Rock Climbing Travel Insurances: The Definitive Guide
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You are crazy about rock climbing and you are about to plan rock climbing holidays to practice your favorite sport? You would like to find travel insurance that is tailored for your activity in case something goes wrong?
You’ve come at the right place.
In the below guide, we will tell you everything you need to know about rock climbing travel insurance: what does it cover exactly, which policy you should go for, how much does it cost and other tips.
Stay tuned!
What is rock climbing travel insurance?
You are a mountain sport lover and are about to leave UK for a super exciting rock climbing adventure? Lucky you!
However, climbing is dangerous. It is vital that you apply for rock-climbling travel insurance (although not compulsory).
Indeed whether you get injured in the mountains or you need an air rescue, rock-climbing travel insurance will be tailored for your needs as an amateur rock-climber.
Rock-climbing adventures are numerous and have different levels of risks associated. However, rock-climbing related activities are in most of the case not included as standard in travel insurance policies. You will need to pay extra cover for it and most likely a higher medical excess in case of claim.
That would be the case for:
- Mountaineering
- Wall climbing
- Bouldering
- Glacial crossing or ice climbing
- Mountain marathons
- Trekking peaks
- Via ferrata etc.
Why do you need travel insurance for rock climbing?
Getting travel insurance for your rock climbing trip is vital.
Just to show you how important applying for travel insurance is, here are a few examples of what an unfortunate and unexpected event might cost you during your rock climbing travel:
| What you will need to pay without rock climbing travel insurance | What you will need to pay with rock climbing travel insurance | |
|---|---|---|
| My climbing equipment has been lost during the flight | £750 | £0 |
| I need to cancel my rock climbing trip because of bad weather conditions | £5,000 - £10,000 (real cost of trip) | £0 until trip cancellation limit is reached (check carefully cancellation reasons allowed) |
| I am stuck in the mountains and I need air rescue | £3800 | £0 (if planned in policy) |
| I got injured while climbing and need to stay at the hospital | £30,000 (if not covered by European Health Insurance Card) | £0 until medical expense limit is reached |
Good to know
Depending on your destination, you may already have some financial assistance either with European Health Insurance Card (if your rock climbing trip is in Europe) or with healthcare cooperation systems between countries for example UK and Australia or New-Zealand. Note that your EHIC will only cover medical treatment in public hospital (you won't be covered for any air ambulance, surgery in private hospitals etc.). It can't be seen as a substitute for travel insurance.
Compare best rock climbing holiday insurance
To find the right cover for your rock climbing travel, you will need to explore the different options you have. You’ll have to answer a series of questions such as:
- what exactly you’d like to get covered for
- the length of your stay
- the destination
- how much are you planning to go rock climbing etc.
We’ve came up with a non-exhaustive list of travel insurers that cover rock climbing breaks abroad as standard or as option:
| Insurer | Price | Our reviews |
|---|---|---|
 | £30,09 |
|
 | £38,86 |
|
 | £39,82 |
|
Prices above are for a 7 days single trip to Europe with rock climbing cover for a 30 years old people.
What does rock climbing travel insurance cover?
Travel insurance for rock climbing holidays should include:
- specific cover for your sport activity
- must-have features you need in any travel insurance.
Good to know
If rock climbing is included as standard in your travel insurance policy, carefully check limits and excess amounts that you will get / need to pay in case of claim.
Specific rock climbing cover that you could get
Travel insurances for rock climber usually include:
| Rock climbing cover options | Average amount |
|---|---|
| Climbing equipment and techno pack damaged, lost or stolen | Depends on personal belongings cover |
| Any injuries made to yourself while rock-climbing | Depends on medical expense cover terms and conditions |
| Rock-climbing trip cancellation | Depends on trip cancellation cover terms and conditions |
| Medical evacuation in moutains | Depends on medical expense cover terms and conditions |
| Non-refundable climbing lessons from an experienced guide | Depends on trip interruption cover terms and conditions |
Watch out!
Note that if you injure someone else during your sport practice, you may not be covered unless it is clearly mentioned in your policy booklet.
Must-have features your rock climbing travel insurance should cover
| Compensation | Average amount | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Medical expenses | From £5M to £10M (depending on your medical situation and your destination) |
|
| Repatriation | Real fees |
|
| Trip cancellation / curtailment | £5000 – £10000 (depending on your destination) |
|
| Baggage or personal belongings | Minimum of £1500 limit |
|
| Missed departure, delay | Minimum £500 limit (minimum £200 limit for delay) |
|
| Personal liability | Average £2 million limit |
|
| Legal expenses | Average £15000 limit |
|
Watch out!
Always carefully check the age limit and compensation amounts as well as deductibles you’ll have to pay in case you need to make a claim. For medical expenses, always get your insurer to accept them before paying if you need to advance fees.
As nice-to-have features, you may want to get in addition to your rock climbing travel insurance included features:
- business trip insurance
- emergency dental treatment
- loss of passport or documentation
- gadget cover
- Schedule Airline Failure (at least £1500)
- money and cash cover.
Can I get rock climbing travel cover if I have pre-existing medical conditions?
Of course you can.
The best option would be to purchase a pre-existing medical condition travel insurance tailored for your holidays, and add a rock climbing cover option if not included as standard.
Watch out!
If you purchase rock climbing travel insurance or any other insurance without disclosing your medical condition, that is called “fronting”. Your claim can be invalidated by your insurer, such as your entire travel insurance policy.
Can rock climbing travel insurance be included if I purchase an annual multi-trip or a single trip policy?
Short answer: yes, it can be.
Rock climbing, as many other sports, can be included as standard or purchase as extras on both single and annual multi-trip travel insurance policies.
You will need to specifically dig into insurers policy booklets to see which activities are covered as standard.
As a reminder:
| Travel insurance type | Explanation |
|---|---|
| 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. |
| Annual multi-trip insurance | These policies are made for frequent rock climber going away for rock climbing holidays 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. |
Do I need to buy specific rock climbing travel insurance?
It depends on the travel insurance policy you purchased. This will be clearly outlined in your policy booklet.
If you haven’t bought your rock climbing travel cover yet, we would advise you to go for an insurer providing specific cover for rock climbing equipment, competition etc. either as standard or as full option for an extra fee.
How much does rock climbing travel insurance cost?
You will find below indicate travel insurance price including rock climbing cover:
| Age range | Single trip to Europe* | Annual multi-trip to Europe |
|---|---|---|
| 18 - 35 | £39,35 | £84,62 |
| 36 - 54 | £52,20 | £52,20 |
| 55+ | £57,73 | £57,73 |
*Quotes above are for a 7 days rock climbing holidays.
It is, however, quite difficult to give precise ranges of how much a travel insurance will cost for you as prices are based on a wide range of criteria. It will mainly depend on:
- How often will you go rock climbing
- If you are going on single rock climbing trip or annual multi_trips
- If you purchase other upgrades in addition to your rock climbing cover such as gadget cover
- If your teen has pre-existing medical conditions
- The duration and destination of your stay
- The financial limits you’d like to get in case of a claim
- The excess amount you’re willing to pay.
What else should I check before purchasing my rock climbing travel cover?
While shopping around for sport_name holiday insurance, always pay attention to:
- The compensation amounts you will get for each claim (especially personal belongings compensation limit if rock climbing is included as standard in your policy)
- The deductible amounts you’ll have to pay in case of claim (don't forget that extreme sports or hazardous activities lovers often need to pay extra medical excess if they got injured whilst practicing their sport) - opt for excess waiver cover if you are practicing adventurous sports
- The exclusions you may have in your policy
- 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).
