Travel insurance for a changing world
IN Partnership with
Allianz Partners is helping Kiwis navigate the post-pandemic world of travel so that there’s always a route back home
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RETURNING TO a place that you once visited as a younger version of yourself can be a disorienting experience.
Names are the same, but faces are different. Landmarks that anchor memories may be gone or may have changed, settings for key life events spent with important people may have disappeared, street maps may be outdated and the terrain itself may have been modified in ways that cause confusion.
In the post-pandemic world, many people travelling abroad are finding the logistical terrain altered from what they remember and are looking for reassurance that systems are in place to help them should they lose their way.
“We understand that customers, more than ever, want to, but are hesitant to travel and want to know that we will be there for them should something go wrong,” says David Wallace, chief sales officer at Allianz Partners New Zealand.
The leading assistance service provider and travel insurance firm is seeing a spike in the proportion of people purchasing travel insurance. Those who might have skipped it in the past now consider travel insurance a wise move and more customers are concerned about whether their coverage is sufficient.
“The experience of the pandemic has led people to be more enquiring of what their policy does and does not cover,” says Wallace.
Kiwis, traditionally known for a "She'll be right" attitude, are becoming more risk-averse – mirroring global trends in travel insurance. A report has shown that the global travel insurance market grew 17.3% from US$19.1bn in 2022 to US$22.4bn in 2023 as people started travelling in earnest again.
Several factors, including an overall increase in travel and tourism activities, but also heightened insecurity following the pandemic and more significant natural disasters, appear to be prompting awareness about travel protection.
Based in Auckland, Allianz Partners New Zealand employs more than 100 staff, specialising locally in providing and managing assistance services, travel insurance, student insurance, and pet insurance through its New Zealand and international business partners.
Allianz Partners’ strength lies in combining the solidarity and trust that come with being part of an established global organisation with the local expertise of its New Zealand team.
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“Given the pandemic experience and other global uncertainties, our customers more than ever require our assurance that we will be there for them”
David Wallace,
Allianz Partners New Zealand
Allianz Partners has moved swiftly to meet the concerns of post-pandemic travellers.
Wallace points to the idea of 24/7 emergency assistance and how it has evolved to be fit for purpose in today’s more fragile and expensive travel ecosystem. Assistance has always been built around providing customers with prompt, high-quality medical support services and logistics facilitation regardless of where the emergency occurs.
“[But] in recent years, the delivery has shifted to be more customer-focused,” says Wallace.
“Given the pandemic experience and other global uncertainties, our customers more than ever require our assurance that we will be there for them – whether by giving them initial medical advice, directing them to medical facilities, covering their medical expenses, or facilitating a full-scale aeromedical repatriation.”
More customers want to know ahead of time what kind of service they can expect if the worst happens while they are abroad. COVID-related emergencies may have faded, but the resulting dislocation has primed travellers to be on the front foot for other, more run-of-the-mill problems.
With record levels of New Zealanders travelling overseas recently , these kinds of incidents are on the rise.
“In order to meet travellers' changing expectations, our emergency assistance services have adapted to include an increased focus on customer education. We want our customers to be clear on the scope of our emergency assistance services and the course that their customer journey will take,” says Wallace.
This education happens not only before travel but also during travel if an emergency arises. For example, when someone makes an initial call to the Allianz Partners medical assistance team, frontline staff advise the customer on the policy benefits that may be applicable to their situation.
“We also advise them on the process by which we can deliver the services within those relevant benefits,” he says.
Throughout the case duration, Allianz Partners keeps customers fully informed of medical decisions and recommendations that have been made and the rationale behind these. Not knowing the reasons behind why certain medical procedures are underway can be a major source of stress for insureds.
“We find this increased focus on customer education and communication has made all the difference when dealing with today’s travellers,” says Wallace.
“[An] increased focus on customer education and communication has made all the difference when dealing with today’s travellers”
David Wallace,
Allianz Partners New Zealand
The kinds of emergencies affecting Kiwi travellers differ from pre-pandemic times partly due to the increased fragility of global supply chains as well as more frequent and extreme weather events.
People can get caught out due to events happening thousands of miles away. An example is the inability of aircraft to keep up with demand on occasion, causing cancellations and delays.
A recent incident was flooding at Auckland Airport during the
region’s anniversary weekend, causing the cancellation of multiple international flights to New Zealand. As a result, many New Zealanders had to stay offshore for longer than they had planned, and those without travel insurance had to cover the additional costs themselves.
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A different approach for a changed world
A different approach for a changed world
Adapting emergency assistance services to a new era
A different approach for a changed world
Published 22 Apr 2024
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One way that Allianz Partners is adjusting to the increased complexities around international travel is through boosting access to travel agents, leading to more efficient logistics facilitation for customers.
Allianz Partners has also enhanced its emergency assistance offerings through technology, specifically by developing an online tool that provides its global team access to medical services practically anywhere people might travel, including hospitals, clinics, and even aeromedical service providers.
“This enables our staff to confidently direct and
Rather than relying on third parties, Allianz Partners is also committed to developing its in-house repatriation capabilities to complete medical repatriations using its own staff. During a natural disaster, when demand for evacuations peaks, having in-house resources can make a major difference.
“This initiative is aimed at bettering the customer experience and clinical outcomes and ensuring that Allianz Partners is supporting our customer the whole way through,” says Wallace.
Many of these new approaches have already been instrumental in helping Kiwis survive unfortunate incidents while abroad, as reflected in case studies such as the one published here .
“This case study showcases the importance of travel insurance,” says Wallace.
“With acute scenarios, timing is of the essence and life can go either way. That’s why we pride ourselves on our highly skilled global team to manage and streamline care for our customers.”
COVID-19 changed our world and not just externally. As a result of the pandemic, people’s appreciation of time changed, including its relationship to their sense of health and wellbeing.
For the insurance industry, this seems to be manifesting in travellers’ greater attention to their travel policy details alongside a renewed desire to spend time engaging in activities safely.
The world of travel is likely to head toward new trajectories as consumers come to grips with the post-pandemic environment. In the next few years, the travel insurance market size is expected to continue growing rapidly due to increased demand for embedded and event-driven insurance, heightened awareness of travel-related risks, and escalating medical expenses.
One new development is the increasing capacity of medical care in countries previously considered substandard. As local medical standards improve, the necessity for repatriations will decrease.
Another on the horizon for Allianz Partners is the likely larger number of older travellers. Stats NZ data shows that the proportion of people aged 65–74 travelling abroad in the year ending January 2024 already exceeds the proportion for the same period in 2019.
“Our strategy for managing cases may need to change to adapt to higher volumes of more complex clinical scenarios,” says Wallace.
Allianz Partners is already mapping out these changes and more, so that when travellers are surprised by an unfamiliar circumstance in a place they may have once known, there will always be a route home.
“Allianz Partners is there in your time of need, working collectively to deliver the most favourable outcome for our customers,” he says.
Looking farther ahead
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Global travel insurance
market takes off
Expected average CAGR from 2024 to 2028:
Expected average CAGR from 2024 to 2031:
16.8%
13.5%
facilitate medical assistance to our customers, ensuring a high quality of care,” says Wallace.
Source: Travel Insurance Global Market Report 2024, Cognitive Market Research Travel Insurance Market Report 2024 (Global Edition)
Cases IN WHICH travelling New Zealanders sought CONSULAR assistance, 2018–23
Source: Consular Snapshot 2022–23 Report, New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Dec
+16.0%
$7.45bn
$8.64bn
Case type
2022-23
2021-22
2020-21
2019-20
2018-19
Note: Data period is from 1 July to 30 June.
Accident
Medical
Death
COVID-19 related
29
6
10
26
28
111
45
58
144
205
226
168
130
190
213
17
718
485
1,117
0
COVID-19 changed our world and not just externally. As a result of the pandemic, people’s appreciation of time changed, including its relationship to their sense of health and wellbeing.
For the insurance industry, this seems to be manifesting in travellers’ greater attention to their travel policy details alongside a renewed desire to spend time engaging in activities safely.
The world of travel is likely to head toward new trajectories as consumers come to grips with the post-pandemic environment. In the next few years, the travel insurance market size is expected to continue growing rapidly due to increased demand for embedded and event-driven insurance, heightened awareness of travel-related risks, and escalating medical expenses.
One new development is the increasing capacity of medical care in countries previously considered substandard. As local medical standards improve, the necessity for repatriations will decrease.
Another on the horizon for Allianz Partners is the likely larger number of older travellers. Stats NZ data shows that the proportion of people aged 65–74 travelling abroad in the year ending January 2024 already exceeds the proportion for the same period in 2019.
“Our strategy for managing cases may need to change to adapt to higher volumes of more complex clinical scenarios,” says Wallace.
Allianz Partners is already mapping out these changes and more, so that when travellers are surprised by an unfamiliar circumstance in a place they may have once known, there will always be a route home.
“Allianz Partners is there in your time of need, working collectively to deliver the most favourable outcome for our customers,” he says.
Looking farther ahead
Looking farther ahead
COVID-19 changed our world and not just externally. As a result of the pandemic, people’s appreciation of time changed, including its relationship to their sense of health and wellbeing.
For the insurance industry, this seems to be manifesting in travellers’ greater attention to their travel policy details alongside a renewed desire to spend time engaging in activities safely.
The world of travel is likely to head toward new trajectories as consumers come to grips with the post-pandemic environment. In the next few years, the travel insurance market size is expected to continue growing rapidly due to increased demand for embedded and event-driven insurance, heightened awareness of travel-related risks, and escalating medical expenses.
One new development is the increasing capacity of medical care in countries previously considered substandard. As local medical standards improve, the necessity for repatriations will decrease.
Another on the horizon for Allianz Partners is the likely larger number of older travellers. Stats NZ data shows that the proportion of people aged 65–74 travelling abroad in the year ending January 2024 already exceeds the proportion for the same period in 2019.
“Our strategy for managing cases may need to change to adapt to higher volumes of more complex clinical scenarios,” says Wallace.
Allianz Partners is already mapping out these changes and more, so that when travellers are surprised by an unfamiliar circumstance in a place they may have once known, there will always be a route home.
“Allianz Partners is there in your time of need, working collectively to deliver the most favourable outcome for our customers,” he says.
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Copyright © 2024 KM Business Information NZ
Contact Us
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Copyright © 2024 KM Business Information NZ
RSS
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Contact us
About us
Conditions of Use
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Terms & conditions
People
Contact Us
Specialty
Best in Insurance
Resources
Risk Management
TV
News
NZ
