More than ever before, it’s critical to be flexible in your travel plans, and travel insurance makes that possible. We tell all of our clients that it’s essential to invest in travel insurance if you’re traveling right now, especially because of covid. Things can change so quickly and it’s better to be covered than take the risk without it.
Whether your trip is a once-in-a-lifetime vacation, an annual family trip, or a business trip, you’ll want to know that your expenses are covered in the case of an emergency. With restrictions that are continually changing, and flights being canceled last minute, investing in travel insurance certainly takes a load off your shoulders.
Is Travel Insurance Worth the Money?
Cost is probably the number one reason why people don’t buy travel insurance. Some people feel that if they’re already paying thousands of dollars for a vacation, it’s tough to spend a little more on travel insurance. However, the minute your trip goes sideways, you’ll wish you had it. If you compare the total cost of your trip to the small additional cost of the insurance, it’s totally worth it.
Your vacation is an investment. Vacations are expensive. Some people save for years to have the vacation of their dreams, so you should definitely treat it as a big investment by protecting it with travel insurance.
You can purchase travel insurance for a single trip or opt for an annual policy if you travel often. Some countries also require you to have a certain amount of travel insurance before you can even enter the country. Check out this article by Allianz that explains why travel insurance is worth the money.
What Does Travel Insurance Cover?
The short answer is that it depends on the policy. Some plans will cover flight fare differences and extended stays at your resort due to testing positive for covid. While some policies will not cover you due to covid reasons. Most will cover medical costs if you need to see a doctor or if you have an emergency that lands you in the hospital. Most plans will also protect you from things like travel delays and lost baggage.
Since there are so many different types of insurance plans to choose from, it’s best to do your research to know exactly what you’re getting, and if it’s the right insurance for your trip. You don’t want to find yourself in the middle of a covid quarantine situation and find out that you bought the wrong policy. That is why having a Travel Agent to guide you to the correct policy is so important.
What Do You Do if Something Goes Wrong?
If you’re on your own and not working with a Travel Agent, you’ll likely spend hours on the phone bouncing between airlines, the resort, and your insurance agent. While it is possible to do it all on your own, it will add significant stress to the situation. Working with a Travel Agent is invaluable in this situation. Handing off the tasks of rebooking your flights and making sure you get all of the correct information so you can file your claim, makes the entire situation easier to handle.
A Personal Experience Hits Close to Home
When my parents were getting ready to head home after their vacation to Mexico, they took the mandatory Covid test that’s required to return back to the US. They thought nothing of it because neither one of them had any symptoms, they’re both boosted, and thought everything would go to plan. Unfortunately, they were wrong.
My Mom’s test was negative, but Dad’s came back positive. After packing their things, he was briskly escorted to a new room in a special section of the hotel specifically set up for Covid positive guests. Once there, he was basically locked into his room to start his five-day quarantine, which technically didn’t start until the following day. Everything happened so fast that Mom started to panic. That was when I got the phone call.
Travel Agent to the Rescue
Even though I’m their daughter, I was their Travel Agent first in this situation. When Mom called me in a complete panic-induced meltdown, I figured out what was going on. I helped calm her so we could start getting things put in motion.
Once I reminded her that we had planned for this contingency, I had her go to the hotel and ask a few questions to clarify the plan going forward. These were simple questions that would dictate how we moved forward in the process, such as:
- What day does his quarantine end?
- What is the procedure should he test positive again?
After the resort staff answered those questions, and Mom put a credit card on file for any extra expenses for him, I went to work. I instructed her to go to the airport as planned and to let the counter person know what happened and that I was in the process of adjusting his flight. While she did that, I got on the phone with the airline and adjusted his flight to the proper day.
Next, I called the insurance company for her and got her claim started and got all of the proper information from the insurance company emailed to her. From here, all she would need to do is submit the required paperwork to file her claim once Dad returned home.
What Did We Learn from This Experience?
I am so thankful that my parents invested in travel insurance per my suggestion. Not only did it save them money on their unexpected costs, but it made the inconvenience of the situation easier to bear. I’ve seen far too many folks choose to forego insurance and end up having to pay thousands of dollars extra, or worse, having to cancel and lose all of the money that they paid for the trip.
Another recent case involving one of my clients (who thankfully did invest in travel insurance) had to cancel their $20,000 Hawaiian vacation because someone in their party got Covid. Since they canceled a few days before their trip started, their travel insurance policy covered all of the cancellation fees and they were refunded the money they paid for the trip. Had they not put their trust in my advise to purchase travel insurance, they would have lost all of that money they paid for that trip.
Travel Without Fear
Travel has become incredibly stressful in recent years because of covid outbreaks and covid restrictions changing frequently. With a trusted Travel Agent that keeps you on track and advice on a good travel insurance policy, those happy memories can return. Contact Wanderland Escapes today to discuss booking your next trip.
