Trip cancellation insurance

[peterjmaerz]

Looking for feedback on best companies (NOT diving insurance, for which I'm covered by DAN). Doing a three week PNG trip in May and looking to protect the sizable investment involved.
Anyone out there actually had to file a claim with this kind of insurance? If so, what was your experience?

Thanks much,

[DandyDon]

:money: It's proably not all that good of a buy percentage wise - premium vs average payout - but I feel better with it. I've had some small claims from delays; nothing big.

I'll be watching to see if anyone here knows about this. I do know that the lower premium plans do not cover certain airlines and tour operators, that is: Access America will cover Delta airline for ceasing business, but not Taca. One point to watch.

Good luck on your research, and thanks for bringing this up! :nod:

don

[Natasha]

www.travelguard.com
I've been selling it over 15 years, but you can buy it from the web site too.

[Tim Ingersoll]

Never used it. Never needed it. I figure that with all the premiums that I have saved I could pay for the vacation that I will need it for. Does that make any sense?

[TCDiver1]

Tim Ingersoll once bubbled...
Never used it. Never needed it. I figure that with all the premiums that I have saved I could pay for the vacation that I will need it for. Does that make any sense?

If your spending 7 or 8+ grand on trip, a couple hundred bucks is reasonable to protect that investment IMO. The more the exotic the destination, the more sense it makes.

Some locations have limited chances to connect, fly in and/or catch a liveaboard. You miss one connection, you could blow your whole vacation. Missed connections (weather delays, etc) are rather common in our neck of the woods in the winter.

Losing 7 or 8 grand is a lot of trip premiums at 250-300 bucks a pop for travel insurance.

I have used the firm Natasha mentioned and this one, http://www.travelsecure.com/csa/jsp/index.jsp

[Natasha]

Gedunk:
Exactly right.

[Damselfish]

I've always heard bad things about exclusions and difficulty of collecting on these policies. Anyone had any experience with this one way or another?

I figure I'll stick to "self-insuring" if the amount lost doesn't bum me out too much. If I was dropping mega bucks on a trip to the Pacific (where it also seems like more things could go wrong, and there would be more time for things to go wrong) I'd look into insurance.

[peterjmaerz]

Thanks for the replies thus far. My case is reflective of the scenario Gedunk poses. I'm traveling from South Florida to Cairns to PNG to do 10 days on the Febrina liveaboard. Judging from what I've read about the reliability of Continental micronesia and, especially, Air Niuguinea, not to mention the ever-present threat of volcanic activity in PNG, I'm very nervous about blowing all or part of this very expensive venture.
So far, travelguard has been the most comprehensive and least-exclusive provider I've found on the web. I need to book with them within 15 days of locking in my trip reservations to maximize the coverage, so I'll have to make a decision very soon. Thanks for any further info on Travelguard or other providers of trip cancellation insurance

Best,

[DocVikingo]

Here's a little peice that I wrote for another forum:

"While all of the better dive accident insurance plans do include trip cancellation & interruption benefits, these are essentially limited to cancellations/interruptions based on your sustaining a medical condition that precludes safe diving. Unlike many general travel insurance policies, they do not cover cancellations/interruptions for death or illness of a close family member, strikes/collapses/bankruptcies of common carriers & travel agencies, civil unrest at a destination, hurricanes & other natural disasters, and the like.

Because of such factors as sustained terrorism fears post 911, new airline rules severely limiting changes made to non-refundable tickets, movement of individuals from traditional third party payer medical insurance plans to HMOs, divers are left feeling as if their scuba vacations are more at risk than ever.

Not surprisingly, the number of people purchasing general travel insurance has increased by about 20% post-911.

Is it for you?

I personally have never purchased it, nor yet needed it. I agree with "Consumer Reports" that probably the most over-priced, and confusing, of all travel services.

Based on the policy costs of 4 1/2 % to 7% of the price of the vacation, I'd estimate that had I secured good quality general travel insurance for every dive trip I've taken to date it would come to about $10,000. Even in the event that my normal credit card protections, top of the line DAN dive insurance policy, homeowner's policy or some other existing coverage didn't address my particular trip cancellation/interruption issues, this savings to date could absorb a couple of big hits.

Now, this isn't to say that I'd never, under any circumstances, buy it. If I had a terminally ill parent and very big dollar trip set up to an exotic destination during typhoon season that was currently experiencing civil unrest, I very likely would. But, barring unusual circumstances I simply do not think it's a good value for the otherwise properly insured diver.

However, I understand that the personal circumstances & levels of comfort for risk are highly idiosyncratic, and I appreciate that others may want to seriously explore such policies.

In doing this, one should first determine exactly what coverage they feel they need based on their present circumstances & already existing coverage.

Next, go the websites of the major players (*many listed below) to see what they offer and how much it costs. When you do this, please be very careful about the fine print. For example, some plans cover you only if a travel company/airline formally files for bankruptcy protection (and not every policy covers every bankruptcy). Other policies leave it up to the US State Department, law enforcement agencies or news media outlets, not you, to define what constitutes a terrorist attack, foreign or domestic. They may set limits on how close the attack has to be to your destination before it goes into effect--this may or may not fit your personal comfort zone. And, you generally must buy the policy before violence erupts to be covered.

Here is a Travel Insurance Comparison Site http://www.insuremytrip.com/ that purports to list insurance plans, and to allow for comparisons based
on coverage & cost. I haven't road tested it, but it looks promising.

Hope this proves helpful to somebody out there.

DocVikingo


*Travel Guard International; 800-826-4919; http://www.TravelGuard.com

Travelex Insurance Services; 800-228-9792; http://www.Travelex-Insurance.com

Travel Insured International; 800-243-3174; http://www.TravelInsured.com

HTH Worldwide; 888-243-2358; htp://www.highwaytohealth.com

Access America; 800-284-8300; http://www.accessamerica.com

CSA Plan; 800-348-9505; htttp://www.travelsecure.com "

[Tim Ingersoll]

Good to hear from you again Doc. On point as always. I was wondering if you had been away diving someplace wild and out of the way? Hadn't heard from you in a while.

[DocVikingo]

I guess one might consider the west coast of Ireland to be somewhat wild & out of the way.

Saw a variety of sharks, crustaceans & flounders, and porpoises. Got a big kick out of seeing several varieties of colorful wrasse up in those cool & cloudy northern waters.

Best regards.

DocVikingo

[Tim Ingersoll]

Any leprechauns?

[DandyDon]

Tim Ingersoll once bubbled...
Any leprechauns?

He would have mentioned those if he'd caught one, don't you think... :all:

and called in Rich at work?! :$$:

don

[peterjmaerz]

Once again, hearty thanks to you, Doc Vikingo, for providing me and the rest of us with valuable, well-researched, thorough info. In this case, want to let you know that http://www.insuremytrip.com was a winner for me. The site has a very detailed, graphically easy-to-read comparison chart of the most common trip insurers. Individual categories are further detailed via click-on pop-ups (which don't violate my Earthlink anti-pop-up software). There are even histories of and ratings for the insurance companies which back up the trip insurers (in some cases the same for multiple comapnies) . I found the site very user-friendly and extremely informative, and saved myself a bundle by finding the exact coverage I need by the cheapest, adequately reliable company.

Doc, you're a diver's national treasure!


Best,

[DocVikingo]

That is a great website--thanks for posting.

Best regards.

DocVikingo

[rakjar]

I say get the insurance with the way the world is now days you never know what is going to happen from one day to the next.

Better safe then sorry.

[medical1]

Here's a little peice that I wrote for another forum:"

***Highlights of these plans by medical1***
Buyer beware & read the policies carefully!

*Travel Guard International; 800-826-4919; http://www.TravelGuard.com

*Special Limitation: The Insurer will not pay more than $500 for the first item and thereafter, no more than $250 per item up to the limit of coverage as defined on the Schedule of Benefits.The Insurer will not pay more than $500 aggregate on all losses to: jewelry, watches, gems, furs, cameras and camera equipment, camcorders, sporting equipment, computers, radios and other electronic items.

Travelex Insurance Services; 800-228-9792; http://www.Travelex-Insurance.com

*A combined maximum of $600 will be paid for cameras and their accessories and related equipment.

Travel Insured International; 800-243-3174; http://www.TravelInsured.com

*A maximum of $500 applies to the total amount payable for loss of any or all of the following: jewelry, watches, articles consisting in whole or in part of silver, gold or platinum, articles trimmed with fur, cameras and their accessories and related equipment.

HTH Worldwide; 888-243-2358; htp://www.highwaytohealth.com

*Prices starting at $250 for a 7 day trip!

Access America; 800-284-8300; http://www.accessamerica.com

*GENERAL PROGRAM EXCLUSIONS - Scuba diving (unless accompanied by a dive master and not deeper than 130 feet); :11:

CSA Plan; 800-348-9505; htttp://www.travelsecure.com "[/QUOTE]

*Items Not Covered - property used in trade, business or for the production of income, household furniture, musical instruments, brittle or fragile articles, or sporting equipment.

***I have DAN insurance & will look at their travel insurance. One police won't cover you unless you bring your own DM/babysitter on a vacation with you!***