Trip cancellation insurance

[foxy]

I've recently booked a trip and the tour company recommends their trip cancelation insurance which I think is too expensive. I've checked other companies and they have policies for less money. However, my general experience with most insurance is that it never seems to pay when you need it. There's always some exception which I seem to fall into.

 

Has anyone here ever had a postive experience with a company offering trip insurance where it actually paid off and can you recommend the company?

[Guest Wetnwildbear]

I actually had an airline waive the Insurance claim process and just

 

give me a credit for a roundtrip and rental car at 100% value.

 

 

I did have the trip insurance. Of course, I had a nurse call from my

 

hospital room.

 

 

I took the trip a few months later at no additional cost or loss.

[KMEM]

The way I look at trip cancellation insurance is to try to decide what I am insuring. If your airline arrives 3 hours before your cruise ship leaves and the airline is running late, the insurance might kick in. The best way to solve that problem is to book an earlier flight, even the day before, if necessary.

 

What I really think about is why would I miss this trip? If I have a cold, I am going anyway. If I break a leg, I am going anyway. So, I am mostly worried about a death in the family or a serious illness. If you have elderly close relatives and you are booking a trip months in advance, cancellation insurance might be a good idea. Otherwise, I forego it.

 

You are on the right track by looking at insurance available elsewhere from the tour operator. They use insurance as a profit center which means you are paying higher premiums. The "other" insurance companies do offer various coverages so one must look at them for what you want compared to what you think is a fair price. One from column A and two from column B might be good for me but not so good for you.

 

Like many things worthwhile, including a good time with an escort, one must investigate a little bit and spend a little time figuring it all out.

 

Best regards,

KMEM

[OneFinger]

I took out trip insurance for my last two cruises. Fortunately, I didn't have to use it. But, after reading the policies and exclusions, I'm not sure I'd do it again. Too many loop holes and exclusions.

 

Even on cruises, I've know people that have canceled a couple weeks before the cruise for health reasons. They've been able to get refunds without the trip insurance.

 

In July I went on a family trip to Europe and we did NOT take out insurance. Hotels and car rental could be easily canceled and monies refunded if something came up and we couldn't take the trip.

 

The only potential loss I could see is airline tickets. But, that's a risk I'm willing to take. Plus, I believe even non-refundable tickets can be reused (within 12 months) for a re-booking fee of about $100.

[TinyBubbles]

I travel alot, and when I travel out of the country I always buy travel insurance, not necessarily the cancellation part but always the medical insurance part, which also includes trip delay, lost baggage etc. I use Access America, and a couple of times I actually had missed flight connections and had to stay overnight in hotels and I put claims in for the hotel rooms and they paid it. It was a pretty easy process.

[lookin4hotties]

I've used http://www.travelguard.com before.

You can call them 24 hrs-a-day for a quote or look online.

They also have coverage for rental car damage and medical

insurance abroad which can be purchased either together or

separately along with trip cancellation coverage.

 

Good luck!

 

Lookin4hotties

[fedssocr1]

you can compare policies and coverage on http://www.insuremytrip.com You can select the coverage amounts you want and compare prices.

 

If you are paying a lot of money upfront I think it is worthwhile peace of mind. And if you are traveling in the developing world and may need expensive medical evacuation it will certainly be worth it.

 

I think the policy I bought for my trip coming up to SE Asia was less than $200. For a $6000+ trip that seemed reasonable enough to me.