If you’re heading abroad, travel insurance can be a good idea to protect you from financial losses on your trip. A travel insurance policy typically compensates for lost baggage, delayed flights, unforeseen disasters and medical emergencies. It works by purchasing a policy up front, and then if an event occurs, you will be provided compensation. But it's important to keep in mind that if your trip goes smoothly, you won’t get your money back.
Travel insurance can provide security and peace of mind when travelling. Worldcare offers travel insurance for citizens and residents of New Zealand and is easy to purchase online. Read on to learn more about how Worldcare works, types of policies and how to apply. And if you want to make paying in local currencies easier abroad, check out the Wise Travel Card.
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Worldcare Travel Insurance has been available in New Zealand since 2006. New Zealand residents have been using Worldcare for insurance coverage and emergency assistance. Since 2015, Worldcare has offered an easy way to purchase travel insurance online.
Let’s break down how to be eligible for a Worldcare policy and what types of policies are available.1
Here are the criteria you must meet to be eligible for a Worldcare travel insurance policy:2
Worldcare Travel Insurance offers comprehensive coverage, addressing almost all travel-related issues you may face when travelling abroad. However, the extent of your coverage will depend on your policy package- and the more extensive your coverage, the higher your premium.3
Here is a brief outline of the overall benefits of Worldcare Travel Insurance for New Zealand residents travelling overseas:
The Worldcare GoBudget plan does not offer all the benefits under the GoComprehensive and GoFreedom plans. Take a look at the next section for details.
Worldcare offers three travel insurance packages for overseas travel and one package for local travel in New Zealand. The table below shows coverage for overseas travel alone, per insured person.4
| Categories | GoComprehensive | GoFreedom | GoBudget |
|---|---|---|---|
| Loss of Deposits | $100,000 NZD | $100,000 NZD | $5,000 NZD |
| Journey cancellation | $100,000 NZD | $100,000 NZD | $5,000 NZD |
| Curtailment | $100,000 NZD | $100,000 NZD | $5,000 NZD |
| Missed connections | $10,000 NZD | $10,000 NZD | $500 NZD |
| Travel Delays | $10,000 NZD | $10,000 NZD | $500 NZD |
| Frequent Flier Points | $4,000 NZD | $4,000 NZD | No coverage |
| Travel resumption | $5,000 NZD | $5,000 NZD | No coverage |
| Strikes and Hijacks | $5,000 NZD | $5,000 NZD | No coverage |
| Epidemics and Pandemics | $100,000 NZD | $100,000 NZD | $5,000 NZD |
| Categories | GoComprehensive | GoFreedom | GoBudget |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overseas Medical Expenses | Unlimited | Unlimited | $250,000 NZD |
| Terrorism - Overseas Medical Expenses | $200,000 NZD | $200,000 NZD | No coverage |
| Incidental Hospital Expenses | $4,000 NZD | $4,000 NZD | No coverage |
| Accompanying Person | $15,000 NZD | $15,000 NZD | No coverage |
| Categories | GoComprehensive | GoFreedom | GoBudget |
|---|---|---|---|
| Funeral Expenses | $15,000 NZD | $15,000 NZD | No coverage |
| Accidental Death or Permanent Disability | $25,000 NZD | $25,000 NZD | No coverage |
| Accidental Death or Permanent Disability due to terrorist act | $20,000 NZD | $20,000 NZD | No coverage |
| Categories | GoComprehensive | GoFreedom | GoBudget |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal Baggage - Total Limit | $15,000 NZD | $15,000 NZD | $2,000 NZD |
| Personal Baggage - Item Limit | $1,500 NZD | $1,500 NZD | $500 NZD |
| Personal Baggage - Special Item Limit | $2,500 NZD | $2,500 NZD | $500 NZD |
| Emergency Baggage | $1,000 NZD | $1,000 NZD | $250 NZD |
| Travel Documents | $2,000 NZD | $2,000 NZD | $250 NZD |
| Personal Money | $500 NZD | $500 NZD | No coverage |
| Categories | GoComprehensive | GoFreedom | GoBudget |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rental Vehicle Excess | $5,000 NZD | $5,000 NZD | No coverage |
| Personal Liability | $1,000,000 NZD | $1,000,000 NZD | $400,000 NZD |
To note:
The pricing plans for each Worldcare Travel Insurance policy depend on various factors, including your age, destinations, number of people in your party and pre-existing medical conditions. You can get a quote for each plan and compare it with the others before deciding on your preferred option.
Pre-existing medical conditions must be disclosed upfront when applying for the policy. It might require an additional premium.
It’s simple to buy a Worldcare Travel Insurance policy online. Here are the steps: 5
While you can purchase the GoComprehensive and GoBudget plans online, you must call Worldcare Travel Insurance Customer Support for the GoFreedom plan.
Every Worldcare Travel Insurance policy has a 14-day cooling-off period during which you can cancel and get a full refund. To qualify, you must not have started your trip and don’t wish to make a claim or exercise any other right under the policy.6
The period of insurance starts from the date you leave New Zealand on your trip and ends on the return date you stated while purchasing the policy. The GoComprehensive and GoBudget plans are available for a single trip alone. The GoFreedom plan can be used for multiple journeys. It gets activated when you start each journey and is covered for a maximum of 60 days.7
If you experience travel delays out of your control, like an illness, injury or transportation delay, you can apply to extend your policy period to 6 months.8
Travel insurance typically requires you to pay for expenses upfront and then the company reimburses you through a claim. You can submit a claim with Worldcare Travel Insurance online. The process is straightforward and quick:9
Allianz Partners handles claims regarding Worldcare travel insurance policies, and all claims are paid in New Zealand dollars. Claims for luggage and personal effects may include depreciation.
You might encounter an emergency during your trip overseas. Worldcare offers emergency assistance 24/7 at the following numbers:10
| Country | Phone Number |
|---|---|
| Within New Zealand | 0800 486 686 |
| Australia (Toll-free) | 1 800 554 114 |
| United Kingdom (Toll-free) | 0808 589 3893 |
| United States (Toll-free) | 1 800 326 1543 |
| Reverse Charge Call | +64 9 486 6868 |
You can contact Worldcare Travel Insurance for sales, help and claim inquiries:11
| Country | Contact Details |
|---|---|
| Free phone within New Zealand - Phone | 0800 553 550 |
| Overseas - Phone | +64 9 487 0806 |
| Overseas - Medical Assessment | +64 9 488 1647 |
| Overseas - Emergency Assistance | +64 9 486 6868 |
| Anywhere - Sales (Email) | sales@worldcare.co.nz |
| Anywhere - Claims (Email) | claims@worldcare.co.nz |
| Emergency Assistance - Worldwide | +64 9 486 6868 |
| From Australia | 1800 554 114 |
| From the UK | 0808 589 3893 |
| From the USA | 1800 326 1543 |
Now that your travel insurance is figured out, how about your money? Travelling overseas used to be expensive and cost lots of fees, but not anymore. The Wise Travel Card has made paying overseas simple, easy and fast when you travel.
The Wise Travel Card is a debit card that allows you to load up to 40+ currencies and spend in 150+ countries—making country-hopping or extended trips abroad seamless.
Your Wise Travel Card offers attractive features like contactless payments, which you can use in your Apple Wallet or Google Pay. The best feature of the Wise Travel Card is that it uses the mid-market exchange rate, so you’re never paying a markup on currency exchange.
Get the Wise Travel Card today and enjoy your next holiday hassle-free.
The Hollard Insurance Company Pty Ltd ABN 78 090 584 473 (incorporated in Australia) underwrites Worldcare Travel Insurance in New Zealand. AWP Service New Zealand Limited, trading as Allianz Partners, issues and manages Worldcare Travel Insurance.
Generally, you can’t extend the Worldcare Travel Insurance policy while travelling overseas. However, under circumstances like injury or illness preventing you from returning to New Zealand, you can extend the policy to 60 days. In that case, you must contact Worldcare for approval.
Yes, Worldcare Travel Insurance is available for COVID-19.
Worldcare Travel Insurance offers a domestic travel insurance policy for New Zealand residents, GoLocal, which covers travel-related issues while travelling in New Zealand. This insurance is not available for international travel.
Please see the 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.
Sources used for this article:
Sources verified on 11 July 2024.
*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.
This publication is provided for general information purposes and does not constitute legal, tax or other professional advice from Wise Payments Limited or its subsidiaries and its affiliates, and it is not intended as a substitute for obtaining advice from a financial advisor or any other professional.
We make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether expressed or implied, that the content in the publication is accurate, complete or up to date.
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