Nationwide Travel Insurance Review

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Buying travel insurance coverage can protect you from unexpected expenses incurred during a trip. These include needing to cancel or interrupt your travel plans, lost luggage, emergency medical expenses and travel delays.

Nationwide travel insurance is among our top picks for the best travel insurance companies. It offers multi-trip plans, dedicated cruise travel coverage, pre-existing condition waivers and round-the-clock travel assistance.

Read our Nationwide Travel Insurance review to learn about the pros and cons of doing business with this well-known travel insurer and decide if it’s the best option for you.

Best for cruise travel insurance

Nationwide is the best company we’ve found for cruise insurance. It offers dedicated cruise travel insurance plans covering unforeseen scenarios you may encounter during a cruise vacation, including itinerary changes and mechanical breakdowns.

Nationwide travel insurance pros and cons

Travel insurance covers medical emergencies and other potentially expensive issues while you’re abroad. While it isn’t required for most destinations, like the best travel credit cards, it can provide peace of mind for a fraction of your total trip cost.

Here’s what you can expect from your Nationwide Travel Insurance plan.

Pros explained

Pre-existing conditions waiver available with most plans

Pre-existing conditions are a common travel insurance exclusion. If you developed symptoms of, were treated for or were diagnosed with a condition before purchasing coverage and then suffered a relapse during your trip, travel insurance will cover treatment for it only if you qualify for a pre-existing condition waiver upon purchasing the plan.

According to travel insurance broker Squaremouth, Nationwide offers pre-existing condition waivers on several of its plans. Travelers who purchase the Essential or Primer plans within 20 days of the initial trip deposit may qualify for the waiver, as are those who purchase the Choice Cruise or Luxury Cruise plans within 14 days of the initial deposit.

Note, however, that you must meet certain conditions for the waiver to be valid (including being medically approved to travel). And this benefit is not available on the Universal Cruise Plan.

24-hour travel assistance available

Nationwide's travel insurance plans offer comprehensive 24-hour emergency services, including emergency medical evacuation and repatriation, transportation post-stabilization and repatriation of mortal remains.

The company also provides travel support services, including medical monitoring, interpretation services and assistance with making emergency travel arrangements or replacing lost or stolen items such as medication or medical devices.

Offers cruise-specific plans

Compared to other travel insurance companies, Nationwide provides more expansive and customizable cruise insurance coverage. The company offers three plans tailored specifically for cruises: Choice, Universal and Luxury. Each covers cruise-specific travel-related setbacks such as medical evacuations, itinerary changes and missed connections.

Cruise-specific coverage includes:

• Cancellations due to weather or social unrest in an itinerary country
• Missed connections while you’re off the cruise ship
• Reimbursement for canceled prepaid excursions due to itinerary changes

Cons explained

Cancel for any reason coverage is only available with premium plans

Cancel for any reason (CFAR) coverage allows policyholders to cancel their trip for reasons other than those listed as covered in their policy details. Standard canceling policies don't include coverage for situations where travelers simply change their minds about their trip or have personal reasons for canceling. With CFAR coverage, however, they can cancel their trip for any reason whatsoever.

With Nationwide, CFAR Coverage is only available with the Prime and Luxury Cruise plans. If you opt for a lower plan tier, your customization options will be limited to rental car coverage.

Offers few add-ons compared to other insurers

Nationwide offers few options for policy customization beyond CFAR and rental car coverage. By contrast, other insurers provide coverage for pets, adventure sports and accidental death and dismemberment.

Nationwide travel insurance plans

Choosing the right travel insurance plan for your trip is crucial. Like the best travel rewards credit cards, the right plan can help you save money on your trip. However, the wrong plan could be an unnecessary expense.

Nationwide offers several travel insurance plans and some level of customization through standard add-ons. You can learn more about the details of each plan and get a quote on Nationwide’s website.

Below is a brief overview of the different travel insurance plans Nationwide offers.

Single-trip plans

You can buy single-trip insurance for a flat price and get coverage for the extent of your trip, whether a few days or a month. Nationwide offers two single-trip plans:

CFAR coverage is only available with Prime. This option costs extra and will cover 75% of non-refundable trip costs, provided you purchase it within 21 days of your initial trip payment and meet other specific requirements.

Multi-trip (annual) plan

Annual plans, also known as multi-trip travel insurance, are designed to cover multiple trips per year and are paid on an annual or monthly basis.

Nationwide's Annual Travel Pro Plan has several trip cancellation benefit options from $1,250 to $10,000. Trip interruption coverage will depend on whatever tip cancellation option you select. Baggage and personal effects coverage is $500 per person/trip with a $200 per article limit and a $400 maximum for valuable goods.

As for medical coverage, the annual plan provides the following:

• $10,000 per person/trip (secondary) for emergency medical expenses

• $750 per person/trip for emergency dental expenses (included in medical coverage)

• $50,000 per person/trip for emergency medical evacuation and repatriation of remains

This plan does not include CFAR coverage or a waiver of pre-existing conditions

Cruise plans

Nationwide’s cruise insurance differentiates the company from others in the industry. Cruise insurance covers every destination country, plus robust medical evacuation coverage. Nationwide offers three cruise insurance plans.

All three cruise plans offer a benefit that allows policyholders to cancel their travel plans due to work reasons. Additionally, the Choice and Luxury plans include a pre-existing condition waiver, provided you purchase insurance within 14 days of the initial trip deposit and meet certain conditions.

CFAR coverage is exclusively available with the Luxury plan. This option covers 75% of non-refundable trip costs. Please note that CFAR entails an additional cost and requires purchasing coverage within 14 days of the initial trip payment, along with meeting other conditions.

Nationwide travel insurance pricing

With Nationwide, travel insurance costs vary depending on the plan you select and factors such as:

• The number of travelers in your group
• Your age and the ages of your travel companions
• The total cost of your trip
• Add-ons and additional coverage you purchase

To get an accurate estimate of what you might pay for travel insurance with Nationwide, request a quick online quote on the company's website or contact its 24/7 customer service helpline.

Nationwide financial stability

Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company is an established insurer with an A+ (Excellent) financial strength rating from AM Best. This rating indicates the company's strong ability to meet its financial obligations, particularly in terms of paying out claims.

Nationwide accessibility

Because Nationwide is such a large company, its insurance plans are widely available. The company also takes steps to be as accessible as possible.

Availability

Nationwide Travel Insurance is available in all 50 states. However, policies can vary from state to state. Coverage for itinerary changes, for example, may include those caused by fires, mechanical issues, illnesses and more, depending on the state where you buy your plan.

Contact information

Nationwide allows policyholders to get a quote and file a claim online. The company also offers a 24/7 worldwide travel assistance line: 1-877-970-9059.

You can call the helpline to ask about your coverage or get help finding a network provider. If you want to pay for your Nationwide travel insurance, you can do it through your account or as a guest online.

Nationwide Travel Insurance doesn’t have a public email address, but you can fill out a form on the contact page of Nationwide’s website to send an email.

User experience

Most Nationwide Travel Insurance reviews report an intuitive user experience. The website is easy to navigate and provides clear directions to compare plans, file a claim or make payments. Customer reviews report quick response times and helpful customer service agents.

Nationwide travel insurance customer satisfaction

While Nationwide gets mixed reviews on third-party review platforms, consumers should remember it’s a large insurance company, and most public customer complaints aren't specific to its travel insurance plans.

Nationwide is rated 1.15/5 stars on BBB.org. Again, that score doesn’t necessarily reflect the experience of Nationwide's travel insurance customers. However, some customers have reported difficulty filing claims for other insurance products.

How we evaluated Nationwide travel insurance

We evaluated Nationwide Travel Insurance for this review by comparing it to other top insurance providers. Some critical features we considered include:

• Variety of plans offered
• Add-on coverage options
• Accessibility
• Customer reviews and complaints
• Coverage limits
• Inclusion of pre-existing condition waivers

Summary of Money's Nationwide Travel Insurance Review

If you've booked an expensive trip and covered non-refundable trip expenses ahead of time, travel insurance could give you peace of mind knowing you can be reimbursed for cancellations and other unforeseen events.

Nationwide offers comprehensive coverage through single-trip, multi-trip and cruise plans. The company might be the best insurance provider for you if you want multiple options for cruise insurance. With the right coverage, you can be protected against cruise-specific setbacks such as itinerary changes and non-emergency evacuations.