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Need some help? Here are some award winners and top picks in July 2023
Best comprehensive travel insurance: Southern Cross Travel Insurance
Why choose Southern Cross Travel Insurance?
SCTI won Finder's 2023 Best Travel Insurance - Comprehensive award. It scored highly for its COVID-related cover, including rearrangement costs, cancellation cover, luggage damage cover and more.
It's cheaper than most insurers. It was the third cheapest policy on average compared to the other 28 international policies we analysed.
It goes further than the majority of travel insurers. It can cover you for trip cancellations or changes before your journey because of an unexpected event. The majority of insurers typically don't do this. They only cover you for certain reasons. So for example, if your flight was cancelled or delayed for a reason not listed in the PDS, you might not be covered.
Fast Cover and Medibank travel insurance tend to offer slightly cheaper policies so may be better options if price is your sole concern. However, they don't cover as much.
It's not the only travel insurer to cover cancellations due to unexpected events. Cover-More also does this. However, SCTI is cheaper on average and has an easy-to-understand PDS.
We picked Southern Cross because it is Finder's 2023 Best Travel Insurance - Comprehensive winner. As part of the awards research, we looked at over 100 international travel insurance policies. We narrowed this number down to 28 based on an eligibility criteria put together by our editorial team. For example, an eligible brand must offer some type of COVID cover and be open to customers up to 80 years old.
We then gathered over 300 quotes to get an average price and scored the same 18 features for every policy out of 10. These included COVID medical benefits, COVID rearrangement costs, theft or damage to luggage, hospital cash allowance, cancellation and amendment fees, luggage delay and rental car excess insurance. The final score for the comprehensive rating was a 75/25 blend of features and price. SCTI came in first place.
In addition to the Finder Awards, SCTI has one of the best claims experiences and an easy to read product disclosure statement. It earned a finalist spot for General Insurance Claims Team of the Year at The International Travel & Health Insurance Journal Awards and won the Best Plain English Legal Document at the most recent Plain Language Awards.
Top 5 policies in Travel insurance - Comprehensive
Southern Cross International Comprehensive - Single Trip
NRMA International Comprehensive Travel Insurance
InsureandGo Gold One Trip
Fast Cover International Comprehensive Travel Insurance
Medibank International Comprehensive Travel Insurance
Best value travel insurance: Fast Cover Travel Insurance
Why we chose Fast Cover?
It won our Best Value travel insurance award. It offers the cheapest international policy on averaged out of the 28 we analysed.
It covers you for the essentials including some types of cancellations, medical expenses and up to $5,000 for COVID-related medical expenses and rearrangement costs. This is one of the reasons it was a Finder Innovation Finalist.
Its COVID cover goes further than most. It can pay for additional travel expenses related to COVID. For example, if you catch the virus while you're on holiday and need to delay your flight home, it can pay for staying in accommodation longer. Similarly, it can also cover medical evacuation. Many other insurers don't offer this.
It's not the only travel insurer offering COVID cover. Over one third of travel insurers in Australia, including CoverMore, InsureandGo, SCTI and Freely, cover some COVID-related costs. However, Fast Cover has a more detailed list of inclusions.
There are more comprehensive policies available. For example, unlike SCTI, NRMA and InsureandGo, Fast Cover doesn't automatically cover rental car excess cover.
We picked Fast Cover because it is Finder's 2023 Best Travel Insurance - Value winner. As part of the awards research, we looked at over 100 international travel insurance policies. We narrowed this number down to 28 based on an eligibility criteria put together by our editorial team. For example, an eligible brand must offer some type of COVID cover and be open to customers up to 80 years old.
We then gathered over 300 quotes to get an average price and scored the same 18 features for every policy out of 10. These included COVID medical benefits, COVID rearrangement costs, theft or damage to luggage, hospital cash allowance, cancellation and amendment fees, luggage delay and rental car excess insurance. The final score for the value rating was a 30/70 blend of features and price. Fast Cover won largely because it offered the cheapest policy on average, according to our pricing research.
Top 5 policies in Travel insurance - Value
Fast Cover International Comprehensive Travel Insurance
Southern Cross International Comprehensive - Single Trip
Medibank International Comprehensive Travel Insurance
Best seniors travel insurance: Southern Cross Travel Insurance
Why choose Southern Cross Travel Insurance?
SCTI won Finder's best seniors policy award. It scored highly because it has a maximum age limit of 119. That's well above the majority of insurers. Many cap at around 80 years of age.
It policies are cheaper for seniors than other brands. It was the third cheapest policy on average for 79-year olds. Only FastCover and Medibank cost less.
It covers you for your most common travel concerns. You get cover for unlimited medical and evacuation expenses, cancellation fees and lost deposits (you can increase your cover depending on the cost of your journey), damaged or lost baggage, rental car excess should you have an accident, funeral costs and more.
While it has a very high age limit, Boomers travel insurance doesn't have any age limit. It's tailored to seniors but SCTI still did better in the awards because it comes with higher limits. For example, you get up to $25,000 for theft or luggage damage. With Boomers, you get up to $10,000. In addition to unlimited medical expenses cover, you can also get a $3,000 hospital cash allowance to cover non-medical expenses in a hospital such as taxi fares or phone calls.
We picked Southern Cross because it is Finder's 2023 Best Travel Insurance - Seniors winner. To determine the winner, we gathered dozens of quotes for 79-year-olds for 28 international travel insurance policies. This gave us our average price.
We then scored the same 18 features for every policy. These benefits included COVID medical cover, COVID rearrangement costs, theft or damage to luggage and age limits. SCTI came out on top because it covers more than other insurers, has a higher age limit and is competitively priced.
Top 5 policies in Travel insurance - Seniors
Southern Cross International Comprehensive - Single Trip
Worldcare Comprehensive Travel Insurance
HIF International Comprehensive Travel Insurance
Defence Health International Comprehensive Travel Insurance
Boomers International Comprehensive Travel Insurance
It's cheap. A policy cost $353 on average for a 2-week trip overseas. That's $233 cheaper than average, according to our awards.
It's even cheaper if you have a Medibank or ahm health insurance policy. You get 15% off your policy. With the discount, it becomes the cheapest travel insurance policy on average, according to our awards pricing research. It could knock $53 off a $353 policy.
You can claim up to $5,000 for COVID cancellation and rearrangement costs. That's the most that any other travel insurer in Australia will cover you for.
Medibank can cover you for rental car excess for up to $5,000 for domestic or $6,000 for international trips if your car is damaged, stolen or involved in an accident. This is a standard amount but if you're travelling within Australia, InsureandGo's domestic plan is better. It can cover you for up to $7,500.
We looked at a total of 51 travel insurance policies as part of the 2023 Finder Awards. We selected Medibank as a top pick for discounts because the health members discount made it the cheapest international policy on average, according to our 2023 pricing research. No other insurer we found offers 15% off if you're a health insurance member.
Tick offered the cheapest travel insurance cover for 7 out of the 9 destinations we got quotes for. We looked at a minimum of 30 policies for every destination).
For a 1-week holiday to destinations like Bali, Japan and the UK, a basic policy isn't likely to cost you more than $40.
You can get 10% off your travel insurance policy, using the code Finder.
Its Basic Single Trip policy covers the very basics and no more e.g. unlimited medical expenses, up to $2,000 for lost or stolen luggage and personal belongings and personal liability cover.
We used the Finder travel insurance engine to determine our budget-friendly top pick. We got 30 quotes on 2 November for each for the following destinations: Bali, USA, Italy, UK, New Zealand, Japan, Germany, Spain and a multi-destination option. Tick was the cheapest policy for 7 of the 9 destinations. In the 2 cases where there was a cheaper option, it was only marginally more expensive: 1c for the US and $3.12 for Bali.
Our insurance team have gathered 300+ quotes across 50+ Australian travel insurance policies. We've selected 5 expert picks based on 2023 Finder Awards data and other policies we feel are offering something unique.
Remember, there's no single best travel insurance policy that suits everyone's needs, since we all have different travel plans and needs.
Why you can trust our research
51
policies analysed
300+
quotes gathered
100+
hours of research
Tips to find best travel insurance with COVID cover
Most travel insurers offer COVID cover now and most will cover you for similar COVID-related travel expenses. However, there's still some things you can do to make sure you're getting the right policy for you:
Take out cover for all travellers
Whether you're travelling with your partner or the whole family, make sure that you add them to the insurance policy. That way, if someone catches COVID but you don't, you'll still be covered for expenses.
Get a policy as soon as you book your trip
That way, you're covered if you get sick and need to cancel. A few insurers including CoverMore and Easy Travel Insurance also won't accept COVID-related claims within 21 days of your trip, so make sure you take out cover at least 3 weeks before you jet off.
Check the exclusions
It can be tedious but make sure you give the exclusions in the product disclosure statement a read before you buy. For example, you won't be covered for costs related to border closures. It means that you might be out of pocket for prepaid accommodation or booked airline tickets if the government of that country imposes a lockdown.
How travel insurance can cover COVID: A real-life example
Jillian, Kerry and Tyson travelled from Sydney to Dallas. 10 days in, Tyson (Jillian's son) caught COVID, a day before the family was supposed to leave for a ski trip in Colorado. As a result, they had to rearrange their travel plans.
Unfortunately, Jillian got COVID later and the family had to send Tyson and Kerry home to Sydney, while Jillian stayed another 4 days until she tested negative. She then rebooked her trip home.
Their insurer, Southern Cross Travel Insurance, covered just under $3,000 in costs. The family paid a $500 excess to claim on 2 events.
Your travel insurance news update: July 2023
A Finder survey of 1,110 respondents revealed almost 1 in 3 Australians (28%) – equivalent to 3.5 million people – suffered a travel mishap while abroad in the past 12 months.
The research shows 1 in 7 (14%) endured travel delays, while 8% lost personal items.
Why you can trust Finder's travel insurance experts
We're free
Our travel insurance engine is completely free to use. You pay the same as buying directly from the insurer. Better still, we regularly run exclusive deals that you won't find on any other site.
Unlike other comparison sites, we're not owned by an insurer. That means our opinions are our own and we work with lots of travel insurance brands, making it easier for you to find a good deal.
We're here to help
Since 2014, we've helped over one million people find travel insurance by explaining your options simply. We'll never ask for your number or email to see prices. We're here to help you make a decision.
Best travel insurance FAQs
All the top picks we've selected come with COVID cover but Fast Cover goes a little further than most. Like many other insurers, it can help pay for COVID-related medical expenses, cancellation costs and additional accommodation. It can also cover childcare costs and medical evacuation.
It's worth getting travel insurance as soon as you book your trip. That way, you're covered straight away. If something happens – say you get sick or your flight is cancelled or delayed – you're covered.
Single trip policies may be best if you don't plan on travelling much over the next year or, if you're going on one long trip (annual policies cap the length you're allowed to travel per trip – typically 30, 45 or 60 days).
Annual (or multi-trip) policies may be better if you're a jet-setter who intends to travel several times a year. Generally speaking, an annual policy may work out cheaper than paying for 4 single-trip policies in a year.
But be aware, annual plans have been a little harder to come by since the pandemic.
Essentially, a pre-existing condition is any medical condition you've been diagnosed with, in a specified time period, prior to taking out cover. Such conditions include heart problems, high blood pressure and diabetes.
There has been several flight cancellations and delays to Bali recently. Most travel insurance polices can reimburse you for flight cancellations. However, it's worth going with an insurer that will also cover additional travel expenses such as accommodation and pre-booked excursions. It can be very frustrating if something happens but if the cancellation is due to circumstances out of your control, your insurer is likely to cover you.
The US has a notoriously expensive healthcare system so it's worth getting a travel insurance policy that comes with unlimited medical expenses cover at the very least. Fortunately, most comprehensive policies offer this. Other important medical-related expenses worth considering are:
Hospital cash allowance. An amount you'll be given per day if you're hospitalised to pay for additional expenses.
Resumption of journey. This can help pay you to get home if you're very sick.
Gary Hunter is an editor at Finder, specialising in insurance. He’s been writing about life, travel, home, car, pet and health insurance for over 5 years and regularly appears as an insurance expert in publications including The Sydney Morning Herald, news.com.au, The Telegraph, Explore Travel and Escape. Gary holds a Kaplan Tier 1 General Insurance (General Advice) certification and a Kaplan Tier 1 Generic Knowledge certification which meets the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146).
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