Outbacker

What Outbacker does

Outbacker is a UK-focused digital travel insurance intermediary targeting British residents aged 18-40, with a deliberately narrow risk pool that excludes pre-existing medical conditions and travellers above the age cap. The brand sells backpacker, gap year, working holiday, student, and long-stay policies through outbackerinsurance.com and is also distributed via the four major UK price comparison websites — CompareTheMarket, Confused.com, GoCompare, and MoneySuperMarket. Products are tiered across Silver, Gold, and Platinum levels, with pricing ranging from approximately £168.80 to £418 annually depending on destination zone, duration (1-18 months), and add-ons such as Winter Sports and Category B/C extreme sports coverage. The company is wholly operated as a trading name of Cover For You Insurance Group Limited, registered in Gibraltar and authorised by the FSC under Permission Number 5570; all risk is underwritten by Inter Partner Assistance S.A., a subsidiary of the AXA Group.

The technology layer is modest and integration-led rather than proprietary. Outbacker's customer-facing stack comprises the TravelMate mobile app (policy access, claims, translation, FCDO travel advice), a QR-coded BagFinder lost-luggage service, the Doctor Please! telemedicine integration providing 24x7 video access to UK doctors, and the My SOS Family safety and location-sharing app added to policies from September 2024. Back-office operations rely on Stripe and Worldpay for payments, Talkdesk for live chat, Feefo for verified reviews, and third-party claims handlers (currently The Oxford Claims Company for new policies from April 2025, previously Davies Group). The Outbacker Plus loyalty programme offers up to 20% discount on extensions and upgrades plus 400+ retail brand perks, providing a modest retention mechanism that is also transferable across the wider Cover For You Insurance Group portfolio.

The business model is commission-based intermediation on insurance premiums, with the underwriter (IPA/AXA) bearing underwriting risk. Marketing is digital-first, leveraging price comparison aggregators, organic search, and third-party ratings (Defaqto 5-star, Feefo Gold Service Award 2025) for credibility. The brand highlights 130,000+ insured customers and over £83,000 donated to Médecins Sans Frontières as trust signals. Geographic scope is restricted to UK permanent residents; the Isle of Man, Channel Islands, and Republic of Ireland are explicitly excluded from eligibility, and there is no evidence of expansion planning beyond the UK market.

Name

Outbacker

Legal name

Cover For You Insurance Group Limited

Website

https://outbackerinsurance.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Outbacker is a UK-focused digital travel insurance intermediary selling backpacker, gap year, and working holiday policies to UK residents aged 18-40 via its website and major price comparison sites, with all risk underwritten by AXA's Inter Partner Assistance.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Travel Insurance

NAICS

Direct Insurance (except Life, Health, and Medical) Carriers (52412), All Other Travel Arrangement and Reservation Services (561599)

SIC

Accident & Health Insurance (6321), Insurance Agents, Brokers & Service (6411)

akta.pro primary industry

Adventure Sports & High-Risk Activity Travel/Accident Insurance (FSAJAJAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Travel Assistance & Concierge Services (Non-Insurance) (FSAJAJAF), Travel AD&D / Common Carrier Accidental Death Insurance (FSAIALAD)

Keywords

• Backpacker travel insurance
• Gap year insurance
• Long stay travel cover
• Working holiday insurance
• Adventure sports insurance

Headquarters

HQ city

Welwyn Garden City

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Travel Insurance Premiums: Outbacker generates revenue through the sale of travel insurance policies to backpackers, gap year travelers, and young adventurers. Policies are priced based on destination, duration, traveler age, pre-existing medical conditions, and selected activities. The company offers tiered coverage levels (Silver, Gold, Platinum) with varying benefit limits. Premiums range from approximately £168.80 to £418 depending on destination and coverage type.
2. Additional Coverage Add-ons: Revenue is generated through optional add-ons including Winter Sports coverage, Category B and C Sports & Activities packs, and extended duration upgrades. These are paid either per day, per week, or for the full trip duration, allowing customers to customize coverage based on their specific activities.
3. Outbacker Plus Loyalty Program: The free loyalty program monetizes through referral value and repeat purchases. Members receive a minimum 15% discount on policy extensions, upgrades, and future policies, with savings passed across multiple brands within the Cover For You Group.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Outbacker is a specialist UK travel insurance provider selling backpacker, gap year, student, working holiday, long-stay, adventure, extreme sports, winter sports, and volunteering travel insurance to UK residents aged 18-40, with policy durations from 1 month to 18 months. Policies cover emergency medical expenses (up to £15,000,000), trip cancellation, baggage loss, repatriation, personal liability, working abroad, and over 100 sports and activities as standard, sold in Silver, Gold, and Platinum tiers. The offering is distributed online via outbackerinsurance.com and major UK price comparison websites, underwritten by Inter Partner Assistance S.A. (part of the AXA Group).

Product overview

Outbacker is a specialist travel insurance provider focused on backpackers and digital nomads aged under 40. The core product is Backpacker Travel Insurance, which serves as the primary offering and can be extended through multiple specialized insurance products including Gap Year Insurance, Student Travel Insurance, Working Holiday Insurance, Long Stay Travel Insurance, Year Abroad Insurance, and Volunteering Abroad Insurance. The company also offers Adventure Travel Insurance and Extreme Sports Insurance as add-on modules for higher-risk activities. Value-added services include Winter Sports/Ski Insurance as an add-on, the Outbacker Plus loyalty programme (free for policyholders providing discounts and brand offers), the BagFinder free baggage tracking service, the TravelMate mobile app, My SOS Family location sharing, and the Doctor Please! teledoctor service. The product portfolio covers trip durations from 1 month up to 18 months with coverage levels ranging from Europe to worldwide including USA.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Outbacker Plus: A free loyalty program for policy holders offering discounts on entertainment, brands, groceries, and exclusive competitions. Provides minimum 15% discount on policy extensions and upgrades.
• TravelMate App

Products and services

• Backpacker Travel Insurance Primary travel insurance product for backpackers aged 18-40, covering emergency medical expenses up to £15,000,000, baggage loss, trip cancellation, passport/money protection, working abroad, and over 100 sports and activities as standard, with policy durations from 1 to 18 months.
• Year Abroad Insurance Long-stay travel insurance designed for full-year or 18-month trips abroad, covering emergency medical expenses, stolen or lost baggage, repatriation, trip cancellation, and passport or travel money loss.
• Working Holiday Travel Insurance Travel insurance covering backpackers who work while abroad, including manual and non-manual jobs such as bar, retail, clerical, and hospitality work as standard, plus medical cover and adventure activities.
• Student Travel Insurance Travel insurance for students and recent graduates under 40, covering emergency medical and dental care, trip cancellation, missed departures, personal accident, personal liability, and high-value equipment such as cameras and laptops.
• Gap Year Insurance Specialized travel insurance for gap year adventurers covering Europe to worldwide destinations, work abroad activities, and 100+ sports and adventure activities.
• Long Stay Travel Insurance Travel insurance for trips lasting more than one month, designed for backpackers and long-haul travellers to destinations such as Australia and the USA.
• Adventure Travel Insurance Travel insurance with standard coverage for 100+ sports and activities, with the ability to add higher-risk Category B and C sports and activities for an additional premium.
• Volunteering Abroad Insurance Travel insurance for volunteer work abroad including building projects and community development, covering both volunteer activities and general trip coverage.
• Extreme Sports Insurance Add-on coverage for higher-risk extreme sports including Alpine Mountain Biking, Black Water Rafting, Caving, Paragliding, and Rock Climbing, payable by day or week on top of a base policy.
• Winter Sports Insurance Add-on pack covering winter sports equipment, lift passes, ski pack, piste closure, and avalanche delays for skiing and snowboarding, priced per day, week, or for the trip duration.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 130,000 customers insured
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration10 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Inter Partner Assistance S.A.coreOthersThe primary insurer and underwriter for Outbacker policies. Inter Partner Assistance S.A. is authorized and regulated by the National Bank of Belgium, with UK operations subject to Prudential Regulation Authority oversight. Part of the AXA Group. Provides 24-hour emergency assistance services, claims handling, and policy administration support.
• Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerOutbacker supports the humanitarian work of Médecins Sans Frontières through customer donations. The company has donated over £83,000 toward a £100,000 goal, with each policy purchase helping support MSF's medical humanitarian work across crisis zones worldwide.
• StripecoreTechnology or IntegrationPayment services provider processing insurance policy purchases and renewals. Stripe processes personal data including device information for fraud detection and prevention as part of payment processing.
• WorldpaycoreTechnology or IntegrationAlternative payment services provider for insurance policy transactions. Processes payment data with fraud prevention capabilities integrated into Outbacker's checkout experience.
• Doctor Please!coreTechnology or IntegrationTelemedicine service integrated into Outbacker policies providing 24x7 access to UK doctors via video call for minor medical issues while traveling. Doctors can issue local prescriptions, offering a cheaper and more convenient alternative to local private medical care.
• FeefocoreGTM or Marketing PartnerIndependent ratings and reviews platform used to collect and display genuine customer feedback. Feefo's system prevents manipulation of reviews, ensuring authentic 5-star ratings that genuinely reflect customer experiences with Outbacker products and services.
• DefaqtocoreGTM or Marketing PartnerIndependent financial research and software company maintaining the UK's largest retail financial product database. Defaqto benchmarks and rates financial products, with Outbacker receiving a 5-star rating for their Platinum policy.
• CompareTheMarketminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrice comparison aggregator where Outbacker policies are listed alongside competitors, allowing consumers to compare coverage and pricing before purchasing.
• Confused.comminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorUK price comparison website listing Outbacker travel insurance products for consumer comparison alongside competing backpacker and gap year insurance providers.
• GoCompareminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrice comparison platform distributing Outbacker travel insurance products to consumers actively researching and comparing backpacker insurance options.
• MoneySuperMarketminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMajor UK price comparison site featuring Outbacker travel insurance alongside competitor offerings in the backpacker and long-stay travel insurance categories.
• The Oxford Claims CompanycoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerClaims handler for gadget cover claims including mobile phones, iPads, tablets, cameras, GoPros, smartwatches, and laptops. Handles online claims registration and assessment for lost or damaged gadgets.
• Davies GroupcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerClaims handler for policies registered before 01/04/2025. Previously processed baggage and personal belongings claims for Outbacker policyholders.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• SafetyWing: Digital-nomad focused global travel and health insurance subscription product. Comparable as a tech-led, niche overlap targeting the same under-40 long-stay and remote-worker traveller segment.

Direct peers

• InsureandGo: UK travel insurance provider competing across single-trip, annual, and backpacker segments. Listed alongside Outbacker on the major UK price comparison aggregators and targeting similar value-conscious travellers.
• World Nomads: Global specialist in backpacker and adventure travel insurance, directly competing with Outbacker for the same long-stay, multi-country, activity-inclined traveller. Outbacker's own pricing pages benchmark against World Nomads as the primary global competitor.
• Holiday Extras: UK travel add-ons provider offering travel insurance alongside airport extras, parking and hotels. Comparable as a UK travel insurance competitor operating through the same digital and aggregator channels.
• True Traveller: UK-based backpacker and gap-year travel insurance specialist with a near-identical product structure (long durations, working holiday cover, adventure activities). Outbacker explicitly benchmarks pricing against True Traveller in its comparison page.
• Staysure: UK travel insurance specialist with strength in older-traveller and over-50 segments, but competes with Outbacker in the broader UK aggregator travel insurance market.
• Coverwise: UK-based travel insurance provider focused on affordable single-trip and backpacker cover, listed alongside Outbacker on UK comparison websites and targeting similar price-sensitive travellers.

Broad incumbents

• Post Office Travel Insurance: Mass-market UK travel insurance sold through the Post Office brand. Outbacker's own comparison pages benchmark against Post Office on long-stay pricing, and it competes head-to-head on aggregator sites.
• AXA Travel Insurance: UK travel insurance product from AXA, the parent group of Outbacker's underwriter Inter Partner Assistance S.A. Comparable as a broad incumbent competing in the same aggregator-driven UK market.
• Allianz Travel: Global travel insurance arm of Allianz, offering single-trip and annual policies widely distributed through banks and comparison sites. Comparable as a broad incumbent in the same UK travel insurance category.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/with_replies
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/outbackerinsurance

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Outbacker