A lesson on how to save on your Travel Insurance

It was time last week to renew my annual Travel insurance policy and I was staggered at the difference between the quotes for essentially the same coverage.   The total package difference (the basic coverage with a “shorter” vacation stay (between 3 weeks and 30 days) and a sixty day one time extension. (My wife and I are planning to stay in Mexico for about three months.  Quotes varied from about $1000.00 to nearly $4,000.00 – a difference of $3,000.00.  I should mention that I just turned 70 and had a stent put in three years ago. 

The companies I looked at were Travel Underwriters, the Automobile Association, and SecureGlobe.

SecureGlobe was the least expensive by far!  Again all reputable companies and for essentially the same coverage.The reason is that SecureGlobe is a broker – not an agent.  They take your information and “bid” it out to several companies to see who will give the best quote based on your health and age information.  In my case it was Co-operators  (now called Cumis) that gave the best quote for the third straight year.

In case you’re wondering I did have a couple of small problems when travelling and there help line was fantastic and repayment (if the hospital or clinic would not bill them directly) was very fast.

So before you automatically lock in your next travel insurance policy check them out.  One important tip I learned is that your rates jump when you turn 66, 71, 81.   NOT 65, 70, or 80!  You can lock in another year before your birthday.

The lady I used was Mellissa.  You can reach her at 1-888-211-4444 local 5203 – and no, I don’t get any commission or any benefit at all for passing this on.  If you're not in Canada you'll have to look around for a broker  who can offer you the best company to fit your profile, rather than an agent who has a "one size fits all" solution.

Hopes this helps.