Not all destinations have seen an equal uplift in insurance sales.
Sales have increased 200 per cent for travel to Fiji compared to 2019 but the increase was just 4 per cent for travel to Australia.
According to Wallace, travel insurance has not typically been a priority for travellers heading to Australia.
“Pre-pandemic, 60 per cent of Kiwis would travel to Australia without travel insurance,” he said, adding that this could be because they tend to stay with friends or family, or have work over the cost, so expenses are lower.
While proximity can make a trip to Australia feel somewhat domestic, Wallace said travellers can still rack up large costs if issues arise.
“Whilst the complexity or the cost of travel to Australia might not be the same as heading off to the US or Europe, many of those same things can go wrong,” he said.
“I think it’s misunderstood, that whilst in Australia, medically necessary care in a hospital is covered as part of our relationship with Australia, many costs are not covered.”
Travellers in need of an ambulance would have to foot the bill, as well as cover other general incidents relating to things like rental cars or lost belongings.
Wallace said comprehensive cover has been popular amongst customers, who want to know they are fully covered while abroad.
Given the continued disruption in the industry, Wallace said perspectives around the importance of insurance were shifting.
“Travel insurance has always been a consideration for people travelling, and I think more and more so it’s becoming a view that if you can’t afford the time and effort to take travel insurance then you can’t really afford to be travelling at the moment.”