Travel insurance glossary
Last updated: August 7, 2026
The words a policy document uses, in plain language. Most disputes about travel insurance come down to one of these terms meaning something more specific than it looks.
Money and limits
The numbers that decide what you actually get back.
- The amount you pay towards a claim before the insurer pays anything. Usually charged per claim and often per section of the policy, so one incident touching two sections can cost you the excess twice. Known as the deductible in North America.
- The North American term for the excess. Identical in function: the first slice of any claim, which is yours.
- A cap inside a bigger cap. A policy advertising £2,000 of baggage cover may pay no more than £250 for any single item, so the headline figure is rarely what a claim returns.
- The most the policy will pay in total across the whole period, however many claims you make — as distinct from a per-claim limit.
- A share of each cost that stays with you, expressed as a percentage rather than a fixed sum. Common on medical sections of North American policies.
- The principle that insurance restores you to where you were, rather than paying out a profit. It is why a claim for a three-year-old laptop is settled at its used value, not its replacement price, unless the policy specifically says new-for-old.
What is covered
The sections a policy is built from, and the events that trigger them.
- Treatment for an illness or injury that begins during the trip. It does not cover routine care, elective treatment, or continuing care for something you were already being treated for.
- Bringing you home for treatment, or returning remains after a death abroad. Consulates ask about it specifically, and it is frequently the largest single cost in a serious claim.
- Transport to a facility that can actually treat you — which may be in another country rather than at home. Often carries its own limit, separate from the emergency medical one.
- Cutting a trip short and coming home early. The policy reimburses the unused portion of what you paid for, usually pro-rated by day.
- The North American term covering both curtailment and the cost of rejoining a trip after an interruption.
- Cover for the cost of catching up with your trip when you miss a booked departure for a listed reason — typically transport failure, not oversleeping.
- An optional add-on that allows cancellation outside the listed reasons. It costs substantially more, usually has to be bought soon after booking, and typically refunds only part of what you lose.
- Cover for damage or injury you cause to someone else. Almost always excludes anything arising from driving a vehicle, which is what motor insurance is for.
- The insurer paying the hospital directly rather than reimbursing you afterwards. Worth knowing whether your policy offers it, because the alternative is fronting a large bill yourself.
- The number to call before authorising significant treatment. Calling it is usually a condition of the policy, and skipping it can reduce or void a claim even when the treatment was necessary.
The small print
The clauses that most often decide whether a claim is paid.
- Something the policy will never pay for, listed explicitly. Common exclusions: alcohol-related incidents, undeclared conditions, most competitive sport, and travel against government advice.
- A medical condition you had before buying the policy, including one under investigation without a diagnosis. Excluded by default on most policies unless declared and accepted — and an undeclared condition can void the whole policy, not just claims relating to it.
- A window after purchase during which certain cover does not yet apply. Most common on cancellation sections, to prevent buying a policy for something already going wrong.
- A short window after buying, commonly 14 days, in which you can cancel for a full refund provided you have not travelled or claimed.
- A change to the standard policy wording, adding or removing cover for your specific case. A declared medical condition or an added activity usually appears as one.
- The page listing your specific limits, dates, excess and any endorsements. Where the wording and the schedule disagree, the schedule is what applies to you.
- A summary document proving cover exists, which is what a consulate or border officer asks for. It has to state the cover amount, area of validity and dates — a receipt or a booking confirmation is not one.
- The geographic region the policy works in, defined by band rather than country list. Everywhere you enter — including transits and shore stops — has to be inside it.
- The insurer's right to pursue whoever caused your loss after paying your claim. It is why you are asked not to admit liability, and why you may be asked to cooperate after settlement.
- Your obligation to answer the insurer's questions accurately and volunteer anything material. Failing it is the most common reason an otherwise valid claim is refused.
Who sells it
The parties involved, and which of them actually carries the risk.
- The company carrying the risk and paying claims. Often not the brand on the front of the policy — many travel policies are underwritten by a handful of insurers and sold under dozens of names.
- The party assessing the risk and setting the terms. Worth identifying, because it tells you who actually decides your claim.
- An intermediary who sells policies on behalf of insurers and is paid commission. A good one adds real advice; the commission is paid either way.
- A marketplace ranking policies, usually on price, and paid per click or per sale. Useful for seeing the range; poor at judging the terms that decide whether a policy suits you.
- Cover that pays first, without requiring you to claim elsewhere. The opposite of secondary cover, and generally what you want.
- Cover that only pays what another policy has not. Common on credit-card travel benefits, and the reason card cover can be worth less in practice than its limits suggest.
- State healthcare entitlement cards giving access to public treatment in participating European countries on local terms. Not insurance: no repatriation, no cancellation, and not accepted as visa proof.