This type of trip had the most medical emergency travel insurance claims last year

Getting sick or injured on a trip is a traveler's nightmare. Last year, medical emergency travel insurance claims reached the single highest-paid amount and most frequently claimed in over a decade.

Medical emergency claims accounted for 27% of all paid claims in 2024, surpassing trip cancellations. The average payout for these claims increased 14% to $1,654, according to recent data by Squaremouth, a travel insurance marketplace. Most of these were on cruises.

"People are getting sick, unfortunately, and injured on trips," said Jenna Hummer, Squaremouth's public relations director. "There are higher claims and more claims when it comes to cruises, and getting treated in the infirmaries on cruise ships (are notoriously expensive.) Norovirus has been rather rampant this year so that has accounted for quite a few emergency medical claims."

The highest medical emergency claim last year – that wasn't one of those costly medical evacuations – hit $61,976 for an illness in Aruba.

Over the past year, more travelers sought to protect their trips, with an 18% increase in paid claims from 2023. The average payout also surged 37%, from $1,900 to $2,609.

Part of these dramatic spikes are due to the rise in travel costs and people being ready to embark on that big bucket list trip, Hummer said. A recent Squaremouth poll found the number of travelers who want to go on a major adventure doubled this year.

More travelers are also looking to protect their trips as natural disasters devastate popular tourist destinations, such as the recent wildfires in Southern California and Maui in 2023.

"These things are happening more and more frequently; people are more thoughtful about protecting their trip," Hummer said.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Travel insurance claims dramatically spiked last year. Here's why.