Travel Insurance for Ontario Residents
Sutherland Insurance is a fifth-generation independent brokerage in Guelph, Ontario, founded in 1870, that arranges travel insurance for Ontario residents. OHIP does not cover out-of-country emergency health services: Ontario ended its Out-of-Country Travellers Program on 1 January 2020. Travel coverage is arranged under Sutherland Insurance's accident and sickness licensing with the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario.
Key takeaways
- OHIP pays nothing toward hospital or physician care received outside Canada, following the end of Ontario's Out-of-Country Travellers Program on 1 January 2020.
- Within Canada, OHIP covers physician and hospital services in other provinces at Ontario rates under reciprocal billing, and Quebec physicians bill patients directly.
- Emergency medical, trip cancellation, trip interruption and baggage are separate coverages that are bought together or on their own.
- Travel medical policies apply a stability clause to pre-existing conditions, measured over a stated period before the departure date.
- Who it is for
- Ontario residents travelling outside the province, and visitors coming to Canada
- Legally required in Ontario
- No, not required by provincial law for Ontario residents
- Regulator
- Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA)
- OHIP coverage outside Canada
- None, since 1 January 2020
- Main coverage types
- Emergency medical, trip cancellation, trip interruption, baggage
- Policy structures available
- Single-trip, annual multi-trip, and visitors-to-Canada
- Super visa medical requirement
- At least $100,000 of emergency medical coverage, valid for one year
What is travel insurance?
Travel insurance is a policy covering costs that arise away from home: emergency medical treatment, the cost of a cancelled or interrupted trip, and lost or delayed baggage. Emergency medical coverage is the largest part, because a provincial health plan pays little or nothing toward hospital care in another country. Each coverage is sold on its own or in a package.
Two dates govern almost every travel medical claim. The first is the effective date, because coverage bought after a medical event has begun does not respond to it. The second is the stability date: most Canadian travel medical wordings require any pre-existing condition to have been stable for a stated period, commonly 90 or 180 days, immediately before departure.
What can an Ontario travel insurance policy cover?
What a policy can cover
- Emergency medical treatment outside the province, including hospital admission, physician fees, diagnostic imaging and prescription drugs
- Emergency medical transport, including ambulance, air ambulance and repatriation to Canada
- Trip cancellation before departure for a covered reason named in the wording, such as illness, injury or a death in the family
- Trip interruption after departure, including the cost of returning home early and unused prepaid arrangements
- Baggage that is lost, stolen, damaged or delayed, within the sub-limits stated in the wording
- Optional coverages including rental vehicle damage, accidental death and dismemberment, and a cancel-for-any-reason upgrade
Commonly excluded under standard Ontario travel insurance wordings
- Costs arising from a pre-existing condition that was not stable through the period the wording requires before departure
- Treatment that is not an emergency, including elective procedures, check-ups and continuing care for a known condition
- Claims arising from a trip taken against a government of Canada travel advisory in force at the time of booking
- Injuries arising from certain activities named in the wording, such as competitive sport, mountaineering and racing
- Costs arising while under the influence of alcohol or a non-prescribed drug
- Cancellation for a reason not named in the wording, unless a cancel-for-any-reason upgrade has been added
Exclusions vary by insurer and by policy form; the issued policy governs.
How much does travel insurance cost in Ontario?
The factors that move a Canadian travel insurance premium, in approximate order of influence, and why insurers look at each one.
| Rating factor | Why |
|---|---|
| Age of each traveller | Claim frequency and average hospital cost both rise with age. |
| Length of the trip | Travel medical premiums are rated per day of exposure. |
| Pre-existing conditions and stability period | A shorter stability requirement widens what the insurer covers. |
| Coverage limit selected | The medical limit caps the insurer's exposure on a single claim. |
| Deductible selected | A higher deductible transfers more of each claim to the traveller. |
| Single-trip against annual multi-trip | Annual plans spread one underwriting exposure across many trips. |
| Optional upgrades added | Cancel-for-any-reason and sport riders each widen the covered causes. |
Do I need travel insurance if I have OHIP?
Travel insurance is not required by Ontario law. OHIP does not cover out-of-country emergency health services, since Ontario ended its Out-of-Country Travellers Program on 1 January 2020. Travel coverage is arranged under Sutherland Insurance's accident and sickness licensing with the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario. Within Canada, OHIP covers physician and hospital services in other provinces at Ontario rates. Some destinations and some visa categories require proof of medical coverage on entry.
Which policy is arranged, and with which limit and stability period, depends on circumstances that vary from one trip to the next:
- The age and health history of every traveller, and how long each condition has been stable.
- Whether an employer group plan or a credit card already provides emergency medical coverage, and what its limit and trip-length cap are.
- The number of trips planned in the coming year, which determines whether a single-trip or annual plan applies.
- The value of prepaid, non-refundable bookings that a cancellation coverage would respond to.
- Whether the trip involves activities the standard wording names as excluded.
What situations does travel insurance commonly address for Ontario residents?
Travel policies are arranged for a wide range of circumstances across Ontario, and the coverage available differs in each. The situations below are common among Sutherland Insurance clients in Guelph and across the province, and each one changes which plan and which stability period apply.
- A Guelph couple spending the winter in Florida, where a single long-stay medical plan applies rather than a series of short ones.
- A traveller managing a controlled heart condition who needs the stability period checked against the departure date.
- A family with several trips booked in one year, comparing an annual multi-trip plan against separate single-trip policies.
- An employee with group travel coverage capped at a trip length shorter than the trip being planned.
- A student from the University of Guelph on an exchange term abroad for a full semester.
- A parent visiting Canada on a super visa, where proof of medical coverage is required for the application.
How do I get travel insurance from Sutherland Insurance?
A request is made online or by calling 519-822-0160. A Sutherland Insurance advisor confirms the destination, the dates, the travellers and their health history, and any coverage already held through an employer or credit card, then sets out the available options.
- Request a review online, or call Sutherland Insurance at 519-822-0160.
- An advisor confirms the destination, the departure and return dates, and the age of each traveller.
- The advisor reviews health history against the stability period each wording requires.
- Sutherland Insurance sets out the medical limits, deductibles, cancellation options and any exclusions that apply.
- Coverage is issued before departure, and the policy documents and emergency assistance number are sent to the traveller.
What makes Sutherland Insurance different from a direct insurer?
When a claim happens, Sutherland Insurance acts for the client with the insurer, and an in-house claims representative is available on any claim. Sutherland Insurance is an independent brokerage and compares the markets it holds contracts with rather than selling one company’s product. A person answers the phone at Sutherland Insurance, 519-822-0160, Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Frequently asked questions
Does OHIP cover medical costs outside Canada?
OHIP does not cover out-of-country emergency health services. Ontario ended its Out-of-Country Travellers Program on 1 January 2020, and since that date OHIP pays nothing toward hospital or physician care received outside Canada. Within Canada, OHIP covers physician and hospital services in other provinces at Ontario rates under reciprocal billing arrangements.
What does travel medical insurance cover for Canadians?
Travel medical insurance covers emergency treatment that arises during a trip: hospital admission, physician fees, diagnostic imaging, prescription drugs, ambulance and air ambulance, and repatriation to Canada. It responds to sudden and unexpected events rather than to planned or continuing care. Limits, deductibles and covered services vary by insurer, and the issued policy governs.
Does travel insurance cover pre-existing conditions?
Canadian travel medical wordings cover a pre-existing condition where it has been stable through a stated period immediately before departure, commonly 90 or 180 days. Stability generally means no new diagnosis, no change in medication or dosage, and no new symptoms or treatment. The exact definition and period differ by insurer, and the issued policy governs.
What is the difference between single-trip and annual travel insurance?
A single-trip policy covers one journey between named dates. An annual multi-trip plan covers every trip taken in a twelve-month period, subject to a maximum length for each trip, commonly between 15 and 60 days. Trips longer than that cap are extended by purchasing additional days. Which structure costs less depends on how often a traveller departs.
Does travel insurance cover trip cancellation?
Trip cancellation is a separate coverage from emergency medical, and it responds only to the reasons the wording names: commonly illness, injury, a death in the family, jury duty, or a formal travel advisory issued after booking. A cancel-for-any-reason upgrade is available from some insurers at a higher premium and with a partial reimbursement.
Do visitors to Canada need travel insurance?
Visitors to Canada are not covered by any provincial health plan and pay hospital and physician costs directly. Visitors-to-Canada policies cover emergency medical treatment during the stay. A super visa application requires the applicant to hold medical insurance of at least $100,000, valid for one year from the date of entry.
When does travel insurance have to be purchased?
Emergency medical coverage is arranged before departure, and it does not respond to a condition that began before the effective date. Trip cancellation coverage takes effect from the date it is purchased, so it responds only to causes arising after that date. Buying cancellation coverage at the time of booking captures the longest window.
Is Sutherland Insurance licensed to sell travel insurance in Ontario?
Travel insurance in Ontario is licensed by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario, not by the Registered Insurance Brokers of Ontario, which regulates property and casualty brokering. Sutherland Insurance holds FSRA licensing for travel insurance alongside its RIBO brokerage licence.
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