Travel Insurance for an America Trip as an International Student in Australia: a Resident or Not a Resident?

badinh on 12/10/2019 - 00:46
Last edited 12/10/2019 - 09:30 by 1 other user

Good evening All,

Next month I will have a 2 week trip to America (US) and wanna buy travel insurances. I chose Allianz

From the above link, I bought a Comprehensive policy, but then found that the end date was not correct. So I called to Allianz to edit, 13 1000. After some minutes, I met a lady who asked me if I was a "resident". She made the point clearer by mentioning I was a "temporary resident" who is not applicable for the quote which is only for "permanent resident". As a result, my policy was cancelled by that lady, and my call was forwarded to another lady. The second lady provided my another quote which is 15% higher the previous one.

I am a little confused. As you can go through the above link, there is no question about that (if I am a resident or not) to get a quote and then make a payment. At the final stage of payment, there is a condition that I must be a "resident" in Australia. I thought I was a "resident". However, in the file Product_Disclosure_Statement.pdf sent by Allianz, there is a definition: "Resident of Australia means someone who currently resides in Australia and is eligible for an Australian Medicare Card."

I felt this is likely a trap. I think many people would not spend time to read 38 pages of Product_Disclosure_Statement. What would happen if I did not call 13 1000 and did have an accident in America. I bet I could not claim anything.

Do you have any thoughts, any experience with Travel Insurance, any suggestions for a good company or a good policy…?

• For a short story:
• I bought a Travel Insurance comprehensive policy from Allianz. I did not see any questions about if I have an Australian citizenship. At the final stage of payment, there is a condition that I must be a resident in Australia. I thought I was then I made a payment.
• I found the end date is not correct then I called to 13 1000. I was told that my purchase is not valid as I was not "a resident", my policy is hence cancelled. I was then offered another quote which is 15% higher.
• Do you have any thoughts, any experience with Travel Insurance, any suggestions for a good company or a good policy…?

Thank you :)

• 

  try2bhelpful on 12/10/2019 - 01:07

  +1

  So what is your current medical cover in Australia? However you are insured now may have an extension for overseas. Unless you come from a reciprocal country.

  You absolutely need unlimited medical cover in America.you need to get this sorted ASAP.

  This site has a discussion on what they have for eligibility.

  https://www.insureandgo.com.au/travel-insurance/non-permanen…

  As a temporary resident you should, probably, be a tad more diligent with the fine print. Especially the definition section on resident.

  Have fun on your trip.

  • 

    badinh on 12/10/2019 - 01:27

    I am an international student in Australia with Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) from Allianz.

    In your provided link, it mentions about "overseas student travel insurance". Does my current OSHC satisfy this?
    https://www.insureandgo.com.au/travel-insurance/non-permanen…

    1. Do you cover non-permanent residents?

    Our policy can cover non-permanent residents who have a valid Medicare, private health insurance or overseas student travel insurance in Australia which must be valid for the entire duration of your holiday. The Australian Government has certain agreements with countries around the world, called the Reciprocal Health Care Agreements (RHCA). If your country of residence is a part of this agreement then you can receive Medicare benefits.

    • 

      try2bhelpful on 12/10/2019 - 08:08

      +1

      I would contact a few more insurance places and ask directly giving them that information. You want to be absolutely sure you have unlimited medical in America. They won’t treat you unless you can prove you have the funds.

      • 

        badinh on 12/10/2019 - 08:51

        Good suggestions. Thanks and have a nice day.

• 

  SmiTTy on 12/10/2019 - 02:42

  +1

  Would it be cheaper to buy travel insurance from your home country then?

  I agree though, if that's the case I'm sure a lot of ppl may have bought insurance not being actually eligible. It's probably one of those sad facts… Thats why they always encourage u to read the pds

  • 

    try2bhelpful on 12/10/2019 - 08:11

    +1

    Interestingly some insurers require you to be in the country you purchase from at the time you purchase. I, presume, it is to stop people looking around the world for the cheapest insurance. Not sure how that would apply to citizens of a particular country.

  • 

    badinh on 12/10/2019 - 08:53

    Thanks :).
    As try2bhelpful said, "insurers require you to be in the country you purchase from at the time you purchase".
    In my case with Allianz, yes it is.

• 

  [Deactivated] on 12/10/2019 - 03:21

  +1

  For list of Travel insurance companies

  https://www.comparetravelinsurance.com.au/travel-insurance-t…

  I would expect that since the market for temporary resident travel insurance is considerably smaller than that for permanent/citizens, therefore in purely economic terms premium prices would be higher

  With regards to the PDS I would contact ASICS - who have procedures in place to monitor and assess Product Disclosure Statements and forward your concerns

  • 

    badinh on 12/10/2019 - 08:54

    Thanks for your suggestion.
    I may not have time to contact ASICS. I just would like to hear opinions of Ozbargain :)

• 

  RockyRaccoon on 12/10/2019 - 08:30

  Let’s get real.

  They rang you to advise your policy was wrong. If they were going to rip you off they would have just let the non compliant policy stand, then when you claimed you would h ave been toast.

  I doubt if they made much money out of the extra 15% given the costs of contacting you, etc - staff time and so on. If there was profit it wouldn’t be much, and they would have a process for the extra pricing, not something plucked out of the air.

  Yes they could have a better website to catch applications before purchase.

  Prices for policies would be based on stats for claims made by Australian residents. Other country residents have different claiming patterns and they probably don’t have as much data on that, so their claim risk is likely higher.

  And no I have no connection with any insurance, travel or legal company.🙂

  • 

    badinh on 12/10/2019 - 08:55

    I called them. They did not call me.
    This is repeated three times in my post.

    • 

      RockyRaccoon on 14/10/2019 - 06:20

      +1

      Fair comment, guess I missed that point.

      However as you state, who reads the 38 pages of a PDS.

      I agree, but that is always the problem. Insurance coverage needs to spell out all the conditions and because there are so many instances in which you could claim, it needs this. So where do they highlight what these are?

      In your case it’s residency, in others it’s age, existing illness, type of trip (sporting etc) so if you had to check all the boxes that you read these before applying you probably would go elsewhere.

      Insurance is complicated, when you go to claim you find this out. I made a claim when delayed for a week for cleaning of clothes, this was denied, but beer with my dinner was allowed. I would have thought cleaning was far more important than booze. This was an Allianz policy.

      Like everything we buy, we need to understand what we are buying, yep it sucks, but especially with insurance and big buck items like loans, it’s so important not to assume.

      Even driving, the rule book, is full of details that can catch you out.

      Sorry it’s the case, it’s in the fine print is a lesson to learn for everything in life.

      Edit - like I said, it’s important to read all details, I just read the posts below and they say similar things which you acknowledge - glad you understand. Enjoy your travels 🙂

• 

  Ughhh on 12/10/2019 - 08:49

  +5

  I think many people would not spend time to read 38 pages of Product_Disclosure_Statement.

  Insurance PDS is one of the things you should read, whether it's for travelling or private health insurance. You need to know and only you know what you need cover for and not all policies are the same.

  You need to consider what options you have if things go wrong. Realising when it has already happened is too late. Same thing with contracts for mortgages, loans, car purchases etc.

  • 

    badinh on 12/10/2019 - 09:01

    It may be fair to say it's the responsibility of customers to read PDS before accepting anythings.
    But in this case, for a travel insurance which is not much valuable in money (a few hundreds), I don't expect a kind of implication like this. I think it should be straight away. Just a sentence or a question "Do you hold Australian citizenship?", that's it.

    • 

      Ughhh on 12/10/2019 - 10:20

      +2

      The insurance industry is probably one of most famous industry to be known for finding a way to not pay a claim.

      travel insurance which is not much valuable in money (a few hundreds)

      You need to think further and bigger. If something bad did happen, is your time, health, medical treatment, inconvenience worth more than the few hundreds?
      Majority of people living in Australia are Australian citizens or PR. If you are a minority, you should take extra precautions to see whether things in the 'foreign' country apply to you. Don't assume things and expect people to do what you consider is simple or common sense, especially when the risks are expensive.

      • 

        badinh on 12/10/2019 - 10:29

        I agree.
        Thank you :)

• 

  Meho2026 on 12/10/2019 - 10:24

  +5

  You might think this is a bit rude but…

  A temporary resident who is not eligible for Medicare should know they are not classed as an Australian permanent resident or Australian citizen.

  Surely anyone with any commonsense who knows they are not a permanent resident or citizen would think to check the detail of the PDS to determine if they qualify especially when they read that the policy is only valid for residents.

  Its not a realistic expectation that a temporary resident is treated the same as a permanent resident, especially with something like travel insurance when you are not even entitled to Medicare.

  Allianz didnt mislead you in anyway, they spelled it out clearly in the PDS.
  The devil is in the detail with any insurance for everyone.
  You cant start slinging mud cos you couldnt be arsed reading the PDS, you didnt even need to read the whole thing, you couldve just searched 'resident' within the doc.

  • 

    badinh on 12/10/2019 - 10:32

    Block-quote The devil is in the detail with any insurance for everyone.

    I totally agree.
    Thank you :)

• 

  Randxyz123 on 12/10/2019 - 11:54

  +1

  Try covermore they are usually pretty good. Don't remember them asking me about my citizenship but then I wouldn't have noticed I don't think…

  Also from a quick google https://www.finder.com.au/travel-insurance/worldcare-travel-… could be ok.

  I'd get on the phone to a few places and tell them you are an international student. Be prepared for 10-15% inflation on price compared to a Aus Citizen.

  As others have said, healthcare in the US is pretty brutal. They'll want prepayment of several thousand in the unlikely event you go in for anything from feeling sick to breaking your leg.

  Good on you for being proactive and organising insurance. I agree it is stupid they don't put it in black and white on their website. Most of the time their conditions are "are you starting and ending in Australia" but that is insurance companies for you. Maybe it's worth posting a PSA about your experience if there is an international student facebook group or similar for your uni so others don't get screwed.

  Another thing you should check on is if you plan to drive make sure you get an international drivers license and that your travel insurance covers hiring a car.

  Hope you have a great trip!

  • 

    badinh on 12/10/2019 - 16:09

    Thank you mate :)
    I will post it on Facebook group of student Union.

• 

  redforever on 12/10/2019 - 17:12

  +1

  try world nomads travel insurance. you can select your home country.

  • 

    badinh on 13/10/2019 - 07:32

    Thanks mate :)