Re: Has anyone ever claimed under 1Cover, CoverMore or Travel Insurance Direct polici
I'm looking to buy travel insurance for a trip to the US and I'm trying to decide which company to go with.
Price is not a problem because 1Cover and Travel Insurance Direct are approximately the same price and I can get CoverMore for the same price with Student Flight's price match policy.
I have carefully read and understand the PDS of each policy.
What I am trying to find out is which one provides better support if you actually get ill, something is stolen, flights are canceled, etc.
I know that Mondial Assistance handles claims for 1Cover and Travel Insurance Direct, so there service level is likely to be similar.
I have one friend who was with 1Cover and he said they were unhelpful when he injured himself and had to be flown back to Australia for surgery.
However, this website gives Travel Insurance Direct very good reviews and CoverMore bad reviews: Travel Insurance Reviews for Australians
But I am sceptical of some of these reviews, because many are from people who have not claimed under their insurance policy and their reviews are based solely on price (which is not an issue for me).
If anyone has any experiences with claims under these policies, it would be greatly appreciated.
Hi levelnine
It is important to be comfortable with the knowledge that the company you purchase your travel insurance from will deliver when the paw paw hits the fan. 1Cover and Travel Insurance Direct, or TID use the same emergency assistance service company, this being Mondial Assistance, this is not rare as it may be more cost effective to use one emergency assistance provider over another to also keep premiums lower therefore hopefully passing this saving on to the client, or the insured, making it more attractive for your pocket. CoverMore use their sister company, Customer Care Pty Ltd, check it out on their website.
I have marketed AIG, now Chartis travel insurance to travel agents in South Africa for over 5yrs and the concern is really should you plan on climbing remote areas of the Himalaya's or the like. It is important that if you do plan on embarking on a quest to the four corners of the earth, not simultaneously, to approach the shop front person selling you the product and have them initiate the question to the underwriters, Allianz for TID and 1Cover, CoverMore handle this personally, as per their website and policy wording or Mondial Assistance for 1Cover and TID, CoverMore will generally be able to handle this query as they use a sister company for their emergency medical assistance and therefore will be better to answer your query and in far less time, that should you require medical attention in remote area of mountains or forest that the Emergency Assistance company have the proper equipment for your immediate emergency.
Reading the descriptions and explanations on all three websites, CoverMore speak with far more confidence when referring to their Emergency Assistance Provider than the other two and go on to tell you about the various medical staff and medical equipment they have at their disposal to come and rescue you. You will not find "under a binder which means that it can do these things as if it were the insurer." or discover that you need to first send your complaint or dispute through two other entities before it reaches the company who designed the policy, the Underwriters, if at all. I mean the first person is selling you the insurance for some comm. and may not be reliable to ensure your letter gets further than where you first handed it in.
CoverMore have less entities involved in their processes making this easy when you need to dispute your claim being rejected, if at all and importantly, should you call the emergency call center all recordings etc. will be available at short notice for reviewing and eventually processing your claim etc. They are not on different premises.
I would say go with CoverMore. I have not studied their benefits and neither have I compared products so I solely make my disposition on the above. After all if you cannot be assisted Medically what the __? The most important part of your Travel Insurance is your health, the rest is bells and whistles, it's just more things people can think of covering you for in the event of .... I mean some are so bad that of course I do not want to resume domestic duties after a fabulous trip away - so I may accidentally twist my ankle just before boarding my flight on the way home, they want you to injure yourself...
Should you purchase your airline ticket with a local bank issued credit card be it, master, visa, Diners or Amex, have a look at what they offer you as a card holder, Their polices are generally global ones and therefor more secure and depending on what type of person you have been while using the credit card you may find your claims, should you have any, being processed quite efficiently. - TravlinGypsey
