Pros
- Budget-friendly
- Flexible, customisable plans
- Automatic COVID-19 coverage
- Unlimited emergency medical evacuation and repatriation
Cons
- No coverage for pre-existing conditions
- Patchy COVID-19 coverage
- Fewer benefits compared to other policies
- Poor customer service
Starr’s TraveLead is one of the newer travel insurance plans in Singapore.
Prices are attractive, to say the least. You can also get add-ons and customise your policy for your travelling needs.
Of course, every plan has its downsides. Sometimes, cheap isn’t the best option.
Today, we’ll review the Starr TraveLead Travel Insurance and give our verdict based on:
- Pricing and coverage
- How TraveLead compares to other plans in the market
- Ease of claims
- Whom Starr TraveLead is best for
Brief Overview of Starr TraveLead
| Eligibility | Above 18 years old |
| Single Trip Plan Duration & Age Limit | Up to 180 days per trip with no age limit |
| Annual Trip Plan Duration & Age Limit | Up to 90 days per trip; can enroll up to 70 years old, renewable up to 75 years old |
| Major Exclusions (Policy Wording) |
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The requirements are easy enough to meet. If you’re applying for yourself as an individual traveller, you’ll just have to be above 18 years old. If you’re under 18 and not travelling with parents or guardians, your parent/guardian needs to apply on your behalf.
COVID-19 Coverage
Starr’s TraveLead insurance plans come with automatic COVID-19 coverage, but it’s spotty in certain aspects:
| Bronze | Silver | Gold | |
|---|---|---|---|
| COVID-19 Overseas Medical Expenses | $25,000 | $50,000 | $100,000 |
| Overseas Hospital Cash | $200/day and $5,000/trip | $200/day and $10,000/trip | $200/day and $15,000/trip |
| Overseas Quarantine Allowance | None | None | None |
| COVID-Related Trip Cancellation | Not covered | $600 | $1,000 |
| COVID-Related Trip Curtailment | Not covered | $600 | $1,000 |
Notably, TraveLead Bronze doesn’t offer any reimbursement if you end up having to cancel or cut your trip short because of COVID.
TraveLead Bronze is comparable to AXA’s Wanderlust Lite plan, which costs a little more and offers around the same level of COVID-19 coverage. (COVID-related trip cancellations or curtailment also aren’t covered under Wanderlust Lite.)
Even the Gold plan might not be sufficient coverage in this department: a reimbursement of S$1,000 for cancelling your trip might only cover a short getaway.
Note, also, that you won’t get a quarantine allowance with Starr TraveLead. This is important in the event that you’re quarantined in a hotel instead of a hospital – being stuck in a hotel while on your trip puts a real kink in your itinerary.
Pricing & Coverage For TraveLead Plan Types
Single trip prices include only trip coverage. You’ll need to purchase add-ons for baggage cover or activities like golf, scuba diving, snow sports, or cruises.
Annual plan prices, however, come with both trip and baggage coverage already in the base prices.
| Bronze | Silver | Gold | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southeast Asia | |||
| Single Trip (1 week) | S$34 | S$41 | S$53 |
| Annual Plan | S$343 | S$414 | S$586 |
| Asia Pacific | |||
| Single Trip (1 week) | S$34 | S$44 | S$57 |
| Annual Plan | S$366 | S$442 | S$626 |
| Worldwide | |||
| Single Trip (1 week) | S$42 | S$59 | S$76 |
| Annual Plan | S$443 | S$529 | S$757 |
Southeast Asia: Covers countries such as Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia Laos, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Asia Pacific: Includes all ASEAN countries and Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China (excluding Tibet), Fiji, Guam, Hong Kong, India, Japan, N. Korea, S. Korea, Sri Lanka, Mongolia, Macau, Maldives, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, E. Timor, and Taiwan, as well as other Pacific nations.
Worldwide: All countries included.
Add-ons
| Single Trip | Annual Plan | |
|---|---|---|
| Golf Protection | S$2 | S$13 |
| Cruise Vacation | S$13 | S$93 |
| Scuba Diving | S$5 | S$34 |
| Snow Sports | S$9 | S$63 |
This is where Starr’s flexibility comes in: you can buy add-ons only for activities you’ll be participating in, rather than paying for a more expensive plan that covers everything by default.
| Coverage Benefits | Bronze | Silver | Gold |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overseas Medical Expenses | S$200,000 | S$500,000 | S$1,000,000 |
| Trip Cancellation | S$5,000 | S$10,000 | S$15,000 |
| Trip Postponement | S$500 | S$1,000 | S$1,500 |
| Missed Travel Connection | S$100, max S$200 | S$100, max S$300 | S$100, max S$400 |
| Shortening of Trip (Trip Curtailment) | S$5,000 | S$10,000 | S$15,000 |
| Lost Baggage (Limit: S$400 per article, pair, or set of items; S$1,400 for one laptop) | S$3,000 | S$5,000 | S$7,500 |
| Loss of Personal Money | S$100 | S$300 | $500 |
| Loss of Home Contents due to Burglary | S$1,500 | S$10,000 | S$15,000 |
| Covid-19 Overseas Medical Expense | S$25,000 | S$50,000 | S$100,000 |
| Covid-19 Related Trip Cancellation and Curtailment | N.A | S$600 | S$1,000 |
As previously mentioned, COVID-19 cover is the tricky part. You’ll need to go for at least the Silver plan if you want cover for possible trip cancellations or curtailment due to the pandemic.
How Do The TraveLead Plans Compare?
Let’s take a look at travel insurance with similar coverage for a 1-week trip within Asia:
| Coverage Benefits | HL Assurance Basic | FWD Premium | Starr TraveLead Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
| Premium Price | S$38.40 | S$27 | S$34 |
| Accident & Death | S$200,000 | S$200,000 | S$150,000 |
| Overseas Medical Expenses | S$150,000 | S$200,000 | S$200,000 |
| Trip Delay | S$100 for every 6 hours, max S$1,000 | S$100 for every 6 hours, max S$300 | S$100 for every 6 hours, max S$500 |
| Trip Cancellation | S$5,000 | S$7,500 | S$5,000 |
| Covid-19 Cover | No | No | Yes |
For trips within Asia to countries like Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea, these three policies are affordably priced.
FWD ranks high on budget-friendliness and is popular amongst travellers for its comprehensive coverage despite the low prices. FWD’s travel insurance covers a variety of adventurous activities such as skiing and scuba diving (as long as you’re not participating as a professional).
HL Assurance is the priciest amongst the three, but it offers one of the highest trip inconvenience coverage. This makes up for its below-average medical coverage. This plan is great for travellers planning to explore new destinations. Other useful benefits include rental car excess, travel agency insolvency, and so on.
Lastly, Starr TraveLead provides users with a balance of affordability and customisation. If you’d rather not pay for activity coverage you won’t need, Starr might be a good fit.
Ease of Claims
Unfortunately, besides the lackluster COVID-19 coverage, Starr also seems to have poor customer service.
The majority of the reviews on the insurance provider are negative, citing things like:
- The hotline is of no help at all
- Nobody picks up the phone
- They don’t seem to respond to emails
- There are ridiculous waiting times for responses to claims
While the plans may be easy on the budget, having an insurance provider that won’t entertain your calls is as good as not having insurance at all.
Our Verdict
Overall, the biggest selling point for Starr TraveLead is its affordability and flexibility. This plan caters to a wide variety of needs and budgets, allowing users to add or remove coverage with ease.
However, as the saying goes, you get what you pay for.
The sums insured by Starr are comparatively lower than their competitors in areas such as personal accident and medical expenses. Also, the huge number of complaints about the slow claims process, uncooperative helplines, and poor customer service makes this insurance policy one that you’ll want to steer clear of.