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Travel insurance · Flight-first cover
Independent, flight-first information on UK travel insurance — what a policy must cover, how GHIC fits in, pre-existing condition screening, and FCA-authorised providers and comparison services you can get quotes from. FlightLogic does not sell insurance or give advice.
UK travel insurance should be bought as soon as you book — cancellation cover starts from the purchase date, not the departure date. Compare policies on five flight-critical numbers before price: emergency medical and repatriation limits, cancellation cover, baggage, missed departure, and the excess you would actually pay.
Start with your trip
Compare cover before price
Premium is the last thing to compare, not the first — and cancellation protection starts the day you buy, so insure the trip when you book it. Worked examples in the five-number comparison checklist.
One screening · a panel of quotes
Comparison services return quotes from a panel of insurers rather than one — a single medical screening covers the whole panel. Panels differ between services, so no single comparison shows the whole market. Listed alphabetically; commission never orders this list.
A UK travel insurance comparison service returning quotes from a panel of insurers for single-trip, annual, and cruise policies.
Comparison results are quotes from the panel only — sort by the cover levels that matter to you, not just price.
Compare quotes on Compare Your Travel Insurance *A comparison service specialising in travellers with pre-existing medical conditions and older travellers, quoting from a panel of specialist insurers.
Have your diagnosis, medication, and treatment dates ready — screening answers must be accurate for cover to be valid.
Compare quotes on Medical Travel Compared *A general UK travel comparison site whose travel insurance channel returns quotes from a broad panel of UK insurers.
Use the filter for medical and cancellation limits rather than accepting the default price sort.
Compare quotes on TravelSupermarket *Buy direct
Listed alphabetically — this is not a ranking, and commission never orders this list. Each provider is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (or acts for insurers that are); check the policy wording and cover limits on the provider's own site before buying.
UK travel insurance with online medical screening, so travellers with declared pre-existing conditions can obtain a quote covering those conditions.
Complete the medical screening accurately and check the emergency medical limit for your destination region.
Get a Cedar Tree Travel Insurance quote *Single-trip, annual multi-trip, and backpacker policies at several cover tiers, with optional add-ons such as winter sports, cruise, and gadget cover.
Compare the cover tiers — cancellation and baggage limits differ significantly between the entry and top tiers.
Get a CoverForYou quote *Single-trip and annual multi-trip travel insurance sold online, underwritten by a major insurer, with family and couple policy options.
Check the per-claim excess and the trip duration limit on annual policies against your longest planned trip.
Get a Coverwise quote *Travel insurance including options for long-stay trips and a range of activities, with medical screening for pre-existing conditions.
If your trip involves sport or adventure activities, confirm each activity is on the policy's covered list before buying.
Get a Explorer Travel Insurance quote *Online travel insurance with single-trip and annual multi-trip policies, plus standalone car hire excess insurance for UK renters.
Review the travel disruption section — missed departure and delay benefits vary by tier.
Get a Insurefor quote *Backpacker and long-stay travel insurance aimed at extended trips, gap years, and working holidays, including cover for a wide list of activities.
Check the maximum trip length and whether working abroad (paid or voluntary) is covered for your plans.
Get a Outbacker Insurance quote *Subscription-style travel medical insurance for people travelling or working remotely abroad for extended periods — renews monthly while you are away rather than ending on a fixed date.
This is travel medical cover, not a full UK travel policy — cancellation and baggage cover differ from UK single-trip policies, so read the scope carefully.
Get a SafetyWing quote *You are not uninsurable. The FCA requires insurers to signpost exactly this situation to MoneyHelper's specialist travel insurance directory — a government-backed list of firms whose whole business is covering serious conditions. Specialist comparison services (Medical Travel Compared, above) screen once across a panel of them. Our pre-existing conditions guide covers declaring properly, because an undeclared condition can void the whole policy.
The free UK Global Health Insurance Card gives you medically necessary state healthcare in the EU at the same cost as a resident — valuable, and worth carrying on every European trip. It covers nothing else: no repatriation to the UK, no private treatment, no cancellation, no baggage, and nothing outside the EU. NHS guidance is to carry both a GHIC and a travel insurance policy. How GHIC and EHIC actually work →
Before you pay twice
Delays of 3+ hours or cancellations within the airline's control owe you £220–£520 from the airline by law — insurance or not.
UK261 guide & calculator → Section 75Flights or holidays of £100–£30,000 paid even partly on a UK credit card make the card issuer jointly liable if the provider fails.
Section 75 for bookings →UK package holidays including a flight carry ATOL protection if the organiser collapses. It protects the package — not DIY bookings.
Go deeper
FlightLogic (published by Elite Digital AI Solutions Ltd) is an independent travel review site. We are not authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and we do not advise on, recommend, arrange, or sell insurance. This page is general information: providers are listed alphabetically, links marked * are advertising links that may earn us commission at no extra cost to you, and any policy you buy is a contract between you and the FCA-authorised provider. Always read the policy wording and product information document before purchase. If you have been declined cover for medical reasons, MoneyHelper's specialist travel insurance directory lists insurers who cover serious conditions — the signposting route the FCA requires insurers themselves to use.
As soon as you pay for the flight or holiday. Cancellation cover runs from the date you buy the policy, so delaying until the week before departure leaves your booking unprotected against illness, bereavement, or other insured cancellation reasons in the gap. The premium is normally the same either way.
No. A UK Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) gives you medically necessary state healthcare in the EU at the same cost as a resident — but it does not cover repatriation to the UK, mountain rescue, private treatment, cancellation, baggage, or anything outside the EU. NHS guidance is to hold both a GHIC and a travel insurance policy.
Yes — every UK policy asks medical screening questions, and failing to declare a condition accurately can void a claim entirely, including claims unrelated to the condition on some policies. If you are declined cover or quoted a very high premium because of a medical condition, MoneyHelper (the government-backed service) runs a directory of specialist medical travel insurers.
Only partially — and it stacks with, rather than replaces, your legal rights. If a UK or EU flight is delayed 3+ hours or cancelled for a reason within the airline's control, UK261/EU261 compensation of £220–£520 is owed by the airline regardless of insurance. Travel insurance covers what those rules do not: delays outside the airline's control, missed connections on separate tickets, and consequential losses like unused hotel nights, subject to the policy's travel disruption section.
As a rule of thumb, an annual multi-trip policy usually costs less than three single-trip policies of similar cover. If you take two or more trips a year — including weekend city breaks — compare an annual quote before buying single-trip. Watch the per-trip duration limit (often 31 days) and whether winter sports need an add-on.
No. FlightLogic is an independent travel review site, not authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. We publish general information and link to FCA-authorised insurers and comparison services — links marked * are advertising links and may earn us commission at no extra cost to you. Any policy you buy is a contract between you and the provider; always read the policy wording before purchase.