TRAVEL INSURANCE FAQs

If you go to a country that the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) advises against travelling to, and your reason for going isn't essential, your insurance won't cover claims related to that reason.

However, if you travel for essential reasons, your policy will provide full coverage as long as there are no other government restrictions prohibiting travel.

Keep in mind that if the FCDO advises against all travel to a specific country, we cannot offer any insurance coverage for that destination.

Yes, the Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) is not a replacement for travel insurance – it works alongside it. While a GHIC provides some medical coverage, it doesn’t cover all costs, such as repatriation, lost baggage or cancellations. So, you need travel insurance for full coverage when travelling to countries within the European Union.

You can cancel your policy within 14 days of either the date of purchase of the policy or the date of receiving your policy documents, whichever is latest.

You'll receive a full refund except in the following circumstances:

• Your trip has commenced
• You have made or intend to make a claim. No refund will be given or we'll recover what has been paid to you to settle the claim before refunding the premium paid.

After the 14 day cooling-off period you may cancel your policy at any time by contacting us, but the premium will not be refunded.

Discretion may be exercised in exceptional circumstances to provide a refund for unused cover. For example, a bereavement or an unexpected change to your policy that results in cover being unable to continue.

Yes, Saga is listed on the Money Helper Travel Insurance Directory as a company that may be able to help if you have a serious medical condition.

You can find out more about this service and view the full directory by visiting the Travel Adviser Directory.

If you're likely to travel more than once a year, an annual multi-trip policy may be more cost-effective than taking out a separate policy for each trip.

The advantage of annual multi-trip travel insurance is that cancellation cover is already in place should you want to go on a last-minute holiday or city break.

If you only take the occasional trip, whether in the UK or overseas, a single-trip policy may be more suitable. Our single-trip travel insurance policies cover cancellations, medical expenses, and more for trips up to 180 days in length.

With a Saga Travel Insurance policy, cancellation cover starts from the date you take out the policy or book the trip.

In the unfortunate event that you have to cancel your holiday, our policies offer cancellation cover which you can tailor from up to £2,500 to £20,000. Maintaining continuous cover with an annual policy could give you the freedom to book last minute trips.

At Saga we offer comprehensive cover to suit your needs when travelling. To enable us to do this we require details of your medical health so that we can assess whether we can offer insurance to suit your needs.

If you're a Saga Travel Insurance policyholder and you need to make changes to your policy, you can contact us on 0800 056 9200.

Opening hours

• Monday to Friday: 8:30am-6:00pm
• Saturday: 8:30am-5:00pm
• Sunday: CLOSED

If you need to get in touch with us for any other reason, please visit our contact us page.

Our policy covers over 40 different activities. See our leisure activities page for details.

Policyholders must be aged 50 or over. There is no upper age limit and other travellers added to your policy can be of any age.

With Saga Plus and Saga Standard Travel Insurance you can select from three levels of excess to pay in the event of a claim. Or you can choose to remove the excess.

The three excess levels are:

• £70
• £150
• £250

With Saga Essential Travel Insurance the excess is fixed at £150.

We're able to extend up to 90 days, or 60 days if you're travelling anywhere within USA, Canada, Mexico or any Caribbean Islands.

If you need cover for a longer trip, Saga Plus and Saga Standard single trip policies have a limit of 180 days in Europe and 120 days for the rest of the world.

No, our policy covers money and baggage within the overall price of the policy.

You can opt for our Essential travel insurance for single trips which doesn't include delayed baggage cover.

No, we can offer cover no matter who you book your holiday with.

No, Saga only covers round trips that start in and return to the United Kingdom.

Unfortunately we would not be able to provide you with cover – our policies only cover UK residents who are registered with a UK GP.

Yes, if they are listed on an annual multi-trip policy they can travel independently and still benefit from the same cover as you. This does not apply to single trip policies.

Under 16s must travel with an adult insured under the policy.

Taking out travel insurance before you go abroad is not a legal requirement, although some tour operators may insist that you have evidence of a valid travel insurance policy.

However, it does protect you against medical treatment costs which are much higher than we pay in the UK, as well as providing cancellation cover and other benefits. Not to mention the confidence of knowing you are covered against the unexpected while abroad.

Saga Travel Assistance is a helpline service that helps you sort out all kinds of travel problems before you go and while you are away, from information on the country you are visiting to advice and guidance on how to replace lost or stolen passports, luggage and travel documents.

Yes, it is not compulsory to take out the insurance offered by travel agents or tour operators and you have the right to shop elsewhere. However, they may ask you to prove that you have sufficient cover for the trip in question by asking for your policy number and cover details.