How to pick travel insurance coming from India to the UK?

Gert Svaiko

17.03.23 (updated more than 1 year ago)

4 minute read

Travelling to the UK from India soon? As soon as you’ve booked your flights, it’s a good idea to arrange travel insurance. In fact, this should probably be at the top of your to-do list while planning your trip.

But what should you look for when choosing travel insurance coming from India to the UK? In this guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know. This includes details of whether or not you’ll need medical or health insurance.

And while you’re planning your trip, check out the Wise card as a convenient, transparent way to manage your money between countries. You’ll be able to spend in the local currency in 175 countries, including the UK and India. This could be very useful for covering your travel expenses.

Please see the Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise fees & pricing for the most up-to-date information on pricing and fees.

Do you need travel insurance to travel in the UK?

It’s not mandatory to have travel insurance to visit the UK. However, if you’re applying for a visa for a long stay, you’ll need to check whether you need to provide proof of travel or medical insurance as part of your application and your pre-travel checklist.

While you aren’t required to have travel insurance, it’s strongly recommended. This is because it can cover you for all kinds of unexpected events, such as:

Flight cancellation
Injury, illness or death in the family
Lost baggage or personal belongings
Personal liability
Emergency medical expenses during your trip
Disruption caused by Covid-19.

Without insurance, you’ll need to pay for these costs yourself.

Is travel insurance required for getting a UK visitor visa?

The UK Standard Visitor visa lets you stay in the UK for up to 6 months, for purposes such as tourism, business or a short course of study. You shouldn’t need to provide evidence of travel insurance cover when applying for this visa.¹

But if you plan to enter any Schengen area countries in Europe afterwards, arriving directly from the UK, then you will need to have travel insurance in place.¹

Read more: How to track UK visa application in India

How long before you travel should you buy travel insurance?

Ideally, you should take out travel insurance as soon as you’ve booked your flights. This is because it doesn’t just cover you and your family while you’re away. It also provides cover for unexpected events beforehand, such as cancellations or an injury that prevents you from travelling.

So, it’s best to arrange insurance as soon as possible, rather than waiting until just before you travel.

How to pick travel insurance coming from India to the UK?

Now, what should you be looking for when choosing travel insurance to cover your UK trip? Here are just a few key things to look for:

Coverage - make sure the policy covers travel to the UK. If you’re choosing an annual policy, it’ll need to cover all of the other destinations you plan to visit.
Trip length - if you’re buying a single trip policy, make sure it covers the entire length of your stay in the UK.
Cost - obviously, you don’t want to spend more on your policy than you need to. But it’s important to get the right cover with a trusted provider, so it could be worth paying a little more. There may also be an excess you need to pay in the case of a claim. This can sometimes be higher for policies with lower upfront premiums.

Crucially, you’ll also need to make sure that your chosen policy has full cover for everything you need. For example:

Cancellation - for example, if you’re unable to travel due to illness, injury, test positive for Covid-19, suffer a bereavement or have a home emergency
Medical costs while you’re abroad
Cutting your trip short - for example, if there’s a death in the family or a home emergency so you have to travel home early
Loss, theft or damage to your baggage or belongings
Personal liability - for example, if you accidentally injure someone or damage their belongings
Sports and activities - you may require upgraded or additional cover if you’ll be taking part in riskier activities such as adventure sports.

There are lots of travel insurance providers to choose from, but you may also want to look into packaged bank accounts. These usually have a monthly fee, but include extras such as travel insurance.

How much does medical insurance for Indian visitors to the UK cost?

The cost of travel and medical insurance for the UK can vary, depending on a few key factors. For example, the length of your trip, whether you need any specialist cover or if you have any pre-existing health conditions that you need to declare. So you’ll need to compare providers and get a few different quotes to find the best price and cover for your needs.

But to give you a general idea of the cost, providers such as Tata AIG Insurance offer policies starting from 40.82 INR (roughly £0.41) per day.²

Is Indian health insurance valid in the UK?

If you’re visiting the UK on a Standard Visitor visa for 6 months or less, you won’t be able to access free treatment by the UK’s National Health Service (NHS).³ So, you’ll need to arrange private health insurance which is valid in the UK before you travel.

If you’re staying in the UK for longer than 6 months, you’ll be able to access free NHS services by paying a healthcare surcharge as part of your visa application.⁴ This could also be the case when you’re applying for the UK skilled worker visa and planning to work in the UK for an extended time.

Read more: Moving to the UK from India

After reading this guide, you should have a better idea of what to look for when choosing travel insurance from India to the UK.

We’ve run through all the essentials, including coverage, inclusions, health insurance and when to take out a policy. So, you should be all set to take out a policy and get on with planning the rest of your trip.

Also, don’t forget that when it comes to managing your money between countries, the Wise international debit card is a very useful thing to have in your wallet.

Please see the Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise fees & pricing for the most up-to-date information on pricing and fees.

Sources used:

Sources last checked on date: 07-Mar-2023

*Please see terms of use and product availability for your region or visit Wise fees and pricing for the most up to date pricing and fee information.

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