On my very first overseas trip without my parents, the airline lost my luggage for almost 24 hours.
I was headed to Madrid, Spain, and had a layover in Zurich, Switzerland. It was there (probably while I was drooling over gourmet Swiss chocolates in the airport) that my luggage somehow got left behind.
It caught up to me the next day, magically appearing at the reception area of my accommodation in Spain. Given the length of time that had elapsed, many people I later recounted this story to asked me, “did you get compensation from your insurance?”
Then 19-year-old me knew enough about the world to get travel insurance, but didn’t know enough to realise you need to submit a claim in order to get compensation for delayed luggage. So no-sadly, I didn’t get a cent.
But that’s just my story of travel mishaps. All things considered, there are plenty of ways a vacation could go awry. Delayed luggage could end up being completely lost luggage. And that’s before we consider flight delays, falling ill overseas, getting pickpocketed, and more.
That’s why travel insurance is the next most important thing besides your flight ticket. Find out how to choose a plan, what to look out for, and the cheapest travel insurance you can buy with our comparison of the best travel insurance in Singapore and their ongoing promotions.
1. Best travel insurance in Singapore
With the sheer number of travel insurance providers out there, it can be overwhelming to compare everything against everything else.
We know that pain, because that’s exactly what we’ve just done. Wipe away those tears of exasperation — we’ve done the legwork for you and picked out the top six travel insurance plans in Singapore:
| Best travel insurance | Premiums (for a 7-day trip to ASEAN destination) | Covid-19 Coverage |
| FWD travel insurance | $33 – $57 (Promo: $25 – $43 with 25% off) |
Add $11+ |
| Tiq Travel Insurance (by Etiqa) | $39 – $72 (Promo: $23 – $43 with 40% off) |
Add $18+ |
| Singlife Travel Insurance | $41 – $88 (Promo: $31 – $66 with 25% off) |
Included |
| Bubblegum Travel Insurance | $42 (Promo: $38 with 10% off) |
Included |
| MSIG Travel Insurance | $62 – $116 (Promo: $28 – $52 with 55% off) |
Included |
| Starr TraveLead Comprehensive | $64 – $54 (Promo: $42 – $41 with 35% off) |
Included |
Why are these the top 6? We’ve compared them based on affordability, Covid-19 cover inclusion, emergency medical coverage, and trip cancellation coverage. (If you’re an adventure seeker, that’s more niche — refer to this article for all the best travel insurance for extreme sports and outdoor adventure instead.)
Ready to dive into the deets? We compared the coverage and prices of most popular travel insurance plans in Singapore. So if you’re looking for a specific type of coverage for your travel needs, e.g. high trip cancellation coverage, this is a better summary table for you to work with:
| Travel insurance | Premium (for 7-day trip to Asean destination) | Overseas medical coverage | Travel inconvenience coverage |
| Zurich travel insurance | $32 – $51 |
$50,000 – $250,00
|
– Trip cancellation: $2,500 – $7,500
|
| FWD travel insurance | $33 – $57 (Add $11 – 22 for COVID-19 coverage) |
$200,000 – $1,000,000
|
– Trip cancellation: $7,500 – $15,000
|
| Tiq by Etiqa travel insurance | $39 – $72 (Add $18 – $40 for COVID-19 coverage) |
$200,000 – $1,000,000
|
– Trip cancellation: $5,000 – $10,000
|
| AMEX travel insurance (underwritten by Chubb) | $40 – $63 |
$500,000 – $2,000,000
|
– Trip cancellation: $5,000 to $20,000
|
| Singlife travel insurance | $41 – $88 |
$250,000 – Unlimited
|
– Trip cancellation: $5,000 to $20,000
|
| Bubblegum travel insurance | $42 | $150,000 | – Trip cancellation: $5,000 – Baggage loss/damage: $3,000 |
| AIG travel insurance (AIG Travel Guard Direct) | $48 – $125 |
$100,000 – $2,500,000
|
– Trip cancellation: $5,000 to $15,000
|
| Chubb travel insurance | $51 – $120 |
$250,000 to $2,000,000
|
– Trip cancellation: $3,000 to $20,000
|
| UOB Travel Insurance (InsureTravel) | $54 – $97 |
$150,000 – $1,00,000
|
– Trip cancellation: $3,000 to $15,000
|
| OCBC travel insurance (by Great Eastern) | $54 – $103 (Starter Plan doesn’t include coverage for COVID-19) | $300,000 – $700,000 |
– Trip cancellation: $5,000 to $15,000
|
| MSIG travel insurance | $62 – $116 |
$250,000–$1,000,00
|
Trip cancellation: $5,000 to $15,000
|
| Sompo travel insurance | $64 – $83 |
$200,000 – $400,00
|
– Trip cancellation: $5,000 to $10,000
|
| Starr TraveLead Comprehensive | $64 – $83 | $500,000 – $1,000,000 |
– Trip cancellation: $10,000 to $15,000
|
| Income travel insurance | $68 – $109 |
$250,000 – $1,000,000
|
– Trip cancellation: $5,000 to $15,000
|
| Great Eastern travel insurance (TravelSmart Premier) | $70 – $81 |
$300,000 to $500,00
|
– Trip cancellation: $10,000 to $15,000
|
| DBS TravellerShield Plus (underwritten by Chubb) | $75 – $122 |
$300,000 to $1,000,000
|
– Trip cancellation: $5,000 to $15,000
|
| Tokio Marine travel insurance | $76 – $99 |
$300,000 to $500,000
|
– Trip cancellation: $5,000 to $10,000
|
| AIA travel insurance | Enquire with an AIA Appointed Representative | $200,000 – $2,000,000 | – Trip cancellation: $5,000 to $15,000 – Baggage loss/damage: $3,000 – $8,000 |
Note: All travel insurance options above are before promotional discounts are applied. Unless otherwise stated, all include Covid-19 coverage.
2. Bubblegum travel insurance
Bubblegum travel insurance is a great option if you’re looking for fuss-free, essential coverage at affordable rates. Bubblegum’s travel insurance model is simple, offering just one travel insurance plan. Here are its pricing and coverage benefits:
| Bubblegum Travel Insurance | Prices/coverage |
| Price (Asean) | $42/week ($38/week with 10% discount promo) |
| Price (Asia, Australia, New Zealand) | $45/week ($40/week with 10% discount promo) |
| Price (Worldwide) | $53/week ($47/week with 10% discount promo) |
| Overseas medical expenses | $150,000 |
| Emergency medical evacuation | Unlimited |
| Travel or baggage delay | $400 ($100 per 6 hours) |
| Trip cancellation or curtailment | $5,000 |
| Hospital cash allowance | $1,400 ($100 per day) |
| Baggage loss/damage | $3,000 |
If fuss-free, essential travel insurance is your top priority, we think Bubblegum is a good option for you.
Their travel insurance is all-inclusive with coverage for travel inconveniences like cancellations and delays, and also gives you coverage for Covid-19 related expenses at no additional cost.
If you’re a thrill-seeker looking at adventurous activities, Bubblegum Travel Insurance will also cover you for hot air ballooning, scuba diving and skiing, with no restriction on height or depth.
Bubblegum travel insurance promotion
Bubblegum is currently offering a 10% discount on all their travel insurance plans. That means you can cover a 7-day trip to Asean with just $38 — about $5+ a day!
Truth is, the discount is even greater when you consider the fact that Bubblegum will also give you cash rewards when you purchase their travel insurance:
- S$30 Revolut cash reward, S$30 Trip.com Hotel Coupon and Eskimo Global 1GB eSIM (worth S$9.50) with every policy purchased.
- Up to S$25 via PayNow with eligible premiums spent
Plus, score S$100 Revolut cash reward in our giveaway on top of existing rewards when you are the 8th and 88th person to sign up for a Revolut Account each week.
Promotion valid till Aug 31, 2024. T&Cs apply.
3. FWD travel insurance
FWD travel insurance offers some of the cheapest travel insurance plans in Singapore, so this is a budget-friendly option which still offers you great value for every dollar. I like that coverage for emergency medical evacuation is unlimited for all tiers, and overseas medical expenses go up to a generous $1,000,000.
Here’s a quick run-through of the price and benefits offered by FWD travel insurance plans:
| FWD travel tnsurance prices/coverage | Premium | Business | First |
| Price (ASEAN) | $33/week | $44/week | $57/week |
| Price (Asia) | $35/week | $54/week | $68/week |
| Price (Worldwide) | $57/week | $77/week | $103/week |
| Medical expenses (overseas) | $200,000 | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Emergency medical evacuation | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Travel delay | $300 ($100/6 hours) | $500 ($100/6 hours) | $1,000 ($100/6 hours) |
| Trip cancellation | $7,500 | $10,000 | $15,000 |
| Baggage loss/damage | $3,000 | $5,000 | $7,500 |
When you’re purchasing FWD travel insurance, the Covid-19 benefits are an add-on. The price of the Covid-19 add-on costs between $11 to $22 depending on the part of the world you’re travelling to. If you choose to add it on, it’ll give you comprehensive coverage of the following:
- Trip disruption
- Trip cancellation
- Overseas hospital cash
- Hospital cash while in Singapore
- Medical expenses
- Emergency medical evacuation and repatriation
The plan reimburses your travel-related expenses if you are diagnosed with Covid-19 no more than 30 days before your scheduled departure date, or if you have to change your itinerary because of a Covid-19 diagnosis while overseas.
You also get to claim medical expenses and a hospital cash benefit if you get hospitalised overseas or for up to 14 days in Singapore upon your return.
On top of that, there’s also an automatic policy extension of up to 21 days should you be prevented from travel as per foreign government regulations due to:
- You contracting Covid-19; or
- You or your travel companion needing to be self-isolated due to being in close contact with someone diagnosed with Covid-19
FWD travel insurance promotion
Currently, you can take 25% off the prices for all FWD travel insurance tiers — FWD Premium, FWD Business, and FWD First. That brings the rate for a 7-day Asean trip down to $25 to $43, or just $3+ to $6 a day!
Plus, receive over S$65 worth of rewards:
- S$30 Revolut cash reward, S$30 Trip.com Hotel Coupon and Eskimo Global 1GB eSIM (worth S$9.50) with every policy purchased.
- Over S$5,900 worth of Apple Gadgets and gifts to be scored on top of existing rewards:
- Apple Macbook Pro 13-inch, 256GB (worth S$1,899) and more.
- S$100 Revolut cash reward when you are the 8th and 88th person to sign up for a Revolut Account each week.
Valid till Aug 31, 2024.
4. Starr travel insurance
Starr’s travel insurance Starr TraveLead Comprehensive is a leader in terms of how customisable their insurance is.
When signing up, medical coverage (including Covid-19 coverage) is automatically included in all plans, but you can choose whether or not you want to add trip coverage (e.g. document loss, travel delay) and baggage coverage (e.g. baggage delay). Then, you can also easily add riders for Golf Protection, Cruise Vacation, Scuba Diving, and Snow Sports.
Starr TraveLead Comprehensive comes in two tiers: Gold and Silver. The Silver tier affords you an adequate $500,000 overseas medical coverage, as well as $30,000 medical coverage for Covid-19 and $250 coverage for Covid-19 related trip curtailments and cancellations.
Here are the prices and coverage amounts for each tier. Prices are given with trip coverage included in the plan.
| Starr TraveLead Comprehensive prices/coverage | Silver | Gold |
| Price (ASEAN) | $64/week | $83/week |
| Price (Asia) | $68/week | $89/week |
| Price (Worldwide) | $92/week | $119/week |
| Medical expenses (overseas) | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Emergency medical evacuation | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Travel delay | $600 ($100/6 hours) | $800 ($100/6 hours) |
| Trip cancellation | $10,000 | $15,000 |
| Baggage loss/damage | $5,000 | $7,500 |
Note: Starr also has a travel insurance called Starr TraveLead Essential, which also comes in Silver and Gold tiers. They look very attractive because of their low prices — for example, Starr TraveLead Essential Silver costs just $34 for a 7-day trip to an Asean destination.
However, unless you’re on a really tight budget, I wouldn’t recommend these plans because of their more limited coverage.
For example, while the Starr TraveLead Essential Silver plan does cover you for $500,000 worth of overseas medical expenses, it doesn’t cover you at all for trip cancellation and loss/damage of baggage.
Starr travel insurance promotion
With the ongoing 35% discount promotion on Starr travel insurance, prices are quite affordable. Coverage for a week-long Asean trip is just $42 (about $6 a day), while a trip of the same duration to countries like USA costs $60 (under $9 a day).
Plus, you’ll receive attractive gifts when you buy Starr travel insurance on MoneySmart:
- S$30 Revolut cash reward, S$30 Trip.com Hotel Coupon and an Eskimo Global 1GB eSIM (worth S$9.50) with every policy purchased.
- Score S$100 Revolut cash reward in our giveaway on top of existing rewards when you are the 8th and 88th person to sign up for a Revolut Account each week.
Valid till Aug 31, 2024.
5. MSIG travel insurance
MSIG travel insurance is categorised into three plans — Standard, Elite, and Premier. The cheapest, basic plan still offers pretty adequate coverage in medical emergencies and trip cancellations or delays.
Here’s a quick run-down of the plan’s key benefits:
| MSIG travel insurance | Standard | Elite | Premier |
| Price (Area A) | $62/week | $83/week | $116/week |
| Price (Area B) | $76/week | $106/week | $147/week |
| Price (Area C) | $122/week | $155/week | $209/week |
| Medical expenses (overseas) | $250,000 | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Emergency medical evacuation | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Travel delay | $500 ($100/6 hours) | $1,000 ($100/6 hours) | $1,500 ($100/6 hours) |
| Trip cancellation | $5,000 | $10,000 | $15,000 |
| Loss/damage baggage | $3,000 | $5,000 | $7,500 |
One more unusual area of coverage that MSIG includes is emergency dental expenses. You get $5,000 to $15,000 in coverage, depending on the travel insurance tier you select.
MSIG’s Areas A and B refer, roughly speaking, to Asean and Asia respectively. Here’s a more comprehensive list of the countries in each category:
- Area A: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, East and West Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.
- Area B: Australia, China (excluding Inner Mongolia and Tibet), Hong Kong, India, Japan, Macau, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, and all those in Area A.
- Area C: Worldwide, including territories in Areas A and B.
MSIG travel insurance’s Covid-19 coverage is an automatic inclusion to its travel insurance plans and offers coverage such as trip cancellation, overseas medical expenses, and overseas quarantine daily cash allowance, but excludes daily hospital cash allowance.
MSIG travel insurance promotion
Now is a great time to purchase travel insurance from MSIG — premiums are going at 55% off! And that’s not all. You can also get over S$110 worth of rewards:
- S$30 Revolut cash reward, S$30 Trip.com Hotel Coupon and Eskimo Global 1GB eSIM (worth S$9.50) with every policy purchased.
- Up to S$45 via PayNow or 1 x Apple AirTag (worth S$45.40) with eligible premiums spent.
On top of that, score over S$5,900 worth of Apple Gadgets and gifts:
- Apple Macbook Pro 13-inch, 256GB (worth S$1,899) and more.
- S$100 Revolut cash reward when you are the 8th and 88th person to sign up for a Revolut Account each week.
Promotion valid till Aug 31, 2024. T&Cs apply.
6. Singlife travel insurance
Singlife travel insurance comes in three tiers — Lite, Plus, and Prestige. The price you pay and the coverage you’ll get increase with each plan.
Here are Singlife travel insurance’s key prices and benefits:
| Singlife travel insurance | Lite | Plus | Prestige |
| Price (ASEAN) | $41/week | $63/week | $88/week |
| Price (Asia, Australia, New Zealand) | $51/week | $79/week | $111/week |
| Price (Worldwide) | $76/week | $119/week | $174/week |
| Emergency medical expenses / evacuation | $250,000 | $2,000,000 | Unlimited |
| Travel delay | $500 ($100/6 hours) | $1,000 ($100/6 hours) | $2,000 ($100/6 hours) |
| Trip cancellation | $5,000 | $15,000 | $20,000 |
| Baggage loss/damage | $5,000 | $5,000 | $8,000 |
On top of the coverage above, Singlife also covers you for chiropractor and/or Chinese physician treatment: $250 ($50 per visit) for Lite, $500 ($75 per visit) for Plus, and $1000 ($100 per visit) for Prestige.
While Singlife travel insurance’s coverage is quite comprehensive, we have to dock some points for the lack of overseas hospital cash allowance and pretty low Covid-19 trip cancellation coverage.
Also, do note that the lowest tier, Lite, doesn’t come with certain coverage, such as trip cancellation or postponement for any reason.
Singlife travel insurance promotion
It’s a win-win situation — get 25% off your Singlife travel insurance premiums with these goodies thrown in:
- S$30 Revolut cash reward, S$30 Trip.com Hotel Coupon and Eskimo Global 1GB eSIM (worth S$9.50) with every policy purchased.
- Up to S$30 via PayNow with eligible premiums spent.
- Plus, score S$100 Revolut cash reward in our giveaway on top of existing rewards when you are the 8th and 88th person to sign up for a Revolut Account each week.
Promotion valid till Aug 31, 2024. T&Cs apply.
7. Etiqa Travel Insurance
Do you hate making travel insurance claims? I do. That’s why when a friend of mine told me that you don’t need to make any claim on Etiqa to receive compensation for your flight delay, I was very intrigued.
I’ve been fortunate-all my recent flights have left on time. But from what I’ve heard from friends who weren’t as lucky on their recent travels, it’s true that Etiqa has the most seamless claim process for flight delays.
All you need to do is enter your flight details when purchasing your insurance. Etiqa will monitor your flight and know if your flight is delayed (to count as a delay, it needs to be pushed back at least three consecutive hours). If that happens, they’ll transfer money into your Etiqa TiqConnect eWallet-even if you don’t submit a claim! You can then encash that sum via PayNow.
On top of this travel delay claim benefit, Etiqa also provides flight check-in reminders and baggage belt collection details via SMS when you land. I experienced this myself when I bought Etiqa’s travel insurance for my trip to the UK this year. Now that’s what I call service.
Etiqa’s travel insurance is called Tiq Travel Insurance and comes in three tiers: Tiq Entry, Tiq Savvy, and Tiq Luxury. Here are their costs and coverage components:
| Tiq by Etiqa travel insurance | Tiq Entry | Tiq Savvy | Tiq Luxury |
| Price (ASEAN) | $39/week | $54/week | $72/week |
| Price (Asia, Australia, New Zealand) | $43/week | $67/week | $85/week |
| Price (Worldwide) | $65/week | $85/week | $106/week |
| Overseas medical expenses | $200,000 | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Emergency medical evacuation / repatriation of mortal remains (combined limit) | $1,000,000 | $1,500,000 | $1,800,000 |
| Travel delay | $300 ($50/3 hours) | $300 ($50/3 hours) | $500 ($50/3 hours) |
| Trip cancellation | $5,000 | $5,000 | $10,000 |
| Baggage loss/damage | $2,000 | $2,000 | $3,000 |
Tiq Entry is sufficient to give you essential coverage for travel disruptions. But if you’ve just a little more to spend, go for Tiq Savvy. This will more than double your coverage limit for overseas medical expenses from $200,000 to $500,000 for just an additional $5 a week-that’s less than $1 a day.
The only disadvantage to Tiq travel insurance is that Covid-19 coverage is not included in the base price and you’ll have to pay for their optional Covid-19 Add-On (from $18/week) to be covered.
Some people might say this is an advantage-it gives you a greater degree of flexibility to decide if you want to have Covid-19 coverage or not, especially as Covid-19 becomes less and less prevalent. However, the fact remains that you need to pay extra for it compared to travel insurance plans where Covid-19 coverage is already included
Etiqa travel insurance promotion
Take 40% off your Tiq Single Trip policy premiums and 80% off Covid-19 add-ons for Annual Plans. On top of that, enjoy these goodies!
- S$30 Revolut cash reward with every policy purchased.
- S$100 Revolut cash reward in our giveaway on top of existing rewards when you are the 8th and 88th person to sign up for a Revolut Account each week.
New to Tiq? Get free travel insurance (worth S$30) from Tiq with the promo code FREETRAVEL.
Valid till Aug 31, 2024. T&Cs apply.
8. Cheapest travel insurance in Singapore
When I buy travel insurance, I don’t really care whether the insurer has 900 years of experience or if the plan comes with extra coverage for Chanel bags. Just give me the cheapest travel insurance plan can liao!
If that sounds like you too, you’ll be glad to know we’ve done the legwork for you. After assessing the most popular travel insurers in Singapore, the honour of cheapest travel insurance in Singapore goes to… Zurich travel insurance.
| Travel insurance | Premium (for 7-day trip to Asean destination) |
| Zurich travel insurance | $32 – $51 |
| FWD travel insurance | $33 – $57 (Add on $11 for COVID-19 coverage) |
| Tiq by Etiqa travel insurance | $39 – $72 (Add on $18 – $40 for COVID-19 coverage) |
| AMEX travel insurance | $40 – $63 |
| Singlife travel insurance | $41 – $88 |
| Bubblegum travel insurance | $42 |
| AIG travel insurance (AIG Travel Guard Direct) | $48 – $125 |
| Chubb Travel Insurance | $51 – $120 |
| UOB travel insurance | $54 – $97 |
| OCBC travel insurance | $54 – $103 (COVID-19 coverage not included in the Starter Plan) |
| MSIG travel insurance | $62 – $116 |
| Sompo travel insurance | $64 – $83 |
| Starr travel insurance | $64 – $83 |
| Income Travel Insurance | $68 – $109 |
| Great Eastern Travel Insurance | $70 – $81 (COVID-19 coverage not included in Basic plan) |
| DBS TravelShield Plus | $75 – $122 |
| Tokio Marine Travel Insurance | $76 – $99 |
But as the old saying goes, you get what you pay for. Will you regret being a cheapskate and lose out on important coverage if the only number you look at is the price?
In a way, yes. Because Zurich travel insurance may be the cheapest option, but its medical coverage is shockingly low. The lowest tier plan, Zurich Travel Insurance Basic, only comes with $50,000 of overseas medical coverage. I have never seen any plan with lower coverage for this category!
Zurich Travel Insurance Prestige maxes out their medical coverage at a $250,000. You don’t need to do a lot of research to realise that this is pretty dismal for a plan that will cost you $51 for a 7-day Asean trip.
Let’s just look at the next cheapest travel insurance for comparison. FWD Premium, FWD’s lowest tier travel insurance plan, costs $33 for $200,000 overseas medical coverage. FWD First comes with a whopping $1,000,000 overseas medical coverage for $57.
Zurich travel insurance’s other components, such as trip cancellation coverage and coverage for lost or damaged baggage, are better. But its lacking medical coverage is a big turn-off for me. So I would only recommend you consider Zurich if you’re more interested in non-medical coverage.
At the end of the day, ask yourself what specific travel insurance coverage you want to have, and assess the travel insurance options to find one that suits your needs.
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This article was first published in MoneySmart.
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