The nation spends around £670 million a year on travel insurance, but InsureandGo estimates that we could save up to a staggering £275 million in premiums by shopping around for the most competitive cover and avoid travel agents and tour operators who have among the highest premiums.
New research commissioned by InsureandGo reveals that the average annual trip premium is now around £123.03, but this obviously varies depending on where you are travelling to. For example, if travelling just to the EU, the average annual premium is £103.19, but this rises to £133.84 for worldwide annual cover and £141.28 if your policy also includes travel to America. However, the corresponding figures for the 25% most competitive insurers, are £61.12, £78.48 and £79.34 respectively.
Naturally, the savings are slightly less for single trip cover but still significant. InsureandGo’s findings reveal that the average single trip premium is now around £54.84, but £33.03 from the 25% most competitive insurers.
InsureandGo estimates that those purchasing annual travel insurance could collectively save around £181 million a year through purchasing cover from the 25% most competitive. The corresponding figure for the single trip market is around £94 million.
Perry Wilson, Director at InsureandGo, says: “The difference in travel insurance premiums between the most expensive and the most competitive is huge so it really pays to shop around for cover. One way of avoiding paying over the odds for your travel insurance is to not purchase cover from travel agents and tour operators as our research shows they can be double the price of the most competitive insurers.”
Travel insurance: News update: May 2007
