SafetyWing Travel Insurance: Who is it for and is it worth it?

There's a new kid on the travel insurance block and it's called SafetyWing. SafetyWing travel insurance offers cover for for short-term and long-term travelers. It provides a solution for those who want to sleep safely no matter how clumsy they are while on the road as well as for those living a more nomadic lifestyle.

To learn more, read my SafetyWing travel insurance review.

 

SafetyWing Travel Insurance

About SafetyWing

Recognized as the world’s first international travel medical insurance provider, SafetyWing offers travel insurance and medical insurance for on the road. Their coverage caters both to the needs of leisure travelers as those of the digital nomads, entrepreneurs, and others who work remotely from locations outside of their home countries, often for extended periods of time.

SafetyWing customers have access to a worldwide network of hospitals, medical specialists, and physicians. The company's policies are administered by one of the largest insurance companies in the world, Tokio Marine. Underwriting of the policies is done by certain underwriters at Lloyds.

SafetyWing insurance can be purchased for a specific date range, or, if there is a possibility that the trip may be extended, there is an auto-renew option available, as well.

So whether you need short-term travel and medical coverage or health insurance for an indefinite trip, SafetyWing has got you covered. You can choose from two different plans – the Nomad insurance or the Remote Health insurance, which we'll explore in further detail below.

Claims assistance is available 24/7 directly from Tokio Marine and there's access to support in every timezone.
 

Nomad insurance plan

The Nomad insurance option primarily covers medical expenses and travel while you're out of your home country.

Let's look a little more in depth at the what the cover includes:

Costs for unexpected injuries or illnesses

Firstly, SafetyWing offers medical insurance for travel. This includes coverage for unexpected illnesses or injuries for individuals while traveling for work outside their home country. Examples are eligible expenses for hospitalization, treatment by a physician, treatment by specialists, and prescription drugs.

This means that if you become either ill or injured while traveling, they will cover these medical expenses. If it is deemed necessary, medical evacuation can also be covered. Provided that certain requirements are met, you may also be covered for medical repatriation expenses.

Coverage can include children traveling with you, although coverage is limited to one child for every adult, with a maximum of 2 children per group. Children’s ages can range from 14 days to 10 years.

Coverage can also protect travelers while engaged in certain specific activities on their trip.

 

Costs related to sports injuries

For those traveling for pleasure or a little adventure, the SafetyWing international travel medical insurance also provides insurance for a number of sports and activities from badminton to sandboarding. Please be aware that there is no coverage available for organized athletics or professional sports or activities.

The Nomad policy also covers you for motorcycle and scooter accidents, as long as you were driving legally and wearing a helmet.
 

Costs related to trip interruptions

SafetyWing also offers insurance coverage to protect travelers from the added costs associated with trip delays and lost checked luggage, emergency medical response, and natural disasters.

If you need to return to your home country and your visit is considered “incidental”, you can still be covered during your stay for up to 30 days for every 90 days you have been covered.

If your home country is the United States, your coverage will only be good for 15 days for every 90 days you are covered. If you stay past that deadline, your coverage will go into “Void” status until you leave your home country. At that point, your original coverage will resume.

Since the Nomad coverage through SafetyWing is not meant to be a primary source of health insurance but only a holiday medical insurance, certain pre-existing conditions will not be covered, nor will routine health checkups or cancer treatments. Depending on your circumstances, acute onset of pre-existing conditions may be covered, but not chronic or congenital conditions.
 

Covered countries

The SafetyWing Nomad travel and medical insurance covers you for travel anywhere in the world outside of your home country except Cuba, Iran and North Korea.
 

Limitations and exclusions

As mentioned before, the SafetyWing travel medical insurance is only medical coverage for travel abroad, not a full-blown health insurance. So items not covered include cancer treatment, routine checkups, and pre-existing conditions. You may receive limited coverage for acute onset of pre-existing conditions, but not chronic or congenital conditions.

At the time of writing, SafetyWing does not include coverage of electronics but it does cover lost checked luggage.

Still, if you'd want to invest in separate electronics coverage by a different company in addition to your SafetyWing insurance, you'd still be cheaper off in total than with some other insurance providers who cover global travel, such as World Nomads.

Here's a breakdown of all the things the Nomad Insurance package covers:

Medical
This is coverage if you fall sick, have an accident and need medical assistance while outside your home country. It covers:

• Global coverage outside home country up to $250,000 with a $250 excess
• Coverage in your home country for short-term visits
• Short term policy plans
• Covid 19 coverage for necessary treatments and tests (antibody tests aren't covered)
• Urgent charges
• Intensive care
• Ambulance
• Emergency dental
• Chiropractic care and physical therapy up to $50 a day
• Emergency dental care up to $1,000
• All other eligible medical expenses up to the maximum limit

It doesn't cover you for:

• Pre existing conditions
• Cancer treatment
• High risk sports activities

Travel
The same policy also covers you for unforeseen emergencies during your travels, this includes:

• Travel delay – up to $100 after a 12-hour delay for max. 2 days
• Trip interruption up to $5,000
• Lost checked luggage up to $3,000, with a maximum of $500 per item
• Natural disasters including a new place to stay for $100 a day up to 5 days
• Personal liability
• Political evacuation – up to $10,000 maximum
• Emergency medical evacuation – up to $10,000 lifetime maximum

Who is the SafetyWing Nomad insurance plan for?

SafetyWing provides both travel and medical insurance coverage, aimed both at “normal” travelers who make a few short trips each year and at digital nomads and others who do their jobs remotely while traveling for fairly long periods of time.

It is also ideal for those whose travel plans require flexibility as far as trip length as you can simply enter the dates of your departure and don't worry about being covered as the auto-renew function guarantees that you are until you cancel.

And if you are planning a holiday with fixed dates, you can get insurance for just those dates as well.

SafetyWing wants to create a complete safety net for people who don't have it – which is usually people who are living/working outside of the traditional workplaces and/or are working remotely – but as what they provide is a normal travel medical insurance, it works perfectly for short-term travelers too.

The Nomad insurance is primarily for digital nomads who don't have a home base and bounce around from country to country. You pay on a monthly rolling basis, and can cancel whenever you like.

The 30-out-of-90-day (or 15-day if you're from the US) home country coverage SafetyWing provides is unique. It means if you don't have a fixed residency, you can still visit your home country and keep your medical coverage.

Another thing that's great about SafetyWing is that you can sign up even when you don't have residency anywhere. That can be the case for digital nomads, who can simply use a friend's or family member's address to have their bills sent to.

You can sign up for the insurance when you're already abroad.
 

Pricing of the Nomad insurance

The cost of coverage is handled using a subscription format and starts at $42 a month. The price changes depending on your age and only covers people up to the age of 69.

If you make a claim, there is a $250 deductible with a $250,000 maximum limit. You take out your policy for four weeks and it can be extended automatically every 28 days, up to a maximum of 364 days or until you choose to cancel.

After the 364-day limit, you may purchase new coverage if you will continue to travel. This is a very popular arrangement with those who are taking longer trips or trips which may become extended by business requirements since it conveniently auto-renews.

Travelers can also enter specific dates of travel and purchase insurance based on that, as with other insurance plans. There is an available option where you can pay upfront for your coverage with a five-day minimum and a 364-day maximum.

Pricing is based on where you’ll be traveling, the dates of travel, and your age. Another plus offered by SafetyWing is that you may purchase insurance while you are already in the midst of your trip.

SafetyWing insurance can be purchased in 175 countries, excluding Cuba, Iran, and North Korea.

Remote Health insurance plan

SafetyWing now offers global health insurance for remote teams so that employers can provide their workers with comprehensive health insurance, regardless of where they live.

It's also a fully comprehensive option for remote workers and nomads who want full medical coverage in their home country, as well as Covid 19 coverage and global medical coverage outside their home country.

What does the Remote Health insurance include?

• Outpatient care
• Screenings and vaccinations
• Vision (eye exams and contact lenses)
• Dental care
• Family members

You can also include customized add-ons when you take out the Remote Health insurance policy.

Who can buy the Remote Health policy option?

• Individuals can buy it if they work remotely and want full coverage in the country they're working from as well as their home country. The policy is for full-time nomads who spend very little time in their home country.
• Employers can buy it to cover their remote teams in whichever country they work from.

You should keep in mind that the insurance doesn't cover anyone over 69 and the monthly price gradually increases depending on your age.

How many countries does the Remote Health plan cover?

This plan covers 175+ countries as your main residence. You can get health care using the insurance in any country in the world.

How much does the Remote Health plan cost?

For remote workers and nomads who purchase the plan themselves, the cost is on average $206 a month. This doesn't take into consideration existing health conditions (which can be covered with this policy), extra family members, extras or add-ons.

For employers purchasing the insurance for their team, the cost will vary depending on the countries the employees are working from and the number of people they want to cover. You can get a personalized quote by booking a call with the team.
 

What's the difference between the Nomad insurance plan and the Remote Health plan?

The main difference between the two products SafetyWing offers is that one is travel and medical insurance, and one is solely health insurance. The Remote Health plan does not cover your travels.

This image shows the main difference between the two policy types:

 

What else do you need to know about SafetyWing insurance?

Unlike many insurance providers, SafetyWing offers full coverage for medical costs associated with Covid19 as long as you contracted Covid19 after your policy started.

Your policy renews three days before the 28-day period is up each month. So if you want to cancel, remember to do it before the renewal period.

The company call themselves “Your home country on the internet” and have the goal of removing geographical borders as a barrier to equal opportunities. They want to build a global safety net for the millions of people who work remotely around the world. They want to actively create a community among its users, and to do so, they organize events and meetups around the world and online.

The SafetyWing website has lots of tips and information about how to build a remote company and resources for remote workers.

They share tips and information about the nomadic lifestyle and meet-up information on their Instagram page @nomadcities.
 

How to file a claim with SafetyWing

In most cases, when you have medical or travel expenses while you're abroad, you will need to pay the bills upfront yourself. SafetyWing has a referral network for qualified doctors and hospitals around the world, which you can see in the “Find a hospital” section when logged in to your profile. You can visit any licensed hospital, clinic, doctor, or specialist in the world and get reimbursement from SafetyWing.

To file a claim, you fill out a claims form and upload it with photos or screenshots of the original itemized bill and payment receipts. You will need to login to your SafetyWing account and submit your claim on the WorldTrips' online portal.
 

Find out more on the SafetyWing website.
 

Why is the SafetyWing travel insurance so cheap?

SafetyWing is appealing to travelers because of the subscription model they use for their pricing. This makes their pricing very attractive, especially to those who are not certain exactly how long their travels may be. Since it auto-renews travelers don’t have to think about it until they are ready to cancel it.

Looking at the price and the coverage included, SafetyWing might just be the best international travel medical insurance out there right now.

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This post was brought to you in collaboration with SafetyWing.