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Retired roamers pay double at 66, says Moneysupermarket.com
17 April 2007
Many older people suddenly face steep increases in the cost of their travel insurance premiums as they reach their 66th birthdays, finance advice site Moneysupermarket.com has warned.
Insurance companies categorise individuals' risk level according to which 'age band' they fit into - but with older people assumed to be at higher risk of loss or injury, this can mean aging by just one day compels customers to pay more to stay insured.
On the day they turn 66, many older people will find their premiums double, Moneysupermarket.com found, because they enter a new age band.
The same thing happens when they reach 70.
When taking out an annual multi-trip travel insurance policy with no pre-existing medical conditions, the top premium a 65-year-old will be charged is £35.42 - but on the day they turn 66, they may have to pay £88.64.
These "overnight premium shocks" fail to act as "a fair reflection of an individual's increased risk of making a claim", Richard Mason, Moneysupermarket.com's director of insurance stressed.
He called on insurers to "smooth out" the rises in insurance costs, making them more gradual.
© Adfero Ltd
Insurance companies categorise individuals' risk level according to which 'age band' they fit into - but with older people assumed to be at higher risk of loss or injury, this can mean aging by just one day compels customers to pay more to stay insured.
On the day they turn 66, many older people will find their premiums double, Moneysupermarket.com found, because they enter a new age band.
The same thing happens when they reach 70.
When taking out an annual multi-trip travel insurance policy with no pre-existing medical conditions, the top premium a 65-year-old will be charged is £35.42 - but on the day they turn 66, they may have to pay £88.64.
These "overnight premium shocks" fail to act as "a fair reflection of an individual's increased risk of making a claim", Richard Mason, Moneysupermarket.com's director of insurance stressed.
He called on insurers to "smooth out" the rises in insurance costs, making them more gradual.
© Adfero Ltd
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