Medical cover and emergency assistance services are the most important aspects of travel insurance. If you become sick while travelling, medical costs can quickly escalate so it's important to have the right cover. We automatically cover a selection of pre-existing medical conditions for no additional charge. We also provide cover for other health concerns for an additional premium so that you can create unforgettable travel memories without compromising your health.
When you request a quote for travel insurance, you’ll be asked to declare your conditions to us. It is important that you let us know about the health and medical conditions of all travellers on your policy. This information is essential to arrange and price your travel insurance accurately and to avoid issues with potential future claims.
Whether we can cover the medical conditions that you have will depend on your personal circumstances including your medical history.
Pre-Existing medical conditions can fall into three categories:
If we can provide you with cover for your medical conditions, you will need to pay an additional premium, and the medical conditions will be listed as covered on your certificate of insurance. You may have the option not to pay extra if there are certain conditions you didn't want to cover.
If your condition is not approved, you may still be able to get travel insurance for things that are not related to your medical condition.
We want to help you understand what a pre-existing medical condition is and what you need to do if you have any. Below is a summary of what we consider a pre-existing medical condition to be. This applies for you, your travelling companion, a relative or another person:
There are certain conditions that we want to know about no matter how long ago they were diagnosed. If you have had any of the following conditions at any time in your life, you should declare them:
If you fall into any of the above categories, and your condition is not automatically covered, you will need to disclose your medical condition before you purchase your policy.
A condition that hasn’t been officially diagnosed, but is being investigated should not be declared as this cannot be covered under the policy.
If you already have a Frequent Traveller policy and have developed a new medical condition, see our FAQs for more information.
*Please note, that this definition is a summary.
Please read the PDS for a full explanation of what a pre-existing medical condition is.
If your condition ISN'T in the table below, you will need to disclose it.
The pre-existing medical conditions listed in the table below are automatically covered by our policies, but you MUST meet all three criteria:
If your condition is listed below and you meet all the criteria, then you don’t need to disclose your medical condition when you’re purchasing your policy.
| Automatically Covered Pre-Existing Condition |
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1. Acne |
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2. Allergies |
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3. Asthma |
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4. Bell's palsy |
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5. Benign positional vertigo |
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6. Bunions |
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7. Carpal tunnel syndrome |
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8. Cataracts |
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9. Coeliac disease (gluten intolerance) |
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10. Congenital blindness |
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11. Congenital deafness |
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12. Dry eye syndrome |
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13. Diabetes mellitus (Type I & Type II) |
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14. Epilepsy |
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15. Folate deficiency |
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16. Gastric reflux (heartburn, indigestion) |
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17. Goitre |
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18. Glaucoma (increased ocular pressure) |
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19. Graves' disease |
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20. Hiatus hernia |
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21. Hypercholesterolaemia /high cholesterol |
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22. Hyperlipidaemia (high blood lipids) Only if you don’t also suffer from a known cardiovascular disease. |
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23. Hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) Including Hashimoto’s disease. |
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24. Hypertension (High Blood Pressure) |
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25. Impaired glucose tolerance (glucose intolerance, pre-diabetes). |
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26. Incontinence |
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27. Insulin resistance |
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28. Menopause |
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29. Nocturnal cramps |
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30. Pernicious anaemia |
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31. Raynaud’s disease |
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32. Sleep Apnoea Find out more here. |
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33. Trigeminal neuralgia |
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34. Trigger finger |
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35. Vitamin B12 deficiency |
If your condition is listed in the table, but you do not meet the three conditions for automatic coverage (listed above the table), you can still apply for travel insurance, but you will need to disclose your condition.
Please note that travel insurance won’t cover any routine treatment or management of your approved pre-existing medical conditions (eg. blood test and prescription renewals).
If we don’t have a full picture of your health before you travel, then any claims that you make can be reduced or rejected, or your insurance policy might become void. Additionally, if something happens to you and it’s a result of a medical condition that you didn't tell us about, you won't be covered.
The process is simple and quick. You don’t need to provide a doctor’s certificates or other documents. You’ll be asked if you have pre-existing conditions when you purchase your policy online, and if you select ‘yes’, you’ll need to fill out a simple questionnaire.
Once you have completed your medical assessment online, you’ll find out whether:
If we are able to cover your condition, we can only cover unexpected events that were unforeseen at the time we agreed to insure you.
If we can't cover your condition, it means that anyone under your policy would not be able to claim for any costs arising from, related to, or associated with your pre-existing medical condition/s.
Even with well-managed health, it's essential to disclose pre-existing conditions and understand policy exclusions. For instance, cosmetic or elective surgeries aren't covered, nor are unstable conditions you're aware of, symptomatic for, or seeking medical advice for at the time of purchase. If you're unsure about what to declare or are awaiting a diagnosis, refer to our guide below.
| Conditions You Need To Tell Us About |
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| Diagnosed Condition: If you’ve had any medical, dental, physical or mental condition, defect, virus, disease or illness that has been diagnosed in the last 12 months and you’re currently not awaiting surgery, treatment, investigation or procedures for this/these condition(s). |
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Prescribed Medication: If you’re taking or have been prescribed any medication for a diagnosed condition, in the last 12 months and you’re currently not awaiting surgery, treatment, investigation or procedures for this/these condition(s). |
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Consultation: If you’ve consulted or seen a medical adviser for a diagnosed condition in the last 12 months and you’re currently not awaiting surgery, treatment, investigation or procedures for this/these condition(s). |
| Treatment: If you’ve received, medical treatment, surgery or attended a hospital or clinic (as an outpatient or inpatient) for a diagnosed condition in the last 12 months and you’re currently not awaiting surgery, treatment, investigation or procedures for this/these condition(s) |
| Pregnancy Complications: If you’re pregnant and have had complications during this pregnancy, you must complete the online medical assessment. Learn more about our cover for pregnancy. |
Conditions Diagnosed At Any Time In Your Life: You should tell us if you've ever been diagnosed with one of the following medical conditions at any time in your life. You should only declare these if you're not awaiting surgery, treatment, investigation or procedures:
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| Conditions We Do Not Need To Know About |
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Undiagnosed Conditions: If you or anyone travelling on the policy are aware of (or a person in your circumstances reasonably should have been aware of) change, signs or symptoms for a medical condition yet to be diagnosed, please do not declare these. Our policies do not provide cover for undiagnosed conditions that you are awaiting consultation, treatment, investigation or specialist opinion. For example (but not limited to): Signs or Symptoms: undiagnosed flu symptoms, chest pain, stomach problems, headaches, pains in the muscles or joints. Investigations: Such as waiting for blood test results or an X-ray. |
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Conditions Awaiting Surgery, Treatment, Investigation or Procedures: We do not provide cover for unstable conditions or those awaiting specialist opinion. You should not declare conditions where you or anyone travelling on your policy are awaiting, surgery, treatment, investigation or procedures, as these are not covered under the policy.
Surgeries: An upcoming operation for a broken bone or cataract (booked or not or on a waiting list). Treatments: Awaiting your medical team to tell you what medication you need or how to manage your condition, such as starting a new medication or therapy. Investigations: Such as waiting for blood test results or an X-ray (except for routine checkups where no symptoms are present). Procedures: Needing a biopsy or another procedure, whether it's already booked or you know you’ll need it soon. |
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Automatically Covered Conditions: We automatically cover you for 35 pre-existing medical conditions without assessment or additional charge provided that:
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Pregnancy: You don't have to disclose pregnancy to us provided that you haven't had any pregnancy complications. It is important to note that our policies only provide cover for travel up to a certain gestation:
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Travelling to To Seek Treatment: Please do not declare conditions where you are travelling to seek medical advice, treatment, review or where you are travelling to participate in a clinical trial. Our policies do not provide cover for any complications or other claims arising from such treatments, even if your medical condition is approved for cover by us. |
| Cosmetic Treatments or Elective Surgeries: Our policies do not provide cover for cosmetic treatments or elective surgeries, or for any complications or other claims arising from such procedures or treatments, even if your medical condition is approved for cover by us. |
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Conditions Involving Drug or Alcohol Dependency: Our policies do not provide cover for conditions or events arising due to drug or alcohol dependency. |
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Below are common pre-existing medical conditions. Click on the name of each condition to find out everything you need to know.
| Common Pre-existing Conditions |
|---|
| Asthma You’ll need to disclose your asthma if you’re over 60. |
| Arthritis You’ll need to declare your specific type of arthritis, eg. osteo, rheumatoid, psoriatic. |
| Cancer You have to disclose this, even if you had it many years ago and you are in remission. |
| Diabetes Generally you will need to disclose this unless you you are under 50 and don’t have any other complications. |
| Heart Disease Any history of any type of heart condition needs to be disclosed (including past heart attacks). |
| Hypertension/High Blood Pressure Generally this will be covered, if you meet all the necessary pre-conditions. |
| Hip & Knee Replacement You’ll need to disclose this unless you meet all the necessary pre-conditions. |
| Mental Health Including depression and anxiety, even if you aren’t taking medication. |
| Osteoporosis All grades need to be disclosed, even if you’re not taking medication. |
| Sleep Apnoea Generally, this condition is automatically covered. |
If, when you purchased your policy you were not aware of your condition (you had no signs, symptoms or investigations), your policy would automatically provide cover for unforeseen complications or issues that may arise from your newly diagnosed condition provided that your doctor has deemed you fit to travel.
In this case, your Frequent Traveller cover will apply to trips you had already booked or part-paid for prior to your diagnosis. For any trips newly arranged after your diagnosis you will not have a provision to claim for any incidents that arise from or related to your condition - unless it’s an automatically covered condition - as this would be classed as a pre-existing condition when you arranged the trip.
If we can’t cover you at all because of your condition, you will find out during the medical assessment.
If your condition isn’t approved, we may still offer you the option to purchase travel insurance, but you won’t be covered for claims that are the result of your pre-existing condition. This is called a pre-existing condition waiver.
Even though you’re not able to take out cover for claims related to your existing condition, you’ll still be entitled to lodge claims for cancellation, lost luggage and even medical claims so long as they aren’t related to your condition.
There may be cover available for travellers who experience a serious mental health problem for the first time, before they travel.
Cover for certain pre-existing mental health conditions may be available subject to our medical screening and the payment of an additional premium (where required). To find out if your mental health condition can be covered, simply get a quote and complete the medical screening at step four.
Pregnancy is not considered a medical condition unless you have complications. We offer certain pregnancy-related cover as standard up to and including the 24th week for single pregnancy and up to and including the 19th week for a multiple pregnancies. Find out more about pregnancy and travel insurance.
We won’t ask for any doctor’s certificates, medical reports or evaluations, but if you don’t know the answer to something, you might need to ask your doctor. The main thing we need from you is for you to complete our online medical screening so we can let you know if your condition can be covered.
No, you cannot apply for cover for a medical condition once you have left home. Terms and conditions, limits and exclusions apply. Please see PDS for full details.
Your policy may be invalid if you do not declare your pre-existing medical condition, or the claim amount you get back may be reduced.
No, pre-existing conditions need to be declared separately, even if you have senior’s travel insurance.
Assessments are processed instantly. Completing your assessment, depending on your condition/s and time taken to answer, can take anywhere from 1 to 20 minutes to fill out.
Cruise travel insurance can cover pre-existing conditions, this would be determined with an online medical assessment. Get a Quote for the destinations your cruise is taking you to and select the Cruise Pack follow through to the next steps and you will be prompted to disclose any pre-existing medical conditions.
For single trip policies, a condition is classed as a pre-existing condition if you were aware of the condition prior to purchasing the policy (ie. you had signs, symptoms, investigations or a diagnosis).
If you developed a medical condition and you didn’t have any signs, symptoms, investigation or diagnosis prior to buying your policy, your condition won’t be considered a pre-existing condition because it happened after the policy was issued.
If you buy your policy for travel, for example, six months in advance of travel, and then you develop a brand new medical condition between purchase and travel, you’d still have provisions to claim for unforeseen issues that arise due to or related to the condition as it was not a pre-existing condition when you purchased your policy.
However, if we’ve insured you before your travel date, you need to obtain a letter from your doctor stating that you’re fit enough to travel.
You would need to disclose the condition on any future policies.
No, you are not able to disclose pre-existing medical conditions from overseas. If you have an Already Overseas policy, you’ll only be covered for automatically covered conditions if all the conditions related to automatically covered conditions are met.
In some instances we may be able to offer cover if you have had cancer, but you would need to disclose this as a pre-existing medical condition when you Get a Quote. We will provide you with instant feedback after your assessment.
If your trip has not yet started, you can contact our Customer Service Team to carry out an assessment for your condition.
Please be aware that depending on the outcome of the assessment you may need to pay an additional premium.
All terms, conditions and limitations will apply in the same way as if you had declared the condition when you purchased the policy.
Providing you are under 50 at the issue date of your policy, you were diagnosed over 12 months ago, have no eye, kidney, nerve or vascular complications, you don’t also suffer from a cardiovascular disease.
You can find out more about diabetes here.
It’s important that you have all the right vaccinations before you travel. From malaria to meningococcal, find out what you need to know about vaccinations and travel insurance.
Repatriation is the process of returning a person home after a medical emergency or at worst case death. Being covered for repatriation is important so read the ins and outs.
If you have any other questions or queries, please visit our Contact Us page.
If you are experiencing an emergency, please use the details on our Emergency Assistance page.
1Cover ® is a registered trademark of 1Cover Pty Ltd. 1Cover Pty Ltd ABN 91 105 954 265, is an authorised representative of Coffre-Fort Pty Limited ABN 66 125 358 518, AFS Licence No. 472457. Before you buy, please read the Product Disclosure Statement and Target Market Determination. Any information contained on this website is general advice only and has been prepared without taking into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider these having regard to the Product Disclosure Statement (‘PDS’). Before you purchase, please note in particular, the eligibility criteria, travel warnings in place and limitations to claim under multiple policy sections.
This insurance is underwritten by HDI Global Specialty SE – Australia.
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