Travel insurance claim rejections: Top reasons and how to avoid them in your next trip

Travel insurance is crucial for smart travel planning. Its adoption is now gradually rising for international travel, especially for visa requirements (like Schengen), as it protects against risks like medical emergencies, cancellations and lost baggage.

Notably, claim rejections are one of the key pain points that hold travellers back from getting travel insurance in India and contribute to low adoption across the country, ICICI Lombard’s WanderSafe Report 2025 highlighted recently.

But why do travellers face claim rejections?

Top reasons for travel insurance claim rejections

Here are some of the key reasons why travellers face insurance claim rejections, as per the WanderSafe Report 2025:

A very common reason for claim rejection in the insurance sector is when the incident is not covered under the policy, but the travellers assume that it is. For example, one might think that adventure sports are covered in their travel policy, but it’s not necessary that they are. Moreover, some policies cover visa delays, and some don’t.

This makes it very important for travellers to check and review their policy carefully before taking it, and make sure they are buying one that gives them maximum benefits and covers most of the things they could experience.

Most travel insurance policies have detailed exclusions, like pre-existing medical conditions or injuries due to intoxication. Further, things like participation in high-risk activities without add-on coverage are excluded from many policies. An event or an incident can fall under these exclusions, which is why claims often get rejected.

In some policies, travellers have to pay a part of the expense before the insurance pays. For example, if your baggage delay is covered under your policy, but the coverage starts after 5 hours, your claim will be rejected if the delay happens only for four hours.

Another example of this would be if medical bills are covered under your policy, but only if you pay over ₹5,000, your claim would be rejected if the bill is under ₹5,000.

Travel insurance policies rely on documents, which means you must save proofs of everything that you can, including:

• Boarding passes
• Tickets
• Medical reports
• Police reports (for theft)
• Confirmation for delays (flights, baggage)

Any missing document can lead to a rejection of your claim.

In most policies, it’s important to file the claim within the specified time period. Delay in reporting of the incident can lead to claim rejection.

For instance, many policies include a condition under which you have to file baggage-related claims or inform the insurer within 24 hours. Most policies have defined windows for filing claims.

If a traveller misinterprets the policy’s terms and conditions and files a claim for something that they think is covered but is actually not, the claim will be rejected. This is a key reason for low adoption and high rejection in the travel sector.

Different policies have different conditions for claims. A contingency is a specific condition under which the insurance company will pay/approve a claim, and if it’s not fulfilled exactly as defined in the policy, it will be rejected.

If a trip is cancelled, you may have to prove the reason by providing an airline notice or medical certificates. Another example would be if you miss a connecting flight, the insurer might need you to submit proof of the cause of the delay.

Many travellers buy insurance just to meet visa requirements, without even checking the conditions and considering their requirements. Low awareness often leads to people buying plans with limited coverage and many exclusions, which results in claim rejections and hurts the traveller’s financial planning.

Before you buy a travel insurance policy, make sure you read the fine print carefully and check everything that is covered, including approved hospitals, cashless facilities, proofs required, etc. Read the policy wording and choose add-ons if you’re planning to partake in adventure sports.

Importantly, keep all documents handy, in both digital and physical formats. In case of any event/emergency, inform the insurer immediately.