The intrepid mature traveller

Increase in sales of annual worldwide travel insurance at Age Concern Enterprises.

Sixty five is the new twenty five, as the recently retired increasingly take time out to travel the world, says Age Concern Enterprises.

Last year, sales of Age Concern Enterprises annual worldwide Travel Insurance increased by 41%*, demonstrating that not only are the over 65s travelling further afield, they are planning multiple trips to long-haul destinations. The number requesting winter sports cover also shot up 20%* as more and more older people plan adventurous winter pursuits.

2009 saw record take up of both annual European and worldwide multi-trip policies, with fastest year on year growth in the 65 to 74 (16%) and 75 to 87 (40%) age groups*.

Mature Brits have also become far savvier when purchasing travel insurance. Not only are they watching the pennies by purchasing annual policies when going on multiple trips**, they are also increasingly using the internet to shop around before buying. Supporting Ofcom research, which found there has been considerable growth in internet take up by the over 65s***, web sales of Age Concern Enterprises Travel Insurance increased by 35%* last year.

Joe Young from Age Concern Insurance Services says, "Globe-trotting is no longer the reserve of the young. Over 65s are as likely to be travelling the world as younger generations as they search for ways to bring excitement to retirement. And as the population ages, we predict a travel boom which will see even more mature people exploring far flung destinations.

"We are delighted that so many older people are fulfilling their travel dreams in later life. Our Travel Insurance was specifically designed with the mature traveller in mind, as appropriate products for this market were not previously available. With no age limits, we look forward to providing travel insurance to customers of all ages."

Age Concern Enterprises Travel Insurance, provided by Fortis, offers single or annual multi-trip insurance, no upper age limit and is designed especially for the mature customer, but its benefit levels make it an attractive proposition for travellers of all ages. For more information call 0845 685 1058**** or go to www.ageconcern.org.uk/travel.

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* All Age Concern Enterprises sales figures are from 1 January to 30 September 2008 and 1 January to 30 September 2009

** If you travel abroad several times in a year you could save money with Annual Multi-trip cover - customers aged over 57, with no medical conditions, travelling to Europe, including Spain, 3 or more times in a year. Excludes winter sports cover. Actual premium will depend on destination, individual circumstances and medical history. Information collected November 2009.

*** ‘UK Adults' Media Literacy' interim report (2009). Since 2007 there has been above average increase in household take-up of the internet among older adults aged 65 and over (41%) http://www.ofcom.org.uk/advice/media_literacy/medlitpub/medlitpubrss/uk_adults_ml/
**** If you call the 0845 number you will be dealing with Fortis Insurance Limited, which provides and manages Age Concern Enterprises Travel Insurance. Registered address: Fortis House, Tollgate, Eastleigh, Hampshire SO53 37A, England. Registered number 354568.

For further information, case studies or an interview, please contact Sara Barrow or Charlotte Elmehagen on 0207 360 7878 or ageuk@teamspiritpr.com.

Notes to editors

 
Age UK is the new force combining Age Concern and Help the Aged. We will be known by our new name from Spring 2010. 

Age Concern Enterprises

  
Age Concern and Help the Aged have joined together to form a single new charity dedicated to improving the lives of older people.

To fund this work, it needs a constant flow of independent income. It seeks to achieve this through a balance of traditional fund raising and trading activities. The trading activities, through Age Concern Enterprises, (ACEnt) enable it to meet the needs of older people, through products specifically designed to meet these needs; quality products such as General Insurance and Energy Services.

ACEnt incorporates: Age Concern Energy Services, Age Concern Insurance Services, Age Concern Funeral Plans and Charity Flowers Direct. Log on to www.ageconcern.org.uk/products for details.

Age Concern Enterprises Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority for insurance mediation (311438) Age Concern Enterprises Ltd is registered in England and Wales No. 3156159. Registered Office: Astral House, 1268 London Road, SW16 4ER Age Concern Enterprises Ltd is a trading company of Age UK and donates any profits to that registered charity.

Age Concern England (charity number 261794) has merged with Help the Aged (charity number 272786) to form Age UK, a charitable company limited by guarantee and registered in England: registered office address 207-221 Pentonville Road, London, N1 9UZ, company number 6825798, registered charity number 1128267.

Age Concern Enterprises is based at 4th floor, 207 - 221, Pentonville Road, London, N1 9UZ.

Age Concern Travel Insurance

is provided by Fortis Insurance Limited and provides a choice of policies: Single-Trip Insurance or Annual Multi-Trip Insurance (for frequent travellers). There is no upper age limit for Age Concern Travel Insurance.

Special features include:

• Cover for travel costs of up to £5,000 including irrecoverable costs if the trip is cancelled as a result of unforeseen event
• Bond Plus Financial Failure which protects customers for the financial impact of failure of travel providers (airlines, hotels etc) for self organised holidays
• Claims will be subject to the standard £50 policy excess. The excess for medical and emergency expenses is £75
• Available for all the family
• Free cover for children (under 18) subject to terms and conditions
• No upper age limit
• Annual multi-trip travel insurance including an Annual UK only option £250 for mugging involving hospitalisation
• ‘New for old' cover for personal possessions but subject to original proof of purchase/receipts being provided (subject to limits of policy)
• Pre-Travel Advice Line
• 24 hours a day, 7 days a week access to helpline in case of medical emergencies whilst abroad
• Discount for deleting personal baggage cover
  

Fortis (Insurance UK)

 
Fortis (Insurance UK) is a leading provider of award-winning personal and commercial lines insurance solutions in the UK. Fortis UK has two main divisions, manufacturing both non-life and life products, which are distributed through a range of channels including brokers, IFAs, intermediaries, affinity partners and the Internet, as well as various wholly or partially-owned companies (RIAS, Fortis Insurance Solutions, Affinity Solutions, Text2Insure and InsureTECH Systems).

Insuring around 7 million customers and working with a range of partners, Fortis is recognised for delivering consistent and high-quality customer experiences. It employs almost 3,000 people with a head office based in Eastleigh and others in Belfast, Bournemouth, Gloucester, Haywards Heath, London, Redditch, Reigate and Stoke-on-Trent. In 2008, its non-life profit before tax and interest was £76 million and its non-life GWP was £760 million. Fortis launched a life and protection business in July 2008.

Fortis (Insurance UK) is part of Fortis, a global insurance group of significant scale with over EUR14bn turnover, 20 million customers and 10,000 employees worldwide.