Does the BOQ Low Rate credit card include any travel insurance?

Bank of Queensland·A$65/year·Visa

Low Rate
0,0/5Independent review · verified August 2026
Travel Insurance
0,0
Car Rental
0,0
Protection
0,0

Our Verdict · Travel Insurance

Our take on travel insurance for the Bank of Queensland Low Rate

Pauline Laurore
Expert review · Pauline LauroreAuthor of HelloSafe's card insurance reviews

No travel insurance. None, and the BOQ Low Rate never carried any. That is the blunt answer anyone searching for BOQ Low Rate travel insurance is really after: Bank of Queensland built this Visa around a low 13.99% purchase rate, not around trip cover. So you book a holiday, put the flights on it, and assume a bank card quietly insures the trip. It doesn't. A hospital bill in Bali, a cancelled tour, a lost bag: all of it sits with you, because there is no policy behind this card and no 24/7 assistance line to call. It is also a poor card to actually travel on, since every foreign-currency purchase adds a 3.3% overseas transaction fee. Where it earns its keep is at home, on the low rate and the $65 annual fee. If you want the trip itself covered, a standalone travel insurance policy starts from a few dollars a day, and it is the only route to overseas medical, cancellation, or evacuation.

What works on travel
  • Low 13.99% p.a. purchase rate: the card is built to cost less when you carry a balance from month to month
  • $65 annual fee: cheap to hold while you insure trips with a dedicated policy
Where travel breaks down
  • No overseas emergency medical cover: a serious hospital admission abroad, commonly $50,000 to $200,000, is entirely on you
  • No complimentary travel insurance at all: no cancellation, baggage, delay, evacuation, or liability cover, and none was ever offered
  • 3.3% overseas transaction fee: every foreign-currency purchase costs extra, so it is a weak card to actually travel on
Our methodology

Every score is derived from official bank documents: terms and conditions, benefit guides, and claim procedures. No commercial relationship influences our ratings.

Travel Insurance · 20 guarantees

What does Bank of Queensland Low Rate Travel Insurance actually cover?

No trip cancellation cover. This benefit has never been included with the BOQ Low Rate. Prepaid flights, hotels, and tours are not reimbursable if you cancel, and a standalone travel insurance policy is required for this coverage.

No overseas emergency medical cover. There is no 24/7 assistance line attached to this card, because it carries no complimentary insurance. All medical costs overseas are the cardholder's responsibility, Medicare does not cover you outside Australia, and a serious hospital admission overseas can run $50,000 to $200,000.

No emergency evacuation cover. This benefit is not included with the BOQ Low Rate. Emergency evacuation costs are entirely the cardholder's responsibility, and an air ambulance from Southeast Asia to Australia runs $60,000 to $100,000.

No overseas dental cover. This benefit is not included with this card. Emergency dental treatment overseas is out of pocket.

No hospital cash allowance. This benefit is not included with this card. A daily cash payment during an overseas hospital stay is not provided.

No additional expenses cover. This benefit is not included with this card. Costs from a trip cut short, such as return flights and unused hotels, are out of pocket.

No travel delay cover. This benefit is not included with this card. Meals, accommodation, and transport during a delay are the cardholder's responsibility.

No alternative transport cover. This benefit is not included with this card. Rebooking to reach a destination after a missed connection is paid out of pocket.

No resumption of journey cover. This benefit is not included with this card. The cost to fly home and resume a trip after a family emergency is out of pocket.

No baggage delay cover. This benefit is not included with this card. Purchases of essential items during a bag delay are out of pocket.

No baggage cover. This benefit is not included with this card. Replacement costs for lost or stolen bags are the cardholder's responsibility.

No travel documents cover. This benefit is not included with this card. Reissuing a stolen passport and covering fraudulent card transactions are paid out of pocket.

No personal liability cover. This benefit is not included with this card. Legal liability for injury to others or property damage overseas is uninsured, and claims commonly reach hundreds of thousands of dollars.

No accidental death benefit. This benefit is not included with this card. No lump sum is paid to your family for an accidental death during a journey.

No loss of income benefit. This benefit is not included with this card. Lost earnings after an overseas injury that stops you working are not replaced.

No domestic cancellation cover. The Interstate Flight Inconvenience benefit does not apply to this card. Cancelled prepaid interstate flights and travel are not reimbursable.

No domestic flight delay cover. This benefit is not included with this card. Meals and accommodation during an interstate flight delay are the cardholder's responsibility.

No domestic additional expenses cover. This benefit is not included with this card. Extra interstate travel and accommodation after a disruption are out of pocket.

No domestic luggage cover. This benefit is not included with this card. Loss, theft, or damage to bags on an interstate trip is not reimbursable.

No domestic luggage delay cover. This benefit is not included with this card. Essential purchases during an interstate baggage delay are out of pocket.

We source benefits from official card guides, but PDFs are sometimes hard to obtain or update. Spotted something off?

Coverage Radar

Where the Bank of Queensland Low Rate wins, where it loses

Coverage snapshot for this tab — click any layer to highlight its scores.

Trip cancellation: not covered by this card
Medical fees abroad: not covered by this card
Medical repatriation: not covered by this card

Compare

Low RateThis card0.0/5?
A$65/yr
With travel insuranceIdeal
Complete coverage · 5.0 / 5
Premium card avg.
A$237 avg. annual fee

Click a layer to highlight its scores on the radar.

Side-by-side comparison

How the Bank of Queensland Low Rate stacks up against the alternatives

Same 5 coverage dimensions, ranked head-to-head against the cards most Low Rate shoppers also consider.

Card
This card
Low Rate

Low Rate

Bank of Queensland · A$65/yr

0.0/5?
Low Fee Platinum

Low Fee Platinum

Westpac · A$90/yr

4.3/5?
Amplify Signature

Amplify Signature

Bank of Melbourne · A$295/yr

4.3/5?

Trip cancellation

Per person, per trip cap

Unlimited

Unlimited

Unlimited

Unlimited

Emergency medical

Hospital bills abroad

Unlimited

Unlimited

Unlimited

Unlimited

Emergency evacuation

Air ambulance + repatriation

Unlimited

Unlimited evacuation

Unlimited

Unlimited evacuation

Trip delay trigger

Hours before benefits kick in

6h / $1,100

Trigger: 6 hours

6h / $1,100

Trigger: 6 hours

Trip interruption

Covered amount

Unlimited

Unlimited

Unlimited

Extra travel & accommodation

StrongLimited / misleadingNot covered

Data verified against each card's Guide to Benefits, May 2026.

Cardholder reviews

What cardholders say about the Bank of Queensland Low Rate

Real experiences with the low rate, fees, and the lack of any cover 12 reviews

AC

Adrian Collins (creditcard.com.au)

January 2013

Cheap card, low rate after the intro

For a cheap card, this was a great option. After the intro period it has a low interest rate, plus I only pay half annual fee for the first year, and after that it is cheap anyway.

RC

Ross Clark (ProductReview)

2018

Asked for a low rate card, ended up dealing with Citibank

I asked my local BOQ to provide me with a low interest credit card. The teller girl said my BOQ card was actually on sold to Citibank, and I felt BOQ's service had gone downhill.

A(

andrew.gow (ProductReview)

2007

Low advertised rate, same interest in practice

I couldn't understand why I was paying the same dollar amount of interest as with a card with a much higher advertised rate.

Emergency · Card assistance line

How to contact Bank of Queensland Low Rate assistance?

BOQ card servicing (Australia)

1300 55 72 72

Lost or stolen card, and account queries

BOQ card servicing (from overseas)

+61 7 3336 2222

Standard international call rates · Lost or stolen card from overseas, not travel claims

Benefit administrator: Not applicable. The BOQ Low Rate has no complimentary insurance, so there is no insurer or claims administrator to contact.

What to do if you need cover with the BOQ Low Rate

1

Step 1: Confirm the gap before you travel

The BOQ Low Rate carries no complimentary travel, rental, or purchase insurance, so there is nothing to claim through BOQ. Do not assume a bank-issued Visa insures the trip, because this one does not.

2

Step 2: Buy a standalone policy for the trip or hire car

A dedicated travel insurance policy is the only source of overseas medical, cancellation, and rental excess cover for this card. Buy it before you leave Australia, and read the pre-existing condition terms if they apply to you.

3

Step 3: For a lost card or a disputed charge, call BOQ

Contact BOQ on 1300 55 72 72 within Australia, or +61 7 3336 2222 from overseas, for a lost or stolen card, fraud, or a disputed transaction. This line handles card servicing, not insurance claims.

FAQ

What people ask about the Bank of Queensland Low Rate

  • You cannot, because there is no travel insurance to activate. The BOQ Low Rate has never carried complimentary travel insurance, and Bank of Queensland lists no complimentary insurances for this card. Holding the card, or charging a trip to it, switches nothing on, because there is no policy behind it. This is a low purchase interest rate card, built to save money on carried balances rather than to insure travel. If you want overseas medical, cancellation, or baggage protection, the only route is a standalone travel insurance policy bought before you leave Australia.
  • No one. The BOQ Low Rate has no complimentary travel, rental, or purchase insurance, so there is no cover for the cardholder, a spouse or partner, or dependent children. Unlike premium cards that bundle a travel policy, the Low Rate has never included complimentary insurance, so there is no covered-persons definition to fall under. Charging a trip to the card changes nothing, since there is no cover to extend to a partner or family. To protect anyone on a trip, take out a separate travel insurance policy that names each traveller.
  • It does not, because the BOQ Low Rate carries no rental vehicle excess cover at all. Rental excess, the amount the hire company charges you after damage or theft, is reimbursed only by cards that bundle complimentary insurance, and the Low Rate is not one of them. So if a hire car is damaged or stolen, the excess is entirely on you, commonly $2,000 to $5,500 on an Australian hire. A standalone rental vehicle excess policy covers both Australian and overseas hires from a few dollars a day, and it is the only way to shift that cost off this card.
  • There is nothing to claim, because this card has no complimentary insurance. The BOQ Low Rate carries no travel, rental, or purchase cover, so BOQ has no insurer or claims administrator attached to it for you to contact. If you bought a standalone travel policy for your trip, claim through that insurer using the contact details in its own policy document. For a lost or stolen card, fraud, or a disputed transaction, call BOQ on 1300 55 72 72 within Australia or +61 7 3336 2222 from overseas, though that line handles card servicing, not insurance claims.
  • On the insurance side, everything. The BOQ Low Rate has no overseas emergency medical cover, no evacuation, no trip cancellation, no baggage or delay cover, no personal liability, and no domestic interstate cover. It also has no rental vehicle excess cover, no purchase protection, no extended warranty, no price guarantee, and no mobile phone insurance. None of these were ever part of the card. What the Low Rate does offer is a low 13.99% purchase rate and a $65 annual fee, so it is a low-cost card for carrying a balance, just not an insurance product.
  • Yes, and it is not optional if you want to be covered. Because the BOQ Low Rate has no complimentary travel insurance, a standalone policy is your only source of overseas emergency medical cover, which matters because Medicare pays nothing outside Australia and a serious hospital admission overseas can run $50,000 to $200,000. A separate policy also covers cancellation, baggage, and rental excess, none of which this card provides. The Low Rate is also an expensive card to spend on overseas, with a 3.3% fee on foreign-currency purchases, so treat it as a home card and insure the trip separately.
  • No. The BOQ Low Rate does not include mobile phone or screen insurance, and it has never carried a dedicated phone cover. If your phone is lost, stolen, or the screen cracks, the repair or replacement is your cost, and a flagship screen repair alone runs about $200 to $600. Some premium cards and standalone gadget policies do cover phones, usually on the condition that the monthly phone bill is charged to the card, but that is not part of this product. Treat your phone as uninsured under the Low Rate and budget for repairs yourself.
  • No. There is no travel policy attached to the BOQ Low Rate, so skiing, snowboarding, and any snow-sports injury or equipment loss are not covered, on-piste or off-piste. Premium cards with complimentary travel insurance often cover on-piste snow sports and exclude off-piste, but the Low Rate carries no travel cover to begin with. For a ski or snowboard trip, take out a dedicated snow travel insurance policy, which typically covers on-piste activity and can add off-piste cover for an extra premium. Do not rely on this card for anything on the mountain.
  • No. Searches for BOQ Low Rate travel insurance come up empty because the card has never included any complimentary travel cover. Bank of Queensland designed the Low Rate around a low 13.99% purchase rate and a $65 annual fee, not around travel benefits, and it carries no complimentary insurances. That means no overseas medical, no cancellation, no baggage, and no rental excess cover. If a trip needs insuring, buy a standalone travel policy before you go, and if you spend overseas, remember the 3.3% foreign-currency transaction fee on this card.
Not just Bank of Queensland

Other cards worth considering

Low Rate is a strong choice — but depending on what you prioritize, one of these may suit you better.

Amplify Signature

Amplify Signature

Bank of Melbourne

See Amplify Signature review
Low Fee Platinum

Low Fee Platinum

Westpac

See Low Fee Platinum review
Altitude Qantas Black

Altitude Qantas Black

Westpac

See Altitude Qantas Black review
Amplify Rewards Signature

Amplify Rewards Signature

BankSA

See Amplify Rewards Signature review

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