COVID-19 cases are again around much of the world.
But if you assume its prevalence means your travel insurance policy will definitely include it, and you won’t be charged more for the privilege, you’re wrong.
Financial comparison website Canstar recently reviewed 106 travel insurance policies and found 18 per cent of them didn’t offer coverage for COVID.
Of the 87 policies that did include COVID, only 70 offered cover for both overseas medical and cancellation costs. Policies that did include COVID were on average $103 more expensive than those without it.
A survey conducted by comparison site Finder in November showed 56 per cent of Australians – equivalent to almost 12 million people – .
Forty per cent of respondents said their reason for not taking out travel insurance was that it was too expensive.
Canstar’s travel insurance expert Steve Mickenbecker said that given COVID-19 still posed a serious health risk, paying the extra money was worth it for “peace of mind”.
“You shouldn’t leave home without good overseas medical cover, and that goes for COVID,” he said.
“In the scheme of what you’re paying for your flights, your accommodation, your tours, all the spending, $100 more isn’t a lot.”