Travelex Insurance Services

What Travelex Insurance Services is

Travelex Insurance Services is a plan brand and licensed insurance producer, not the insurer. The about page says "Travelex Insurance Services, Inc. is a licensed insurance producer in all U.S. states and the District of Columbia" and that "Travel insurance policies offered by us are underwritten by Zurich American Insurance Company." The footer gives the carrier's details, "Zurich American Insurance Company (NAIC #16535, state of domicile: New York)," and Travelex's own "CA Agency License #0D10209" at an Omaha, Nebraska address.

The about page dates the business to 1996, "when the Travelex Group purchased the Mutual of Omaha travel insurance company," and says it "is part of Zurich Cover-More," which is "a wholly owned subsidiary of Zurich Insurance Group." Emergency help comes from "our assistance provider, Zurich Travel Assist," which the page says "is available 24/7 anywhere."

Travelex sells six plans. The three comprehensive plans are Essential, Advantage and Ultimate, and the site also names Travel Med Go, Flight Insure and Flight Insure Plus. The homepage describes Essential as "our budget-friendly plan," Advantage as "our mid-tier plan" with six optional upgrades, and Ultimate as "our most customizable top-tier plan with nine optional upgrades."

The three comprehensive plans

The adventure sports page lays out the limits for all three. Ultimate carries trip cancellation at "100% of trip cost ($50,000 maximum)," trip interruption at 150% of trip cost up to $75,000, emergency medical up to $250,000 and emergency evacuation and repatriation up to $1,000,000. Advantage carries trip cancellation up to $10,000, interruption up to $12,500, medical up to $50,000 and evacuation up to $250,000. Essential carries interruption up to $10,000, medical up to $25,000 and evacuation up to $200,000. The homepage notes that medical cover "only applies to emergency medical expenses that first arise during your trip," and that "Residents of New Hampshire are eligible for up to $50,000 emergency medical and dental coverage with the Ultimate plan."

Whether the medical benefit pays first differs by plan. The primary coverage page says "You'll have primary coverage if you buy our Ultimate, Advantage, Travel Med Go or Flight Insure Plus plan," while "Our Essential plan provides excess medical coverage rather than primary," except for Connecticut residents. On deductibles, the same page says "The medical and dental expense benefits do not have a deductible in most states. In the following states, a $50 deductible applies: CT, IN, KS, MO, MT, VT, WA."

Ultimate also covers children. The homepage says the cover applies "to one travel companion aged 17 years old or younger per each insured adult traveler," where each adult is "aged 18 years or older" and the child's trip cost is no higher than the adult's. The plan table also lists a travel inconvenience benefit covering a closed attraction or a disabled cruise, each up to $200.

Upgrades, including adventure sports and CFAR

The base plans cover "certain sports and activities, including kayaking, horseback riding, and hiking." The adventure activities upgrade, which the homepage lists among Ultimate's upgrades, adds cover for activities the base plans exclude: "snow skiing, skydiving, parachuting, free falling, cliff diving," base jumping, hang gliding, parasailing, mountain climbing, free climbing, and "scuba diving at a depth greater than 75 feet."

The cancel for any reason upgrade reimburses "up to 75% of your prepaid, nonrefundable trip costs (up to $7,500)." Its conditions are strict: the traveler must cancel "at least two days prior to your scheduled departure date," insure all nonrefundable costs, have a trip cost of no more than $10,000, buy the upgrade "31 days or more before your departure date," and buy it with Ultimate "within 21 days of your initial payment for your trip." Other upgrades include an additional medical upgrade that raises Ultimate's medical limit "from $250,000 to $500,000" and Travel Med Go's "from $50,000 to $300,000," and a rental car upgrade of "up to $50,000 ($100 deductible)," which the page says is not available in destinations including Costa Rica, Ireland, Jamaica and Mexico.

Pre-existing conditions and exclusions

Only Ultimate offers the pre-existing condition exclusion waiver. The requirements are to "Buy your plan within 21 days of your first trip payment," "Add any new trip costs within 21 days of paying for them," and "Be medically able to travel when you buy." For Ultimate, the site defines a pre-existing condition as "A sickness, disease, or other condition that you have within the 90 days* before purchasing your policy," with an asterisk for state variation, and it says a condition "that remains treated and controlled by medication" is not counted. The plan table lists look-back periods of 90, 120 and 180 days across plans, none applying to New Hampshire residents. Buyers of the other plans can still claim for events unrelated to their condition.

The pre-existing conditions page also sets out other limits. Plans "don't cover mental, nervous, or psychological disorders like anxiety and depression except under the emergency medical and dental expense benefit." It says "we don't cover childbirth or normal pregnancy (except on our Ultimate plan)," while certain complications may be covered. Every plan page says "We're unable to provide coverage for any OFAC-sanctioned country," and a trip to Cuba needs Travelex's preapproval.

Who can buy it and how it works

The about page says Travelex has served "U.S. travelers for nearly 30 years," and its plans cover domestic and international trips. Essential, Advantage and Ultimate can be bought "up to 11:59 p.m. on the day before your departure," and carry "a 21-day free look period" for a refund if the traveler has not departed or filed a claim. Trips longer than 30 days "may result in additional premium." For a cancellation claim, "we need to know about your trip cancellation within 72 hours of when you cancel the trip." Policies can be edited online before departure, and the Travel On app offers "tap-to-call 24/7 assistance" and safety alerts.

Customer service is on 1-800-228-9792, "Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. (CST)," with 1-800-819-9004 for existing policyholders. Zurich Travel Assist takes emergency calls on 1-800-555-0870 from the US or Canada and collect on 1-416-977-1803 from elsewhere.

Who it suits

Travelex fits a US traveler who wants three comprehensive plans with published limits, primary medical cover on the upper two, and a named underwriter. Ultimate carries the largest limits, the only pre-existing condition waiver, cover for one child per adult, and the adventure and CFAR upgrades. Essential carries the lowest medical limit and pays after the traveler's own health plan. The site ties that waiver to buying Ultimate within 21 days of the first trip payment.