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*Price shown is for a 30 day trip to Thailand with 1 lakh dollar coverage for an adult of age 25 years
Europe is a dream destination for many; its gorgeous landscapes, architectural marvels, historical attractions and distinct culture appeal to many travellers. Europe’s Schengen region is a major tourism hub and invites people from all around the world. When planning a trip to Schengen countries, a valid Schengen visa is mandatory. To get this visa, you will need to buy the best Schengen travel insurance first!
The continent of Europe comprises 44 counties. Out of these, 26 countries have come together to form an area with mutual borders known as the Schengen area. Citizens of the Schengen countries can enter each other’s borders without the need for a passport or a visa.
In fact, citizens of a few other countries can also travel to the Schengen area without any visa. However, Indian citizens need a valid Schengen visa to travel to one or more Schengen countries but do not need to obtain individual visas for each country.
Let us take an example to understand better. Suppose you want to visit France, Italy, Switzerland, Spain and Germany from India. All of these countries are a part of the Schengen area. As a result, you need to obtain a Schengen visa to travel to all of these countries instead of applying for separate visas for each of them.
However, obtaining a Schengen visa is not as easy as it sounds. Other than vast paperwork, letter of invite, proof of sufficient funds etc., there is a lot to be done. You cannot obtain a Schengen visa unless you have a travel insurance policy to cover your trip to the Schengen states.
Travel medical insurance is mandatory to get a Schengen visa from India. Anyone who wishes to travel to the Schengen states on a Schengen visa needs to buy a travel insurance policy before applying for the visa. If you apply for a Schengen visa without a travel insurance policy covering your trip, your visa application could be rejected.
Not only is this mandatory but perfectly reasonable; Schengen countries are expensive, especially when it comes to healthcare services. Getting ill or meeting with an accident during your trip to the Schengen area can result in major expenses if you need to get hospitalised. As a result, your trip budget can get severely affected and you may incur major financial losses in the absence of a travel insurance policy. Such a situation can be prevented if your trip is covered under the best Schengen travel insurance policy.
Since you will be travelling outside India, you can buy international travel insurance online for your trip to the Schengen states. Overseas travel insurance policy covers a traveller against any unforeseen medical or trip-related risks encountered while abroad. Whether you are travelling to the Schengen States for a vacation, business trip or due to a flight layover, you must buy the best travel insurance for your trip. However, the question remains- which travel insurance is the best for travelling on a Schengen visa?
Schengen travel insurance offers minimum insurance coverage of 30,000 EUR, which is around Rs 26.8 lakh. In India, several travel insurance companies offer a variety of travel plans to people travelling to Schengen countries on a Schengen visa. However, the best travel insurance plan for people travelling to the Schengen area is Schengen travel insurance.
It provides financial coverage against any adversities faced across all the member Schengen states. It also offers a cashless hospitalisation facility in case you need to get admitted to a hospital during your trip. Take a look at some of the best travel insurance for Schengen visa* available on Policybazaar:
Schengen Travel Insurance Plan | Key Features |
Care Health Explore- Excluding US & Canada | Medical Expenses up to USD 100,000 Personal Accident up to USD 15,000 Medical Evacuation |
Care Health Explore Gold - Excluding US & Canada | Baggage Loss covers up to USD 750 Trip Cancellation cover up to USD 1,000 Upgradation to Business Class up to USD 1,000 |
Care Health Explore Platinum - Excluding US & Canada | Baggage Loss covers up to USD 1,000 Automatic Trip Extension for up to 7 days Loss of International Driving License coverage up to USD 100 |
Reliance Travel Care Individual | Baggage Loss of up to USD 1,000 Trip Cancellation up to USD 600 Personal Liability up to USD 100,000 |
Tata AIG Travel Guard Silver Plus | Accident & Sickness Medical Expenses up to USD 100,000 Hijacking Coverage up to USD 500 |
Bajaj Allianz Travel Ace Silver | Baggage Loss of up to USD 500 Medical expenses up to USD 100,000 Automatic Trip Extension up to USD 750 |
Niva Bupa (formerly known as Max Bupa) Travel Assure Pro | Baggage Loss of up to USD 1,000 Trip Cancellation cover up to USD 1,000 Loss of Passport cover up to USD 300 |
Niva Bupa (formerly known as Max Bupa) Travel Assure Peak | Personal Accident cover up to USD 15,000 Financial Emergency Assistance coverage up to USD 500 Life-threatening Condition due to PED coverage for up to USD 2,500 |
DIGIT General Insurance Smart Option | Personal Accident up to USD 15,000 Repatriation of Mortal Remains up to USD 100,000 Outpatient Expenses for Injuries up to USD 10,000 |
DIGIT General Insurance Carefree Option | Baggage Loss cover up to USD 750 Trip cancellation cover up to USD 1,000 Dental Treatment cover up to USD 400 |
DIGIT General Insurance Option - Global Cover with PED | Return of minor child coverage up to USD 1,000 Common Carrier Delay up to INR 1,000 Pre-existing Illness coverage up to USD 10,000 |
Cholamandalam Overseas Travel Protection - Silver | Baggage Loss cover up to USD 250 Hijacking Coverage up to USD 100/day for maximum of 7 days Delay in Checked-in Baggage up to USD 100 |
Cholamandalam Overseas Travel Protection - Gold | Baggage Loss cover up to USD 500 Trip Cancellation cover up to USD 500 Personal Liability cover up to USD 100,000 |
New India Assurance Overseas Travel Ease | Medical Expenses coverage up to USD 100,000 Baggage Loss coverage up to USD 600 Personal Liability coverage up to USD 50,000 |
Oriental Business and Holiday - Gold Plan A | Trip Cancellation cover up to USD 500 Trip Delay cover up to USD 200 Trip Curtailment cover up to USD 500 |
Oriental Business and Holiday - Gold Plan B | Baggage loss cover up to USD 1,000 Personal Accident cover up to USD 30,000 Personal Liability cover up to USD 200,000 Loss of international driving licence up to USD 250 |
**Disclaimer: The list of insurers mentioned are arranged according to the alphabetical order of the names of insurers respectively. For more details on the features, benefits offered terms and conditions, please read the sales brochure carefully before concluding a sale. Policybazaar does not endorse, rate or recommend any particular insurer or insurance product offered by any insurer. The list of plans listed here comprise of insurance products offered by all the insurance partners of Policybazaar. For complete list of insurers in India refer to the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India website www.irdai.gov.in
Also sometimes called Europe travel insurance, it stands valid across all 26 Schengen countries and covers unforeseen medical emergencies, including sickness, accidents and medical repatriation.
Moreover, anyone can easily buy the best travel insurance for Schengen visa online. It is advisable to compare different travel insurance plans to choose the best Schengen travel insurance for your trip. You can make these comparisons online on Policybazaar.com and buy them within minutes. What’s more, most people do not need to undergo a medical check-up before buying a Schengen travel insurance policy.
Schengen travel insurance comes with a variety of coverage to ease your trip to the Schengen countries. Take a look at the covers that every best travel insurance for Schengen visa offers:
Anyone can get ill or injured while travelling abroad. Being hospitalised in a Schengen country can burn a hole in your pocket and upset your trip budget. This is where emergency medical expenses cover comes to the rescue. It covers the cost of any hospitalisation expenses incurred during your trip to Schengen countries. It covers your medical expenses incurred due to sickness as well as accidents.
Sometimes, accidents can have drastic and life-long consequences. A major accident during your Schengen trip can lead to permanent total disability or death. Such situations will have a direct financial impact on your family. However, with personal accident cover, your travel insurer will provide compensation to you or your family in case an accident leads to permanent disability or accidental death.
Any medical illness or accident can lead to the death of an individual. In case any injury or illness during your Schengen trip leads to death, the medical repatriation cover will come into play. This cover will put the responsibility of transporting the mortal remains of the body to your family in India on your travel insurer. The expenses incurred in repatriating the body will also be borne by the travel insurer.
During your stay in a Schengen country, there can be an instance where you may lose your passport. Losing your passport while in a foreign country can be a dangerous situation. However, if you have a loss of passport cover under your Schengen travel insurance policy, you don’t have to worry about anything. As soon as you realise that your passport is missing, contact your travel insurer as they will help you to obtain a duplicate copy of your passport or apply for a new passport. Your insurer will also cover the expenses incurred on obtaining the duplicate or new passport.
When you travel to a Schengen country through an airline, you need to check in your luggage with the airline staff before boarding the flight and collect it after arriving at your destination. Sometimes, your check-in baggage may not arrive at the conveyor belt at the destination airport and when contacted, your airline will tell you that it has been delayed. In such a situation, you may have to incur additional expenses on necessary items, such as medicines, clothes, toiletries, etc. until your baggage finally arrives. But if you have a delay in check-in baggage cover, your insurer will reimburse the expenses incurred on these crucial items if your check-in baggage is delayed for more than a specified number of hours.
Sometimes, there can be a situation where your check-in baggage may be misplaced by the airline with which you flew to the Schengen area. The airline staff will be unable to locate your check-in baggage at all. In this scenario, the loss of check-in baggage cover will be useful. It will enable your travel insurer to compensate for the monetary losses incurred due to the loss of your check-in baggage.
During your trip to the Schengen area, there is a possibility of you getting sick. You may have to get hospitalised and in some cases, the hospitalisation may be required for a long time. In case you are hospitalised in a Schengen country for a long period of time, one of your immediate family members can come to visit you with the help of a compassionate visit cover. This cover enables the family member of the traveller to visit him/ her in the Schengen country and the travel insurance company covers resultant expenses.
While travelling in a Schengen country, you may come across a situation where you may have misplaced your wallet or may get robbed. You may be left with no money and no means of arranging cash. In this case, the emergency financial assistance cover will come to your rescue. With this cover, your insurer will arrange emergency cash for you and help you to arrange finances for the rest of your trip.
The dream of visiting Europe will remain incomplete unless you visit the Schengen area. But to visit the Schengen area, you need to obtain a valid Schengen visa before commencing your trip. Do remember to buy the best Schengen travel insurance policy to financially secure your trip as well as to prevent your Schengen visa application from getting rejected. Also, make sure that your Schengen travel insurance policy fulfils the Schengen visa insurance requirements and provides all the necessary coverage.
STANDARD TERMS AND CONDITIONS APPLY. For more details on risk factors, terms, and conditions, please read the sales brochure carefully before concluding a sale.
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*Price shown is for a 30 day trip to Thailand with 1 lakh dollar coverage for an adult of age 25 years