Allianz Travel Insurance: What You Need to Know

Allianz Travel Insurance is provided by Allianz Global Assistance, an insurer that operates in 35 countries and serves 40 million customers in the U.S. The company offers several different types of travel insurance plans depending on your needs.

When planning a trip, it could be important to consider travel insurance to help protect you if unexpected events affect your vacation. Whether you’re looking for a comprehensive plan or emergency medical coverage only to supplement the travel insurance you have from your credit cards, Allianz Global Assistance offers plenty of options to choose from. We’ll evaluate travel insurance plans provided by Allianz Global Assistance to help you decide if they are right for you.

Due to coronavirus-related travel bans, Allianz is currently selling insurance for trips after June 1, 2020, only. Additionally, the plans may not cover all losses sustained from COVID-19 because it has a general exclusion for epidemics and travel advisories. It’s important to keep this in mind, as not all insurers will cover losses related to coronavirus.

Allianz offers several different travel insurance options depending on whether you’re looking for a single or annual/multi-trip plan.

Single trip plans are designed for individuals who are leaving their home, visiting another destination (or destinations) and returning home. Allianz Global Assistance has five travel insurance plans for single trips, including a plan that’s mainly focused on emergency medical coverage.

The OneTrip Cancellation Plus plan is geared toward domestic travelers who are looking for trip cancellation, interruption and delay coverage but don’t need post-departure benefits like emergency medical or baggage loss. This plan is Allianz’s most affordable option.

OneTrip Basic, Prime and Premier are three comprehensive travel insurance plans.

• OneTrip Basic is the most economical plan and offers trip cancellation, interruption and delay benefits along with emergency medical and baggage loss.

• OneTrip Prime provides all the benefits of the Basic plan but with higher limits, a few extra coverage areas and complimentary coverage for children 17 and under when traveling with a parent or grandparent.

• OneTrip Premier offers the most coverage, doubling almost every post-departure limit of the Prime plan with more covered cancellation reasons.

If you don’t need pre-departure trip cancellation and interruption protections or you already have coverage through a premium travel credit card, the standalone OneTrip Emergency Medical plan may be a good choice. The plan mainly provides emergency medical protections along with some baggage loss/delay benefits.

Now that you know about the plans, let’s consider the cost of an Allianz travel insurance policy for a one-week, $1,500 vacation to Croatia in August 2020 taken by a 30-year-old from Texas.

The OneTrip Premier is the most expensive plan and provides the highest level of protection, especially for emergency medical events. However, if you’re OK with lower limits on emergency medical, a OneTrip Prime or Basic plan could be a more appropriate choice. These costs represent a range of 3.4%-7.5% of the total cost of the trip, which is in line with typical costs, according to the U.S. Travel Insurance Association (4%-8%).

These plans are designed for those who like to take a lot of little trips throughout the year as well as for business travelers. Allianz Global Assistance offers four different annual/multi-trip plans.

AllTrips Basic is suitable for those who would like emergency medical coverage while abroad but don’t need trip cancellation and interruption benefits. The AllTrips Prime, Executive and Premier plans provide an entire year of comprehensive travel insurance benefits.

The Executive and Premier plans offer various levels of trip cancellation and interruption benefits. The Executive plan is specifically designed for business travelers since it offers protection for business equipment.

Let’s look at an example of an annual Allianz travel insurance plan that starts in July 2020 for a 50-year-old from Illinois.

Coverage under these plans is offered for trips up to 45 days in length.

The AllTrips Executive plan costs significantly more than the other plans; this is mainly due to higher trip cancellation coverage, emergency medical and business equipment protections. The Executive coverage amount for trip cancellation can be increased beyond what is quoted here, driving that plan’s price up to as much as $785.

If you’re not concerned with pre-trip cancellation benefits and don’t need the increased level of medical coverage, the Basic plan is the most affordable option.

For trips longer than 45 days, the AllTrips Premier plan might be a better choice as it offers coverage for up to 90 days. Using the same search parameters but with 90 days of coverage per trip, the cost of the annual plan is $475.

Choosing the right plan for your trip involves understanding what type of coverage you will want while you’ll be abroad.

• If you have a premium travel card (e.g., the Chase Sapphire Reserve®) that already provides you with a sufficient level of trip cancellation coverage, getting the OneTrip Medical plan might be enough.

• If the coverage provided by your card isn’t adequate, you don’t have credit card coverage or you didn’t pay for your trip with that credit card, then you might be better off with a comprehensive plan like the OneTrip Basic, Prime or Premier.

• If you’ll be going on multiple and longer trips, the AllTrips Premier plan might be best as it provides insurance benefits for trips up to 90 days in length.

• The remaining three annual AllTrips plans cover multiple trips, up to 45 days.

You will be able to view all plans or see plans categorized by single trip, annual/multi-trip and a rental car add-on option. Once you’ve decided on the plan you want, choose the “Get a Quote” option.

You will be required to input the relevant trip details before you can see which plans are available to you in your state.

Travel insurance plans have a lot of exclusions that you need to pay attention to so you know exactly what type of coverage you’re getting. Here are some general exclusions you can expect:

High-risk activities: Skydiving, bungee jumping, heli-skiing, and other types of high-risk sporting activities that the insurer deems unsafe.

Intentional acts: Losses sustained from intoxication, drug use, self-harm and criminal activity.

Specifically designated events: Epidemics, natural disasters and war are specifically mentioned in the policy as exclusions.

It’s important to note that exclusions may vary based on the policy and where you live, so it’s always best to review the fine print to ensure you’re clear about what is and isn’t covered.

Before going on a trip, it’s a good idea to review different travel insurance options to make sure you’re protected in case of an emergency while abroad. No matter what type of traveler you are, Allianz Global Assistance offers various travel insurance plans to choose from.

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