- The FCDO states that failing to declare an existing condition, or pending treatment or tests, may invalidate a travel insurance policy.
- ABI members paid 262 million pounds in travel medical claims across 2024, with an average medical claim of 1,528 pounds and one USA case exceeding 1 million pounds.
- Staysure (a trading name of TICORP Limited, FCA FRN 663617) states it has no upper age limit and covers more than 1,300 medical conditions.
- A free UK GHIC lasts up to 5 years but does not cover repatriation, private treatment or mountain rescue, so it is not a substitute for insurance.
For a traveller over 60 who lives with one or more diagnosed conditions, two cost drivers stack on top of each other: the age band the insurer applies, and the outcome of the medical screening questions. Each works differently, and understanding how they combine is the difference between a policy that pays out and one that does not. This guide sets out how senior cover is priced, what the rules require at the declaration stage, and which verified providers operate in this part of the market.
How over-60s cover with medical conditions differs
Mainstream travel policies often apply rising premiums or hard upper age caps once a traveller passes a set threshold, commonly 65, 70 or 80. Separately, the insurer asks a set of medical screening questions. The age band reflects statistical risk by age. The medical declaration reflects the specific risk attached to a named condition such as diabetes, a heart condition or a past cancer diagnosis.
These two factors are assessed independently. A 68-year-old with no declared conditions may pay a modest age-band loading. The same traveller who declares a recent cardiac event may see a separate medical loading, an excess increase, or a specific exclusion applied to claims related to that condition. Specialist senior insurers are built around screening these declarations rather than declining the traveller outright. Staysure, the trading name of TICORP Limited (registered in Gibraltar, FCA FRN 663617, administered by Howserv Limited, FRN 599282), states it applies no upper age limit and covers more than 1,300 medical conditions, which illustrates how the specialist segment is structured around the declaration step rather than the age number alone.
What to look for at the declaration stage
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is direct on this point. Its guidance states that a traveller should declare existing conditions or pending treatment or tests so that they are covered if there are related complications during the trip, and that failing to declare something may invalidate the travel insurance. Declaration is therefore not optional paperwork: it is the mechanism that activates cover for the very risks an older traveller is most concerned about.
Practical points to check during screening include whether the policy asks about conditions in the past two or five years, whether it asks about medication changes or pending consultant appointments, and whether the quote confirms the declared condition is accepted rather than silently excluded. A policy that quotes a low price by excluding the main condition offers little value to a traveller whose primary concern is that condition.
Cover limits and exclusions
The FCDO sets out what a policy should cover: the full length of the trip, treatment in state or private hospitals, and emergency transport such as an ambulance, which it notes is often charged separately from other medical expenses. For older travellers the emergency medical and repatriation limits are the figures that matter most, because repatriation costs drive the largest claims. ABI data for 2024 records that members paid more than 1 million pounds on a single USA hospitalisation and repatriation case, and 262 million pounds in travel medical claims overall, with medical claims rising to 34 percent of all claims from 29 percent the year before.
Cancellation cover is the second figure to weigh, since an older traveller with a condition carries a higher chance of a pre-trip flare-up. Staysure publishes cancellation cover up to 15,000 pounds and emergency medical cover up to unlimited on its Comprehensive and Signature levels, which gives a sense of the upper end of limits in the specialist senior segment. Common exclusions to read carefully include undeclared conditions, travel against medical advice, and claims arising while a consultant investigation was already pending.
Providers offering cover in this segment
Staysure is the named provider verified for this guide. It is a trading name of TICORP Limited (FCA FRN 663617), administered by Howserv Limited (FCA FRN 599282), and its own product pages state no upper age limit, cover for more than 1,300 medical conditions, cancellation up to 15,000 pounds, and up to unlimited emergency medical expenses on its higher tiers. Travellers comparing this segment should treat any provider that publishes a clear medical screening process and explicit age and cover limits as the baseline, and verify each figure on the provider's own documents at the point of quote, because age caps and accepted-condition lists change.
Where a traveller cannot secure suitable cover through a standard specialist route because of a serious or complex condition, a signposting service exists specifically for that situation, set out in the box below.
Common pitfalls
Three errors recur for this group of travellers. The first is treating a GHIC as a replacement for insurance. The NHS states the UK GHIC is free and lasts up to 5 years and covers medically necessary state healthcare in the EEA and some other countries, but it explicitly does not cover being flown back to the UK, treatment in a private facility, or ski or mountain rescue, and it is not a replacement for travel insurance. The two work together: some insurers waive the medical excess where a GHIC or EHIC is used, which the FCDO confirms is worth checking on the policy terms.
The second pitfall is under-declaring to lower the quoted price, which the FCDO warns may invalidate the policy at claim stage. The third is overlooking trip-type rules: the FCDO notes that cruises generally require an additional level of cover because reaching hospital is harder at sea, and that some activities need specialist insurance or an add-on. An older traveller booking a cruise or an activity holiday should confirm that specific cover sits on top of the standard medical declaration.
If you find it difficult to get cover because of a pre-existing condition, the Money and Pensions Service operates a travel insurance directory of specialist providers via its MoneyHelper service. Visit the MoneyHelper travel insurance directory or call the Money Helper Customer Contact Centre on 0800 138 7777 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm).
