Age may not have withered you, but if you have chalked up two score and ten years and picked up any one of the common medical condition such as diabetes, asthma, gout or high blood pressure, getting travel insurance to safeguard your journey is not easy.
Insurance companies are wary of pre-existing medical conditions; most policies exclude such afflictions outright, making cover either difficult, expensive or both. Alternatively, insurers "load" the premium or increase the excess - the amount you have to pay before the insurance payout kicks in.
I am 56 and have recently been diagnosed with type-2 diabetes that is controlled by diet, exercise and tablets. What would I be charged for travel insurance? First port of call was Diabetics UK, the national charity which is relaunching its travel insurance package.
Earlier this week it was quoting a premium of £49.84 to cover my two-week summer holiday in Italy this year. Diabetics UK says it is working with a new underwriter to offer lower rates from May 2.
The Retirement Insurance Advisory Service (RIAS), which specialises in insurance for the over-50s, offers cover to diabetics on a case-by-case basis, depending on whether the diabetes is controlled by diet, tablet or insulin dependent.
RIAS says the maximum it charges is double its basic rate for travellers without any pre-existing conditions, but individual underwriting cuts the charge, in my case to £31.63. Saga Group that specialises in providing financial services to the over-50s quoted, £23.54 and website insuresupermarket.com threw up a couple of even cheaper deals from small independent operators 24Dr Travel Insurance and TMSM from Club Direct.
If you take frequent breaks abroad, annual multi-trip cover is surprisingly cheap, although costs start to move up sharply if you include North America. If you are planning a dream holiday in far-flung places lasting more than a month, a certificate of travel from your doctor will help to cut the insurance bill.
And if you value your peace of mind, talk to a specialist broker face to face, the British Insurance Brokers Association has a helpline (0870 9501790) that will put you in touch with a travel insurance expert.
