TuGo’s Top-Up Travel Insurance: Your Questions Answered

Think you’re sufficiently covered by your work benefit or credit card travel insurance for your next trip? Think again! One reason why you’d want—and need—to top up your existing travel insurance policy is that it may not cover the entire length of your planned trip. 

For example, if you have a group plan from your work that offers only up to 30 days of coverage, and your trip is 45 days long, you can get TuGo Travel Insurance as a top-up policy to cover the remainder of your trip; in this case, it’d be 15 days. The additional days you purchase with TuGo ensures that you’ll have coverage for the entire duration of your time away.

5 frequently asked questions about top-up travel insurance 

Topping up travel insurance might be more common than you think. Here are some common questions from travellers: 

1. Why do I need to get top-up travel insurance?

It’s generally not a good idea to get coverage for only a portion of your trip. Top-up insurance covers you the day after another travel insurance policy expires, in effect extending your coverage, so you won’t be left unprotected for any number of days. When in doubt, it’s best to top up your insurance to ensure continuous coverage for those unexpected medical emergencies or accidents while you’re away.  

Note: If you have travel insurance coverage from another provider, you should always verify   that they allow their coverage to be topped up by another provider (such as TuGo), as they may void or restrict your coverage if you don’t extend or top-up with them directly. 

2. What are my top-up travel insurance options with TuGo?

At TuGo, you can get the following Emergency Medical Insurance plans to top up your existing coverage: 

Multi Trip Annual Emergency Medical Travel Insurance 

• Worldwide
• Within Canada 

Single Trip Emergency Medical Travel Insurance  

• Worldwide
• Worldwide excluding USA
• Within Canada 

If you’re unsure whether to get single trip or annual coverage for future travel, consider the value of an annual travel insurance policy, if you plan to travel more than once in a given year. 

3. I’m already with TuGo—can I top up an existing TuGo plan?

If you already have a TuGo Travel Insurance policy and would like to add more days of coverage to that plan, you can ask for an extension. Extensions are available to TuGo customers if your current policy hasn’t expired/lapsed, or if you haven’t submitted or plan to submit a claim.  

There are also instances when your existing coverage will be automatically extended, at no additional cost to you. Read more about how to extend your TuGo travel insurance policy. 

If you’re ready to extend your existing TuGo coverage, call TuGo Customer Service at 1-855-929-8846 or email us at info@tugo.com.

4. How many days can I top up a policy with TuGo Travel Insurance?

If you’re 59 years old or younger, you can top up your coverage for up to 365 days. If you’re 60 years old and over, you can get coverage for up to 182 (6 months) or 212 days (7 months), depending on your home province. 

5. Can I still top up my policy if I have a pre-existing medical condition?

Yes, you can top up your travel insurance policy if you have a pre-existing medical condition. Coverage for your pre-existing medical condition would need to meet stability requirements that are based on your age, and total trip length, including the number of days you’re topping up with TuGo. Here’s how pre-existing medical conditions can impact insurance claims. 

Happy travels,

Justin 

Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in September 2015 and has been updated for freshness and/or accuracy.