Pensioners finding it hard to get travel insurance cover
According to a recent report from Age Concern pensioners in the UK are stuck in something of a catch 22 situation when it comes to getting travel insurance. This is because, although travel insurance is essential to avoid huge medical costs and to help in other emergencies – particularly for the elderly – many insurance companies will not offer travel cover for those aged sixty five and over. Those that will consider offering travel insurance for the elderly do so at a hefty price, which for most pensioners just isn’t in line with their budget.
Age Concern officials state that their research shows that more and more pensioners are now opting to travel abroad for their holidays rather than to stay in the country, yet this is not reflected by the availability of travel insurance for this age group. Over the past five years around 36% more pensioners have been travelling abroad for holidays than in previous years, yet according to Age Concern over ninety percent of insurance companies will still refuse to offer cover to someone aged sixty five or over.
Officials from Age Concern have also pointed out that this is the time of life when people do tend to travel more because of their retirement and the amount of time that they have available. However, insurance companies that refuse to provide cover for this age group claim that it is simply not economically viable for them to do so because of the increased risk of claims from the elderly and also because of the increased cost of claims from this age group.
Pensioners in the UK who are planning to travel abroad are advised to shop around to try and find affordable cover. There are a number of companies that will insure those aged sixty five and over, although this is likely to be at an increased cost.
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