Annual Travel Insurance

What to Know About Annual (Multi-Trip) Travel Insurance

If you travel frequently you may be wondering, do I have to buy travel insurance for every single trip? Is there an annual travel insurance plan I could buy instead? If so, will it be less expensive than buying single trip travel insurance for each trip?

After all, it can be a hassle having to research and buy a new travel insurance policy every time you travel. Policy prices and coverage can change depending on trip specifics, such as your destination, how many people you are traveling with, and the cost of your airfare, hotel and other pre-paid bookings.

Luckily, there is such a thing as annual (or multi-trip) travel insurance, which can make getting coverage for your trips both manageable and affordable.

In this article, we’ll review everything you need to know about annual travel insurance.

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What Annual Travel Insurance Looks Like

Single trip travel insurance is pretty straightforward. It covers you for just one trip, with the cost dependent on the factors mentioned above as well as other specifics.  But if you need insurance for many trips over the course of a year, it is good to know that insurance companies often offer annual coverage as well.

So how does annual travel insurance work?

As you might guess, this type of insurance offers travel insurance coverage for multiple trips throughout the year. Just know that there is a limit for how long an individual trip can be. For example, while annual travel insurance may cover every trip you take in a given year, the duration of each individual trip might need to be less than 30 days. You will need to refer to the details of your policy for trip duration limitations and other important coverage details.

What Is Covered?

While coverage will vary from plan to plan, below is a glance at what annual travel insurance typically covers:

• Travel delays: If there is a delay in your trip, you may be eligible for reimbursement for delay-related costs, like accommodations, meals, and transportation. Take note that this benefit only applies when your trip is delayed for a minimum number of hours (normally between 6 and 12 hours).
• Baggage:If your baggage is lost, damaged, or stolen either by the airline, hotel, taxi, etc., you may receive reimbursement, up to your policy’s limit.
• Emergency medical: You may be covered for medical emergency costs, such as hospital or doctor visits, prescription medications, surgery, and more.
• Medical evacuation: You may be covered for transportation costs incurred due to a medical emergency that allow you to receive care at a hospital or medical facility.

Just remember that each of these types of coverage have limitations and exclusions, so check your policy to ensure you know what’s included.

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What Is Not Covered?

While annual travel insurance plans are comprehensive and include many types of travel insurance coverage such as those mentioned in the previous section, they do not cover every risk of loss.

For example, annual travel insurance doesn’t always include trip cancellation coverage. So if something comes up, such as a death in the family or an illness that prevents you from travelling, you won’t be able to receive any reimbursement from your insurer if you cancel your trip. Though this exclusion may seem odd, it is actually typical for trip cancellation to be excluded from many annual travel insurance plans. This is because there is a higher risk that the policy holder will need to cancel a trip if they take multiple trips a year, as opposed to just a single trip.

There are several annual travel insurance plans that do offer trip cancellation, however. The plans that do offer this coverage will typically have an annual maximum dollar amount that is covered under the benefit, as opposed to covering the full value of the insured trip like you would expect in a single trip plan.

Who is Annual Travel Insurance Best For?

So when does it make sense to purchase annual travel insurance? While we can’t give you an exact number of trips you would need to take to justify the cost, below are profiles of travelers who may benefit most from this type of annual coverage.

• Frequent travelers: For those who travel frequently, whether for business or pleasure, it can be a hassle to constantly research and purchase travel insurance for every trip. For these types of on-the-go travelers, having consistent coverage throughout the year can be an economical (and practical) choice.
• Last-minute travelers: If you work in a profession that requires a lot of last-minute travel, such as a writer, journalist, or business traveler, there is not always time to buy travel insurance policies. Having an annual plan that offers year-round coverage would be convenient for this type of traveler.
• Travelers who don’t care about trip cancellation: As mentioned earlier, many annual travel insurance plans don’t offer trip cancellation as a benefit. As long as you are comfortable not having coverage if you need to cancel a trip, annul travel insurance may be perfect for you if you are planning a few trips in the year.

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What Else You Should Know About Annual Travel Insurance?

If you are thinking about buying an annual travel insurance policy, here are a few tips to consider that can help you decide if a policy is right for you.

• Before making a purchase, find out if your plan has the coverage that’s important to you. For example, many travelers now care about having pandemic/COVID-19 coverage as part of their plan. Others may require trip interruption or medical evacuation benefits. Compare plans and select the one that is suitable for you.
• Keep in mind that benefits don’t reset after each trip you take with an annual insurance plan. So if you file a claim that meets or exceeds the maximum of a benefit, you won’t have that benefit available on future trips that year. Always check your policy to ensure that the maximum benefits are sufficient for your particular needs.
• Not every annual travel insurance policy works in the same way. For example, some plans may not offer coverage on multiple back-to-back trips and may require you return home in between trips. Read the fine print of your policy to avoid unpleasant surprises and unexpected loopholes.

How Much Does Annual Travel Insurance Cost?

Buying insurance to cover all your trips in a year sounds like it will be costly, but it may actually be similar in price to insuring your trips independently, depending on which plan you get.

A fairly comprehensive travel insurance policy is often very affordable, but the price will depend on how much coverage you choose as well as other variables, like where you live, your age and the number of days you can travel for each trip (you can typically select either 30, 45, or 60 days of coverage).

Of course, if you plan on only traveling once or twice in the year, buying single trip insurance is likely going to be more affordable.

Final Thoughts

Annual travel insurance can save frequent travelers both time and money when planning a trip, so uuse TravelInsurance.com to compare quotes and get the best plan to meet your needs.

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