10 Useful Benefits of Senior Citizen Travel Insurance Plans

We see so many people travel every day. But more than anyone, it is important to ensure that elderly people travel comfortably and without any hassle. Senior citizens are more prone to adverse situations, especially medical emergencies, as travelling can be unpredictable. With an aim to protect elderly people from any eventualities during their journey, the insurance industry offers a wide range of domestic and international travel insurance plans for senior citizens. A senior citizen travel insurance plan is precisely designed to meet the needs of elderly people and shield them from any unforeseen crisis. It not only helps them to save lots of money but also enables them to get timely medical & financial assistance at the hour of need.

If you are still wondering if your parents should get their trip insured or not, check out a list of the top 10 benefits of applying for a senior citizen travel insurance policy:

Coverage of up to 99 Years of Age

A senior citizen travel insurance policy offers protection to senior citizens of up to 99 years of age.  This comes as a ray of hope for people falling under the age group of 61-99 years as a regular international travel insurance policy do not cover people beyond the age of 60 years. A travel insurance policy for senior citizen covers people from the age of 61 years and usually protects the elderly up to 75 years of age. But a handful of insurance companies, such as Royal Sundaram Travel Insurance, provide coverage up to the age of 99 years.

Pre- Existing Diseases

If you have ever purchased a travel insurance policy online, then you would know that almost all of them don’t cover any claims relating to pre-existing diseases or medical conditions. That’s not idealistic for the elderly people as most of them suffer from a pre-existing medical condition or disease, thanks to their age. Their call for protection from such diseases is heard by the senior citizen travel insurance policies that provide coverage against pre-existing diseases under any life-threatening situations.

No Pre-Policy Health Check-Up

Buying a senior citizen travel insurance policy only is literally not less than a piece of cake. Neither does it involve a lot of paperwork nor does it require any pre-policy health check-up. That’s right! Most insurance providers do not ask the elderly people to appear for a full body health check-up before applying for a senior citizen travel insurance policy. However, the applicant should reveal any and all existing diseases or medical conditions at the time of buying the policy to ensure that no claims are denied in the future.

Cashless Hospitalization Available

Senior citizen travel insurance comes with cashless hospitalization around the world. It allows the insured elderly traveller to not pay for the treatment taken at a healthcare provider if hospitalized during their trip. Their insurance companies directly settle the bill with the hospital after your discharge. However, this facility is available only if they get admitted to one of the empanelled hospitals of their insurance provider. Your parents will be able to find a network hospital nearby irrespective of the country in which they are travelling.

Personal Accident Cover

Accidents can happen anywhere. Keeping this in mind, a senior citizen travel insurance policy provides personal accident cover to the insured travellers. It covers the expenses incurred in the hospitalization and treatment of any accidental injuries caused to the insured traveller. Moreover, if the accident results in any loss of body parts or disability of the elderly person, he/ she will be adequately compensated for the same.

Compassionate Visit

Getting hospitalized during your international trip can be quite a hassle, especially for elderly people. It gets even more difficult if their family members are not there with them. An international travel insurance policy for senior citizens tackles this issue by offering a compassionate visit to one family member of the insured. It covers the cost of transportation of one family member of the insured to aid them during recovery. This cover is available to the insured traveller only if he is hospitalized for more than 7 days in a foreign country.

Emergency Evacuation

Even a well-planned trip can go horribly wrong if the elderly insured travellers face an emergency shortly after their trip starts. Let’s say a cyclone warning is issued in the country where your parents are visiting and an emergency evacuation has been ordered. Or the government of the country where they are holidaying collapses and they are required to get back home immediately. This is where senior citizen travel insurance comes in. Your parents will be immediately evacuated from the place of danger and will be brought back to India. In fact, they will also be compensated for the losses incurred on curtailing the trip by their travel insurance provider.

Repatriation of Mortal remains

Anything can happen anytime. This is why it is important to stay prepared for every adverse situation that a person may face while travelling, especially during international trips. What if an accidental injury or medical illness results in the sudden demise of the insured elderly traveller during his international trip? In situations like this, the insurance provider will repatriate the mortal remains of the insured elderly person back to India if they have senior citizen travel insurance policy.

Emergency Financial Assistance

Travelling to certain countries can be quite risky. It is important to keep an eye out on your surroundings to evade any incidences of robbery, mugging and theft. If in an unfortunate incident, an elderly traveller does get robbed of his belongings and money, he can seek the help of his insurance provider. Many senior citizen travel insurance policies in India offer emergency financial assistance to the insured traveller. They help the senior citizen arrange money from their family back in India without any difficulty.

Enjoy Higher Tax Benefits

Elderly people get tax benefits if they buy health insurance or travel insurance policy. They are not required to pay tax for their insurance policies. This is because senior citizens are exempted from paying tax on their premium under the Income Tax Act.

Buying an insurance policy is one of the smartest decisions that you can take to secure your parents trip. It protects them from any medical or financial emergencies that they may encounter during their journey. You get your child insured under student health insurance or travel insurance to protect them from any medical and non-medical emergencies during their stay abroad. Similarly, make sure that your parents are also guarded well from any eventualities during their domestic or international trips through a senior citizen travel insurance policy.