[HELP] Need (to Choose) Travel Insurance to Australia

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  Davo1111 on 12/01/2018 - 13:39

  +5

  Errr these are questions that can really only be answered by reading through the PDS' properly. You can't just outsource this decision.

  Few comments:

  • I'd be very surprised if a CC insurance covered anyone but the card owner. Otherwise everyone would just get one mate to put through travel purchases on their card.
  • I'd be looking at PDS' closely in regards to long term travel. a google suggests that sublass 600 also covers business visitors, which may complicate things.
  • Most travel insurances will have a cooling off period (quite significant period too) and you can get them instantly (but certain things are not covered in the first x days).
  • Be careful of insurances that offer easy extensions. This is treated as a new policy. So if you get an infection on the first policy, when the extenstion starts and the infection flairs up, it's treated as a pre-existing condition.
  • My understanding is there are actually very few travel insurance companies, most are underwriters of the major few (world nomads comes to mind as a major)
  • You can organise special help for people travelling who are old, just like unaccompanied minors.
  • 

    ntt on 12/01/2018 - 14:34

    thank you for your long reply. I know it depends on what states on PDS but I need to ask in general first, then I'll pick some and read all of the PDSs.

    Be careful of insurances that offer easy extensions. This is treated as a new policy. So if you get an infection on the first policy, when the extenstion starts and the infection flairs up, it's treated as a pre-existing condition.

    If I pay insurance monthly or weekly, continuously , will it be treated as new too?

    My understanding is there are actually very few travel insurance companies, most are underwriters of the major few (world nomads comes to mind as a major)
    sorry I don't understand

    You can organise special help for people travelling who are old, just like unaccompanied minors.
    I saw someone got sticker on their cloths, but sometimes they don't get enough attention when needed, that's why I'm worried.

    I know insurance companies sometimes so dodgy, they would find some errors or cracks to deny liability. that's why I asked you guys. Now I have more ideas, thank you

    • 

      Davo1111 on 12/01/2018 - 14:43

      +1

      If I pay insurance monthly or weekly, continuously , will it be treated as new too?

      no, that's one policy that's paid monthly. I'm talking about when you think you've finished your holiday, but decide to extend it a few more weeks, so you ask them to extend the dates.

      I know insurance companies sometimes so dodgy, they would find some errors or cracks to deny liability. that's why I asked you guys. Now I have more ideas, thank you

      tbh i dont think they're as dodgy as people make them out to be, just people don't read the PDS in their entirety.

      I wrote about this with one of the travel insurance brands posted on here, i couldnt think of a single situation where i'd be able to claim.

      So people get into trouble, find they're not covered, and get shitty with the insurer because they didn't read it in the first place.

      It really is worth ignoring the marketing, and skim reading the PDS.

      For example: my bike [theft] insurance requires you to have a) a lock from a list of approved locks, b) the lock must be less than 2 years old [and provide proof] c) a police report if the bike is stolen. Now most people would think "oh bike theft insurance - if my bike is stolen, case closed, new bike". Not the case.

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  bonezAU on 12/01/2018 - 14:41

  +2

  My mother in law came over for 6 months about a year and a half ago (and is probably coming again this year). Before she came, I did lots of research and ended up going with HIF Visitor Cover. She had no pre-existing medical conditions but hospital & extras cost about $100 per month.

  We didn't need to claim for anything hospital related but she had a couple of GP visits while here and it was just a matter of swiping the HIF card and walking out without paying a cent extra.

  I looked at all the different companies who offered a visitor cover policy, read through the PDS's and worked out that for our needs HIF was the best in terms of lower premiums but still giving a good level of coverage.

  As for travel insurance between the time she left home and arrived in Australia, we just bought her a low priced policy in her country (just as you would buy travel insurance in Australia if you were taking a trip overseas). We bought it for a 2 day period because that was the minimum available from memory, even though it took her less than 1 day from the time she left home until she was at our home.

  Feel free to PM me if you need any more info.

  • 

    ntt on 12/01/2018 - 15:27

    thanks mate, definitely I will pm if anything pop up in my head.

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  citygal on 12/01/2018 - 19:00

  +1

  Can we use credit card with travel insurance option included for my mom (I'm the cardholder, but I use that to buy tickets for my mom)? if yes, which card is good to go?
  *If the first one doesn't work, so which travel/health insurance is good? I don't want to pay too much money or some money but cannot easily access/claim to facilities (GP/Hospital). any good company to recommend or bad one to avoid?

  Generally CC with travel insurance only covers the card holder, so using your credit card to buy the tickets for your mum will not make her being covered by travel insurance. I can't say which insurance company is good, because it's very personal - like I don't know about the medical condition and other stuffs that you wanna cover. But you may compare insurance companies in her origin country and Australian insurance company. You need to look at what it covers very carefully, as some policies don't cover pre-existing conditions.

  Do I need to buy insurance when she on the way to airplane or in airplane? Just in case, you know, when she need doctor/medication/emergency thing.

  Generally need to buy the insurance before departure - Meaning before you depart the origin and before you get on the plane. Passing the immigration counter is usually an indication of departure.

  • 

    ntt on 15/01/2018 - 11:05

    • I think so. about the insurance company overseas, I don't think I can trust them and it might harder to contact for claims or inquiries. I actually asked once via travel agent overseas and it's not cheap.

    • That's my intention. I can buy health insurance easy in here but not sure how/where to buy travel insurance when my Mom departs until steps in Australia, that's quite a dangerous situation here as my Mom has blood pressure condition. I fear when she's inside an airplane, and so nervous that makes it worse ( she watches too much this show!