Health Insurance Services

For a while it seems like all you will be doing is shelling out money to get your new life established – and at times it can seem a little bit scary. But don’t panic, there will come a time when it will be all done and dusted and you will be well settled into the routine and delights of your brand new life as an expatriate.

In the meantime, there is another financial outlay that you will need to consider and one that should not be overlooked – and that’s getting the essential insurances in place. You will want home and contents cover, you will need health insurance, and you will also need to think about getting travel insurance. The good news is that we have some top tips about how to get cheaper expat travel insurance to save you just a little bit of cash – after all, any money saved is better in your pocket than in an insurance company’s coffers isn’t it!

Getting travel insurance in place is quite possibly going to be one of the absolute last things you have in mind when planning and starting your new life abroad. You may well purchase basic cover with your flight tickets to ensure your bags end up in the right place and to give you that little bit of peace of mind when you fly, but actually getting longer term, more comprehensive cover in place will be down towards the bottom of your list along with finding the nearest recycling centre abroad or perhaps making a dentist appointment!

However, as an expat it’s true that you will more than likely make the very most of your new destination and location and engage in much more travel as a result. It’s one of the things expats love about living abroad, the fact that they can so easily take in a whole new set of destinations. For example, when I lived in Germany I visited so many other mainland European nations and drove or took a short plane ride to them – easy and cheap. When I lived in Cyprus I took in Greece, Turkey and Egypt…all practically on my doorstep. So no matter where you go abroad to live, you will begin to get the travel bug and want to explore nearby nations and cities too. As a result, you need a comprehensive expat travel insurance policy.

Some expatriates are given a level of cover if they open an offshore bank account – one of the offshore banking options for expats from the NatWest International Personal Banking division includes travel insurance for example. Otherwise your health insurance company may throw in travel cover for free…but if neither of these alternatives is an option for you, here’s how to get cheaper expat travel insurance…

Firstly shop around – different companies back home and now where you’re living abroad will offer different levels of cover to you, with optional or additional extras and incentives for you to sign up to their policy. Look at the level of cover you need and want and avoid those companies who are willing to throw in the likes of winter sports coverage if you’re allergic to snow! Chances are they are not ‘throwing’ the cover in for free, it will be included in the basic premium they charge.

Next up we suggest you get online, some of the cheapest insurers are online and cut their overheads massively by exclusively maintaining a presence on the Internet. It may not seem fair, but often these companies are just so much more competitive than more traditional bricks and mortar insurers. Another top tip is to see if a company will match or beat other quotes – so if you find a quote you like but have a preferred insurer, see if that insurer will match or beat the preferential quote! If you don’t ask, you don’t get. Also read the small print of any policy documents and if there are levels of travel insurance cover in there that you simply don’t require, ask whether removing that cover will bring the price of the insurance down.

If you take out a family package or an annual package this can reduce costs, and finally, think about upping any excess – if you do this usually brings the insurance costs down. Although, do bear in mind that if in the unfortunate event you do have to make a claim, you will then have to wear that excess!