Let’s face it: everything we purchase these days seems to come with options for some kind of extended warranty or insurance coverage. Travel is no different. So, when you think about the fact that you may be spending thousands of dollars on a vacation package, why wouldn’t you spend just a little extra for travel protection?
As travel agents, we hear of horror stories of travelers who had their vacations ruined due to some medical issue, missed flight or <insert reason here> and had no travel insurance. Therefore, they were completely out of pocket for the additional expenses or lost vacation.
What if you were overseas and your return flight was cancelled for some reason and the airlines did not provide you a place to stay? Unless you have travel insurance, you would be out of pocket that additional expense.
For most major travel insurance providers, coverage may include:
Trip cancellation
Trip interruption
Trip delay
Lost or delayed luggage
Accidental death & dismemberment
Emergency Evacuation and Repatriation of Remains
Missed Connection
Accident Sickness Medical Expense
Educate yourself by reading and understanding the coverage details. Ask your travel agent to help explain your coverage.
Here are some points that most travelers don’t realize with regards to travel insurance:
Once a major storm is declared (i.e., a hurricane or tropical storm is named), you cannot purchase travel insurance.
Cruise and airline companies must cease operations due to weather before most basic coverage kicks in.
For most travel insurance, you have a short window to purchase a policy after booking your vacation for any pre-existing medical conditions to be covered.
Most policies are not a “cancel for any reason” policy. Benefits of trip cancellation are limited to a defined list varying by insurance provider. You can purchase a “cancel for any reason” add-on. However, even in those cases, you are only eligible to receive a partial refund if you cancel for any reason.
With some travel insurance companies, such as TravelGuard, children age 17 and under who are related to the primary policy holder and living at the same address may be covered at no additional charge.
Document everything! When traveling, photograph your luggage as proof of the actual suitcase and its contents. If your luggage is lost and you file a claim, you must also submit proof of travel.
Be sure to know and follow your insurance company’s claim process properly. Ensure you keep all medical and any other receipts related to the claim. Failure to provide proper documentation and follow the claim process is one of the main reasons that insurance companies deny claims.
When reporting claims, a final decision is rendered within 30 days, on average.
Be sure to ask your travel agent to quote trip protection insurance for you. At Magnolia Travel Group, we will always recommend and quote travel insurance for our clients, because full-service is the way we do business.
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