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When you are planning a trip away the last thing you expect is for something to go wrong. However buying travel insurance can end up saving you thousands on medical bills and help protect you against lost luggage and cancelled flights – but how many Brits are choosing to go without it when they jet off abroad?
Quick overview
- 25% of Brits travelled without travel insurance in 2017.
- The average policy costs just £37 – and only £21 for those aged between 26-30.
- £365 million was paid out by travel insurers in 2016.
- Over 490,000 individuals and families claimed on travel insurance in 2016.
- The average medical claim amounted to over £1,200 in 2016.
- One Brit travelling abroad recently amounted a medical bill of £760,000 while visiting America.
- On an average UK salary of £27,500 this would take 25 years to repay.
25%
Of Brits travelled uninsured in 2017, up from 22% in 2016.
Who is buying travel insurance and who isn’t?
With over 70 million trips taken abroad by Brits in 2017, there’s plenty of need for travel insurance – but who is buying it and who is risking going without?
- 25% of Brits travel without travel insurance.
- This is 3% higher than in 2016
- 18-24 year olds are the most likely to travel unisured, with 40% going without.
- 25-34 year olds are close behind with 38% travelling without insurance.
- Both of these groups have risen from 31% in 2016.
- Meanwhile just 25% of 35-44 year olds and 23% of 45-54 year olds travel without insurance.
- The most cautious age group is those aged 55+, where just 14% of travellers go without travel insurance.
Why are people risking going without?
Medical bills can easily amount to thousands of pounds, especially in countries without universal health care such as the US – so why are some Brits deciding to go without travel insurance?
- 36% of millennials felt like they did not need it.
- While 22% stated that travelling without insurance was a risk they were willing to take.
22%
Of millennials said travelling without travel insurance was a risk they were willing to take.
How much does travel insurance cost?
The amount your travel insurance will cost is dependant on many factors including the location of your trip, the length of time you are going away for, your personal circumstance (such as age and medical history) and the type of holiday you are going on. The overall average cost of travel insurance is £37 and just £21 for those aged between 26-30.
Below we explore the average cost of a policy for a single, 30-year-old adult.
Average cost of travel insurance by insurance type
| Cover | Cost |
|---|---|
| Annual Multi-Trip | £59.78 |
| Single Trip | £30.82 |
| Average | £46.07 |
Average cost of travel insurance by destination
| Destination | Cost |
|---|---|
| Europe | £31.92 |
| Worldwide (Excl. USA) | £50.06 |
| Worldwide (Inc. USA) | £58.21 |
| Average | £46.07 |
Travel insurance payout
In 2016, £1 million a day was paid out by travel insurance companies – but what was being claimed for?
- 494,000 individuals and families claimed on travel insurance in 2016.
- The main claim was for emergency medical treatment – with over £196 million being paid out to 166,000 travellers.
- The average medical expense claim was £1,200.
- £128 million was paid out to 160,000 people for cancellations.
- The average cancellation claim was £800.
- £16 million was paid out to 87,000 people for lost baggage and money whilst travelling.
£1 million
Was paid out every day by travel insurers in 2016.
Big travel insurance payouts
The average claim for medical expenses is £1,300 – this has increased by 40% between 2011 and 2016. Despite the average claim being £1,300, it is not uncommon to rack up thousands in medical expenses when travelling abroad.
The USA attracts more than 3.8 million UK visitors a year – and with a notoriously expensive healthcare system, it might come as no surprise that some of the biggest claims are by Brits visiting America. We explored some of the biggest claims from Brits in recent years to give you an idea of just how important travel insurance can be.
- The biggest claim on our list is for £760,000 by a toursist visiting the USA who required treatment for a stroke and an air ambulance back to the UK.
- The second largest claim is for over £250,000 by a traveller visiting the US who fell of a bicycle and required medical treatment for a brain haemorrhage and broken shoulder.
- The third largest claim was for a traveller visiting Chile, whose medical bills amounted to £136,000 after complications following an insect bite.
25 years
It would take 25 years working on an average UK salary of £27,500 to pay off the most expensive medical bill on our list of £760,000.
Car rental insurance
While insurance is included in all car rental agreements, the minimum excess cost (the amount consumers have to pay before the insurer starts to foot the bill) generally starts at £1,000. So, if you damaged your rental and were faced with a bill of £900, you would need to cover it all.
To avoid this scenario there are two options. You can either purchase a super collision damage waiver from the rental firm or excess reimbursement insurance before you travel from an independent provider. More information on this can be found on our car hire home page.
So, how much are Brits prepared to spend on repairing damages to their rental cars?
- Only 2% are prepared to pay up to £1,000
- Over half (54%) are only willing to pay up to £100
- The maximum that UK drivers are willing to pay on average is £217
- Men would fork out almost £50 more than women (£241 vs £192)
Travel insurance industry statistics
How big is the travel insurance industry and how many claims are policy holders making?
- Claims are at their highest level since 2010 – when the volcanic eruption of Eyjafjallajökull cost insurers £369 million.
- Despite this hike in claims, travel premiums fell to their lowest level since 2004 at £481 million in 2016.
- In 2006, 62% of policies taken out were single trip. This has fallen to just 21% in 2016.
- Age remains a huge factor in the cost of travel insurance, with those over 66 paying 3 times as much as those aged 18-30.
Travel insurance provider statistics
When buying your travel insurance it’s important to shop around and get the right policy for you and your holiday. We explored all the travel insurance providers on finder to give you a breakdown of some key stats.
- Maximum cancellation cover allowance varied from £2,000 to £10,000.
- Maximum medical cover varied from £10,000,000 to unlimited.
| Minimum | Maximum | |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum cancellation cover | £2,000 | £10,000 |
| Maximum medical cover | £10,000,000 | Unlimited |
Data accurate as of 24 April 2018.
Sources used
For all media enquiries, please contact
Matt Mckenna
UK Communications Manager
M: +44 747 921 7816
T: +44 20 3828 1338
UK Communications Manager
M: +44 747 921 7816
T: +44 20 3828 1338
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