For many retired people, retirement is now a way to enjoy life and seeing the world. Therefore, it is no surprise that the travel industry is experiencing a boom for over 65’s holidays. This is the result of many contributing factors. The first is the increase in wealth combining with a heightened sense of adventure and experiences. The low cost of travel also helps, and exotic locations are no longer left to the desire of youngsters and honeymooners.

However, finding economic travel insurance if you are older than 65, can become a problem. Insurers are recognising that people have healthier lives, therefore are living longer. Hence, in many areas, they are designing financial packages for the older market. When it comes to travel insurance, older people still face the problem of high premiums. Prices start to get out of control, and it soon becomes a matter of finding the cheapest price especially if you want to have an extended holiday, or take several trips per year.

The main cause of this problem is that the insurers experience claims for medical costs. The likelihood of an over 65 traveller claiming is significantly higher than the younger traveller, and so too is the size of the average medical claim. However, on the flip side, older travellers have proven to take more care of their luggage – but again the savings to the insurer are offset by the fact that their belongings are liable to be more valuable than a backpacker’s, therefore there are significant savings here.

This results in the fact that even if over 65’s had no medical problems, the cheapest annual policy could easily cost £1000 per person, often more than the actual holiday! The only option here when faced with this problem is to buy insurance separately to cover each trip.

Therefore, the only real answer and solution is to shop around and do your research. Get a number of quotations and see which one fits best with your budget. Your travel agent will be keen to provide a quotation, but try not to accept their first offer, until you have got competitive figures. The odds are that you could find savings on the internet and buying online.

When you are buying insurance you always need to look at the fine print, and this is especially true with travel insurance. For example, some policies only provide cover only if you are staying in booked accommodation, instead of staying with friends. Some policies will cover you for a trip up to 21 days, whilst others will cover you for 31 days, even up to 45 days. You then need to ensure that the maximum cover for medical and hospital expenses is generous, and that they insurer will allow you to fly back to the UK if your medical condition requires you to do so.  

Lastly, then compare the excesses you would have to pay and whether the policy you will pay your medical costs will go direct to the hospital or whether you are required to pay and claim.