IMG Travel Insurance: Is It Worth the Cost?
IMG has been providing travel insurance since 1990 and offers more than 60 products to fit any type of travel need.
Many or all of the products on this page are from partners who compensate us when you click to or take an action on their website, but this does not influence our evaluations or ratings. Our opinions are our own.
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IMG
With a wide range of plans, choosing the right IMG plan might be overwhelming for some travelers.
at SquareMouth
Pros
- Coverage available for adventure travelers.
- Identifies medical providers with direct billing to reduce your out-of-pocket costs.
Cons
- Claim approval can be lengthy.
The company touts the 18 languages its employees speak, more than one million doctors based around the world and in-house nursing staff.
What sets IMG apart is the variety of travel insurance plans available, including specific options for cruisers, pet owners and LGBTQIA+ travelers. Plus, it offers medical coverage for expats and up to $8 million in medical coverage on its special premium plans, much more than many other insurers.
IMG Travel Insurance offerings
IMG offers travel insurance, travel medical insurance and international health insurance.
Under its travel insurance category, IMG offers six main plans, with iTravelInsured Choice, iTravelInsured SE and iTravelInsured LX providing the most well-rounded coverage and benefits.
The three plans all include medical, medical evacuation, trip cancellation, trip interruption and telehealth benefits, allowing travelers to choose the coverage which best fits their travel plans. Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) coverage is an optional upgrade on all three plans.
- iTravelInsured Choice: IMG’s most popular plan is recommended for all types of travel, but has the lowest medical coverage of the three options.
- iTravelInsured SE: A mid-range plan with a higher medical coverage limit and additional benefits including political or natural disaster evacuation, rental car damage or theft, and pet kenneling reimbursement for unexpected boarding fees.
- iTravelInsured LX: This plan has the highest level of benefits of the three plans and is recommended for travelers visiting exotic and remote locations. It even includes search and rescue coverage up to $10,000 per person.
Three other plans available under IMG’s travel insurance category offer more limited coverage or are trip specific.
- iTravelInsured Essential: This plan does not include any medical coverage and is best for travelers looking to cover trip cancellation and interruption costs.
- iTravelInsured Lite: This plan includes medical, medical evacuation, trip cancellation and interruption, but does not include telehealth or the ability to add CFAR coverage.
- iTravelInsured GT: This policy is for groups of 10 or more traveling together and offers coverage for travel and baggage delays, as well as emergency medical coverage.
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What IMG travel insurance covers
To help travelers quickly compare coverage options, we’ve outlined IMG’s three most comprehensive plans, each offering extensive benefits and the ability to add CFAR coverage. Note that CFAR is not available to New York residents.
- Trip cancellation: IMG plans cover non-refundable trip expenses if you have to cancel your trip for a covered reason.
- Missed trip connection: Provides coverage if you miss your trip departure for a covered reason, such as severe weather or a flight cancellation. Benefits kick in after a certain length of delay, which varies by plan.
- Baggage damage, delay or loss: IMG provides coverage if your checked bags are lost, stolen, or damaged while in an airline’s care. If they’re delayed for a certain amount of time (varies by plan), you may be reimbursed for personal items you need to purchase.
- Accident & sickness medical and dental expense: Covers costs if you get sick or injured during your trip..
IMG detailed policy overview
Here’s how the three primary IMG plans compare: iTravelInsured Choice, iTravelInsured SE and iTravelInsured LX.
| Coverage limits | |
|---|---|
| Trip cancellation | iTravelInsured Choice: Up to 100% of trip cost. iTravelInsured SE: Up to 100% of trip cost. iTravelInsured LX: Up to 100% of trip cost. |
| Trip interruption | iTravelInsured Choice: Up to 150% of trip cost. iTravelInsured SE: Up to 150% of trip cost. iTravelInsured LX: Up to 150% of trip cost. |
| Trip delay | iTravelInsured Choice: Up to $150 per day per person ($1,000 max per person). iTravelInsured SE: Up to $125 per day per person ($2,000 max per person). iTravelInsured LX: Up to $250 per day per person ($2,500 max per person). |
| Accident & sickness medical and dental expense | iTravelInsured Choice: Up to $100,000 per person, dental expense sublimit $750. iTravelInsured SE: Up to $250,000 per person, dental expense sublimit $1,000. iTravelInsured LX: Up to $500,000 per person, dental expense sublimit $1,000. |
| Medical evacuation | iTravelInsured Choice: Up to $500,000 per person. iTravelInsured SE: Up to $500,000 per person. iTravelInsured LX: Up to $1,000,000 per person. |
| Baggage & personal effects | iTravelInsured Choice: $1,000 ($250 max per item). iTravelInsured SE: $1,500 ($250 max per item). iTravelInsured LX: $2,500 ($250 max per item). |
| Baggage delay | iTravelInsured Choice: Up to $300 per person (after delay of 6 hours). iTravelInsured SE: Up to $250 per person (after delay of 12 hours). iTravelInsured LX: Up to $500 per person (after delay of 12 hours). |
| Ability to add cancel for any reason (CFAR) coverage | iTravelInsured Choice: Yes. iTravelInsured SE: Yes. iTravelInsured LX: Yes. |
| Pre-existing condition coverage | iTravelInsured Choice: Yes. iTravelInsured SE: Yes. iTravelInsured LX: Yes. |
| Telehealth | iTravelInsured Choice: Included. iTravelInsured SE: Included. iTravelInsured LX: Included. |
The iTravelInsured SE plan includes several benefits the lower-cost Choice plan does not, including: change fee coverage, loyalty rewards coverage, rental car coverage and pet kennel coverage. The iTravelInsured LX plan includes these as well, but some offer higher limits.
What IMG plans do not cover
Most of the IMG travel insurance plans are fairly comprehensive, and their coverage exclusions are similar to other major travel insurance companies.
Exclusions include:
- Suicide or attempted suicide.
- War, invasion, acts of foreign enemies or hostilities between nations.
- Issues that happen while intoxicated.
- Losses that occur during a trip booked for the purpose of seeking medical treatment.
How much is IMG travel insurance
Cost is often a deciding factor when considering which travel insurance to buy. We compared IMG’s three most popular and comprehensive plans that include both medical/evacuation and trip cancellation/interruption coverage.
We priced coverage for a 45-year-old from Illinois going to Mexico during a week in March 2026 for a trip costing $1,500.
| Plan | Cost |
|---|---|
| iTravelInsured Travel Lite | $60.64. |
| iTravelInsured Choice | $63.49. |
| iTravelInsured Travel SE | $79.53. |
| iTravelInsured Travel LX | $140.43. |
The lowest-priced plan is iTravelInsured Choice at $63.49, the iTravelInsured SE plan is $79.53 and the iTravelInsured LX is $140.43.
All three provide primary medical coverage, meaning the policy will be the first to pay you for any medical needs you might have while you’re traveling.
The lowest-priced Choice plan covers trips up to 90 days while the SE and LX plans are available for longer trips, up to 180 days.
All three include coverage for pre-existing conditions as long as you meet certain requirements, like buying your policy within a specific time frame after making your first payment.
The plans begin to differ in the trip delay coverage where each has a slightly different reimbursement amount, and in accidental death and dismemberment coverage, which increases significantly with the SE and LX plans.
Baggage loss coverage also increases by plan, but the baggage delay coverage is actually better under the Choice plan than the SE plan.
As mentioned above, CFAR coverage is available as an add-on to all three plans. For the Choice plan, it is an additional $31.97, the SE is $38.77 and the LX plan is $69.21.
The most significant differences between the plans are the medical and sickness coverage and medical evacuation benefits. These are also the key reasons for the plans' price differences.
If you’re concerned about political or security evacuation or evacuation for natural disasters, the Choice and LX plans include this type of coverage. The covered reasons vary slightly between plans, with the SE and LX plans covering a few more incidents than the Choice plan, including pregnancy, sickness or death of a pet, job relocation and job merger.
IMG offers several additional plans under its Travel Medical Insurance and International Health Insurance categories. While not as comprehensive as the primary options, they do offer significantly higher medical and medical evacuation benefits. .
How IMG compares with its competitors
NerdWallet recently compared more than two dozen travel insurance companies. IMG, listed as iTravelInsured in the chart, fares well against the competition and offers one of the least expensive basic plans
| Company | Star rating | Basic plan cost | Premium plan cost | Generate a quote |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GeoBlue Travel Insurance | | $10. | $18. | |
| Berkshire Hathaway Travel Protection | | $26. | $75. | |
| Tin Leg | | $36. | $188. | |
| WorldTrips Travel Insurance | | $47. | $66. | |
| World Nomads | Currently being rated and reviewed. | $63. | $115. | |
| Trawick International | | $100. | $194. | |
| AXA Assistance USA | | $114. | $159. | |
| Generali | | $123. | $164. | |
| Travelex Insurance Services | | $135. | $198. | |
| AEGIS (GoReady) Travel Insurance | | $139. | $208. | |
| HTH Travel Insurance | | $146. | $233. | |
| Seven Corners | | $154. | $225. | |
| Travel Insured International | | $164. | $218. | |
| Allianz Global Assistance | | $166. | $291. | |
| USI Affinity Travel Insurance Services | | $169. | $297. | |
| AAA | Currently being rated and reviewed. | $183. | $222. | |
| IMG | | $183. | $252. | |
| Travel Guard by AIG | Currently being rated and reviewed. | $135. | $236. | |
| Chubb | | $185. | $312. | |
| TravelSafe | | $200. | $468. | |
| Arch RoamRight | | $202. | $225. | |
| These star ratings are based on a separate analysis of each travel insurance provider’s offerings. For more detailed scoring, see our recommendations for the best travel insurance companies, read each individual provider's NerdWallet review or view our methodology at the end of this article. Pricing is subject to change based on your specific trip details. You can verify the latest price by clicking through to Squaremouth (a NerdWallet partner). | ||||
Which IMG plan is best for me?
Finding the right plan means knowing what you want to cover. For example, are you more concerned about needing medical evacuation coverage from a remote location or higher coverage for baggage or flight delay?
Every IMG plan varies a bit in the types and amounts of coverage it offers. One thing to note, high price plans don’t always mean better coverage or higher limits.
As mentioned earlier and shown in the comparison chart,, the baggage delay benefit has better coverage under the iTravelInsured Choice plan than the iTravelInsured SE plan.
Another example is sports equipment coverage. If you need to rent equipment because yours is lost or delayed, the Choice plan includes $250 worth of coverage while the SE plan doesn’t offer any coverage.
If primary versus secondary medical coverage is important to you, IMG’s three main plans all offer primary coverage. That means you can file a claim with IMG, and they’ll pay eligible medical expenses first. Secondary coverage requires you to file a claim with your primary health insurance provider first before the travel insurance provider picks up any eligible costs.
🤓 Nerdy Tip
Not all plans and coverage options are available to residents of all states, which is why pricing tools ask where you live before letting you buy a plan. If the trip to Mexico was a cruise, IMG offers a cruise-specific plan for $85.07 which, in addition to medical/evacuation coverage and trip cancellation/interruption coverage, has coverage for things like an itinerary change.
You can also add cruise protection and enhance the medical coverage with the Choice plan.
Finally, make sure you’re pricing plans that give you what you need.. Don’t be fooled by low-priced plans that might leave out something like trip cancellation or interruption coverage.
Does IMG offer 24/7 travel assistance?
Yes, IMG offers 24/7 travel assistance including help with emergency travel arrangements, lost passports, legal referrals, medical referrals and more while you are on your trip.
How to file a claim with IMG travel insurance
The easiest way to file a claim with IMG is through the company’s portal. Once you create an account, you can submit a claim there by following the prompts.
Once submitted, you’ll receive a confirmation email which includes a tracking number you can use to follow along as IMG processes your claim.
Make sure you keep all documentation to support your claim.
IMG does not say how long it takes to process a claim, only that “claims are promptly processed in accordance with industry standards.”
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I get my money back if I have IMG travel insurance and I cancel my trip?
If you cancel your trip for a covered reason, the answer is yes. If you have added CFAR coverage to an eligible plan, you can cancel a trip and receive a partial refund.
When does IMG coverage begin?
The IMG travel insurance coverage begins at 12:01 am the day after you buy your policy. Coverage for options like flight delay kick in when your trip begins.
When does IMG coverage end?
IMG coverage automatically ends on whichever of the following comes first:
- The date your trip is completed.
- The scheduled return date.
- Your arrival at the return destination on a round-trip, or at your destination on a one-way trip.
- When the trip the policy covers is cancelled.
Is IMG travel insurance worth it?
IMG travel insurance policies are comprehensive and include coverage if you get sick or hurt before or during your trip, or need to cancel or interrupt your vacation.
You buy insurance hoping you never need to use it, but if you need it, you’ll be happy to have it.
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