Do I Need Travel Insurance For Tunisia?
You are planning a fancy trip to Tunisia and travel insurance is the least interesting topic you may think about? But during one of your trips, have you ever found yourself in a situation where you had to get emergency treatment or where you lost your baggage at the airport?
Hence, you’re probably wondering how to find the best travel insurance for visiting Tunisia.
In the below ultimate guide for travelling from the UK to Tunisia, we will tell you everything you need to know about travel insurance for your trip: is it compulsory, key features, premiums, driving requirements in Tunisia? Let’s get started.
Why do I need travel insurance for Tunisia?
Involved in a car accident while driving abroad, injured while practicing sport, sick....
Unfortunately, those things happens much more often than we think, and it could leave you and your travel partners with significant expenses to pay if you didn’t apply for travel insurance before leaving.
Here is a list of the most common unexpected costs arising during people’s trips:
What if…. | How much will you have to pay without travel insurance? | How much will you have to pay with travel insurance? |
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You need air rescue | £5,000 | £0 until medical expense limit is reached |
You need to have surgery and to stay at a hospital | £5,000 | £0 until medical expense limit is reached |
You need medical repatriation | £30 000 | £0 real fees paid out |
Your baggage has been lost at the airport | £800 | £0 until personal belongings is reached |
Someone stole your money | £200 | £0 until limit is reached |
You need to cancel your trip | £5,000 | £0 until cancellation limit is reached |
For as cheap as a few pounds per day, “Comprehensive Travel Insurance” is a contract which fully covers you for your trip to the Tunisia and provides you with both financial compensation as well as assistance during your trip.
Travel insurance is not mandatory for anyone holding a valid UK passport but is, however, absolutely necessary to prevent you from significant medical or cancellation costs while travelling abroad.
What are the best travel insurance policies for Tunisia?
How can you choose between the plethora of travel insurance policies on offer and find the least expensive policy? Many insurers, even some small ones, offer very good value for money deals. We’ve come up with a selection of small and big actors offering tempting deals.
Among them you’ll find:
Insurer | Our review |
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Even better, use our comparison tool to find the best deal for you! At Safe, we’ve checked out hundreds of travel insurance providers and we are now able to allow you to compare dozens of holiday insurance deals in only a few seconds without giving any personal details.
Always remember to check limits and excess amounts, maximum number of days per trip and exclusions in an insurer’s policy terms and conditions booklet.
What type of travel insurance do I need for my trip to Tunisia?
You can apply for different insurance types depending on your type of trip, from frequent luxury or business travel to cheap holidays to Tunisia.
You will most often have the choice to apply between different travel plan:
- worldwide excluding USA, Canada
- worldwide including USA, Canada
- Australia, New-Zealand
- Europe.
For Tunisia, as for any destination, travel insurance policy types are:
Travel insurance type | Explanation | Main features per type of travel policy |
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Single trip insurance | These travel insurance policies are for one-off holidays. You will be covered from the start of the journey until the end. You can decide the number of days you want to be covered for. |
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Annual multi-trip insurance | These policies are made for frequent travellers going away for holidays, business trips or for any other reason several times a year. You would need to check whether it is more competitive to buy two or three single trip insurance policies or an annual multi-trip policy. |
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Long stay and gap year insurance | These plans are made for students or any british resident wanting to explore the world, including for backpacking, gap year trips or for any other long stay reason. |
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Most of travel insurers offers discounts for couples and group travel insurance policies for your trip to Tunisia.
How much is travel insurance to Tunisia?
For example, this is the cheapest price for a single trip policy of seven days (with an excess at £100):
Age | Single trip cover to Tunisia |
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18 – 35 | From £18.45 |
36 – 50 | From £21.65 |
51 – 65 | From £25.81 |
66 – 75 | From £28.63 |
It is, however, quite difficult to give precise ranges of how much a travel insurance will cost you for Tunisia, as prices are based on a wide range of criteria. It will mainly depend on:
- If you’re going for a single or annual multi-trip as mentioned above
- If you’re subscribing to upgrades such as cruise, business or gadget cover
- If you have pre-existing medical conditions
- The length of your stay in Tunisia
- If you’re travelling alone, with your partner, a group or your family
- The financial limits you’d like to get in case of a claim
- The excess amount you’re willing to pay
- What will you be doing in Tunisia (e.g. winter or extreme sports)?
What does your travel insurance for Tunisia should cover?
Each travel insurance policy is different, since it is the insurer who determines the content of the contracts it offers: guarantees, compensation limits, deductibles, travel insurance prices, etc.
However, all contracts on the market must include at least the following guarantees, applicable in Europe and elsewhere abroad:
- Medical expenses: compensation by the insurer for your health expenses during your stay (consultation, analysis, emergency treatment, longer hospital stay, etc.).
- Repatriation assistance to the UK: financial and logistical support by a dedicated 24/7 team for your early return to your country of residence if it proves necessary.
- Trip cancellation and cover for delayed or missed departure: compensation if you need to cancel your trip for whatever reason or if you missed your departure.
- Personal liability: compensation for any damage or injury made to a third-party (consider adding it as extra if not included in standard cover).
- Baggage: compensation for any lost or theft of baggage while travelling (consider adding it as extra if not included in standard cover).
Most of the time, travel insurers offer different formulas. Cover types involved are usually the same, but the compensation limits and deductibles vary.
Main guarantees | Cover you should get for your trip to Tunisia | Limit you should get for your trip to Tunisia | Good to check |
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Medical travel insurance |
| £1 million limit on average |
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Trip cancellation / curtailment |
| £2000 limit minimum |
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Baggage |
| £1500 limit minimum |
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Missed departure, delay |
| £500 limit minimum (£200 limit for delay) |
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Repatriation |
| Real fees |
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Personal liability |
| £2 million limit on average |
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Legal expenses |
| £15000 limit on average |
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What are the nice-to-have features for your travel insurance to Europe?
Main guarantees | Cover you should get for your trip to Tunisia | Limit you should get for your trip to Tunisia | Good to check |
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Money and cash | Covers for loss or theft of money or equivalent such as cheques, pre-paid tickets | £500 for money limit minimum £200 for cash minimum |
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Dental emergency | Covers for emergency dental care | £250 minimum |
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Loss of passport or documentation | Covers additional fees such as accomodation or travel replacement as a result of loss of documentation | £250 minimum |
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Which upgrades could you add as extras for your travel insurance to Tunisia?
Additionally, you may tailor your policy for your trip to Tunisia area with optional extras such as:
- Business trip insurance for Tunisia
- Sport, winter sport, extreme sport cover
- Schedule Airline Failure (at least £1500 covered)
- Gadget insurance
- Cruise cover
- Etc.
What does your travel insurance to Tunisia not cover?
Most travel insurers will not give financial compensation for:
- Any claim made as a result of pre-medical condition or pending diagnosis undeclared at the time of purchase
- Any claim made as a result of you being under drugs or alcohol
- Difficulties due to natural disaster, war, civil unrest (watch out for strikes)
- Any claim made as a result of a terrorist attack (except if you took this cover as an option)
- Pregnancy and childbirth complications during travel
We would advise you to thoroughly check your policy booklet for the main exclusions before leaving home.
What else should you pay attention to while shopping around for travel insurance for Tunisia?
While shopping around for travel insurance for your trip to Tunisia, always pay attention to:
- The compensation amounts you will get for a claim by consulting our up-to-date reviews on each insurer (especially for medical expenses, trip cancellation, personal liability, baggage and personal belongings)
- The deductible amounts you’ll have to pay in case of claim (don’t forget that you’ll need to pay the excess on each claim)
- The exclusions you may have in your policy (strike, cancellation trip due to the carrier defaulting etc.)
- Coverages included in policies or available as upgrades (winter sports, business trip etc.)
- The claim process (100% online? How many days do you have to make a claim?)
- The maximum duration of each trip included as standard (at least 31 days)
- The upper age limit (if you are a senior travelling).
What should I know before travelling to Tunisia?
Is Tunisia safe to visit?
This is what the Foreign Travel Office writes about Tunisia:
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advise against all travel to Tunisia.
Commercial flights between Tunisia and all other countries will be suspended. All maritime borders have already been closed. If you are already in country, and it is not essential that you remain, you should urgently contact your airline or tour operator and arrange to leave as soon as possible.
There is an ongoing outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19) and cases have been confirmed in Tunisia. The Tunisian authorities have introduced a number of measures to limit the spread of the virus. All schools and nurseries are closed, and cafés and restaurants are closing daily at 1600hrs. All sporting fixtures, conferences, public prayers and events have been cancelled. upon arrival in Tunisia.
There was a suicide bombing targeting a police patrol near the US embassy in Tunis on Friday 6 March. If you’re in Tunis, you should remain vigilant and follow the advice of the local security authorities.
A state of emergency is in effect in Tunisia, imposed after a suicide attack on a police bus on 24 November 2015. It’s been extended a number of times, most recently on 31 January 2020 effective through 29 April 2020.
Since the terrorist attack in Sousse in June 2015, which targeted tourists, the UK government has been working closely with the Tunisian authorities to investigate the attack and the wider threat from terrorist groups. The Tunisian government has improved protective security in major cities and tourist resorts.
But terrorists are still very likely to try to carry out attacks in Tunisia, including against UK and Western interests. Security forces remain on a high state of alert in Tunis and other places. You should be vigilant at all times, including around religious sites and festivals. Crowded areas, government installations, transportation networks, businesses with Western interests, and areas where foreign nationals and tourists are known to gather may be at higher risk of attack. You should be particularly vigilant in these areas and follow any specific advice of the local security authorities. In more remote areas of the country, including tourist sites in southern Tunisia, security forces’ response times to an incident may vary. Follow the advice of the Tunisian security authorities and your travel company if you have one.
Demonstrations often occur in Tunisia and the majority are peaceful. However, you should avoid all areas of demonstrations, and exercise caution if in the vicinity of any large gatherings or protests.
Following the attack on the coalition base at Taji in Iraq on 11 March, and subsequent US airstrikes, tensions may be raised across the region. There is a possibility of an increased threat against Western interests, including against UK citizens. You should remain vigilant and keep up to date with the latest developments, including via the media and this travel advice.
You can contact the emergency services by calling 197 (police – when in cities and towns), 193 (national guard – when in rural areas or small villages), 190 (ambulance) or 198 (civil protection – for assistance at incidents, such as car accidents, to provide medical assistance and response to fire).
If you’re abroad and you need emergency help from the UK government, contact the nearest British embassy, consulate or high commission. Consular support may be limited in parts of Tunisia.
Take out comprehensive travel and medical insurance before travelling.
How to contact the British Embassy in Tunisia?
Depending on where you are located, you can contact:
British Embassy Tunis | |
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Address | British Embassy Tunis |
Phone (if you’re in Tunisia) | +216 71 108 700 |
Phone (if you’re in the UK) | 020 7008 1500 |
[email protected] |