question the need for travel insurance, perhaps you are the same
person who questions the need for any kind of insurance. Most people
have auto insurance, health insurance, homeowners' insurance or
renters' insurance, and maybe even life insurance or disability
insurance – so I ask you: Why not have travel insurance?
Insurance is for "What if's"
Insurance is protection for that unwanted and unexpected challenge.
Your auto insurance protects you from shelling out $2,000 for that
unexpected fender bender that wasn't even your fault. Travel insurance
does likewise. Have you ever had luggage "misplaced" by an airline and
been left with no clothes to wear on your trip? Have you ever had to
cancel a trip that was fully paid due to some unforeseen incident that
arose before you even had an opportunity to leave? Or have you had to
cut short that cruise because of something that happened at home? Ever
gotten sick on vacation?
These are all travel problems that can be covered by travel insurance.
One company I reviewed will reimburse your trip cost for covered
(always read the small print) cancellation, and 125% of the cost due
to an interruption of the trip. They will also pay $500 for your
accommodations if you missed your connecting flight and can't get
another until "tomorrow morning, at the earliest." Ever slept in an
airport on behalf of your Atlanta-based flight crew, who were very
happy to serve you, but couldn't manage to get the airplane to your
connecting airport by the time they said they would? A $500 hotel room
might not get you to your destination, but it sure could be a sweet
wait. Can you say "honor bar?"
Here's another swell deal: your travel insurance could pay you $1,000
for lost luggage, or $200 for delayed luggage. That's some pricey
underwear and deodorant, but I'm not arguing.
Travel insurance can also be purchased to cover emergency medical
treatment or "medical evacuation and repatriation." Or, if you prefer,
you could just click your heels together three times and say, "There's
no place like home. There's no place like home. There's no place…"
Yeah, but how much is it going to cost me?
The cost of travel insurance is based on the number of people
traveling and the value of the trip. Time away can also be a factor if
you will be gone for more than a month. For example, a family of four
taking a trip valued at about $3,000 could expect to pay in the
neighborhood of $250 for all of the coverage mentioned above. Is it
worth it? On the website of one travel company it stated, "If you
can't afford travel insurance, you can't afford to travel."
Can I ask my uncle?
Sure. Uncle Sam says medical evacuation from a foreign country can
cost $10,000 and up. And in his inimitable way, he warns that Social
Security Medicare does not provide coverage for hospital or medical
coverage outside of the US. If you have a private insurer, you might
want to check on what out-of-country coverage you have if your trip
will take you outside of the good ol' USA.
OK, OK, you've convinced me. Any last bits of advice before I leave
for Katmandu?
I am so glad you asked. Here's a little extra for you - at no additional charge:
1. Take all your travel insurance documentation with you – DON'T put
it in your luggage!
2. Put all of your policy numbers on a separate piece of paper in a
separate location from the actual policies in case of loss or damage
to your policies.
3. Leave a copy of your policy(s) at home with next of kin, or
whomever knows your whereabouts.
4. To expedite service in case of an accident, fill in all of your
vital statistics on the information page of your passport (name,
address, phone number, etc.), or carry it on a card that you keep in
your wallet or stuffed into the sleeve of that tag that says Hello My
Name Is_____.
In a coconut shell…
Travel insurance can help you with:
· Reimbursement of your travel investment due to cancellation or early
termination
· Reimbursement of unexpected travel expenses (delays, loss of luggage)
· Covering emergency medical assistance and medical referrals
· Obtaining medical assistance abroad
Bon Voyage!
© 2005 Travel Insurance Directory
About the Author
Tina Irasthmus has developed the website Travel Insurance Directory,
which answers the most common questions drivers have about travel
insurance. Please visit us at travelinsurancedirectory.net
travelinsurancedirectory.net today.
***ATTENTION PUBLISHERS AND WEBMASTERS***
Permission is given to reprint this article in its entirety in your
ezine, newsletter, or on your website so long as you leave all links
in place, do not modify the content, and include the resource box
exactly as shown above. Anyone or any company reprinting this article
without giving proper credit and the correct link is doing so without
permission, and will be subject to legal action.
No comments:
Post a Comment