Choosing Travel Insurance: What You Already Have, What's Missing

Before you buy travel insurance, it's best to know what you already have, what is actually required, and what your destination calls for. This article helps you take stock of your existing coverage, tell a requirement from a simple precaution, choose based on the length of your stay, and spot contract traps before you pay. It is aimed first at travelers covered by the French Social Security system.

What you already have: CEAM, Social Security, bank card

If you are enrolled in the French national health insurance and are staying in a country of the European Union, the European Economic Area, or Switzerland, the European Health Insurance Card (CEAM) is your first tool. You can get it online or through your health insurance fund, but allow time for processing^[1]. It proves your rights and allows you to receive medical care on site, according to the laws and formalities in force in the country you are visiting^[1].

The CEAM has clear limits: it does not cover medical repatriation, trip cancellation, or treatment in private clinics^[2]. It therefore does not replace travel insurance or an assistance contract.

On the assistance side, many contracts are already linked to your home insurance, your car insurance, or your bank card for stays of less than three months^[1]. Read the conditions, restrictions, and requirements of these contracts before you leave^[1].

Watch the limits: the caps on standard bank cards (€11,000) are far too low outside Europe, where a single day in a hospital in the United States can cost between $4,000 and $10,000^[2]. Cancellation coverage is nonexistent on standard cards and limited on premium cards^[2].

Mandatory insurance or simply recommended?

It depends on your nationality and your destination. If you need a visa to enter the Schengen Area, travel insurance is required: it must cover medical repatriation, urgent medical care, emergency hospitalization, or death, with a minimum of €30,000^[3]. It must be valid throughout the Schengen Area for the entire length of your stay^[4].

This is a zone-wide rule, not a rule of any single country: it applies in the same way in Spain^[5], in Estonia^[4], or in Portugal^[3].

Outside Schengen, the situation varies. In Japan, no medical insurance is mandatory on entry for short-term tourists, but the Embassy of Japan officially recommends taking out a policy before any trip^[6]. Check the rules in force before you leave, since the country is considering making insurance mandatory^[6].

Even when it is not required, insurance is especially useful in a country where it is a condition for a visa or where medical costs are high^[7].

Depending on duration: a short stay or a long-term move

• Less than six months: it is recommended to take out a policy covering medical costs not reimbursed by French national health insurance^[1].
• More than six months in effect: a health insurance contract with the Caisse des Français de l'étranger or a private insurer is essential^[1].
• For assistance, beyond three months in effect, it is recommended to take out a specific assistance contract^[1].

The coverage to compare

Two concepts need to be kept apart. Insurance is a reimbursement contract: it compensates expenses you incur after the fact (cancellation, luggage, medical costs)^[2]. Assistance is a real-time intervention service: medical repatriation, care coordination, advance payment of hospital fees^[2].

Comprehensive contracts combine both^[2]. Medical repatriation is one of the benefits of an assistance contract^[1].

Here is what to check in a contract:

• an emergency number reachable from abroad 24/7, with administrative and medical contacts in the destination country, whose details you should have before you leave^[1];
• repatriation and the costs of accompaniment by a medical team^[1];
• protection in case of trip cancellation or interruption^[1];
• the covered expenses and the spending cap^[1];
• excluded countries or regions: the policy must not exclude any destination you plan to visit^[1].

If you practice mountain sports, plan for coverage of a possible evacuation, including by helicopter, given the high cost of these operations^[1]. Coverage should start from the request for evacuation and not from arrival at the nearest hospital, so that it also covers the helicopter transfer to that hospital^[1].

Destinations Without a Safety Net

In some countries, insurance is not a comfort but the first line of defense. In the Solomon Islands, emergency services are very limited, and travel insurance with medical coverage and medical evacuation to Australia is considered absolutely essential^[8]. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, emergency services are also very limited: you must contact your travel insurer for assistance without fail^[9].

In South Africa, private ambulance fees are high without insurance (US$1,000 to US$2,000, or even more)^[10]. In Spain, the CEAM gives you access to the public healthcare system if you are covered by an EU health insurance scheme; outside the EU, travel insurance is essential^[11].

Traps, Scams, and Things to Watch Out For

• No support from the embassy: in cases of illness, serious accident, medical evacuation, or death, the French embassy or consulate does not cover the costs, which remain your responsibility or that of your insurer^[1].
• Double coverage: many travelers pay for optional insurance even though they are already covered by the credit card used to pay, home insurance, car insurance, or even certain supplementary health plans^[7].
• Cancellation insurance is not an automatic refund: it only applies in the specific cases covered by the guarantee^[7].
• Limits of standard credit cards: a deductible of €50 to €100 per claim always applies, and there are many exclusions (high-risk sports, pre-existing conditions, travelers over 70 depending on the institution)^[2].
• Deadlines: cancellation coverage generally requires purchase within 48 hours of booking the trip^[2]. Pre-existing conditions must be declared at least 15 days before departure, depending on the insurer^[2].
• Conditions outside the contract: the insurer cannot deny coverage based on conditions that are not provided for in the contract^[12].
• Schengen insurance is not a visa procedure: an insurer such as AXA Schengen states that it does not handle visa applications^[13]. The certificate is one of the mandatory documents in the application file^[13].

After a theft or assault, the police report receipt is often requested to file a claim with your insurer; here is what three countries say. In Portugal, the numbered receipt for the complaint filed with the PSP or GNR is essential^[14]. In Brazil, the Boletim de Ocorrência is the document required by all travel insurers^[15]. In Morocco, you must file a complaint at the local police station and obtain the receipt number required by insurers^[16].

Checklist Before Buying Insurance

• Read the clauses carefully: covered expenses, spending caps, exclusions^[1].
• Check that the policy does not exclude any country or region on your itinerary^[1].
• Compare offers before buying and read the terms and exclusions carefully^[7].
• Make sure the seller of your trip (agency, tour operator, online platform) has a financial guarantee, such as the one offered by APST or another recognized guarantor^[1].
• Keep the information and documents related to your insurance with you^[1].

Steps, in Order

• List your existing coverage: CEAM, credit card, home insurance, vehicle insurance, supplementary health plan^[7].
• Identify any requirement depending on your destination: for a Schengen visa, a minimum of €30,000^[3].
• Choose between health insurance and an assistance contract depending on the length of your stay^[1].
• Compare coverage and exclusions before paying^[7].
• Before departure, note the assistance number and the contact details of local correspondents^[1].