Saga Travel Insurance Review: Nice Features and No Upper Age Limit

Saga Travel Insurance Review: Nice Features and No Upper Age Limit

Saga travel insurance will cover your trips abroad, with no upper age limit.

Good for

  • Insuring older travellers
  • Covering end supplier failure
  • International flight delays
  • Including baggage, personal belongings, trip delay/cancellation/curtailment

Bad for

  • Insuring trips in the UK
  • Reimbursing for lost rewards points

Editor's Rating

4.0/5.0

The guidance on this site is based on our own analysis and is meant to help you identify options and narrow down your choices. We do not advise or tell you which product to buy; undertake your own due diligence before entering into any agreement. Read our full disclosure here.

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Saga offers one, simple travel insurance plan to those over 50 years of age (with no upper age limit) when you buy direct and one different plan (that is cheaper but with less coverage) through comparison sites. We like that Saga includes cover for End Supplier Failure, some catastrophe cover and a higher level of Personal Belongings/Baggage cover on all policies (plus Golf). Another stand-out perk is that travellers whose international flight is delayed more than an hour can benefit from access to a LoungeKey airport lounge (part of Trip Delay cover)—if you bought direct from Saga and not via a comparison site.

In This Review

Saga Travel Insurance Review: What You Need to Know

Saga keeps the insurance-buying process easy by offering one comprehensive tier of Travel Insurance, and they now offer special cover related to Covid-19. Strong customer reviews make a further case for buying a Saga policy, in addition to some solid features.

Policies include Trip Cancellation, Emergency Medical, Trip Delay/Missed Departure, Legal Assistance, Personal Accident, Personal Belongings and Golf cover. Those who like to ski can add Winter Sports cover for an additional cost. Not surprisingly, the cost of the Winter Sports add on rises quickly with age.

Anyone planning a longer trip can extend the maximum trip length to 90 days, but only if you are travelling outside the U.S.A., Canada, Mexico or any Caribbean Islands. If you’re travelling to those countries then the maximum trip length is 45 days on an Annual, Multi-Trip policy or 120 days under a Single Trip policy.

Those who struggle with sitting in an airport for hours may like Saga's Delayed Flight Assistance, which gives you access to an airport lounge if your international flight is delayed for an hour or more. This feature provides a bit of peace of mind and comfort for international travel—be sure to pre-register your flights with Saga ahead of time to be eligible for this perk—but this is only available on policies bought direct from Saga, not a comparison site.

Those going on a cruise can get cover for cabin confinement, emergency airlift to hospital, missed port and unused excursions. To learn more about market prices please see our article Average Cost of Cruise Travel Insurance UK.

Does Saga Travel Insurance Cover Trips in the UK? Holidays in the UK are covered under Saga policies, so long as you stay in pre-booked holiday accommodation or the accommodation of a relative or friend who resides in the Channel Islands for at least 2 consecutive nights (Annual, Multi-Trip policies only) or 1 night (Single Trip). However, note that some features are not offered for UK trips and coverage limits may be lower.

Pre-Existing Conditions: Saga may be able to offer cover for your pre-existing medical conditions, buy you may pay a higher premium. Pre-existing conditions are only covered if they've been declared by you and accepted by Saga. As part of the online quote process you can declare your conditions to see if cover can be offered, and for what cost.

Over 65s: There is no upper age limit for Saga Travel Insurance policies; there is, however, a lower age limit of 50 years of age. This age limit only applies to the main policy holder—other travellers you add to your policy can be of any age. There is no upper age limit for Winter Sports cover, but Winter Sports premiums will rise with age.

Insuring Other Travellers: Those you’ve listed on your Annual Multi-Trip policy can travel independently (without you) and still benefit from the same cover as you. This cover extension does not apply to Single Trip policies.

Covid Cover: Saga now offer cover for cancellation or abandonment if you receive a positive test result in writing for Coronavirus within 14 days of your trip’s departure date, as well as emergency medical cover and repatriation if you fall ill with COVID-19 while on your trip.

Covid-19 Cover

Saga now offers cover for cancellation or abandonment if you have a positive Coronavirus test result within 14 days of your departure date. Plus you get emergency medical cover and repatriation if you fall ill with Coronavirus while you're on holiday. Read more here about Saga's Covid cover.

Here is a sample of some of the coverage you get (and don't get) for Covid from Saga travel insurance before you travel:

ScenarioCover stanceInformation
You fall ill with COVID-19 before you are due to travelCoveredProvided you test positive within 14 days of your trip starting, you provide Saga with a test result and did not buy the policy after receiving a positive result within 14 days of travel
A close relative falls ill with COVID-19CoveredProvided your close relative tests positive within 14 days of your trip starting, you provide Saga with a test result, and you did not buy the policy after receiving a positive result within 14 days of travel
Someone you are due to stay with falls ill from COVID-19CoveredProvided the person you are due to stay with tests positive within 14 days of your trip starting, you provide Saga with a test result, and you did not buy thepolicy after receiving a positive test result within 14 days of travel
Your travelling companion falls ill from COVID-19CoveredProvided your travelling companion tests positive within 14 days of your trip starting, you provide Saga with a test result, and you did not buy the policy after receiving a positive result within 14 days of travel
A close relative passes away from COVID-19CoveredSubject to usual Ts&Cs
Someone you are due to stay with on your trip, passes away from COVID-19CoveredSubject to usual Ts&Cs
Your travelling companion passes away from COVID-19CoveredSubject to usual Ts&Cs
The area where you live or where you are departing on your trip from is locked downNot coveredSpeak to your tour operator to understand the options open to you
You no longer want to travel because you are concerned you may catch COVID-19Not coveredSpeak to your tour operator to understand the options open to you
The FCO advise against traveling to your intended destination due to COVID-19Not coveredSpeak to your tour operator to understand the options open to you
You are contacted under the track and trace initiative and advised to self-isolateNot coveredSpeak to your tour operator to understand the options open to you
Your GP advises you not to travel due to COVID-19Not CoveredNo cover, unless you test positive for COVID-19 within 14 days of your trip starting
The government introduces compulsory quarantine for travellers coming back from your intended destination and you no longer want to travelNot coveredSpeak to your tour operator to understand the options open to you
A letter advising you or anyone you are due to travel with or stay with, to shieldNot coveredSpeak to your tour operator to understand the options open to you

Saga Travel Insurance Key Points

  • Travel insurance for those at least 50 years of age (no upper age limit)
  • Annual, Multi-Trip cover for trips up to 45 days each (total 120 max days per policy year)
  • Single Trip cover up to 120 days
  • Includes End Supplier Failure, Catastrophe, Baggage, Golf, lounge access for int'l flight delays, etc.
  • Optional extras: Winter Sports and Hire Car Excess Waiver
  • Average 25% discount online
  • Choice of excess on direct policies of £70, £150 or £250

Saga Insurance Customer Reviews

Saga Travel Insurance Ratings & Customer Reviews
Trustpilot customer service rating (for Saga plc)4.3 out of 5
Reviews.co.uk3.8 out of 5

Over 38,000 customers have awarded Saga plc a solid 4.3 out of 5 on Trustpilot. Common themes amongst the comments were good value (cheap prices), easy-to-use website and friendly/knowledgeable staff on the phone lines. This rating reflects Saga as a whole, not just their travel insurance.

Here is a sample of the mostly positive experiences:

"What a quick, simple process. I had been told by friends this was the case and that I should try Saga for travel insurance first. They were absolutely right. I have already recommended Saga to my partner. In, fact, I would recommend Saga to anyone who asks."

"I got my requested travel insurance at a fair price. I did have a bit of trouble with the web site, which might have been due to a poor connection. I used the 'chat' feature and got prompt and helpful advice."

"I was so relieved that Saga made the application for travel insurance quite easy to do. I panicked when it directed me to open my banking app but I was successful with their directions and it was approved. I’m not that good on the internet and am 75 years old but got this done so am very happy."

"Just organised travel insurance through Saga. So easy. Competitive pricing. Covers exhausting health issues. Excellent Service from Samuel. Have a policy that caters for my needs. It was easy to purchase. Samuel gave me sound advice. He was patient and courteous. Excellent customer service all round. I do have other insurance products with Saga. I do recommend their services both to family and friends. Thank you Samuel. You were outstanding. Good luck in your future career with Saga"

"Fantastic service all round and great prices."

"Excellent, as ever. Always good price and great service."

"Brilliant trustworthy and always give the maximum help when you contact them. I will never change back to other insurers.... you need someone who really has your best interests at heart when things are difficult and are prepared to really listen and give support in any form. Top rating and then some!!"

"I have tried to ring them 9 times, waiting in the phone for over 35 mins. Sent emails asking for someone to ring, that was 3 weeks ago, still waiting!"

"We made a claim earlier this year for the theft of luggage on the travel policy. The amount offered in settlement we believe was unrealistic and unfair. After lodging a complaint and receiving a decision from Collinson Insurance, who act for SAGA we have made no progress towards a increased settlement figure. Perhaps we should have insured with Zurich as our traveling companions did who made a virtually identical claim and received a prompt and realistic settlement to their claim. Not recommended."

"We had a travel insurance policy with SAGA Services, which we had to claim under due to C-19 in April 2020. On 11th June 2020, SAGA agreed the claim, by email, in full and promised to pay the amount due within 5 days. After 6 days we called them as no money had been received , they confirmed the claim and apologized for the delay. After 10 days we called back and they then said they had made an error , and despite them having sent an email agreeing the claim they were no longer going to pay it, as it had been an error. Since then I have written to the CEO's office twice and received two letters claiming it isn't their problem , as the mistake is with the insurance company. In short you can't rely on anything they say..."

Saga Travel Insurance Prices

While travellers of any age can get a Saga travel insurance policy, premiums rise significantly as travellers age—especially for worldwide coverage including the USA. To get an understanding of how age affects prices, we gathered sample quotes of Saga Travel Insurance across various age groups (50, 60, 70, 80 and 90 years of age).

Insurance quotes can vary significantly from day to day and according to your individual details, so please just use the pricing data in this article for general educational purposes only; your quotes may reflect a large degree of variation to quotes listed here.

chart showing Saga multi-trip travel insurance prices for those 50, 60, 70 and 80 years old
Saga Multi-Trip Travel Insurance Prices for Various Age Groups
chart showing Saga single-trip travel insurance prices for those 50, 60, 70 and 80 years old
Saga Single Trip Travel Insurance Prices for Various Age Groups

Premiums with Pre-Existing Conditions

Travellers with Pre-Existing Conditions will pay more for travel insurance, in nearly all cases. The additional premium will depend on a lot of factors, such as your age, the geographic coverage (e.g. it's more expensive to cover medical conditions in USA than Europe), type of pre-existing condition (some are riskier than others), health history (e.g. were you a smoker? are you on new medication?), etc. Trips to Europe are more cost effective than the USA, when you have pre-existing conditions.

For instance, our data analysis of prices from the Saga website shows that common conditions of high blood pressure and cholesterol cost 38% or 51% more for a 70 year old going to France or the USA, respectively. And for someone who's had a heart attack, stent and heart bypass, the premium increases are 74% and 151%, respectively.

How Expensive is Saga Travel Insurance with Pre-Existing Conditions?

Single Trip for 70 year oldPre-Existing ConditionPremium with No Pre-Existing ConditionsPremium with Pre-Existing ConditionPercentage Increase due to Pre-Existing Condition
USA
High Blood Pressure and Cholesterol£300£45151%
Heart Attack with stent and bypass£300£753151%
France
High Blood Pressure and Cholesterol£101£14038%
Heart Attack with stent and bypass£101£17774%

How Much does Winter Sports Add-On Cost?

The cost of Winter Sports cover practically doubles with every decade of age. While Saga will sell Winter Sports cover to you regardless of age, it doesn't come cheap, especially for older travellers to North America. For instance, we found that Winter Sports cover for an 80-year old heading to Aspen would cost over £500.

Notable Features

After reading through the Saga travel insurance policy documents, we feel these are the most notable features. In addition, standard features like Medical and Personal Liability are also included on Saga policies, limits for which can be found below. For more complete details like inner limits and exclusions, please see the policy documents.

Saga Travel Insurance Features
CatastropheA catastrophe (e.g., volcanic eruption, earthquake, storm, etc.) is only covered if it occurred within 2 miles of your disembarkation point or within 5 miles of your pre-booked accommodation; also, such catastrophe must be declared by Saga or the appropriate government department
Personal Belongings/BaggagePersonal belongings and baggage are covered on all policies
GolfUp to £250 as part of Baggage cover (up to £35 a day) towards the cost of hiring replacement golf equipment should yours be temporarily delayed more than 12 hours on your outward journey; up to £250 for pre-booked, non-refundable green fees should you not be able to play due to illness or injury (part of Medical cover)
Scuba DivingCovered up to a depth of 30 metres (professionally organized and supervised, accompanied by a qualified diver or instructor); no Personal Liability cover
End Supplier FailureCover for irrecoverable sums or replacement of travel arrangements or the cost of return transportation following the financial failure of the scheduled airline, hotel, train operator including Eurostar, car ferry, villa or cottage abroad, coach operator, car or camper hire company, caravan site, campsite, mobile home, safari, excursion, Eurotunnel, theme park or attraction; What’s Not Covered: cover for the financial failure of any travel agent, tour organiser, booking agent or consolidator with whom you’ve booked travel or accommodation; losses not directly associated with the financial failure—for example, you can’t claim for non-refundable pre-booked hotel charges following the financial failure of an airline
Trip Cancellation/CurtailmentCover for irrecoverable unused travel and accommodation expenses (including excursions) if you have to cancel the trip before you leave home or cut the trip short in case of unexpected emergency/circumstances outside your control (including Catastrophes like ash clouds and storms)
Delayed Flight AssistanceDIRECT POLICIES ONLY. Complementary access to a LoungeKey airport lounge if your flight is delayed more than an hour. You must pre-register your flights with Saga and be able to receive SMS text messages and emails with PDF email attachments on your phone.
Missed DepartureCover for travel and accommodation expenses for missed international departure of aircraft, ship or train resulting from public transport failure/delay (including connecting flights), breakdown of or accident involving your vehicle or being denied boarding due to overbooking (including Catastrophes like ash clouds and storms)
Winter SportsOPTIONAL extra cover available on Multi-Trip policies bought DIRECT for up to 21 days or for the length specified on Single Trip policies; no upper age limit but expect premiums to rise with age; ski equipment is reimbursable after making an allowance for wear and tear (e.g., 90% of purchase price for equipment up to one year old, 20% of purchase price for equipment up to four years old, etc.); losses of Winter Sports equipment from a motor vehicle are not covered
Hire Car Excess WaiverOPTIONAL extra cover of the cost of any excess you owe following a motor vehicle accident in a short-term car hire.
Substitute AccommodationShould fire, flood, storm, explosion, landslide, avalanche, hurricane, earthquake, tsunami, volcanic eruption or an outbreak of food poisoning or infectious disease make your accommodation uninhabitable after you've arrived, cover up to £5,000 for additional accommodation and transport costs; trips part of a package holiday are not covered, nor are costs you can recover elsewhere (e.g., the transport operator, the accommodation provider or your credit/debit card issuer)

Types of Saga Travel Insurance Policies

Saga offers one level of travel insurance cover when you buy direct, and they offer one level of cover when you buy from a comparison site—but the limits vary between these two options. Policies bought direct are expected to be more expensive, because they have higher cover limits across many categories.

Regardless of where you buy, you can purchase as an Annual, Multi-Trip policy or a Single Trip policy.

Saga Single Trip: Saga Single Trip travel insurance covers trips up to 120 days abroad.

Saga Annual Multi-Trip: Saga Annual, Multi-Trip policies cover trips up to 45 days in length (with the option to extend to 60 or 90 days on policies excluding travel to USA, Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean Islands). Within each policy year, you can travel as many time as you want provided your total time abroad doesn’t exceed 120 days.

You can add Winter Sports and Hire Car Excess Waiver cover to all policies; Golf is already included as standard. Note, policies have lower limits/fewer features for UK-based holidays.

Cover Limits for Policies Bought Direct (Single & Annual Multi-Trip)

Policy limits for each insured person per trip for overseas holidaysPolicies bought directPolicies bought from comparison sites
NameSaga Travel InsuranceSaga Select Travel Insurance
CancellationUp to £10,000Up to £2,500
Missed departureUp to £1,000
Delayed departureUp to £35 for the first 12 hour period £15 for each 12 hour period after that
AbandonmentUp to £10,000Up to £2,500
Delayed baggageUp to £250
Lost, stolen or damaged baggageUp to £5,000 (£600 single article limit and £1,000 total valuables limit)Up to £1,750 (£300 single article limit and £500 valuables limit)
Emergency medical and associated expensesUp to £10,000,000 (£2M in UK)Up to £8,000,000
Hospital benefitUp to £25 for each 24 hour period (£1,000 maximum)
Personal accidentUp to £30,000 (£1,000 if aged under 16) (£15,000 if over 70)
Criminal injury benefitUp to £30,000
Substitute accommodationUp to £5,000£2,500
Enforced stayUp to £1,500
Loss of passportUp to £350£500
Personal moneyUp to £500 (£300 limit for cash) (£100 limit for cash if aged under 16)£500 (£500 limit for cash, £200 limit for cash if aged under 16)
End supplier failureUp to £1,500
Pet careUp to £25 for each 24 hour period (£300 maximum)n/a
Hijack and muggingUp to £50 for each 24 hour period (£1,000 maximum)n/a
Air rageUp to £1,000n/a
Personal liabilityUp to £2,000,000
Legal expenses and adviceUp to £50,000

Cover Limits for OPTIONAL Winter Sports Travel Insurance (direct policies only)

Cover FeaturePolicy limits for each insured person per tripExcesses per claim
EquipmentUp to £750 for your equipment£70
Up to £550 for hired equipment£70
Delay due to avalancheUp to £300Nil
Piste closureUp to £30 or £40 for each day (£400 maximum)Nil
Ski packUp to £350Nil
Inability to take part in winter sports activities£20 for each day (£200 maximum)Nil

Cover Limits for Saga Golf Travel Insurance (Included)

Cover FeaturePolicy limits for each insured person per trip
Damaged, lost, or stolen golf equipmentAs part of Baggage cover, max £600 per set of golf clubs
Replacement equipment hireUp to £35 per day (this falls under delayed baggage cover, and is subject to that maximum limit of £250)
Lost green fees£250

Please read some of our Travel Insurance Guides if you're trying to decide between Single Trip or Multi-Trip policies, learn about What May Not be Covered by Travel Insurance or decide if you Need Travel Insurance or Not.

How does Saga Travel Insurance Compare to Competitors?

To better understand the value of Saga travel insurance you need to look at it in the context of other available options. We compared it to other plans in the market so you can see which may be more suitable for you.

Saga Travel Insurance vs Direct Line Travel Insurance

Direct Line travel insurance plans include cover for End Supplier Failure and Natural Disasters, plus cover for the replacement cost of used points or miles in case of Cancellation/Curtailment for a trip bought with air miles or another rewards structure. While prices are a bit higher than average, according to our analysis, you are getting these extra cover features. One surprising extra is Baggage—you'll need to pay extra to cover your personal belongings as they're not included as standard. There is an upper age limit of 75 years old for Direct Line Multi-Trip policies; there is no upper age limit on Single Trip policies.

Bottom Line: If you book trips with miles, Direct Line might offer better cover since they reimburse for used miles/points if your trip is cancelled or curtailed.

Saga Travel Insurance vs AXA Travel Insurance

In our opinion, AXA travel insurance offers solid cover for reasonable prices. Insolvency, Baggage, Cancellation/Delay/Curtailment and Catastrophe are included on all plans. Single trip policies an upper age limit of 80 years; the age limit for travellers on multi-trip policies is 75 years old. There is no upper age limit for Winter Sports cover, other than the policy age limits mentioned above. AXA is another provider for which you can select your pre-existing conditions online without calling in to customer service.

Bottom Line: AXA might be another solid option for travellers in their 50s, 60s and 70s, who can benefit from a simply online system for notifying of pre-existing conditions.

Other Useful Information

Erin Yurday

Erin Yurday is the Founder and Editor of NimbleFins. Prior to NimbleFins, she worked as an investment professional and as the finance expert in Stanford University's Graduate School of Business case writing team. Read more on LinkedIn.

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The guidance on this site is based on our own analysis and is meant to help you identify options and narrow down your choices. We do not advise or tell you which product to buy; undertake your own due diligence before entering into any agreement. Read our full disclosure here.

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