HDFC ERGO Travel Insurance

HDFC ERGO General Insurance Company is a leading general insurance company in India. It offers various types of individual as well as commercial general insurance products. Travel insurance policies offered by HDFC ERGO come in different types. These policies cover travel related contingencies and compensate against the financial loss faced.

The plans cover individuals as well as their families. Travel insurance plans offered by HDFC ERGO cover trips taken across all the countries of the world. Different plans are available for different destinations. Moreover, trips taken by students for higher education are also covered under HDFC ERGO travel insurance plans.

Types of HDFC Ergo Travel Insurance

Three types of travel insurance plans are offered by HDFC ERGO. These plans are as follows –

• Individual travel insurance plan

This plan covers a single individual travelling to an international location for business or leisure. The plan has comprehensive coverage features. The salient features of the plan are as follows –

• The plan is offered for single trips taken in a year and also for frequent trips taken during a year. Thus, there are two plan types- single trip plans and annual multi trip plans.
• Under single trip plans, there are two plans. One plan covers trips taken anywhere in the world and another covers trips taken specifically in Asia (excluding Japan)
• International single trip plans come in five variants. The variants are Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum and Titanium. The sum insured and coverage features vary across the plan variants. The sum insured under Bronze Plan is USD 30, 000, under Silver is USD 50, 000, under Gold is USD 100, 000, under Platinum is USD 200, 000 and under Titanium is USD 500, 000. Thus, policyholders can choose any variant as oer their affordability and coverage requirements.
• Under Asia Plan, only Bronze and Silver variants are available where the sum insured levels are USD 15, 000 and USD 30, 000 respectively.
• Annual multi trip plans have two variants of Gold and Platinum. The sum insured levels under these variants are USD 250, 000 and USD 500, 000 respectively.
• The eligibility age for single trip plans is 6 months to 70 years while for annual multi trip plans is 18 years to 70 years.
• The coverage features under the plan include emergency medical expenses, accidental death or permanent disablement while travelling in a common carrier, daily cash allowance in case of hospitalisation, emergency dental treatments, loss of baggage and personal documents, medical evacuation, repatriation, loss or delay of checked-in baggage, accidental death, permanent disablement, personal liability, financial emergency assistance, delay of flight, hijack distress allowance and contingency travel benefits.
• The availability of coverage features depend on the plan variant which the policyholder selects

Deductible are also applicable in many coverage features. Deductible are those limits, up to which, coverage is not available under the plan. Only when the claim exceeds the deductible limit is the claim paid. Moreover, the policyholder has to bear the claims up to the deductible limit.

• The applicable deductibles are as follows –

Coverage features	Applicable deductible limits
Emergency medical expenses	USD 100. For Asia plans – USD 50
Hospital cash allowance	Single trip – Titanium and Gold – 1 day Platinum – 3 days Silver and Bronze – 4 days Multi trip plans – 1 day
Emergency dental treatments	USD 150
Loss of baggage and personal documents	USD 30
Loss of checked-in baggage	50% per item up to a maximum of 10% of sum insured
Delay of checked in baggage	12 hours
Personal liability	Single trip – Platinum and Gold – USD200 Silver and Bronze – USD 150 Annual multi trip – USD 200 Asia Plan – USD 200
Hijack distress allowance	1 day
Flight delay	6 hours

• Family travel insurance plan

This travel insurance policy covers the whole family under one plan. Family includes spouse and dependent children. Coverage is allowed under family floater basis wherein the insured members share the cover jointly as well as independently. Policyholder can buy a family floater policy up to the age of 60 years. Similarly, spouse can also be covered till up to 60 years of age. For dependent children, the eligibility states that only two children can be covered under the plan.

Allowed age for covering children is from 3 months to up to 21 years. Here are the coverage features under the family floater cover –

Coverage benefits	Extent of cover	Applicable deductibles
Emergency medical expenses	USD 50, 000	USD 100
Hospital cash allowance	USD 15 per day up to a maximum of USD 150	4 days
Emergency dental treatments	USD 200	USD 75
Loss of baggage and personal documents	USD 200	USD 20
Medical evacuation and repatriation	Included in the emergency medical expenses coverage of USD 50, 000	Not applicable
Loss of checked-in baggage	USD 400	50% for each item up to a maximum of 10% of sum insured
Delay of checked-in baggage	USD 100	12 hours
Accidental death	USD 10, 000	Not applicable
Permanent disablement	USD 10, 000	Not applicable
Personal liability	USD 10, 000	USD 200
Hijack distress allowance	USD 75 per day up to a maximum of USD 525	1 day

The deductibles represent the level up to which the travel insurance plan does not pay any claim. Only if the loss exceeds the deductible does the plan pay for the incurred expenses.

Besides the deductibles, if the age of the insured member is 61 years to 70 years, some sub-limits would also be applicable on the coverage benefits. These sub-limits are as follows –

Coverage benefits	Applicable sub-limits
Hospital room and boarding expenses under medical expenses	Up to USD 1550 per day up to a maximum of 35 days
ICU, ICCU and ITU admission	Up to USD 3500 per day up to a maximum of 7 days
Surgical treatments	Up to USD 12, 000
Anaesthetic services	Up to 25% of the cost of surgical treatments
Physician’s fees	Up to USD 80 per visit for a maximum of 12 visits
Diagnostic and pre admission testing	Up to USD 750
Ambulance services	Up to USD 500

These sub-limits are applicable only for medical expenses since the chances of facing medical emergencies increase when the insured member is of a higher age.

• Student Travel Insurance Suraksha

This is a specialised travel insurance plan meant for students who are going abroad for higher education. Given the nature of the plan, the coverage benefits of the plan are unique and suitable for students travelling internationally for study-related purposes. In international countries, students face high financial risks as the education is expensive and so are the medical treatments. In case of any eventuality if the education suffers or if the individual seeks medical attention, the associated expenses would be very high and cause a financial distress. A student travel plan, therefore, is quite important and essential to protect against any financial losses faced when studying abroad.

Students aged 16 years to 35 years can buy this plan if they are going to another country for their higher studies. The student, however, should be of an Indian origin to be eligible for the coverage. No pre-entrance medical check-ups are required to buy the cover as the cover is available easily to all students who fall in the prescribed age bracket. Coverage is available from a minimum period of 30 days to a maximum period of 2 years. Optional coverage benefits are also available which enhance the scope of coverage of the plan. The salient features of the student travel plan are as follows –

• There are five variants of the plan – Standard, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum
• Standard cover is the most basic cover which provides limited coverage benefits.
• The sum insured available at various levels is USD 50, 000 for Bronze, USD 100, 000 for Silver, USD 250, 000 for Gold and USD 500, 000 for Platinum
• Additional coverage benefits which are available include coverage for pregnancy related expenses incurred on an inpatient basis, treatments of metal and nervous disorders which include alcohol addiction and drug abuse and childcare benefits
• There are deductible applicable in certain coverage features. Claims up to the specified deductibles are not paid under the plan. Any exceeding claim is paid which is higher than the deductible limit
• Compassionate visit coverage is allowed under the plan. Under this cover, the return airfare of a family member is covered if the insured student faces a medical emergency while studying abroad
• Coverage for study interruption is also allowed wherein if the study is interrupted due to unforeseen eventualities, the policy pays for the financial loss incurred
• Sponsor protection cover is allowed under most of the variants of the plan. This cover pays a benefit in case the sponsor of the student faces any contingency
• Bail bond coverage is also available under the plan for up to USD 5000

Besides these student oriented coverage features, the student travel plan offered by HDFC ERGO also offers other coverage benefit like coverage for medical expenses, accidental death and disablement, loss of passport, dental treatments, medical evacuation and repatriation, loss or delay of checked-in baggage, etc. Premiums, on the other hand, are very affordable. They start as low as Rs.683.

HDFC Ergo Travel Insurance Features and Benefits

HDFC Ergo’s travel insurance policies have various features and benefits which make the policies fit for all. Here are some of the features and benefits of HDFC Ergo’s travel insurance plans –

• There are a wide range of travel insurance plans to choose from. Individuals can choose any plan based on their requirements. There are individual plans, family floater plans, student travel plans and Asia travel plans.
• All geographical locations are covered by the travel insurance plans offered by HDFC Ergo General Insurance Company
• Claim assistance from the company is available round the clock. Policyholders can call the helpline number of the company to raise their claims and get quick claim settlements
• HDFC Ergo has been given ‘iAAA’ rating by ICRA which shows that the company’s products are good and the services are efficient
• The plans can be bought online by providing the necessary details of travel. Minimal paperwork is required by the company to offer its plans to individuals. The policies are, thus, issued instantly.
• There are specific policies which cover USA and Canada and policies which cover all locations except USA and Canada. Thus, individuals can choose their coverage location and pay the relevant premiums.

HDFC Ergo Travel Insurance Policy Coverage

Common coverage benefits under all the three policies offered by HDFC Ergo include the following –

• Emergency medical expenses – under this head, if the insured suffers any medical contingency and is hospitalised for more than 24 hours, the related medical expenses would be covered.
• Personal accident cover – this cover covers accidental deaths and permanent disablements either in a common carrier or during the trip
• Baggage coverage – under this cover, loss of checked-in baggage, delay of checked-in baggage and loss of personal baggage and documents are covered
• Emergency dental treatments – dental treatments which are required due to an accident are covered under this head
• Medical evacuation and repatriation – evacuation of repatriation on medical grounds are covered
• Personal liability – if the insured causes physical harm to any third party or damages third party property, he might face a financial liability. This liability is covered under the plan
• Hijack allowance – an allowance is allowed if the carrier is hijacked for more than 24 hours.
• Financial emergency assistance – cash advances are also allowed in case of theft or any financial emergency faced when travelling abroad
• Hospital cash benefit – a daily cash benefit is paid if the insured is hospitalised for 24 hours or more.

HDFC Ergo Travel Insurance Exclusions

There are some instances which are excluded from the coverage of travel insurance plans. They are as follows –

• Pre-existing illnesses
• Traveling against the advice of a physician
• Travelling for availing medical treatments
• Suicide or attempted suicide
• War, terrorism or related perils
• Participation in hazardous activities
• Criminal activities
• Pregnancy related expenses unless they are specifically covered as an optional cover

HDFC Ergo Travel Insurance Claim Process

For making a claim under the travel insurance policy issued by HDFC ERGO, policyholders are required to follow these steps –

• Find the networked hospitals of the company for medical emergencies. Avail treatments at these hospitals for cashless claim settlement
• For other claims, contact the company’s international service provider at +800 08250825 from abroad or at 01204507250 from India
• The company’s claim service representative would help the policyholder with the claim form and the documents required
• The form should be completed and submitted along with the important documents
• The documents can be mailed at processing@hdfcergo.com or faxed to +91-120-6691600 within 30 days of loss

The claim would be assessed and settled by the company at the earliest.