travel insurance uk

 cheap travel insurance

UK travel insurance

Travel Insurance

UK Travel Insurance Information
travel insurance for ski direct

Our UK travel insurance quotes

Our UK travel insurance policies meet the needs of people who need insurance while travelling. We offer cheap travel insurance quotes for single trips, cheap annual family travel insurance, long stay travel insurance, student travel insurance, ski travel insurance and travel insurance for the elderly over 65, over 70 or over 75. As we offer so many different contracts, even though some are shown on our site, we suggest you contact us so we can discuss your needs. Our experienced staff are always willing to help: call 0870 0345503.

Unlike many UK insurance firms, we provide travel insurance on an 'advised basis'. That is we will review your needs and recommend the best policy we can that meets them - saving you the trouble of ploughing through small print etc. You can thus rest assured that we will recommend policies that provide good cover. However of necessity you must contact us so we can give you our advice. 

We now offer online travel insurance quotes for any age - annual up to age 85

UK residents will find our cheap single trip travel insurance is designed for those travellers who only want cover for a single trip or journey. The trip could be a weekend in Paris or a month in America. We offer special family rates with, in many cases children travelling free. 

Our annual travel insurance quotes cover UK people and families who travel frequently. Normally at least 3 trips a year would be the minimum before an annual travel insurance policy is suitable. Premiums depend on whether ski cover is needed, if you can restrict cover to Europe only, worldwide, America or Canada and if you need baggage cover.

Long stay travel insurance meets the requirements of people who are intending to travel for long periods - typically in excess of a month. Long stay policies are normally rated on a monthly basis rather than on a daily or weekly basis. Please note that this form of insurance is different from.

UK travel insurance for students

Student Travel Insurance. Students normally need only a minimum of cover - mainly medical insurance, with some small amount of baggage cover. Students may, however, need cover for light work and possibly dangerous sports - and we have some specialist policies available.

Our ski travel insurance policy meets the requirements of travellers who go ski ing during their trips. We offer both a single trip ski policy and, of course, the option of covering ski and other winter sports on our annual policies. We recommend, if you need a ski travel insurance policy to contact us and let us know which forms of winter sports you will be doing as cover e.g. off piste varies between insurers.

UK travel insurance for over 65's

Travel insurance for the elderly is becoming expensive. Once you are an OAP over 65, over 70 or 0ver 75 the number of travel insurance policies available decreases. However we have special travel insurance policies available for the elderly, senior citizen or OAP. We can offer annual travel insurance for over 65 (maximum age 80). You will be pleased to know that even if you have any medical or health conditions we may be able to accept you at normal terms.

Single trip insurance up to age 81.

Annual travel insurance for over 65s

Business travel insurance for UK businesses

We also offer business travel  insurance to cover sales representatives and other staff members. Business travel insurance policies can attract a lower insurance premium tax rate than normal policies depending on the type of business and travel destinations. To quote for business travel insurance we will need a rough idea of the number of staff, and the destinations they go to.

Travel insurance policies have exclusions and limitations of cover - details will be provided in the 'Key Facts' document we send you.

Our travel insurance quote may not be the cheapest travel insurance available - but the cheapest is not always the best. The best travel insurance policy is the one that looks after you the best when you need to make a claim - not the cheapest when you take out the policy and we are confident that should you need to make a claim you will not be disappointed.

You are reminded that you must disclose all material facts when applying for any travel insurance policies. Examples of material facts for travel insurance are: medical conditions of all travellers and close relatives, hazardous or dangerous sports or other activities. If you are in doubt if a fact is material you should advise us (we can offer policies for people with medical conditions).

travel insurance: business single trip annual multi trip


UK Insurance: B Portwood Home Page

Covers that a  travel insurance policy might contain
Section Description Typical Value Comments
Cancellation Pays out the amount that a travel agent might retain should you have to cancel your trip close to the departure date £1,000 - £5,000 per person
Usually has an excess
Not every reason is covered - usually death, illness, redundancy, damage to property
Curtailment Pays out if you have to cut your trip short Same as cancellation
Usually in the same section as cancellation
Usually the same excess
Usually the same reasons
Delay Extra costs should your departure be delayed from the airport due to many reasons £20 after 12 hrs - £10.00 after each 12 hours thereafter to £100
No excess.
Designed to pay the extra costs for food etc whilst waiting for the flight to leave.
Abandonment pays out if you decide to abandon your holiday after been stuck in the airport due to a delayed departure. £1,000 - £5,000 per person
Usually has an excess.
Policy limits same as cancellation
Medical Expenses Pays out or reimburses hospital or medical expenses occurred abroad £2,000,000 - £10,000,000
Usually has an excess.
The excess may be deleted if the cost of treatment is reduced using an E111 (by the way a new E111 came out recently - is yours up to date?)
An E111 is no substitute for medical expenses insurance under a travel insurance policy
May exclude dangerous activities
Personal Accident Pays out  a fixed amount if the person is injured or dies due to an accident on the holiday £10,000 - £25,000
No excess
Age Limits will apply for children/ old people
Excluded for dangerous activities and maybe under influence of drugs/ alcohol
Personal Liability Pays out for claims made against travellers whilst on holiday for their actions £2,000,000 - £5,000,000
Probably has an excess - 
Excess may be increased for damage to rented accommodation
Will exclude dangerous activities, business or professional activities
Legal Expenses Will cover the cost of making a claim against someone who caused injury or death to the family on holiday. £10,000 - £50,000
An excess may apply
Many policies will NOT cover claims against tour operators/ travel agents
Missed Departure Covers the additional costs for the family to get to their destination if they miss their flight, £1,000 - £5,000
Usually specific reasons apply e.g.
Failure of public transport
Breakdown of vehicle - provided serviced and sensible time given to get to airport
Personal Possessions Covers the baggage and possessions taken on the trip £1,250 - £3,000
An excess will apply
See below for additional comments
Probably more information is needed about personal possessions cover and ignorance is found than any other section of a family holiday travel insurance policy.
Cover is NOT 'New For Old' - a deduction will in most cases be made for wear and tear
There will be a LOW level of cover for Valuables (typically £100 - £200) and for any SINGLE article limit
We thus usually recommend that expensive items such as valuables be insured under a house contents policy under the all-risks section.
Theft of unattended articles is often excluded - unless force is used to break into a room - so be vigilant at airports.
Many policies require notification to the police within 24 hours of discovery of loss - even if there is no chance of recovery.
Delayed Baggage Tthe cost of emergency purchases if your baggage ends up at a different location £100 - £200
Usually no excess
Please remember to keep receipts
Personal Money Covers loss of money - including travellers cheques £250 - £1000
Cash is usually covered to only half the money sum insured.
An excess usually applies
Passport Costs incurred in obtaining a replacement passport if the original one is stolen £200 - £500
we suggest you take a photocopy!
Hospital Benefit A small daily allowance if you are hospitalised abroad £10 per day to £1,000
Called 'Lucosade Money' by one agent!
Mugging A fixed amount if you are unfortunate to be mugged (robbery with violence) £100.00
Hijack Pays a daily amount if your plane is hijacked! £50 per day
Catastrophe An amount to cover relocation if your accommodation is rendered uninhabitable
Domestic Pets Pays additional costs if your return is delayed, to cover cattery/ boarding expenses

Ski travel insurance Cover  

Benefit Comments on benefits paid 
Sports Equipment Pays an amount if your own equipment is stolen
Hired Equipment Pays an amount to cover hired equipment
Piste Closure Pays a daily amount if the piste is closed - to get you to another piste
Avalanche Pays a daily amount if access to the runs are closed due to avalanche

You should always be aware of which winter sports the policy covers! Many policies that are not specialist winter sports policies may not cover some of the more dangerous activities such as : off-piste, tobogganing, sledding, solo skiing, ski jumping, ice skating, competitions, snowboarding, heli ski-ing. Always tell us, or your broker your specific demands and needs for winter sports. You will be glad you did should you need to claim on your policy

B. Portwood & Co Ltd are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority for the arrangement and administration of non-investment insurance contracts - you may check this by looking at their website http://www.fsa.gov.uk/firmcheckservice/index.html

If you are a UK resident, please call us on 0870 0345502 for advice for a range of cheap  travel insurance policies covering single trip insurance, annual or multi trip insurance and backpacker insurance. We will make a personal recommendation for your demands and needs - or complete the contact form.

portfolio insurance for landlords i.e. those who have several properties - substantial discounts are available