The latest easyJet rip off

Budget airline easyJet has started up a new travel insurance venture. But it's a surefire way to waste your cash!

Budget airlines are well known for squeezing every last penny out of passengers. They add fees for everything from baggage and checking-in, to priority boarding and paying by card. So when it came to my attention that easyJet was selling travel insurance I decided to take a closer look at the no-frills airline’s policies and pricing.

What’s easyJet offering?

The key selling point of easyJet travel insurance is that you can buy it onboard all UK departing easyJet flights.

Is this a good idea? Probably not - although admittedly it’s better than no insurance at all. One of the key things travel insurance is good for is cancellation cover. For this reason it’s a good idea to buy cover around the time you book your holiday. That way, if something terrible happens – a death in the family or you break your leg, for example – you can claim cancellation costs on your insurance.

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How much does easyJet travel insurance cost?

For seven days’ cover in Europe easyJet insurance will set you back £13.30 while annual multi-trip cover for Europe costs £45.10. This includes up to £15m medical expenses, and up to £5,000 for cancellation or curtailment. Personal possessions are covered up to £2,000 with a £300 limit for a single item.

Worryingly the policy small print has some big exclusions regarding pre-existing conditions. One clause states that you will not be covered for any directly or indirectly related claims arising from any prescribed regular medication. Another states you won’t be covered if you’ve been to the doctor or hospital within the past six months.

So, if you’re taking medication for asthma, which is really common, and have an asthma attack, it appears you won’t be covered. Other insurance policies will ask you to answer questions about pre-existing medical conditions and then price your premium accordingly.

Can you buy a cheaper policy?

A quick price comparison shows that there is cheaper – and better – travel insurance available elsewhere.

Debenhams’ Essential Cover will cost you £5.83 for a week in Europe while Virgin Money would charge £6.85. Both these policies offer similar levels of cover for medical expenses, baggage and possessions and cancellation cover to easyJet but cost about half the price.

For an annual multi-trip policy easyJet would charge £45.10. However this only covers Europe so if at some point during the year you wanted to travel further afield you’d need to buy insurance elsewhere.

A comparable policy just covering travel to Europe would cost just £14.99 with Virgin Money. Alternatively there are cheaper policies available from annualtravelinsurance.com or cheapertravelinsurance.co.uk if you’re willing to accept lower levels of cover for cancellation and baggage.

There are also annual travel policies out there which will cover worldwide travel for less than easyJet charges just for travel to Europe. For example, Preferential charges £23.46 for an annual worldwide policy while Virgin Money charges £23.49.

Cheaper policies are available online for £21 or £22 if you want worldwide cover but excluding the US and Canada. Policies that include these countries are more expensive due to the high cost of medical care in the States and Canada.

Part of the problem with buying your insurance at the last minute, on the flight, is that it doesn't give you the chance to properly shop around for the most competitive price. You can get a travel insurance quote in a matter of minutes using the lovemoney.com quote comparison engine. It doesn't take long, and will likely save you a fair bit compared to buying from an easyJet stewardess!

Why you need travel insurance

Travel insurance is vital for numerous reasons. Take it from me; severe food poisoning while camping in South Africa and a nearly-broken nose while windsurfing in Greece are just two from my back catalogue of holiday mishaps (sometimes I think it would be easier to get off the plane and just go straight to casualty).

Travel insurance also covered the cost of a tour and accommodation I’d booked in Mexico over Christmas when snow left me stranded at Gatwick.

So should easyJet travellers ever opt for the airline’s policy? As I said earlier, probably not but it beats not having any cover at all. If something does go wrong on a last minute trip then hopefully the policy will cover you.

However, as the cost of your holiday mounts up as you pay for extra baggage or using your debit card to book a flight, think about whether you really want to give budget airlines even more of your cash?

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