How to save hundreds on travel insurance with your credit card

If you’ve got travel on your mind this year, you might have taken to pricing travel insurance policies and had a nasty shock. Finding a cheap travel insurance policy is more difficult than it once was, with the necessary coverage seriously stacking up. 

But consider this: you could save hundreds of dollars with the credit card that’s already in your wallet. Many credit cards allow you to access a level of travel insurance as a cardholder benefit - which means you could already be paying for insurance that you aren’t taking advantage of.

Standalone travel insurance vs. credit card travel insurance - which is cheaper?

There’s no simple way to answer the question of which form of travel insurance is cheaper, as a lot of it will come down to circumstance. While it may seem initially cheaper to use the travel insurance included with a credit card, you might not think so once you’re stuck up in hospital with a skiing injury!

While a standalone travel insurance policy will present you with a price, it can be a little tricky to work out the cost of travel insurance on a credit card. Firstly, if you already hold a credit card with travel insurance - which covers 110 products in our database - there is no additional cost. However, travel insurance is often one of the perks that comes with a rewards credit card or a premium credit card.

It’s important to consider the annual fees of these cards, where the average annual fee of a rewards credit card in the Mozo database is $217 (compared to an average of $136 across all credit cards).

Of course, the upfront cost isn’t all there is to travel insurance.

Does credit card travel insurance work the same as taking out a travel insurance policy?

There are a few things to keep in mind if you’re weighing up using your credit card’s travel insurance rather than taking out a standalone policy. The two operate a little differently, and while credit card travel insurance may work out cheaper for you, it’s not necessarily a one-to-one comparison. 

In order to qualify for travel insurance on your credit card, you will need to fulfil some requirements. This can mean paying for your full airfare on the credit card in question, or it can be as small as paying $250 of your travel expenses on the card whose insurance you’re going to use. Depending on the card, there may be other requirements regarding the length of your trip and your age.

The travel insurance included with your credit card may also fail to cover certain things, like pre-existing conditions. Check the terms and conditions to see whether you’ll be covered, or have the option of upgrading your coverage. The same goes for add-ons like cruise and skiing coverage, which are not standard to credit card travel insurance.

Remember to also check whether or not your credit card’s travel insurance covers your spouse and any dependents, as you might find that a separate policy works out to be better value once everything else is factored in.

Choosing the right travel insurance can be a big decision, but it can also mean travelling safely and comfortably - without putting your health and safety in the hands of chance. 

Start comparing rewards credit cards below (and make sure to check out their travel insurance policies).

To get you in tip top travel condition, check out the Mozo picks for best travel insurance and best travel money.