Adding a traveller after buying travel insurance

Can I add another traveller after buying my policy?

Sometimes, but not always. It depends on the insurer, and on whether your trip has started.

Travel insurance only covers the people named on your policy schedule. If a friend or family member decides to join your trip after you have bought cover, they are not insured until they are either added to your policy or have one of their own.

What the small print says

Most UK travel insurance wordings do not say in so many words whether you can add a traveller. What they do say is that you must tell the insurer if anything on your policy schedule changes, that the insurer has to agree to any change, and that it may charge an additional premium. A new traveller is a change to the schedule, so in practice it comes down to a call to the insurer, who will ask the new traveller the same medical and eligibility questions you answered.

Whether the insurer will actually make the change is often a customer service rule rather than a policy term, so two insurers with near-identical wordings can give different answers.

The Financial Ombudsman Service has been consistent on this point. In one case an insurer cut a policyholder’s claim in half because his partner, who was travelling with him, was not on the policy; the ombudsman agreed she had no cover of her own, and only restored the full amount because the policyholder had paid for the whole trip himself. In another, a companion who was never named on the policy broke her arm abroad and the claim was declined. The lesson is the same each time: if someone is not named on the policy schedule, they are not insured, whatever anyone assumed at the time.

Examples from policies we review

• Aviva Signature: the wording expressly allows it. “If you add another traveller after purchasing the policy, we’ll ask you about their pre-existing medical conditions when you call us.” Aviva’s request form adds that the trip must not have started and nobody can already be in a claims situation.
• VIVA, SwitchedOn and Holiday Extras: these share a wording that lists “you wish to add another traveller to your policy” among the changes you must tell the insurer about, and says the insurer will “reassess your cover and premium” when you do.
• AtoZ: the “Policy changes” section says you must tell the insurer if “you wish to add another traveller to your policy”.
• AXA, Cedar Tree, Puffin, Select Protect, Trusted and Travel Insurance Saver: the wordings do not mention travellers specifically, but say you must tell the insurer if any information on your policy schedule changes, and that terms “can only be changed if we agree” with an additional premium possibly payable. Expect to call.
• LV=: the wording is silent, but LV= says travellers can be added at any time before the trip starts, up to ten people on one policy.
• Staysure: the wording only sets out amendment fees (free online, £15 by phone). Staysure’s own help centre says it is not possible to add someone to an active policy, and that the extra traveller needs a separate policy.

Almost no insurer will add a traveller once the trip is under way.

What to do if your insurer says no

A separate single-trip policy for the extra traveller is usually the simplest answer. It can be cheaper too, since the price reflects only that person’s age, destination and medical history rather than a change to a group policy. The main thing to check is that the new policy’s dates and destination match yours.

Notes on this guide

This is general guidance based on a selection of representative UK travel insurance policy terms from leading insurers, drawn from a detailed, expert review of UK travel insurance policies from August 2026. It is a summary of common terms, not a description of any one policy. Always read your specific Policy Wording and IPID document, and contact your insurer, or the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) if you have a dispute. This guide is for information only and does not constitute financial or legal advice.