Travel insurance recomendation

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mailmarshall

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#261917 21-Dec-2019 18:36

Hi folks our family of 4 (2 adults plus 10 & 5 yr old kids) have booked a holiday to Japan and Singapore in June next year through Flight Centre. We didnt take up their travel insurance at time of booking . I would prefer to research and understand what i am buying

We would like something comprehensive for the 15 day trip.

Can you recomend any that are actually good?

PeterReader

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#2379678 21-Dec-2019 18:36

Allow me to introduce you folks to our new travel community: TravelTalk NZ.

We hope to see you there!

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timmmay

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#2379685 21-Dec-2019 19:31

I did the research recently and got SCTI (southern cross). Make sure you declare any pre-existing conditions. I also booked on my credit card, so I have cover from that as well which I activated as a backup.

steve2222

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#2379689 21-Dec-2019 19:41

Did analysis a year ago for my wife and I. But our situation was different as we were going for at least 6 months and possibly 12, so we needed a policy we could extend while outside of NZ if we decided to be away for longer than 6 months.

We went with Zoom Travel Insurance. Had no issues, but then did not need to make a claim.

mailmarshall

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#2379755 22-Dec-2019 07:38

Thanks all.Will look at the ones mentioned

I found my another travel insurance (supplied from the travel agent) was of no use earlier this year when I tried to cancel a trip to HK as the riots were starting as there was no MFAT warning at that point. They considered it "change of mind" even though it was clear the place was having issues.

sbiddle

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#2379760 22-Dec-2019 08:32

mailmarshall:

I found my another travel insurance (supplied from the travel agent) was of no use earlier this year when I tried to cancel a trip to HK as the riots were starting as there was no MFAT warning at that point. They considered it "change of mind" even though it was clear the place was having issues.

Your situation very clearly was a change of mind though - there wouldn't be a single travel insurance provider that would have covered you for that. Even when I was there in September for a week Hong Kong was still a safe place to visit. Had MFAT issued a "do not travel" warning you then would have potentially had zero cover anyway depending on your policy, so would not have been able to get a refund regardless.

Based on that comment you really need to understand what travel insurance does and doesn't cover you for.

Pretty much every policy out there actually covers the same things with similar limits, with the most important of travel insurance being medical cover. No policy covers you for change of mind, and it's also a misconception that you'll be fully covered for disruptions, which also isn't entirely true depending on the situation.

Some policies out there (and SCTI was a classic example however I haven't read their policy for a year or so) don't provide any cover until you actually leave NZ whereas others will cover you from the time you leave your home and start your journey. This means for example if you had something happen to you on the way to the airport and missed your flight and therefore were unable to head overseas you would not be covered to make a claim.

The most important aspect of any policy is to actually understand what you are aren't aren't covered for, and to ensure you fully understand all medical declarations and pre-existing conditions. If you fail to declare things and need cover you'll very quickly find you're on your own.

Due to the huge amount of travel I do I have a 1cover worldwide annual policy and have done for a number of years but have no actual opinion of 1cover as I've never had to make a claim.