Travel insurance for over-60s

For senior citizens, finding travel and other insurance can be a challenge, given the upper age limits most providers put on their services. UK-based Intune hopes to end all that with a range of financial services aimed directly at consumers over 60. Intune was launched last year by Help the Aged, a charity that works on behalf of older people worldwide, and all profits from its work go back to the charity, which has itself been providing financial services for more than 10 years. Age is not an issue in Intune’s products, which include travel, motor, home and pet insurance as well as equity release, saver accounts, care fees advice, identity theft protection and funeral plans, among other services. Intune’s travel insurance policy, for example, has no upper age limit, and it boasts that its oldest customer is 101 years old this year. The oldest participant in its winter sports coverage plan is 81. “We have found that older people holiday more widely than younger age groups, and for longer at a time—more than 121,000 trips of 3–6 months have been taken by this age group over the last year,” explains Stuart Castledine, Intune’s managing director. “The over-80s traveller has particular requirements which need accommodating, but they do not want a system which writes them off at a time when they should be enjoying life to the full.” Intune’s main commercial partner for general insurance products is Liverpool Victoria. We’ve now covered supermarkets, health stores, driving services, being spaces and financial services aimed directly at senior citizens. Given the size of this mammoth demographic, none of it comes a moment too soon! It’s still a wide open playing field for those who cater to seniors in a respectful and value-providing way. Who will bring services like these to booming consumers in the rest of the world…? Spotted by: Simon Kirby