Which popular Japan-based travel insurance provider in Singapore has its roots in marine and fire insurance? Yup, if you opened this article, you’ll know it’s MSIG—Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Group Holdings, Inc.
MSIG was formed in 2001, but its roots go all the way back to the early 20th century. It was formed from the merger of Mitsui Marine & Fire Insurance Co. and The Sumitomo Marine & Fire Insurance, with the former being descended from the Taishō Marine and Fire Insurance Co. founded in 1918!
If MSIG has been protecting people from fires and the seas for over a hundred years, surely they’ve got the insurance game down pat, right? Let’s take a look at how they fare in the skies with their MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance.
Learn more about our rating system for travel insurance.
MSIG TravelEasy Travel Insurance Review (2024)
- What plan tiers do they offer?
- Is the coverage worth the price you pay?
- Covid-19 coverage
- Extreme sports and outdoor adventure coverage
- What to look out for in their terms and conditions
- Claims process
- MSIG TravelEasy vs FWD travel insurance
- MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance promotion
- Final thoughts
1. MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance—What plan tiers do they offer?
MSIG offers 2 types of travel insurance across 3 tiers:
| TravelEasy Standard | TravelEasy Elite | TravelEasy Premier | |
| Single Return Trip | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Annual | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
On top of these, you can also choose your type of cover:
| Individual | Group | Adult and Children* | Family | |
| Single Return Trip | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Annual | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
* Children refer to persons aged below 18 years or below 23 years of age if they are still studying full time at the start of the trip.
MSIG offers a good range of plans to suit various needs, from a solo backpacker exploring the world to a group of family and/or friends doing an overseas trip together. Plus, their COVID-19 cover is automatically included in both Single Trips and Annual Plans at no extra cost!
MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance also comes in a Pre-Ex variant for those with existing health conditions and who aren’t eligible for their regular TravelEasy plans. As you can expect, these plans come with lower medical coverage–for example, MSIG TravelEasy Elite offers $500,000 of overseas medical coverage while MSIG TravelEasy Pre-Ex Elite only offers a fifth of that. On the plus side, the MSIG TravelEasy Pre-Ex plans don’t differ greatly in terms of their premiums.
Total Premium
S$40.50
- Med. Coverage (Overseas)
- S$500,000
- Trip Cancellation
- S$10,000
- Loss/Damage of Baggage
- S$5,000
- Total PremiumTotal Premium
S$9055% Off - S$40.50
[GIVEAWAY | MoneySmart Exclusive]
Get over S$75 worth of rewards including:
• Up to S$40 via PayNow OR 1 x Apple AirTag (worth S$45.40) with eligible premiums spent. T&Cs apply.
• S$30 Revolut cash reward
• Eskimo Global 1GB eSIM (worth S$9.50) with every policy purchased.
Score exciting gifts on top of existing rewards:
• Apple iPad 10.9-inch 64GB (10th Gen). T&Cs apply.
• S$100 Revolut cash reward. T&Cs apply.
Total Premium
S$90
- Med. Coverage (Overseas)
- S$100,000
- Trip Cancellation
- S$10,000
- Loss/Damage of Baggage
- S$5,000
- Total Premium
- S$90
2. MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance review—Is the coverage worth the price you pay?
How does MSIG price their TravelEasy travel insurance plans?
Like many other insurers, MSIG prices their plans according to the country you are travelling to. They have 3 main categories:
- Area A: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, East and West Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.
- Area B: Australia, China (excluding Inner Mongolia and Tibet), Hong Kong, India, Japan, Macau, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, and all those in Area A.
- Area C: Worldwide, including territories in Areas A and B.
Premiums for Area A are the lowest, while those for Area C are the highest. You can also expect to pay more if you plan for a longer trip.
One thing to note for MSIG’s travel insurance pricing for single trips is that the first 3 days will cost you more than the subsequent days. For example, let’s say you take a 7-day trip to Laos. The first 3 days will cost you a premium of $38 for the Standard plan, which works out to $12.67 per day. However, their daily rate is $6 per day. Your entire trip will cost you $62, but you pay most of it during the first 3 days.
| Single trip | Standard | Elite | Premier |
| First 3 days | $38 | $52.50 | $74 |
| Daily rate | $6 | $7.50 | $10.50 |
This also means that 1- or 2-day trips are not very value for money with MSIG, since the minimum premium you have to fork out is the premium for a total of 3 days. A day trip to Kuala Lumpur will cost you the same as a 3-day trip to the same destination.
MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance—Summary of coverage and benefits
| Direct Asia Travel Insurance | Standard | Elite | Premier |
| Price (ASEAN) | $62/week | $82.50/week | $116/week |
| Price (Asia) | $76/week | $106/week | $146.50/week |
| Price (Worldwide) | $121.50/week | $155/week | $208.50/week |
| Medical expenses (overseas) | $250,000 | $500,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Emergency medical evacuation | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Personal accident (death & TPD) | $150,000 | $200,000 | $500,000 |
| Travel delay | $500 ($100 for every 6 hours) | $1,000 ($100 for every 6 hours) | $1,500 ($100 for every 6 hours) |
| Trip cancellation | $5,000 | $10,000 | $15,000 |
| Baggage delay | $600 ($150 for every 6 hours) | $1,000 ($200 for every 6 hours) | $1,500 ($250 for every 6 hours) |
| Baggage/ belongings loss | $3,000 | $5,000 | $7,500 |
| COVID-19 cover | Automatically included | ||
| Adventure activities | Only covered in Elite and Premier plans. Activities include: zip-lining, bungee jumping, tandem skydiving, tandem paragliding, tandem hang gliding, hot-air balloon, canoeing, diving, skiing or snowboarding, hiking, trekking or mountaineering, and marathons. |
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In terms of coverage, MSIG’s travel insurance plans are well-balanced. Their middle tier, Elite, offers coverage that is around the median in Singapore amongst the travel insurance plans we surveyed. Their lowest and highest tier plans generally offer coverage that hovers around the Elite plan’s, neither disappointing us with super low nor impressing us with sky high coverage amounts. All in all, these coverage amounts are reasonable and competitive.
It’s when you consider the price you pay for your coverage that things look a bit less rosy. For the Elite plan tier, you’ll be paying $83 for a 7-day ASEAN trip—that’s slightly more than the average in Singapore ($70) for just average coverage amounts. It’s not daylight robbery, but if you’re expecting above average coverage with this above average price, you’d be disappointed.
Let’s see if MSIG’s travel insurance performs well in other areas.
3. MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance—Covid-19 coverage
You know those bottomless brunches that market their buffet’s free-flow champagne, but actually require you to top up an extra $50++ to enjoy their Moët & Chandon Imperial Brut? To me, the travel insurance equivalent is when a travel insurer advertises their extensive COVID-19 coverage, but asks you to pay an extra $20 per week to get it. Except in this case, it’s worse—COVID-19 is still lurking around, and getting covered for it is more of a necessity than a luxury item like free-flow bubbly.
The good news is that MSIG is not one of those insurers that get under my skin for offering COVID-19 coverage at an extra cost. Their COVID-19 insurance coverage is automatically included in all their plans—yup, for both Single Trips and Annual Plans! Here’s what you’ll be covered for:
| MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance: COVID-19 coverage | |||
| Standard | Elite | Premier | |
| Price | No extra cost—automatically included in all plans | ||
| Trip Cancelling/ Shortening | $3,000 | $4,000 | $5,000 |
| Trip postponement | $500 | $1,000 | $1,500 |
| Medical expenses (overseas) | $75,000 | $150,000 | $250,000 |
| Emergency medical evacuation/repatriation | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Overseas hospitalisation allowance | – | – | – |
| Overseas quarantine allowance | $50 per day, max $700 | $100 per day, max $1,400 | $100 per day, max $1,400 |
Unfortunately, MSIG’s COVID-19 travel insurance cover does not extend to its Pre-Ex plans for those with pre-existing health conditions.
4. MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance—Extreme sports and outdoor adventure coverage
Thrill seekers, rejoice. MSIG’s TravelEasy Elite and Premier plans cover the following activities:
- Zip-lining, zip-riding, bungee jumping, parasailing, tandem skydiving, tandem paragliding, tandem hang gliding;
- Sightseeing on hot-air balloon, helicopter, airplane;
- Canoeing or white-water rafting with a qualified guide and up to Grade 3 (of International Scale of River Difficulty);
- Jet skiing, helmet diving;
- Scuba diving, up to the qualified depth of the insured person’s diving certification, and at all times accompanied by a qualified dive instructor or dive master and does not exceed depth of 30 metres;
- Ice skating, tobogganing, sledging; snow tube sliding, dog sledding, snow rafting; skiing or snowboarding, snowmobiling provided these activities are not done in off piste, ungroomed, unpatrolled areas or places not recommended for beginner to intermediate users;
- Up to 3,000m above sea level for hiking, trekking or mountaineering; or
- Marathon (up to 42.195km).
The only catch is that adventurous activities are not covered under the Standard tier. Since MSIG’s adventurous activity cover is not an optional add-on you can slap onto any plan, you have no choice but to pay for the Elite or Premier tiers if you’re an adrenaline junkie
Do also note that all of the activities above are subject to you meeting specified safety standards and certifications. They don’t care if you’ve been scuba-diving since you were 5 (is that even possible?). If you dive deeper than 30m and–touch wood–something happens to you, your insurance will not cover it. These safety requirements are pretty standardised across the various insurance providers in Singapore.
ALSO READ: Best Extreme Sports & Outdoor Adventure Travel Insurance (2024)
5. MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance exclusions—What to look out for in their terms and conditions
Terms and conditions are long, boring, and tricky. Here’s what I found after poring over them.
- You must report any lost baggage or personal belongings to the police within 24 hours and obtain written documents from them in order to make a claim.
- Among others, MSIG will not cover the loss of documents like your identity card, driving license, employment pass or work permit or resident permit. I usually just avoid bringing these documents overseas unless absolutely necessary.
- The coverage for sports equipment (including golf equipment) is only applicable for loss or damage due to accident or theft during the journey overseas—not if you damage your equipment while you are golfing. That one’s on you.
- You also won’t be covered for expenses you paid for by redeeming air miles, holiday points, or other membership or credit card offers. As much as we love our hotel rewards programmes, using these points to redeem a stay will mean any unforeseen circumstances that lead to cancellations will not be valid for compensation from MSIG.
- Disappearing =/= dying. Touch wood, but if your plane/ship/train runs into an accident but does not experience a “total loss” and they cannot find your body, your death is not confirmed. That means the corresponding compensation will not be paid out.
6. MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance—Claims process
Touch wood, but what if something happens to you overseas? Get acquainted with the claims process for MSIG well in advance so you have an idea of how easy or difficult it is.
The most important thing to do when an incident occurs during your trip is to notify MSIG. Do this as soon as possible, and at most within 30 days of your trip, by visiting this MSIG travel insurance claims page and clicking on “Submit claim online”.
If you find yourself in an emergency situation overseas, call the MSIG Assist 24-hour hotline at +65 6323 8288.
When the incident happens, the rule of thumb is to report everything and document everything. That means making a police report (within 24 hours) and obtaining a copy of the report, getting a Property Loss/Damage Irregularity Report from your airline/cruise/train/bus operator, and taking photos of any damaged items. The more the merrier.
Once you submit your claim online with all the relevant information and documents, wait around 2-3 weeks for MSIG to process it. This waiting time can be longer during peak travel periods.
7. MSIG TravelEasy vs FWD travel insurance
Let’s see how MSIG stacks up compared to a popular travel insurance provider in Singapore, FWD:
| MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance | FWD travel insurance | |
| Price (ASEAN) | $62 to $116/week | $33 to $57/week |
| Price (Asia) | $76 to $146.50/week | $35 to $68/week |
| Price (Worldwide) | $121.50 to $208.50/week | $55 to $93/week |
| Medical Expenses (Overseas) | $250,000 – $1,000,000 | $200,000 – $1,000,000 |
| Emergency Medical Evacuation | $1,000,000 | Unlimited |
| Travel Delay (Overseas) | $500 – $1,500 | $300 – $1,000 |
| Trip cancellation | $5,000 – $15,000 | $7,500 – $15,000 |
| Baggage loss | $3,000 – $7,500 | $3,000 – $7,500 |
| Adventure activities cover | Yes, included in Elite and Premier plans | Yes |
| COVID-19 coverage | Automatically included | Yes, add on for $10.39 – $19.04 |
Even if you add the cost of FWD’s COVID-19 cover, MSIG’s TravelEasy travel insurance is still more expensive than FWD’s. It does offer better coverage for things like travel delay ($500 – $1,500 vs FWD’s $300 – $1,000), but the coverage amounts are otherwise generally neck to neck. FWD is more value for money.
8. MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance promotion
Total Premium
S$40.50
- Med. Coverage (Overseas)
- S$500,000
- Trip Cancellation
- S$10,000
- Loss/Damage of Baggage
- S$5,000
- Total PremiumTotal Premium
S$9055% Off - S$40.50
[GIVEAWAY | MoneySmart Exclusive]
Get over S$75 worth of rewards including:
• Up to S$40 via PayNow OR 1 x Apple AirTag (worth S$45.40) with eligible premiums spent. T&Cs apply.
• S$30 Revolut cash reward
• Eskimo Global 1GB eSIM (worth S$9.50) with every policy purchased.
Score exciting gifts on top of existing rewards:
• Apple iPad 10.9-inch 64GB (10th Gen). T&Cs apply.
• S$100 Revolut cash reward. T&Cs apply.
Currently, enjoy up to 40% off MSIG TravelEasy Standard, Elite and Premier plans when you apply via MoneySmart. Plus:
- Get S$30 Revolut cash reward, S$30 Trip.com Hotel Coupon and an Eskimo Global 1GB eSIM with every policy purchased.
- Receive up to $45 via PayNow OR 1 x Apple AirTag (worth $45.40) with eligible premiums spent.
On top of these welcome rewards, there are also over $5,900 worth of Apple gadgets and gifts to be scored:
- Apple Macbook Pro 13-inch, 256GB (worth S$1,899) and more!
- S$100 Revolut cash reward when you are the 8th and 88th person to sign up for a Revolut Account each week.
Valid till 28 Aug 2024. T&Cs apply.
9. MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance review—Final thoughts
MSIG TravelEasy has decent coverage across the various coverage areas, from travel delay to trip cancellations. All 3 of their plans hold their own compared to other travel insurance plans in Singapore that we compared them against.
I like that MSIG TravelEasy plans offer options for those with pre-existing conditions at similar prices. They also come with things like COVID-19 coverage and coverage for adventurous activities already included (the latter only for their Elite and Premier plans, which I recommend you get anyway because the Standard plan’s coverage is too low).
The only downside is that MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance comes with slightly larger price tags compared to other insurers in SIngapore. However, you can snag a plan at up to 40% off on top of welcome rewards when you apply via MoneySmart! Is MSIG TravelEasy travel insurance then worth your while? Use our travel insurance comparison tool to decide, and don’t forget to check out our travel insurance guides below for more information.
About our scale and rating system
- We compiled the prices and coverage limits for over 50 travel insurance plans from 18 different providers in Singapore in a massive spreadsheet.
- For each price/coverage category (e.g. trip cancellation, travel delay, etc.), we determined the minimum, median, and maximum values across all travel insurance plans. These values then form scales showing the lowest, highest, and average price/coverage amounts for different travel insurance plans in Singapore.
- Finally, we plotted where each travel insurance plan stands on those scales and assigned a star rating for the provider based on the results.
| Star rating and description | Visual example |
| ★☆☆☆☆ 1 star: All plans under that provider perform average or lower than average, and 1 or more plans is the worst performing. / If there is only 1 plan, it is the worst performing. |
1 star:
|
| ★★☆☆☆ 2 stars: All plans under that provider perform average or lower than average, but none of their plans is the worst performing. / If there is only one plan, it performs below average. OR see 3 star rating below for penalty star scenario. |
2 stars: 2 stars (3 stars – penalty star): |
| ★★★☆☆ 3 stars: All plans under that provider perform between the minimum and maximum. / If there is only one plan, it performs average. – Add a bonus star if one of the plans is the best in Singapore. – Deduct a penalty star if one of the plans is the worst in Singapore. |
3 stars:
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| ★★★★☆ 4 stars: All plans under that provider perform average or above average, but none of their plans is the best performing. / If there is only 1 plan, it performs above average. OR see 3 star rating above for bonus star scenario. |
4 stars: 4 stars (3 stars + bonus star):  |
| ★★★★★ 5 stars: All plans under that provider perform average or above average, and 1 or more of their plans is the best performing. / If there is only 1 plan, it is the best performing. |
5 stars:
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NOTE: These are flipped for the Price component—for this, the lower the better.
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About the author
Vanessa Nah is a personal finance content writer who pens articles on the ins and outs of travel insurance, the T&Cs of credit cards, and the ups and downs of alternative investments. She’s a researcher at heart and leaves no stone unturned when it comes to breaking down complex finance concepts and making them easy to understand for the everyday Singaporean. When Vanessa’s not debunking finance myths, you’ll find her attending dance classes, fingerpicking a guitar, or (most impawtently) fulfilling her life mission to make her one-eyed cat the most spoiled and loved kitty in the world.
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