You may NOT be covered for other eventualities unless you upgrade your policy. These include:

• Missed departure

• Unused cruise excursions, for instance, a day trip to a city port

• Cruise itinerary change

• Cabin confinement, for example, onboard virus

To get cover for these, you can usually select an add-on to get the right protection – which won't break the bank. If you want to buy one, a quick way to get a quote is to use a comparison site such as  MoneySupermarket*, Confused.com*, Gocompare or Compare The Market.

Another one to try is Compare Your Cruise Insurance* where you select the cruise operator - including the ship and cruise - and the month of sail to get a quote.

It's also worth comparing to see if any of the top-pick policies below let you add cruise cover.

Even if you think you've found an all-singing, all-dancing policy that covers for every eventuality, beware. There's often a clause built in that says the policy won't cover 'recoverable costs', which essentially means you need to prove that you can't claim back those amounts elsewhere.

So you'll usually need to put in the legwork and ask the provider, for example, the airline, holiday operator or car hire firm (and in some cases the credit card company), for a refund before your insurer would even consider a claim under the travel insurance policy. It's also worth noting that many insurers consider a credit note to be satisfactory, and may not pay out if one has been offered.

Here's an example we found on Direct Line's site (but most insurers will have similar wording):

Want extra protection? Book flexibly and pay on plastic

Travel insurance provides valuable last-resort protection, but it's best used in combination with other ways of minimising the risk of losing money on a trip. For peace of mind, here are some options to consider...

• Book easily cancellable or flexible flights and accommodation. Hedge towards offers with no/low deposits or those that give refunds or let you rebook for free if you find you can't go. 

• Pay on plastic. Credit cards offer strong protection, as Section 75 refund rules mean for items costing more than £100, the card provider is jointly liable with the seller – though note that bookings via travel agents may not be covered as it usually only covers payments made directly to the travel provider.

  Debit cards also have some protection under the 'chargeback' refund rules (but these aren't legal requirements and firms sometimes challenge them).

  Yet for both schemes, you'll only be covered if the service wasn't provided, for example if the flight was cancelled or the accommodation was shut. These card schemes won't cover you if you weren't able to, or didn't want to, go on your trip.

• Package holidays can offer greater protection. If an airline or accommodation provider cancels, you're entitled to a refund. But if the trip or flight is still going ahead but you can no longer travel, such as a new travel warning from the Foreign Office banning all but essential travel, then you have few or no rights.
  

  However, most package holiday providers won't operate holidays to countries where a travel restriction has been put in place, so they are more likely to cancel the trip anyway.
  

  Thinking of booking a package holiday? See our Cheap package holidays guide for advice on discounts, haggling and when to book.

An excess is the amount you have to pay towards any claim you make. For example, if you cancel a trip and are entitled to £3,000 back from your insurer but have a £100 excess, you will only receive £2,900.

However, the excess amount, and if it applies per section, and if it applies per traveller, does vary from insurer to insurer.

For instance, most travel insurance providers will likely expect you to pay an excess per person. So if the policy was for a couple, and the flight was cancelled – do expect to pay an excess per person.

It is also worth knowing that an excess per section could also apply. An example could be if your suitcase was nicked and your wallet was inside you could have to pay an excess on both.

If you have a group policy you may also have to pay an excess for each person for any loss that impacts your entire party, such as cancellation. It's important to check all excesses so you know exactly what you will have to pay if you make a claim.

Hence why it is always important to check the policy cover so you know what you are getting.

Many people aren't aware that if they have an alcoholic drink on holiday, and lose something or have an accident, their insurance may not cover them – even if they only had the one drink. Insurers all have different interpretations – which we have seen in the T&Cs – ranging from "drinking too much" to "approx four pints" to "alcoholic abuse".

In practice, what most say is that it's all about whether or not the drink has affected your decision-making. As we all have different tolerances, for some this could mean that just one drink could invalidate a claim.

It's also been reported that some insurers have gone as far as testing blood samples for your alcohol level (although we wonder how this works in practice) but as stressed, this does vary from policy to policy.

Having a claim refused could hit hard, possibly excluding you from medical or possessions cover. As a general rule, use your common sense as it's about safety as well as insurance. For example, if you're skiing and have two or three glasses of wine at lunch before hitting the slopes again, you're increasing the chance of an accident – which you also may not be covered for.

See our Eight things many of us do on holiday that could invalidate our insurance blog – it's an eye-opener.

When picking any policy, we look for the following minimum criteria. The vast majority of policies we list will meet these, even if we don't state it explicitly.

• Medical expenses: £2 million including repatriation

• Cancellation: £1,500 (it's designed to cover the cost of your holiday, so make sure your policy matches your holiday style)

• Baggage: £750 – if yours is worth more, go for a higher level

• Cash loss: £200

• Personal liability: £1 million

For annual policies, we only include insurers that will cover cancellation claims for holidays due to take place after your policy expires (as long as you make the cancellation claim while the policy is in place). For example, your annual policy is due to expire in June and you already have a holiday booked in August: you become ill in May and have to cancel – you'll still be covered.

Note: If you choose to use a comparison website for a holiday over a year away, check if the insurer will cover your holiday, as not all do.

If you're lucky enough to be off on holiday twice or more within 12 months, an annual policy could be cheaper than multiple single-trip policies. But it's important not to assume this will always be the case – do your research.

• Single-trip travel insurance. Covers you from the point you buy to the day you come home – only for the specific trip you're insured for.

• Annual multi-trip travel insurance. Covers all trips taken during the period the policy covers.

Which option is cheaper? This will depend on:

• How many trips you'll make in the next 12 months

• Where you'll be going

• How long you'll be away for

Use our Cheap Travel Insurance Finder tool to find your cheapest policy.

If travelling with your partner or family, you have two options – you can cover everyone under one policy, or each person takes their own. It's often cheaper to get a combined policy, however, there are times when separate policies will be better (so always check, to be safe), including:

• If one of the travellers is over 65, as the group price you'll pay is based on the oldest traveller, or the person deemed to be the highest risk, so the insurer will usually hike the price for all (see our Over-65s' travel insurance guide for ways to cut costs).

• If one of the travellers has a medical condition, as it will increase the price for all.

• If just one of the travellers is going outside Europe, in particular to the US, or on a skiing trip (or even both), it could be better to have separate policies, rather than the whole family buying extended cover when it's not needed.

It depends on how long you'll be gone for. If you're going away for longer than 60 consecutive days, whether its backpacking or an extended trip somewhere, it's unlikely you'll be covered by a standard insurance policy. Specialist backpackers insurance, also known as 'gap year' or 'extended leave' insurance can offer cover for longer trips.

See our Backpacker insurance guide for more information.