Travel insurance award winners for outstanding value are revealed in Canstar’s star ratings

Travel insurance brings a sense of relief in case anything going wrong while travelling. And, while you may be aware travel insurance is a worthy step in preparing for travel, the question of which travel insurance to choose can be overwhelming!

Instead of hastily settling for one of the first travel insurance policies to show up in your google search, it’s important to know there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to travel insurance. While one travel insurance provider and product may be more suitable for someone travelling to the South Pacific, it may not be the perfect match for someone travelling further afield.

Canstar has used specific methodology to rate travel insurance products according to a range of traveller profiles.

Compare travel insurance with Canstar

In this year’s travel insurance awards, Canstar rated 57 travel insurance products from 30 providers.

In order to be eligible for the Canstar’s Travel Insurance Star Ratings, the products must meet the following basic feature requirements:

• $1 million overseas medical and hospital cover per traveller (international destinations only).
• Repatriation and evacuation services (international destinations only).
• Luggage and personal effects.
• Cancellation fees and loss of deposit.

And, to be considered for the outstanding value awards, the insurer must provide a policy with:

• A quote available for each profile considered for the award.
• A 24-hour emergency helpline available.
• Ability to extend cover while travelling (international only).
• $5 million or more family overseas medical and hospital cover (international only).
• $5 million or more family cover for repatriation and evacuation services (international only).
• Included cover claims arising from cruising holidays in domestic and international waters (cruise only).
• Availability to travellers aged over 70 (senior only).

Considering the cost and features included within each travel insurance product, here are the results for outstanding valued providers:

International Travel Insurance

Canstar’s research reveals NZ Travel Insurance and Southern Cross Travel Insurance came out on top and won the award for outstanding value international travel insurance.

Seniors Travel Insurance

Canstar’s research shows ANZ and Worldcare offer outstanding value travel insurance for travellers over 70-years-old.

South Pacific Travel Insurance

Canstar’s research reveals House of Travel, NZ Travel Insurance and Worldcare have outstanding value travel insurance on offer for South Pacific travel.

Trans-Tasman travel

Canstar’s research shows NZ Travel Insurance and Worldcare fly away with the win for outstanding value trans-Tasman travel insurance.

What does travel insurance cover?

Travel insurance can cover medical related expenses, cancellation fees and loss of deposit, luggage and travel documents, legal liability and disruption, amongst other aspects. On top of this, you can get add-ons which are at an extra cost.

You can get a summary of what each provider covers, or excludes, in the benefits table, which is provided in the product disclosure statement (PDS) of each travel insurance policy. Before booking travel insurance, it is crucial that you read the summaries to see if what you expect from your travel insurance is within the policy you are purchasing. It is important to know each travel insurance policy also has a capped amount known as a “Benefit Limit” and some may also have excess amounts payable toward each benefit.

In addition, you should read the fine print when it comes to pre-existing medical conditions as some may not be covered. Some providers will list out the conditions covered, in their PDS document, and may have criteria attached to each condition. For example, a condition may be that you have not been hospitalised within a set number of months due to a pre-existing condition or that you have not been diagnosed with a condition that is terminal.

To find out more about how travel insurance providers in New Zealand rank, take a look at Canstar’s travel insurance ratings report.

Compare travel insurance with Canstar