New Zealand Travel Insurance

When travelling internationally you would be crazy not to take out appropriate travel insurance in case something happens. For New Zealand there are some particular reasons why you should take out a travel insurance policy:

If you are just looking for good travel insurance at a good price then check these two companies - it's who we use! See our comparison chart >>

Downunder Insurance

World Nomads Insurance

Below are some things to think about when choosing your insurance:

Medical Insurance

If you become ill during your trip travel insurance will help pay for your doctors bills, medication and hospital etc if needed. Going to the doctor as a traveller will cost you between $50-90 with full priced medication on top of that. In more serious cases insurance will usually pay for you to be flown home or pay for your treatment in hospital. If you are a UK citizen there is an agreement between governments to help in an emergency but this is more A & E and should not be expected in place of medial insurance.

ALWAYS keep receipts and read your policy about claiming as there may be certain documents you need such as doctors notes.

Extreme Sports

New Zealand is the adrenaline capital of the world and as such you will find yourself doing some crazy things while you’re over there. Make sure that your insurance covers you for the activities you are want to do. Also if you are going for the ski season make sure that your policy covers this.

Working Holidays

Make sure that your policy covers you while you are working in New Zealand. Usually the employer will have insurance but if not your insurance company should cover you.

Personal Belongings

The first thing to say is when you go travelling doesn’t take anything you wouldn’t miss. So don’t take the family heirlooms or anything super flashy unless it can be easily replaced. If you are taking expensive equipment make sure that your policy covers these individual items and that the single item claim is large enough to get another one. If your policy does not cover your expensive items seek alternative insurance or be very careful! Before you go make an inventory of the main items you have and approx prices then if something happens your claims will be made a lot easier. Remember that when you make a claim you will usually need evidence of purchase such as a receipt so make sure you have this to hand before setting off. Many policies will not cover you if you leave items unattended so either keep them with you or use the security lockers in hostels.


Tours and Travel Bookings

If you have tours and travel bookings organised your insurance should cover you in case of cancellation or missed departure. Once again make sure you have evidence of bookings and if delayed have documents to prove it.


Important Documents

Make duplicate photocopies of all your important documents such as passport and travel tickets. Leave one set at home and take another with you but keep it separate from your originals!

Other Countries

If you are travelling to New Zealand as part of a round the world trip then make sure that all the countries you will be visiting are covered by your policy. If you aren’t going to America then you should be able to save some money on your policy.

Policy Start date

Don’t leave buying your insurance too late. Even though your cover may start from the day you leave if something stops you from being able to go your policy should cover you if you have taken it out before it happened. When you sign up for a policy you state that you are fit and able to go on the trip. If a week before you leave you become really ill your insurance should cover you as you did not know this was going to happen when you signed up. If you decide to buy your insurance the day before you leave then if something happens you will foot the bill.

The Policy

It’s essential that you thoroughly read and understand your policy before you buy and before you go. There’s no point paying out for insurance that doesn’t end up really covering you or losing valid claims because you did not do what was required by the policy.

Insurance Companies

Below are insurance companies which have been used by people on the forum. If you do decide to purchase a policy off one of these companies please come back and click through on the links when purchasing as we will then receive a commission to help fund Backpacker Board at no extra cost to you.

Downunder Travel Insurance
World Nomads Travel Insurance

Below we compare the two companies:

Some Points To Note:
- these policies were correct at time of writing. Please see respective website for details and updates
- Policies are in GBP£ for comparison purposes. Exchange rates may differ.
- Policy prices may be different for travellers from different countries

	Downunder Insurance	World Nomads Insurance
Policy for travellers from	UK, NZ and AUS	All Countries
NZ Cover 12 Months	£179 (online only)	£200
Policy Name	Backpacker Policy	Worldwide exc USA, Canada & Japan
Medical Cover	£2,000,000	£2,040,587
Personal Belongings (the total value of belongings covered)	£1000	£1020
Personal Item Limit (Max value of each item)	£100	£102
Cancellation Cover (How much covered for if you have to cancel your trip)	£1000	£4081
Missed Departure	£100	-
Adventure Activities Covered	click here for details	click here for details
Covered Whilst Working	Yes (excluding manual labour above ground or using heavy machinery)	Yes
Excesses (If you make a claim you will have to pay this amount)
Medical Claims	£75	£40.80
Belongings Claims	£50	£40.80
Excess Waiver (Extra cost on policy so you dont pay any excesses when claiming)	£18.90 (10%)
Extra Features of Policy/Company	NZ Policy covers you for 25% of your time in another country around the world	Update and extend policy online whilst still travelling
More Details	Click here	Click here