SafetyWing Nomad Health Insurance: An Overview
Are you looking for a health insurance that’s specifically designed for digital nomads, expats and long-term travellers? Then Nomad Health by SafetyWing might be a great choice for you.
In this blog post, we’ll take a look at what the SafetyWing Nomad Health insurance entails, what kind of plans there are, what they cover exactly as well as what people are saying online about it.
Quicklinks:
What is it?
SafetyWing is a travel and health insurance provider, specifically designed for digital nomads, remote workers, expats and freelancers who travel the world or live in a different country for most or parts of the year.
SafetyWing is a relatively new company, that was started in Norway in 2018 and is headquartered in California. They operate fully remotely, so they understand the needs of nomads and travellers well.
They have recently launched a new kind of policy called Nomad Health, which is a global health insurance aimed at digital nomads, expats and remote workers, who may reside in different countries or travel regularly. It’s worthwhile to note that health care in your home country is also covered with this specific policy.
Full fledged health insurances for digital nomads that travel often and/or full time is not something you see often yet, as it is quite a new thing. In my personal opinion it’s great - you know that with this insurance you’re covered with most medical checks and health care, and it does not matter where you are. You won’t need to navigate the often complex landscapes of the local health care, wherever you are. On top of that, SafetyWing is very affordable, especially compared to other policies by big insurance corporates.
Now, let’s take a closer look what this new health insurance policy consists of! 👀
Difference with a Travel Insurance
The difference with a travel insurance is that the Nomad Health plan is a full fledged global health care insurance.
Whereas the travel insurance is usually taken for only the duration of your trip, this health care plan is an insurance policy you take for routine and preventative health care as well as complimentary therapies, such as mental health and physiotherapy.
A travel insurance is something you take in case of travel related accidents or emergencies, as well as things like lost luggage or delays in your travel.
🌴 By the way, I also have a blog post on comparing different digital nomad travel insurances, which you can find here.
What does Nomad Health cover?
Nomad Health covers quite a few things worldwide, and here is a quick overview that I took from the website. As you can see, a lot of things are fully refunded whereas some others have a maximum coverage amount.
You can find some more details on what it covers exactly below, in the plan breakdown.
It’s also worth noting that family members can also be included to the health insurance plan.
The Standard Plan vs The Premium Plan
Currently, Nomad Health has two plans that you can choose from: The Standard Plan and the Premium Plan.
The Standard Plan
The Standard Plan of Nomad Health includes the following:
Global coverage in 175+ countries up to $1.5 million USD - also includes your home country
Mental health - 10 visits with a therapist, psychologist or psychiatrist is included
Fast and easy claims - make quick and easy claims via their online portal
24/7 customer care service in all timezones
Flexible payment system - you can choose between monthly, quarterly or yearly billing
Choose any doctor you want - wether that’s public or private, it’s up to you
Complimentary therapies like physiotherapy, acupuncture, dieticians, homeopaths and osteopaths (among others) are included
Screenings and vaccines up to $350 USD
Maternity coverage up to $2,500 USD
You can read the full Standard Plan policy here.
The cost of the standard plan is $133 per month (at the time of writing).
The Premium Plan
The Premium Plan includes all of the things that are in the Standard Plan, plus the following:
Vaccines & Screening up to $500 USD - get access to routine health check-ups, including cancer screening and cardiovascular exams. Basic immunisations, vaccines are included as well as Covid boosters
Dental care up to $1,500 USD - you can schedule dental check ups, cleanings, fillings or complex care like dentures or inlays.
Vision care up to $500 USD - you can get a yearly vision exam, and new contacts every 12 months and new glasses every 24 months.
Maternity coverage up to $4,500 USD
You can read the full Premium Plan policy here. The most important difference is that dental and vision care is included in the premium Nomad Health plan.
The cost of the premium plan is around $208 per month (at the time of writing).
You can see a cost comparison overview below. (FYI I set my location as Spain)
The Fineprint
Like with most insurance policies, there are some things that are not covered as there are certain eligibility requirements.
One main
Here’s a quick list of the things I found:
The age limit for the Nomad Health insurance is 74 years
The maximum coverage is $1.5 million USD
US residents are not eligible for this health insurance policy (at the time of writing; this may change at some point)
Pre-existing conditions may not be covered - the eligibility will be reviewed when you submit for the Nomad Health insurance policy.
Even though most countries in the world are covered, there are some that are not covered. So check first if the country you’re traveling and/or are residing in is covered by this insurance.
Note that these are the things I’ve found during my research - there may be other things that apply to you that I may not have listed here, so always make sure to check the full policy yourself.
Making a Claim
Making a claim is easily done via the SafetyWing online portal. You just login, upload the required documents, and evidence such as photos and screenshots and wait to hear back from them.
They do say that it can take up to 45 business days for the claim to be processed, but most people hear back within a week. It seems their average claim processing time is 4 days.
Reviews: Pros and Cons
Even though I’ve had the SafetyWing travel insurance several times, I’ve never had to make a claim, so in all honesty, I can’t share any personal experiences. However, for the purpose of this blog post, I looked at what people were saying online to see what the general feedback is.
Searching for reviews I mostly looked at Trustpilot where SafetyWing has a rating of 4.1/5, which I would say is pretty decent.
Most people mention it’s easy to use and that making a claim is straightforward and easy via the online portal. The vast majority definitely seem to have had a positive experience. Reviews mention that the insurance is really good for digital nomads specifically and that the support is really helpful. On top of that, the value for money is great, and that you definitely get your money’s worth.
Some of the more negative comments say that it takes very long for SafetyWing to handle a claim. However, it seems that recently, they’ve been able to shorten their claim time to 4 days, which seems pretty decent to me.
Signing up for Nomad Health
Signing up is pretty easy and only takes a few moments and what I really appreciate about SafetyWing is the easy of use and the quick way to get started.
One thing to note though, is that unlike signing up for their travel insurance, which would mean immediate approval and coverage, every application for the Nomad Health plan needs to be reviewed before your are ‘accepted’. So they will review if you meet the eligibility requirement for the health insurance.
📝 You can sign up via this link here.
❓Do you have any other questions regarding Nomad Health by SafetyWing? Just let me know in the comments!
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