Travel Insurance Over 70 is So Important—Here’s Why

April 12, 2024 - Kate

Did you know that the group of people in the US who travel the most are ages 65+? That’s when most Americans empty their nests, enter the long-awaited retirement zone, and finally have the time and resources to start crossing things off their bucket list. Read our blog on the top three destinations baby boomers should travel to for some inspiration. 

Jumping Ahead

• Why Seniors Should Consider Travel Insurance

• What Coverage Should Travelers Over 70 Look For?

• How Much Does Travel Insurance for Seniors Cost?

• Find Affordable Travel Insurance for Seniors Over 70

• How to Get the Best Travel Insurance for Seniors Over 70

Why Seniors Should Consider Travel Insurance

Something to keep in mind, though, is that after age 70, it becomes more important than ever for senior travelers to have insurance while traveling. Most importantly, at that age, many individuals have pre-existing medical conditions that won’t be covered under normal health insurance (specifically Medica) when they’re out of the country. Plus, travel insurance provides valuable peace of mind, especially when you have friends and family back home concerned about your well-being while you’re abroad.

What Coverage Should Travelers Over 70 Look For?

Whether you’re over 70 years old yourself or know a traveler who is, it’s critical to know the facts when it comes to travel insurance before booking your next trip. Here’s what you should be looking for:

Comprehensive Coverage

If you have the resources, comprehensive travel insurance is your best option. It truly does cover everything–from cancellation to medical emergencies to lost luggage–you name it, it’s likely covered with comprehensive insurance. When it comes to peace of mind when for senior travelers, you really can’t get any better than this.

High Medical Expense and Medical Evacuation Coverage

Falling ill or having an accident is tough enough when you’re at home. Don’t make it harder on yourself when you’re abroad. If you opt for this travel insurance coverage, your plan will cover medical expenses. Just double-check the one you select has sufficient coverage for your specific needs.

As a result, senior travelers tend to have more medical concerns and should seek higher insurance coverage. For example, a different plan that costs an extra $20 could provide hundreds of thousands of dollars of additional coverage for any medical expenses that arise.

“Don’t forget about medical evacuation coverage in the event you get seriously sick or injured and need emergency transportation,” Terry Boynton, co-founder and president of Yonder Travel Insurance. “This is especially true if you’re traveling to a remote destination or taking a cruise where you’ll be farther away from adequate medical care.”

Read more about medical evacuation coverage on our website for more specific details and tips you should note.

Pre-existing Condition Waiver

If you have a pre-existing medical condition, this one is crucial. Unfortunately, pre-existing conditions are not often covered under all travel insurance policies. So if you have a pre-existing medical condition, make sure you’re covered while you’re traveling –just in case you experience a flare-up. 

Make sure to buy your travel insurance early to ensure coverage, as this benefit is typically time-sensitive and must be purchased within 10-21 days from the initial trip deposit date!

To compare travel insurance policies with pre-existing condition coverage, simply get an instant quote and select the filter displayed below.

Our team of friendly humans would be happy to help you find a policy with pre-existing medical condition insurance. Give us a call or shoot us an email to walk through which travel insurance plan has the benefits you need. Your peace of mind is worth it!

Trip Cancellation and Interruption Coverage

If some sort of issue should arise before you leave for your trip, travel insurance will allow you to cancel without losing a chunk of change. That issue could be your own medical needs, a family emergency, a death, or anything else that comes up that keeps you from wanting or being able to travel. Then, you’ll be able to reschedule your excursion for as soon as possible without a major financial loss.

Likewise, if you encounter an event that causes you to interrupt your trip, standard travel insurance typically includes trip interruption coverage. This would reimburse any unused trip expenses you lost because you had to cut your trip short.

Cruise & Missed Connection Coverage

Cruises tend to be pretty popular among the retiree and senior travel crowds, as they offer an all-inclusive and relatively stress-free way to see the world. Read our blog post on why we love Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale. 

The only piece of the cruise experience that can get a little tricky is getting to the ship in the first place. Say you’re headed to Norway to get on a tour of the country’s gorgeous fjords and your departing flight is canceled. The next flight you can get on is the next day…which means that you’re going to miss the cruise’s send-off. With missed connection travel insurance, you can re-arrange your travel to meet the cruise at the next port without footing the bill. Check out our blog post on how to find the best cruise insurance for seniors. 

How Much Does Travel Insurance for Seniors Cost?

Travel insurance is based on several variables, one being age. Unfortunately, senior travelers may face higher travel insurance premiums. The average travel insurance premium price for most seniors aged 65-80 is usually between 7-10% of the total trip cost. 

Travelers older than this age bracket will probably see higher premiums. On the bright side, there are ways to still get affordable coverage. Keep reading to find out!

Find Affordable Travel Insurance for Seniors Over 70

Although travel insurance is a federally regulated product and senior discounts can’t be applied, you can still find an economic plan. Before choosing a policy, these tips could help save you some serious money on travel insurance. 

Check Your Health Insurance

Many medical plans don’t offer coverage internationally. However, if you have a supplemental plan that does, you could opt for a travel insurance plan that has lower medical limits. This prevents you from overpaying for coverage you may not need.

On the flip side, if your health insurance doesn’t cover you internationally, you might be able to save some cash by getting a travel insurance policy with secondary medical insurance coverage.

Verify Credit Card Coverage

Some credit cards offer insurance to cover your trip costs or offer varying medical and delay benefits. While it’s not ideal to depend on this limited coverage, it could lower the amount you need to insure.

Pro Tip: Keep in mind that certain benefits, such as Cancel for Any Reason or Pre-Existing Condition Waivers, may need you to insure 100% of your nonrefundable trip costs. This means you might still need to cover this amount under your travel insurance to keep these benefits, even if you’re already covered elsewhere.

Only Insure Nonrefundable Expenses

Did you know you only have to insure your prepaid, nonrefundable expenses under travel insurance? It’s true! You should insure the amounts of any trip expenses you would lose if you suddenly had to cancel. Therefore,any amounts not paid for until during your trip don’t need to be insured.

Compare Your Travel Insurance Options

There are tons of travel insurance plans out there, but you likely don’t have time to analyze each one individually. The good news is that you don’t have to! 

Yonder makes it easy to compare insurance policies side-by-side, so you can truly see the difference in benefits. Because each travel insurance provider has their own pricing, sometimes you can find a more economical policy with more coverage.

How to Get the Best Travel Insurance for Seniors Over 70

These tips are helpful in finding the best type of coverage for senior travelers without all the hassle. Here are some of the top tips on finding the best travel insurance for seniors over 70 years old.

Find a Policy Recommended for Seniors

Yonder has specific filters you can use to filter for policies that best fit different types of travelers. For example, you can select the “Senior” travel style filter to view recommended policies that include the important benefits we talked about earlier.

Understand the Policy Coverage

Knowing the type and amount of coverage you’re purchasing is crucial to avoid disappointment during the claims process later. Unfortunately, most travelers might assume they have coverage for something, but actually don’t. Understanding the policy helps you figure out if it covers specific reasons you’re concerned about. In addition, it helps you become more familiar with any exclusions it doesn’t cover.

Yonder’s travel insurance experts can help you find a policy that includes the coverage you need, at a price-concious rate. They understand policy certificates and can help explain things in more plain terms if you need a little more clarity. Let us know what your questions are!

Ready to get out there? Let’s talk about your coverage–we’ll help you make sure you get what you need. You can get in touch with us here.