Natwest Travel Insurance Review: What They Don’t Tell You 

If you’re Googling NatWest travel insurance, there’s one key detail most people miss: you’re not buying a standalone policy in the usual sense.

You’re typically getting travel insurance bundled into a NatWest packaged bank account (Silver, Platinum, or Black, and their Reward/Premier variants).

I’m Abie, Head of Ops at Rise & Shield, and I’ve written a ton of reviews on our blog. 

I’m naturally biased towards adventure-ready cover, but this review stays neutral, fair, and practical.

I’ll show you what NatWest does well, where the gaps often are, and when a specialist policy (like ours) can make more sense.

Ready? Let’s roll.

How I Reviewed NatWest Travel Insurance

A quick heads up: I used NatWest’s publicly available product pages and help centre articles (fees, trip lengths, who’s covered, claims steps), plus a spread of customer commentary on third-party sites.

Where something isn’t clearly stated on NatWest’s main pages (like specific adventure activity limits), I’ll call it out as “you’ll need to check the policy booklet”.

What Is NatWest Travel Insurance?

NatWest travel insurance is included with certain packaged current accounts. Broadly:

• Silver: UK + Europe cover
• Platinum / Black: UK + worldwide cover
• Platinum / Black: includes family cover (partner + dependent children)
• Trip length caps: 22 days (Silver), 31 days (Platinum), 90 days (Black)
• Winter sports included, but capped per trip (22 days Silver; 31 days Platinum/Black)

For Black account travel benefits, NatWest states the insurance is underwritten by AWP P&C SA and administered by AWP Assistance UK Ltd (Allianz Assistance).

Who Is It Best For?

NatWest travel insurance is best for:

• Frequent travellers who’ll actually use multi-trip cover
• Families who want a simple bundled cover (Platinum/Black)
• People who already bank with NatWest who prefer “one less thing to buy”

Who Should Be Cautious When Looking at NatWest Travel Insurance?

• Anyone planning long trips beyond the per-trip cap (especially >31 days)
• Travellers aged 70+ (extra annual premium applies)
• Anyone with pre-existing medical conditions (not automatically covered)
• Adventure travellers doing activities that need explicit confirmation in writing

Let’s take a deeper dive into this NatWest review and look at some notable features.

Standout Features

Here’s what NatWest does well on paper:

• Bundled cover with packaged accounts (convenient)
• Family cover on Platinum/Black (partner + dependent children)
• Multi-trip structure (no need to buy per holiday)
• Winter sports included (within trip-length limits)
• Claims can be started via Membership Services or the Allianz Assistance Hub

Seems great, right? Well, hold your horses. There are some pros and cons of NatWest travel insurance.

Pros and Cons

Let’s start with the positives.

Pros

• Simple if you’re already paying for the account
• Family cover can work out cost-effectively versus buying separate policies
• Clear headline trip-length limits by tier (22 / 31 / 90 days)

Cons

• Over 70s require an annual age extension (£75 per person, per year).
• Pre-existing conditions aren’t automatically covered (an extra fee may apply, or some conditions may be declined).
• NatWest’s main pages don’t spell out every activity/altitude nuance. You’ll need the policy terms if your trip is anything beyond “standard holiday”.

NatWest Travel Insurance Pricing

So, how much does NatWest travel insurance cost? Here’s what I found.

The Baseline Cost (It’s Really the Bank Account Fee)

NatWest shows these monthly fees for packaged accounts that include travel insurance:

• Reward Silver at £10 a month for cover to the UK and Europe only.
• Reward Platinum at £22 monthly.
• Premier Reward Black at £36 monthly, with trip lengths capped at 90 days.

Extra Costs People Forget to Budget for:

• If you’re 70+, NatWest says you must purchase an annual age extension: £75 per person aged 70+.
• If you need cover for a pre-existing medical condition, NatWest says it’s not automatic and may cost extra (or may not be available).

So, Is It Good Value?

If you travel often, bundled cover can be a great value. 

If you travel once a year (or once every two years), you might be paying a monthly fee mostly for convenience, so compare it against standalone quotes.

Also, keep in mind that the NatWest travel insurance product isn’t made for adventure. 

So, if you’re looking for high-altitude trekking cover, tackling the Inca trail, or even planning an Antarctica cruise, this isn’t the product for you.

But what if you're set on getting NatWest travel insurance? Let’s find out.

How Do You Buy NatWest Travel Insurance?

You generally don’t “buy NatWest travel insurance” directly; you upgrade/open a packaged account that includes it. Here’s how to go about it:

1. Choose your packaged account tier (Silver / Platinum / Black).
2. Upgrade via NatWest if you’re an eligible existing customer (NatWest notes packaged accounts are for existing current account customers).
3. You’re automatically covered, but you may need to arrange upgrades for age 70+ or medical conditions.
4. Download your certificate/policy details (useful for visas and tour operators).

Before You Travel: 5 Checks I’d Do Every Time

Will your NatWest travel insurance cover your trip? Not always. Here are the 5 things you need to check before you travel:

1. Trip length: Does your itinerary exceed 22/31/90 days?
2. Destination scope: Europe vs worldwide matters (Silver is not worldwide).
3. Medical screening: Don’t assume your condition is covered “because it’s mild”.
4. Activities: If you’re doing anything adventurous, check the policy wording before you book.
5. FCDO advice: Travelling against “all travel” or “all but essential travel” advice can invalidate insurance.

Now, what if you travelled and something happened? Let’s look at their claims.

NatWest Travel Insurance Claims

Here’s what I learned about the NatWest claims process.

How Claims Work

NatWest says you can claim by:

• Logging into Membership Services and completing the online claim form, or
• Using the Allianz Assistance Hub through the NatWest app/online banking (to submit claims, check policy details, and manage travellers).

If you’re unhappy with how a claim is handled, you can complain to the insurer first.

The Financial Ombudsman Service notes firms generally have up to eight weeks to issue a final response on most complaints.

NatWest Travel Insurance Reviews: What Do People Say Online?

Online sentiment is… mixed (like most insurers, honestly).

• On a MoneySavingExpert forum thread, one poster reported a claim experience that was “very good”, and the discussion also highlights how review sites can swing wildly depending on the situation.
• Review Centre contains several strongly negative accounts (complaints about delays, documentation, and what’s covered). Treat these as anecdotes, not definitive proof either way, but they’re worth reading for patterns.
• Because NatWest routes parts of the journey through Allianz Assistance, some people judge the experience via Allianz’ reviews. Trustpilot currently shows a low TrustScore for Allianz Assistance UK and a sizeable volume of reviews.

My take: Don’t use reviews to decide “good vs bad”. Use them to decide what to double-check (documentation requirements, timelines, and exclusions).

A quick reality check: some “NatWest travel insurance review” pages online are thin affiliate content, or they’re actually reviewing the administrator rather than NatWest’s packaging. Always do your research.

The “What They Don’t Tell You” Part

Here are the big gotchas I see most often with bank-account travel insurance generally, and NatWest’s own pages hint at them:

“Included” Doesn’t Mean “Fully Tailored”

If you’re over 70 or have a medical condition, you’re usually into upgrades and screening territory. NatWest explicitly says both can involve extra cost, and some conditions may not be covered.

You Still Need to Match the Policy to The Trip

NatWest clearly publishes trip length limits and destination scope by tier, but you still need to sanity-check the policy booklet for:

• higher-risk activities,
• anything remote (where evacuation matters),
• and anything high altitude.

NatWest vs Rise & Shield for Adventure Travel

NatWest can be a solid fit for mainstream trips, especially if you already want the packaged account benefits.

NatWest’s packaged-account travel insurance can work for mainstream trips, and it does include cruises and safaris as standard.

For adventure, the detail is in their activity limits: hiking/trekking is covered up to 3,000m, but higher-altitude trekking may require their Hazardous Activities extension (which lists hiking/trekking up to 5,450m).

That’s a big deal if you’re planning something like Everest Base Camp or a polar expedition cruise with active excursions, because whether you’re covered often depends less on the destination and more on the exact activity and altitude.

Where Rise & Shield tends to be a better fit is when you want cover that’s built around the activity from the start:

• Our plans are designed to bolt on Adventure Plus / Adventure Extreme, depending on what you’re doing.
• For niche, “not a normal holiday” trips (polar cruising, expeditions), we’re very explicit about the kind of support travellers worry about (remote medical help and evacuation coordination).

If your trip is skiing in Europe for a week, NatWest may be perfectly adequate.

My Final Verdict: Is NatWest Travel Insurance Legit?

Yes, NatWest is a major UK bank, and the travel insurance attached to its packaged accounts is administered through established insurers/administrators (NatWest explicitly names Allianz Assistance and the AWP entities on its Black travel benefits page).

The real question isn’t legitimacy. It’s fit.

If you’re a frequent traveller who already wants a NatWest packaged account, it can be a convenient bundle.

If you’re older, have medical conditions, or travel for adventure, you’ll want to do a bit more homework than the headline sales page.

Quick NatWest Travel Insurance FAQs

Does NatWest travel insurance cover pre-existing conditions?

Not automatically. NatWest says you can check online, and you may need to pay extra, or some conditions may not be covered.

Do I need to register my trips?

NatWest says you don’t need to notify them of travel plans for cover to apply, but it offers an optional “going abroad” card registration feature in-app.

What’s the max trip length?

22 days (Silver), 31 days (Platinum), 90 days (Black).

How do I make a claim?

NatWest directs customers to Membership Services (online form) or the Allianz Assistance Hub, and it publishes claim phone numbers by tier.

Could FCDO advice affect cover?

Yes, UK government guidance warns travel against “all travel” or “all but essential travel” advice may invalidate insurance.

My Final Thoughts

And there you have it: This concludes my NatWest travel insurance review. 

If you take one thing from this NatWest travel insurance review, let it be this: don’t shop by brand. Shop by scenario.

• Match trip length and destination scope to the tier.
• Don’t gamble on medical conditions, declare and get it confirmed.
• If your trip includes anything adventurous, read the activity/exclusions section before you book non-refundable costs.

And if you’re the kind of traveller Rise & Shield was built for (remote places, high energy plans, or multiple activities), it’s worth comparing a specialist adventure policy side-by-side with the bank-account bundle.