In my years as a Travel Advisor, I have seen so many awful and unexpected situations arise before or during travel, which is precisely what insurance is for. I’ve had many clients for whom their travel insurance saved the day:
- A man who fell on the pier, fractured his spine, and had to be flown home via medical ambulance (a HUGE expense if he’d had to pay out of pocket!).
- A child who needed stitches while in Mexico (the bill was over $2000), and several other clients who fell and either broke bones, twisted ankles, or chipped teeth with even higher bills - covered by insurance!.
- A woman whose close relative passed away on day 2 of her vacation and she had to return home, missing the rest of the trip she’d paid and incurring additional expenses to return home - all of which were covered by the insurance.
Unfortunately I’ve also seen far too many situations where NOT having insurance meant an extraordinary monetary loss and/or hardship, from “just” losing the cost of their trip when canceling for something that would have been covered, to paying 6-figure air ambulance costs or thousands of dollars upfront to be treated at a foreign hospital!
Protect Your Investment
For many people, a vacation is their largest yearly expense. Please consider the potential losses related to this important investment. To protect yourself from vacation losses, we VERY highly recommend Travel Protection/Insurance.
Some questions to consider when deciding on Travel Insurance:
1- What happens if I need medical care while traveling to another country? Will my US insurance cover it?
Typically NO, most US healthcare plans do NOT provide worldwide coverage! And coverage through credit cards doesn’t usually include medical coverage. If it does, it's typically limited or secondary.
Did you know that an air ambulance/medical evacuation (which can be a higher possibility when on a cruise and out at sea) can run well over 6-figures?!
Many countries also require upfront payment before treatment can begin. This can mean a huge out-of-pocket cost during an already traumatic time, and it will then be up to you to file the claim with your US insurance carrier for reimbursement afterwards. Keep in mind that if you don’t speak the language, communicating your medical needs to foreign healthcare workers can be difficult.
Our Allianz plans provide primary medical coverage, so they can arrange payment to the healthcare facility upfront, AND they have translators who can assist in communicating your needs with the medical personnel.
2- How much money can I afford to lose?
If you cancel your trip while in full penalty (meaning everything is non-refundable), you'd be out the full trip cost. But there are additional costs outside of the trip costs themselves that can be covered by a quality travel insurance policy.
If a family member at home suddenly falls gravely ill or passes away while you're on your trip, and you need to return home, are you able to afford the increased costs to change your plans mid-trip?
If you get sick or injured during the trip (see question 1 above), are you able to pay for all of the costs? I know I would never want to have to pay for an unexpected air ambulance!
Travel insurance policies not only cover you for cancellation, but also for trip interruption and unforeseen medical expenses.
3- What are the chances I will need to cancel my trip?
Wouldn’t we all love to have a crystal ball? Many of us figure we’re pretty healthy and have low chances of being incapacitated before travel. But:
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- What if you break your foot climbing the stairs as you're packing your bags?
- What if a parent unexpectedly ends up in the hospital, right before you are planning to leave?
- What if your kids bring home Covid from school or daycare just before departure?
We’ve seen countless unexpected incidents occur right before travel. Travel insurance will protect you for unforeseen events, even those tied to your immediate family members.
4- What activities am I planning for my trip?
The more active you are, the more potential you have for injury. It is important to purchase a plan that offers emergency medical coverage.
(I should add a necessary disclaimer that some risky activities are considered exclusions, so be sure to review your policy carefully.)
5- Is my credit card or travel supplier’s option REALLY good enough?
Suppliers primarily protect themselves, not the customer. Most supplier coverage offerings provide reimbursement only in travel credits, locking you into using that supplier the next time you want to travel.
Credit cards often don’t cover medical situations and are often limited to items charged on the card.
For these reasons and to cover the gaps, we recommend travel insurance through an independent supplier. Independent travel insurance covers trip cancellation for covered reasons, trip interruption, and medical emergencies. Terms vary by policy of course.
Our Allianz Policy Options
We are proud to partner with Allianz Global to offer Travel Insurance options. The two primary ones we offer are the WorldWide Travel Protection (WWTP) and the WWTP with Cancel Anytime.
Both of these cover the same in-travel benefits, like medical emergencies and evacuation, travel delay, lost/delayed baggage, and more. Where they differ is on the cancellation side of things.
Important Note: All travelers are responsible for ensuring that their policy meets their personal needs. Our agency is not a licensed insurance broker, and cannot provide specific policy recommendations.
The Allianz WorldWide Travel Protection (WWTP) plan with Cancel Anytime plan:
This plan allows you to cancel for reasons outside of the covered reasons list and still get up to 80% back. This flexibility in cancelation is the reason this policy is more expensive.
It also adds business-related reasons to the 100% covered cancellation reason list (like being required to work).
This plan is ONLY available within 13 days of deposit. If you want this one, you’ll need to be prepared to purchase it early.
The Regular Allianz WWTP plan:
While this plan can be purchased much later in the process, there are two coverages that are only included if purchasing the policy within the 13 days after deposit: Supplier default (for covered suppliers) and divorce/separation. If you want either of these coverages, you will need to purchase the policy in that window.
The policy includes coverage for pre-existing conditions ONLY if purchased by the final payment date of your trip. You can actually purchase this policy up until the day before travel, but pre-existing conditions will not be covered in that case.
A few important notes:
Our Allianz plans are based partly on age brackets, so if anyone in your party will have a birthday between deposit and final payment date, keep in mind that the quote can change if purchasing it later on.
For anything with a non-refundable deposit, I highly recommend getting travel protection at the time of deposit.
For NY, pandemics are an exclusion on both policies, but they're allowing cancellation if you or a family member gets COVID, and they're also covering medical emergencies if you get COVID while traveling. See details HERE.
Travel Insurance is Always A Wise Idea
I really do urge everyone to protect their vacation investment, and cover themselves for potentially exorbitant medical expenses during their trip.
Yes, it’s an added expense, but the peace of mind it can provide is priceless.
