India travel insurance

What’s covered with travel insurance to India?

As standard, our policies cover for over 50 and activities, so you can get up to more on your holiday. We also offer a range of benefits, some of which include:

• Medical expenses and hospital benefit
• Personal accident and liability
• Cancelling and cutting short your holiday
• Abandoning your trip
• Delayed departure
• Accommodation cover
• Personal belongings and baggage
• Personal money, passport and travel documents
• Legal expenses

For more information about what’s covered with travel insurance for India, have a read of our policy documents here.

Useful information

If you’re going to India, make sure you have the right travel insurance before you go, there are a few things to think about before you buy a policy, though:

• The cost of your trip – Because if you have to cancel, it’s good to know that you’ll get your money back
• The activities you’re likely to be doing – If you’re planning anything really extreme, we can offer you extra cover if needed
• Whether you’re covered should you incur costs as a result of civil unrest
• And don’t forget to check the latest travel advice for India from the FCDO

We care about you having a good trip to India. That’s why we’ve put together some important information that you might want to know before your trip:

Do I need a visa for India?

Yes, you’ll need to apply for a visa as a British citizen travelling to India. It’s important to make sure you get the right visa for your stay, as getting the wrong visa could result in being detained on arrival, or even deported and blacklisted.

You can find more information about visas and entry requirements for India here.

Healthcare in India

The healthcare services in India vary depending on where you’re travelling to. In the more remote parts of India, the healthcare services aren’t up to the same standard as those in the UK. Whereas private healthcare facilities in larger cities are to a much better standard, but can be quite expensive. It’s important to make sure you have adequate travel insurance that includes medical cover. It’s also important to make sure you speak to your GP at least four to six weeks before you go to check whether there are any vaccinations or anything that you may need.

More information about healthcare in India can be found here.

Medical & Emergency Assistance in India

If something happens while you’re in India and you need emergency treatment for an illness or injury, we’re here to help.

All travel insurance policyholders have access to our 24-hour medical assistance team.

Did you know that…?

• As a guest in India, turn down the first offer of tea or snacks. Don’t worry if you’re gasping for a cup – you’ll be asked again. It’s part of the protocol. Leaving food on your plate means you’ve had enough, but an empty plate says “still hungry”!
• Marigolds in their thousands are used as brightly coloured decorations at Indian weddings, festivals and temples as an auspicious symbol of peace and prosperity. By contrast, giving a British bride a pair of marigolds wouldn’t go down too well.
• Every year India’s population grows by the equivalent of the combined populations of the Netherlands and Belgium, about 27 million people. It’s expected that there will be more people in India than China by 2025. That’s a lot of people.
• As the Romans found, maths and counting get a bit tricky if you haven’t invented zero. So hat’s off to the mathematicians of India, who came up with the idea and were calculating with zeros at least by the 9th century. Nothing is really something.
• Sushruta, a plastic surgeon in India, could reconstruct a missing nose (cut off in battle or as punishment for a crime like adultery) using flaps of skin from the cheek or forehead. The technique is still used today. He did it in the 6th century BC!
• In India ghosts, spirits, departed souls and dark energy – call them what you will – are believed to attach themselves to black clothing. They’re not at all fond of white clothes. That’s why Indians traditionally wear white to funerals.
• A camel race kicks off the Pushkar ka Mela, the world’s largest camel and livestock market-festival held for five days every November in Pushkar, India. Sideshow events include the “matka phod” – a competition to find the longest moustache.