You’ve done your homework, you know where you want to travel, you are ready to pay your deposit, or even pay for your trip in full. Before you sign your name or click that confirmation button, did you plan for travel insurance?
Let me start by emphasizing, I AM NOT AN INSURANCE SALESPERSON. I don’t know all of the ins and outs of any of the following plans. What I do know is that, for a few dollars, okay, a bit more than a few, you can protect your vacation investment.
OPTIONS
From your vacation company – if you purchase your vacation from a travel broker (Carnival Cruise Lines, Southwest Vacations, Royal Caribbean), they will off you their own insurance which will be underwritten (or backed) by a private insurance company. When you purchase, make sure to understand what is covered.
Or you can purchase directly from an insurance company – this option may be cheaper than purchasing from your vacation company. When you purchase directly from the company, you can purchase for each person traveling with you or you can each purchase separately.
Pros and Cons of purchasing travel insurance.
Pros
- If you become ill and have to cancel your vacation, depending on how close to travel, you will be entitled to some refund from the vacation company, but if it’s really close to travel, it may only be at 75% or it may be in the form of travel credit. Insurance will refund the money you paid, less the cost that you paid for the insurance.
- If you become ill while on vacation, your travel insurance would most likely cover your medical expenses where your own insurance will not cover you in a foreign country.
- Most policies will also include trip interruption insurance to cover costs incurred if your flights are cancelled or delayed or in the event you have to cut your trip short for an emergency. Make sure to read and understand acceptable reasons that are included in your policy.
Cons
- If you travel, don’t cancel, have no issues, the cost of the insurance is non-refundable.
- Travel insurance purchased after 7 days from the time you pay your deposit does not actually cover “cancel for any reason” which means, there will be a specific list of reasons that will qualify you for a refund.
- It is insurance, there will be fine print, make sure to ask questions.
Some Things To Note About Travel Insurance
- Cancel for any reason is typically only covered when the insurance is purchased when your trip is booked.
- If you travel more than a couple of times a year, there are insurance companies that will offer an annual travel insurance policy that will cover all of your travel for the year. Be sure to ask your travel advisor to provide you with this information.
Travel Security
Travel insurance is not much different than Life, Auto, or Home Insurance. You purchase it to protect if something happens. I believe the best case scenario is to never needed. But in the end, it would be better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it.
Let me know your thoughts on travel insurance, have you ever purchased it? Did you end up needing to file a claim?
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