Tour+Med Travel Insurance Review 2024

Tour+Med has been offering affordable travel insurance since 1996. A privately held company headquartered in Trois-Rivières, Québec, Tour+Med focuses solely on travel insurance and emergency assistance, especially for snowbirds.

Tour+Med is underwritten by LS-Travel Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Humania Assurance Inc.

Here are the key types of travel insurance coverage offered in Tour+Med Travel Insurance plans:

• Emergency medical insurance: If you get ill or are injured on your trip, travel medical insurance can pay for emergency medical expenses, up to the coverage limits in your plan. These expenses can include doctor and hospital bills, medication and lab work, as well as medical evacuations, repatriation and arranging for a bedside companion if you are hospitalized.
• Trip cancellation insurance: If you cancel a trip for a reason listed in your travel policy, such as you or your travelling companion becoming ill, weather conditions cause a massive delay or you lose your job, trip cancellation insurance can reimburse you for prepaid, non-refundable costs.
• Trip interruption or delay insurance: Trip interruption insurance can pay for a last-minute flight home in an emergency and reimburse money that you lose by cutting a trip short due to a covered reason, including non-refundable activities and hotel stays. If your flight is delayed, your insurance can cover the cost of incidentals, such as meals or accommodations, after a specified period of time, such as six, 10 or 12 hours.
• Baggage insurance: Baggage travel insurance can compensate you up to your policy limits if your luggage is lost or stolen. It will reimburse the depreciated value of your suitcases and what you packed. If your bags are delayed, it can reimburse you for the cost of the necessities you’ll have to buy to tide you over. It also extends to your personal belongings, if they are lost, damaged or stolen.
• Accidental death or dismemberment. This coverage offers compensation in the event of accidental death or catastrophic injury from an accident during your trip.

Tour+Med Travel Insurance offers three plans for travelling outside of Canada.

Per Trip Plan: This plan provides up to $5 million in coverage in the event of a medical emergency.

Emergency medical treatment includes:

• Hospital accommodation up to a semi-private room
• Incidental hospital expenses, such as telephone, parking, TV, up to $100
• Physician’s fees
• Private duty nursing, up to $10,000
• Medical appliances, including the purchase of splints, casts, crutches, canes, slings, trusses or orthopedic corsets, or for the rental or a walker or wheelchair
• Diagnostic tests and X-rays
• Prescription drugs, up to 30-day supply after the emergency (subject to a $5 USD copay)
• Paramedical services, such as care from a chiropractor, physiotherapist or podiatrist, 50% of the cost of services, up to $300
• Ambulance services and emergency air transportation
• Emergency dental due to a blow to the face (with exceptions), up to $1,000

Medical benefits also include coverage to bring someone to your bedside, expenses for meals, hotel accommodations and associated expenses if a medical delay prevents you from returning home, repatriation expenses and return of your remains if you die. Tour+Med also offers an Emergency Round-Trip benefit that reimburses you for up to $1,500 for a flight home if a member of your family dies or becomes hospitalized or if your home or business becomes uninhabitable or unusable.

Trip Cancellation/Interruption: This coverage option reimburses you for insured non-refundable travel expenses (such as hotels or prepaid excursions) if you have to cancel, interrupt, or delay your trip due to a covered reason. You must purchase this protection within 15 days of the first non-refundable deposit of your insured trip.

Non-Medical Package: This benefit includes trip cancellation and interruption insurance, coverage for baggage loss, damage and delay, as well as coverage in case of accidental death and dismemberment due to an accident during a flight, on your way to or from a flight, or during your trip.

Plans for Families: Tour+Med offers emergency medical coverage for up to two adults and four children on the same policy for either a single trip or multi-trip annual plan of eight, 15 or 30 days.

We’ve highlighted the key benefits of Tour+Med Insurance for the three single-trip plans to help you identify which coverage is the best fit for you.

The price of a Tour+Med Travel Insurance plan depends on factors such as the cost of your trip, your age, your answers to a medical questionnaire, if required, and the amount of coverage you choose.

Here are some examples of the cost for Tour+Med Travel Insurance single trip plans for healthy travellers based in Ontario assuming a $0 deductible. These quotes do not include the COVID-19 rider.

You can also choose a deductible, or the amount you pay out of pocket before your coverage kicks in, of between $250 and $10,000 to save between 5% and 35% off your premium. The deductible is applied on a per event basis, so if you claim more than once on the same policy, you will have to pay each time.

Tour+Med gives you the choice between a “traditional” deductible and a “hospital-care deductible.”

With a “traditional” deductible, you will be responsible for that amount regardless of where you are treated in a medical emergency.

With a “hospital-care deductible,” which is unique to Tour+Med, you only pay the deductible if you are treated in an emergency room, a hospital or hospital clinic, or if you are transported by land or air ambulance. If you are treated in a regular clinic, you do not need to pay the deductible.

Manulife Financial Travel Insurance

Emergency medical: $10 million
Cancel For Any Reason: No
Baggage insurance (maximum): $1,000

Related: Manulife Financial Travel Insurance Review

CAA Travel Insurance

Emergency medical: $5 million
Cancel For Any Reason: Yes, 50% to 75%
Baggage insurance (maximum): $1,500

Related: CAA Travel Insurance Review

TuGo Travel Insurance

Emergency medical: $10 million
Cancel For Any Reason: Yes, 50%
Baggage insurance (maximum): $500

Related: TuGo Travel Insurance Review

Tour+Med offers a COVID-19 Rider on its travel medical insurance.

A standard medical insurance plan with Tour+Med has a medical exclusion if you travel to a destination for which the Government of Canada has issued a Level 3 (avoid non-essential travel) or Level 4 (avoid all travel) travel advisory before or after your departure. For example, if the government issues a travel advisory due to COVID-19 and you become ill with COVID-19 while on your trip, your medical insurance will not cover any treatment.

However, the COVID-19 Rider gives you the following coverage:

• Up to $5 million in medical coverage for a COVID-19 emergency, even if a Level 3 or Level 4 travel advisory is in place
• An automatic extension of your coverage up to 14 days if you test positive for COVID-19 while on your trip and you can not return on your scheduled date

Yes. Tour+Med offers the following discounts:

Early Bird discount: Earn a 5% discount if you purchase your travel medical insurance policy for a trip within a new sales season. The timing of the discount offer varies, but is typically between mid-July and mid-September.

2 Travellers discount: A 5% discount is immediately applied when two people travel together on the same insurance policy. You do not need to be related to be eligible for the discount.

Loyalty discount: A discount of between 2% and 5% is applied depending on the number of consecutive years you have purchased Tour+Med travel insurance.

Combined Protection discount: Earn a 5% discount when you purchase travel medical insurance and a non-medical insurance policy, such as trip cancellation and interruption insurance, at the same time for the same trip. To qualify, you need to have paid your first non-refundable deposit for your trip less than 15 days ago.

25% Deposit option: This option allows you to pay 25% of your premium at the time of purchase and pay the balance up to two weeks before your departure date, allowing you to lock in your rate and apply any early bird discounts. Your premium must be at least $400 and you must use a credit card to pay for your insurance policy.

Yes. You can buy multi-trip annual insurance if you travel more than once a year for multiple individual trips. Tour+Med offers eight, 15 and 30-day annual plans for emergency medical coverage.

Using the example of the couple travelling to Italy for 21 days, here’s how the costs of the annual multi-trip plans compare (without the COVID-19 rider):

The Per Trip Plan 21 days provides coverage for one trip up to 21 days.

The Multi-Trip Annual Plan 8 days + Per Trip Plan 13 days provides coverage for this 21-day trip to Italy and any other trips of up to eight days or less that you make during the year.

The Multi-Trip Annual Plan 15 days + Per Trip Plan 6 days provides coverage for this 21-day trip to Italy and any other trips of up to 15 days or less that you make during the year.

The Multi-Trip Annual Plan 30 days provides coverage for this 21-day trip to Italy and any other trips of up to 30 days or less that you make during the year.

Worldwide emergency travel assistance is available 24/7 from anywhere in the world by calling Tour+Med Assistance toll-free.

When you have a travel emergency, depending on your coverage, the following support may be available:

• Coordinating your medical treatment and keeping your family informed
• Helping you to locate a physician, clinic or hospital
• Confirming your insurance coverage to the hospital or physician
• Guaranteeing or arranging payment to the hospital or physician wherever possible
• Arranging transportation of a family member to your bedside, when indicated by circumstances
• Arranging for your repatriation
• Help contacting your family, business partners or family physician
• Facilitating the delivery of urgent messages to family members
• Helping you find legal counsel in the event of a serious accident

You must contact the Assistance Centre before receiving medical treatment or your benefits may be denied or limited to 70% of eligible expenses to a maximum of $25,000.

No.

No.

In general, a pre-existing condition is defined as any sickness, injury or medical condition that existed before the start of your coverage, whether or not diagnosed by a physician, that you showed signs or symptoms of or received medical attention for.

With a Tour+Med Travel Insurance policy, any pre-existing conditions must be stable and controlled for three months if you’re 69 or younger, or six months if you’re 70 or older.

According to Tour+Med, a medical condition is considered stable and controlled when all of the following are true:

• There has not been a diagnosis, any new treatment prescribed or recommended, or changes to existing treatment, including a stoppage.
• There has not been any change to any existing prescribed medication, including an increase, decrease or stoppage to prescribed dosage, or any recommendation or starting of a new prescription (with some exceptions).
• There has not been any new, more frequent or more severe symptoms.
• There has not been any hospitalization or referral to a specialist.
• There has not been any medical exam, investigative testing or test results showing deterioration.
• There has not been any treatment recommended, planned or not yet completed, nor any outstanding test results.

Tour+Med also offers a Reduced Stability Period option for travellers less than 86 years old with the following coverage:

• For travellers 69 years old and under: The stability period is reduced from three months to 30 days before departure.
• For travellers aged 70 to 85 years old: The stability period is reduced from six months to 30 days before departure for a specific condition.

The medical benefit is up to $5 million on the noted conditions.

Alternatively, if you have an unstable medical condition, you can elect to have that condition excluded by Tour+Med’s Optional Exclusion option, if you are between 60 and 85 years of age. This option allows you to exclude the organ or complete system that’s affected by a pre-existing condition in return for a lower premium. For example, if you have asthma that does not meet the “stable and controlled” stipulations, you can choose to have your asthma excluded, which would also exclude the entire respiratory system. That means if you were to get sick with bronchitis while travelling, that too would not be covered by insurance.

In addition to pre-existing condition exclusions, there are a number of scenarios not covered by travel insurance and it’s critical to know what not to do before you make a claim. The following are exclusions to coverages provided by Tour+Med Travel Insurance:

• Any treatment not authorized by Emergency Assistance or not considered an emergency, including (but not limited to) blood tests, observation, exploratory and/or investigative tests or exams, vaccines, elective treatment, preventative or experimental medication, cosmetic surgery, eye treatment, dermatological care, biopsies, etc.
• Any treatment that could wait until the policyholder returns home
• Any further treatment if it’s decided you should be transferred to another hospital or repatriated and you refuse
• The continued treatment once a medical emergency is deemed over
• Any treatment, surgery or palliative care not related to an emergency
• Any medical condition related to symptoms you ignored or did not follow prescribed treatment
• Any mental, psychiatric, psychological, psychotic or nervous medical condition, including depression, anxiety and insomnia
• Any costs related to replacing, repairing or adjusting any prosthesis, other than a knee or hip prosthesis
• Any treatment related to your chronic use or withdrawal from alcohol, drugs or other intoxicants
• Treatment of any sexually transmitted disease, AIDS or HIV
• Suicide, attempted suicide or self-inflicted injury
• Any costs related to prenatal or postnatal care, fertility treatments, abortion, pregnancy, childbirth or complications of either nine weeks before or after your expected due date, any child born on your trip
• Any accident or medical condition sustained while participating in professional or competitive sports, any race or speed contest, gliding, hang-gliding, rock climbing, mountain climbing with specialized equipment, mountaineering, spelunking, rafting, acrobatic skiing, snowboarding, kitesurfing, bungee jumping, parachuting and other aerial activities and underwater activities using a breathing apparatus (except snorkelling)
• Any activities requiring you to sign an accident waiver and release of liability form, or any behaviour involving risk
• Any claim related to civil unrest, war, intentional exposure to a peril, intent to commit or committing a criminal or illegal act, terrorism
• Any claim related to the reason for a level 3 or level 4 travel advisory (avoid non-essential travel or avoid all travel)
• Any medical condition occurring during frequent business trips or during a trip for a volunteer activity
• Any organ retrieval, donation and/or transplant and blood donation

It’s important to read the policy wording to be sure you know what is and is not covered by your insurance as there are additional exclusions depending on the coverage you purchase.

To be eligible for Tour+Med emergency medical travel insurance you must:

• Be a Canadian permanent resident
• Be eligible for benefits under your provincial or territorial government health plan (GHIP)
• Understand or speak either one of Canada’s official languages (English or French)
• Be age more than three months on the departure date for a single-trip plan, or
• Be aged between three months and 85 years on the effective date for the annual multi-trip plan

You can file a claim 24/7 by visiting the Tour+Med website where you can download the relevant claims form(s). You can also call a toll-free number for assistance.

You have 90 days after your return home to submit your completed claim form(s) and any required documents, including all original itemized bills.

For a trip cancellation and trip interruption claim, you may be asked to provide:

• An official contract stimulating the booking, cancellation and interruption conditions along with the corresponding penalties
• A medical document stating why travel was impossible, the diagnosis and dates of treatment
• Copy of death certificate
• Written evidence of the insured risk if cancellation. Interruption or delay is due to any reason other than sickness or injury
• Original unused tickets and copies of your reservations made with the travel supplier, including the penalties and reimbursements

If you are making a baggage claim, you may need to provide:

• A brief explanation of the incident leading to the loss, including a police or official report supporting the incident
• An itemized list detailing the value of all lost or stolen items, together with proof of ownership, including receipts, photos, credit card statements, owners manual, etc.
• Copy of airline tickets and itinerary confirming departure and return dates
• Adequate proof of home insurance coverage
• Any other documents as required

If you are making an accidental death and dismemberment claim, you may need to provide:

• Copy of flight itinerary and incident report from airline or airport
• Police report, including any witness statements
• Coroner’s report
• Medical or death certificate