Lori Park, a Chicago resident, and her 80-year-old mother, Nancy Park, were on a cruise in Hawaii when Nancy became ill. She spent five days in the ship’s hospital before being evacuated to Mexico and then flown back to the United States.
All that medical care and transportation added up to thousands of dollars in unexpected expenses, but it was all covered by the $436 travel insurance the two women bought before setting sail.
Lori Park says she never goes on vacation without insurance. “It’s something I find essential whenever I travel,” she notes.
There are five broad types of travel insurance: flight policies that pay out if your plane crashes; baggage insurance to cover damaged, lost or stolen baggage; interruption/cancellation insurance as compensation for trips that did not take place; health insurance for doctor’s visits and hospital stays; and evacuation coverage that pays to move you to an appropriate medical facility. You can buy them individually or in a package.
Travel experts say insurance can help people avoid potentially catastrophic expenses, as happened with Parks. But not everyone needs it.
“Insurance adds about 13% to the cost of a trip,” says Jay Smith, president of Sports Travel and Tours in Hatfield, Mass., which specializes in sports travel. “If someone is traveling locally, or if the airline ticket is refundable or redeemable in the future, and the hotel has a cancellation before the trip – even if it’s 48 hours before – then there’s no real reason to have insurance.”
You don’t need insurance that covers accommodation and airfare if you plan to stay with friends and buy your ticket with redeemable frequent flyer points. You would only insure for cases that would expose you to major financial losses (for example, developing a serious illness requiring hospitalization or missing a cruise due to a flight delay).
Also read: 12 ways to adjust your vacation for inflation
To find the right policy, you should consider the type of coverage you need and how much risk exposure you can afford, then shop around for a low premium.
Insurance companies price a policy by looking at your destination, modes of transportation (scheduled airline or charter? car rental or taxis?) accommodation (cruise ship? resort? Airbnb?) activities (swimming with sharks? skydiving?) and local time (hurricane season in the Caribbean?).
Then they look at age and previous conditions. Insurance will be more expensive for someone in their 80s than in their 70s. People in their 70s, going on a long overseas cruise, even fully vaccinated, have seen quotes of $10,000. That’s why it’s important to shop around and compare policies, benefits and costs.
What kind of coverage do you want or need? Since COVID is still active, you may want to cover yourself and your group for illness. Choose a policy that provides primary health insurance, not secondary insurance; the latter requires you to make claims to your regular health insurer first, and later claim from the travel insurance company for any remaining debt.
The cost of travel insurance will depend on how much medical and evacuation coverage you purchase. Higher dollar limits are better, but more expensive. You may want to consider “cancellation for any reason” cover, which, as the name implies, will reimburse you for trips you cancel for any reason – even if you just change your mind.
“It’s always a good idea to cover prepaid nonrefundable travel expenses, especially during hurricane season,” says Dan Drennen, director of sales and marketing for the Travel Insurance Center in Omaha, Nebraska. “If you have valid trip cancellation/interruption coverage that you purchased before the storm was named, you can rest easy knowing that if a hurricane ruins your trip, it won’t destroy your bank account.”
It doesn’t take a hurricane to illustrate why travel insurance is worth considering. Janet Jones Caraker, of Island Jack’s Travel in Dexter, Missouri, says she knows one traveler who took her entire family, husband, grown children and grandchildren, on a trip to Ireland. They decided not to buy insurance and while they were there, the woman’s husband died.
“There is no grief like [paying] $100,000 to have her husband’s remains disposed of and sent home,” says Caraker. “There are people who can afford it, but most can’t.”
It’s not just about how much you stand to lose if you can’t or don’t take this trip; How much will a replacement vacation cost you? How much more expensive will transportation, accommodation and activities be next year or the year after? And when will you get a chance to take that vacation, especially one trip that requires coordinating vacation days for multiple family members?
Also see: Don’t be fooled by these myths about travel insurance and what it covers
Just as coverage can vary from one insurer to another, so can the price. To save money on insurance, start by checking your credit card to see if it offers coverage. If you decide to pay for insurance, buy as little as necessary – if your luggage is valued at $2,500, don’t insure it for $15,000. If you’re paying for a cruise, resort or flight with redeemable points, you don’t need to insure them at all.
For the most part, Medicare does not provide coverage outside the United States. If you have a private Medicare Advantage or Medicare Supplemental policy, check to see if it provides such coverage. If not, you will need a travel insurance policy that will cover the cost of treatment abroad. If you travel a lot, consider an annual policy that covers all your trips.
If you pay for your vacation in installments before you travel, will the insurer allow you to pay the insurance in comparable installments? You don’t want to pay the full cost of insurance if you’ve only put down a 10% deposit.
Determine what the pre-existing condition is. Generally, if you have diabetes, for example, it’s only considered “pre-existing” if your medication changes within two weeks or so of your departure.
Related: Why Pay for Travel Insurance? Maybe you’re already covered.
The bottom line is that if you’re going to buy travel insurance, you need to read the fine print and make extensive notes so you can compare what’s on offer, what’s not and how much it will cost.
Judy Colbert, author of 36 books, writes about travel and travel.
This article is reprinted with permission from NextAvenue.org, © 2022 Twin Cities Public Television, Inc. All rights reserved.
Does travel insurance really work?
Although you may pay 5 to 10 percent of the cost of your trip for travel insurance, travel insurance is often worth the investment because of its potential to help you recover hundreds of thousands of dollars in covered travel expenses such as emergency evacuation, medical bills, and expenses related to trip cancellations and .. . This may interest you : 5 Things I Learned From The Worst Travel Weekend This Summer.
Does travel insurance do anything? What does travel insurance cover? The coverage most people are familiar with is trip cancellation, which provides a refund of unused, nonrefundable, prepaid travel expenses if you have to cancel your trip for a covered reason, such as illness, job loss, flight cancellation due to bad weather, and more.
Should I get trip insurance 2022?
Bottom line: You probably need travel insurance if you’re going anywhere in 2022. If you’re going on a lot of shorter trips, an annual policy might come in handy. Or you can insure each trip individually, which would cost more but also offer more comprehensive coverage.
What are two disadvantages travel insurance?
The downsides of travel insurance Read also : Macau casinos reopen with uncertain business outlook amid travel restrictions.
- It can be expensive. One of the main disadvantages of buying travel insurance is the price. …
- It may not provide cover for pre-existing conditions. …
- The request for travel insurance may be refused. …
- It comes with certain holes.
How long does travel insurance take to process?
Check your policy for the required grace period to receive your refund. This can be from three to 12 hours, depending on the travel insurance plan. Read also : Traveling on July 4th: departure time and other driving tips. At that point, your travel insurance policy can cover additional expenses, such as food, hotel stays, and even a cab ride to a friend’s house, Page says.
How much time after booking a trip do you have to get good insurance? When is the best time for travel insurance? If you’re wondering when you should buy travel insurance, the simple answer is, “as soon as possible.†Ideally, you should purchase coverage no later than 15 days before your trip.
Is there a waiting period for travel insurance?
Cover for pre-existing conditions is included in our Premium Plan, but cover must be purchased before or within 24 hours of final travel payment, travelers must be medically fit to travel at the time cover is purchased and 100% of their pre-paid travel costs must be insured which would be subject to …
How do I win a travel insurance claim?
Make sure your initial application is complete.
- Call your insurance company before filing a claim. …
- Read your policy. …
- Keep all receipts. …
- Ask for everything in writing – bills, invoices, receipts, hotel information. …
- State the reason for the delay in writing, if possible.
Can I get travel insurance immediately?
You can absolutely buy travel insurance after you book your trip. However, it is always best to purchase insurance as early in the process as possible.
How late can you get trip insurance?
Fortunately, travelers can purchase travel insurance even a day before their departure date if they wish to purchase a fully comprehensive travel insurance policy, which includes trip cancellation coverage.
Does flight insurance cover the delay? There is no clear yes or no answer for missed flights covered by travel insurance, but in short, you would be covered if you missed your flight for insurance reasons. However, if you miss your connecting flight due to a travel delay caused by the airline, then you will not be covered.
Can I get travel insurance if I’ve already started my trip?
You can buy a policy even if you are already traveling, working, living or studying in another country. If you purchase the policy outside the home, there is a grace period (some policies call this a âwaiting periodâ) of 3 days (72 hours) before coverage takes effect.
How late can I buy trip insurance?
When is it too late to buy travel insurance? In general, you can buy coverage any time before your travel date. However, it’s always best to purchase coverage as soon as you make your reservation.
Does Aviva travel cover COVID-19?
Yes, you are covered for emergency medical treatment and related expenses if you fall ill with COVID-19, subject to the terms and conditions of the policy.
Can I travel if I have been exposed to COVID-19? Do not travel if you have symptoms of COVID-19, are positive for COVID-19, are awaiting the results of a COVID-19 test, or have been in close contact with a person with COVID-19 and are advised to quarantine.
Should I travel if I test positive for COVID-19?
DO NOT travel if… You have symptoms of COVID-19, even if you have recovered from COVID-19 within the past 90 days or received vaccines against COVID-19. You are positive for COVID-19. Do not travel until a full 10 days have passed after symptoms started, or from the date you tested positive if you have not had symptoms.
Can I travel during the coronavirus disease pandemic?
Before traveling abroad, make sure you have received your vaccines against COVID-19. Vaccination is still the best way to protect yourself from serious diseases and slow the spread of COVID-19. People who have not received the vaccines against COVID-19 should follow additional recommendations after travel.
