World Nomads Travel Insurance Review 2024

When searching for good travel insurance plans, you want to find a policy that covers the types of activities you plan on doing during your trip. World Nomads has been selling travel insurance since 2002 and is underwritten by AIG Insurance Company in Canada. Their plans provide comprehensive travel insurance coverage with the explorer and thrill-seeker in mind.

Here are the key types of travel insurance coverage offered in World Nomad plans:

• Trip cancellation insurance: If you cancel a trip for a reason listed in your policy, trip cancellation insurance can reimburse you 100% for prepaid, non-refundable costs.
• Travel medical insurance: If you get ill or are injured on your trip, travel medical insurance can pay for emergency medical expenses, up to the limits in your plan. These expenses can include doctor and hospital bills, medication and lab work.
• Emergency medical evacuation: If you are injured or ill during your trip and need to be transported, emergency medical evacuation insurance pays for your medical evacuation (medevac) to the closest medical facility that can treat your condition. World Nomad’s emergency assistance team can also arrange for the transportation.
• Travel delay insurance: If your trip is delayed due to a reason covered in your plan, travel delay insurance reimburses for extra costs, such as a hotel room for an overnight delay, up to the amount specified in your policy.
• Travel interruption insurance: Trip interruption insurance can pay for a last-minute flight home in an emergency and money that you lose by cutting a trip short, such as non-refundable activities and hotel stays.
• Baggage and personal effects: 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 necessities you buy to tide you over. It also extends to your personal belongings, if lost, damaged or stolen. Some exclusions apply, so check your policy to see what’s covered.

World Nomads offers travelers two types of plans: The Standard and Explorer.

Standard Plan

This is a budget-friendly plan that offers pre-and post-departure coverages such as trip cancellation, trip delay, trip interruption, emergency evacuation, emergency medical insurance and baggage and personal effects coverage. It also provides emergency medical assistance and evacuation if you’re injured while participating in high-risk activities such as parasailing, mountain biking or bungee jumping.

Explorer Plan

This travel insurance plan includes all the coverages found in the Standard plan, but it comes with higher coverage limits. For example, emergency medical expenses increases from $5 million to $10 million, trip cancellation from $2,500 to $5,000 and sporting equipment theft or loss from $1,000 to $2,500.

Here’s a comparison of the Standard plan and the Explorer plan and how much coverage you’ll receive with each.

The amount you’ll pay for World Nomads travel insurance will vary depending on your destination, age of travellers, where you reside, cost of trip and other factors.

However, to give you an idea of how much you could pay for a policy, here are a few examples of quotes comparing the Standard plan to the Explorer plan for three different scenarios of travellers from Ontario.

Keep in mind that you must be less than 66 years old when you purchase your policy.

World Nomads travel insurance plans include 24/7 travel assistance. This hotline offers assistance such as:

• Emergency and after-hours travel services.
• Rebooking flights.
• Hotel reservations.
• Ground transportation.
• Luggage tracking.
• Lost/stolen credit card replacement.

There’s also a 24/7 security assistance hotline offering assistance during minor security incidents and life-threatening events, including:

• Secure evacuation assistance.
• Security and safety advisories, global risk analysis and specialist consultations.
• Urgent message alerts.
• 24/7/365 incident response services to assist customers and their families.

You’ll need your policy number, a contact number for where you are at the time of the call, the nature of the problem, our location and prescribed medication, if any.

The assistance team at Travel Guard can be reached by phone collect from anywhere outside Canada and the continental U.S. at +1-416-646.3723 or email at medicalsp@travelguard.com.

World Nomads also provides support for the fun parts of travel, too. Say you need help planning your next day’s excursion. You can contact its 24/7 Adventure Traveller’s Hotline for:

• Weather reports and travel advisories
• Assistance locating the nearest crag, white-water or trail
• Information on access issues
• Construction and detour information
• Locations of nearby gear shops, guides and outfitters

World Nomads has strict stipulations around coverage for pre-existing medical or dental conditions. The company defines pre-existing conditions as those you have shown symptoms of, had sought or received medical treatment for, or have received a prescription for (or changed your type, usage or dosage) for a specified number of days prior to your policy’s effective date.

However, in some cases a stable pre-existing condition treated by prescription medicine may be covered. If you are taking a prescription for a pre-existing condition that is treated or controlled solely by prescription drugs and there has been no adjustment to the prescription for a specified number of days prior to your policy’s effective date, World Nomads’ definition of pre-existing condition will not apply.

The time period for pre-existing conditions depends on your age. For example, for age 0 to 49, World Nomads will not cover any loss or expense related to your medical condition if it was not stable or controlled in the 90-day period prior to your policy’s effective date. For ages 50 to 59, that time period is 180 days and for ages 60 to 65, that time period is 270 days.

Also, World Nomads will not extend coverage if you’ve been prescribed to take nitroglycerin for a heart condition more than once in seven days, or if you’ve had to take oral steroids, such as prednisone, for a lung condition.

World Nomads does not offer cancel for any reason insurance (also known as CFAR).

Most travel insurance companies tend to exclude coverage for dangerous activities like skydiving and kickboxing. But World Nomads covers more than 250 types of adventurous activities, depending on your plan.

There’s a distinction between activities included for all plans (meaning both the Standard and Explorer plans) and optional extras for snow, water, air, land, sports and experience activities. For example:

Activities for all include:

• Curling
• Glacier walking
• Indoor ice skating
• Horse-drawn sleigh rides
• Kite surfing
• Sailing/Yachting
• Snorkelling
• Surfing
• Speed boating
• Water skiing/wakeboarding
• Aerial safari
• Bungee jumping
• Canyon swing
• Fly by wire
• Hot air ballooning
• Zip line
• Camel ride or trekking overnight.
• Camping up to 4,500 metres.
• Caving/spelunking
• Cycling/mountain biking up to 6,000 metres.
• Dune buggy
• Rock climbing/bouldering
• Stilt walking

Optional extras include:

• Skiing/snowboarding (resort)
• Cross country skiing
• Heli or cat skiing/snowboarding
• Snowmobiling
• Black water rafting
• Fishing/angling
• Free diving up to 50 metres
• Kite boarding
• Parasailing
• Scuba diving to 50 metres
• Shark cage diving to 50 metres.
• White water rafting
• Abseiling/rapelling
• Parachuting/parasailing
• Skydiving
• Backpacking up to 6,000 metres.
• Canyoning
• Kite buggy
• Cycling/biking on independent cycle tour.
• Trekking up to 6,000 metres.

Each adventure sport, activity and experience is assigned either a Level 1, Level 2 or Level 3. Level 1 is automatically included while Level 2 and Level 3 require an extra premium due to the perceived higher risk. For example, abseiling or repelling is a Level 3 sport.

Even with the plethora of activities that World Nomads covers, there’s a lengthy list of general exclusions that apply to your coverage. For example, the following activities are not covered by your policy:

• Any injury or sickness that occurs in the 48 hours after your departure date.
• Pre-existing conditions that don’t mean the stability criteria.
• Non-emergency medical treatment or surgery.
• Travelling for the purpose of medical treatment.
• Pregnancy or childbirth.
• Any alcohol-related sickness, injury or death.
• Competing at international events as a national representative.
• Participation in extreme sports.
• Participation as a professional athlete.
• Martial arts competitions or bouts.
• Flying as a pilot or crew of any aircraft.
• Any search and rescue operations or costs.
• Intentionally harming yourself, suicide or attempted suicide.
• Cancellations due to war, civil war, acts of foreign enemies, or civil unrest.
• Travel in, to or through Iran, Syria, North Korea or the Crimea region.

Under the adventure sports coverage, there are also some exclusions for certain sports or activities that are not covered. For example, the following activities are not covered:

• Backpacking over 6,000 metres.
• BASE jumping
• Big game hunting
• Bull riding
• Cavern diving to 40 metres.
• Cliff diving
• Crewing of a vessel less than 60 miles from a safe haven.
• Crewing of a vessel more than 60 miles from a safe haven.
• Crewing on a cruise ship.
• Cycling over 6,000 metres in elevation.
• Deep water soloing
• Expeditions, including any activity over 6,000 metres, any activity that is unsupported, exploratory or establishes new routes, any activity in remote or inaccessible regions, or activities in the Arctic Circle, Antarctic or Greenland without a licensed tour operator and guide.
• Extreme pursuits
• Flying as a passenger while stunt flying.
• Free diving
• Free soloing
• Gliding
• High altitude climbing, mountaineering or expeditions over 6,000 metres.
• Hiking over 6,000 metres.
• Horse riding (bare back, polo or rodeo only).
• Martial arts (cage fighting, mixed martial arts, kick boxing and Muay Thai).
• Mongol Rally
• Motor racing (driver or passenger in a motor sport show, race, competition or rally).
• Mountain biking over 6,000 metres.
• Mountain guide (mountaineering, rock climbing instructor or guide using ropes or specialist equipment.)
• Parachuting more than once. (One jump is included.)
• Parkour
• Potholing
• Power lifting
• Rickshaw Run
• Rock climbing, outdoor, over 6,000 metres.
• Rock fishing
• Running (ultramarathon)
• Running of the bulls.
• Scrambling over 6,000 metres
• Scuba diving over 40 metres
• Skydiving more than once. (One jump is included.)
• Snowmobiling on frozen lakes and rivers.
• Speed flying
• Speed trials
• Stunt flying
• Tandem skydiving more than one. (One jump is included.)
• Tramping over 6,000 metres.
• Trekking over 6,000 metres.
• Triathlon, ultra-distance or more.
• Wingsuit flying
• Yungus Road (Death Road).

There are additional special conditions, such as:

• You must be with a professional, qualified and licensed guide, instructor or operator.
• You must have the appropriate certification or licence to do this sport at home.

It’s a good idea to talk with your travel insurance agent before you participate in certain activities so you’re aware of what isn’t covered.

Like most travel insurers, World Nomads has a list of conditions that make you ineligible for any coverage, including:

• A licensed physician has diagnosed you with a terminal condition.
• You have undergone a bone marrow transplant or an organ transplant that requires anti-rejection or immune suppression drugs. (An exception to this rule is corneal transplantation.)
• You require dialysis for any type of kidney disease.
• In the last 12 months, you have been prescribed or utilized home oxygen therapy at any time.

You can file a claim online 24/7 by logging into your account on the World Nomads website. Once you answer a few questions about your claim, you’ll need to provide your supporting documentation. After the claim is submitted, you will receive an email confirmation. Claims can take up to 10 business days to do an initial review and may take longer if required documents are needed to process your claim.