Resources | WorldTrips

How To Determine Your Travel Insurance Deductible

Written by Kelli Vorndran | April 28, 2015

You've been looking forward to your trip abroad for months and now you're finalizing the logistical details — everything from where you're going to stay to what types of transportation you're going to use.

As your departure date nears, you've been thinking about buying travel medical insurance for your trip. Perhaps you've heard stories about American travelers who suffered a medical emergency while traveling abroad. Now you're interested in a travel medical policy but you're uncertain about details like how to choose a deductible.

Here are some helpful tips for choosing your travel coverage abroad, including how to determine a deductible that's right for your situation.

Think About Your Coverage Needs

Start your decision-making process by determining whether your current health insurance will cover you abroad. You might have some degree of international coverage, but there might be limitations involving your location and the type of medical care you can receive.

Travel medical coverage from Atlas Travel Insurance provides you with essential services like doctor and hospital referrals and translation assistance while you're being treated. Another major benefit involves emergency travel arrangements in the event of a medical emergency, natural disaster, or political evacuation.

In determining your specific coverage needs, think about whether you'll be participating in adventure sports. Many travelers don't realize that activities like snowboarding or scuba diving can be excluded from travel medical insurance policies. Atlas International policies cover eligible injuries and illnesses suffered from sports and adventure activities at no additional cost.

How to Determine Your Deductible

Your deductible will help determine how much you pay in the event of a covered medical expense. After you buy travel medical coverage, your insurance provider will pay eligible expenses after you have met your deductible amount. For instance, if you have a $100 deductible, you would pay the first $100 of a covered expense and your provider would pick up the cost after that.

With Atlas Travel Insurance, you choose a deductible of $0; $100; $250; $1,000 or $2,500 for a policy that will cover you abroad over a designated time period.

The deductible you choose will affect the cost of your policy—with lower-deductible policies costing more than higher-deductible policies—so you need to think about your ability to pay a deductible in choosing which deductible is right for you. You can save money on the cost of a policy by choosing a $1,000 or $2,500 deductible, but will you be able to pay that larger amount out of pocket in the event of a travel emergency?

Get a free quote today to see just how affordable an Atlas Travel Insurance policy really is or read our Atlas Travel Health Insurance Guide for a step-by-step explanation of how to buy a policy and which insurance documents you'll need to take with you on your trip.

If you've still got questions about Atlas Travel Insurance, visit our FAQ page or call our World Service Center at 1-800-605-2282 for 24/7 assistance.