Posted: 5/4/21 | may 4th, 2021
The coronavirus has given us all a wake-up call about what travel insurance does — and does not — cover.
A lot of people assumed that travel insurance covered everything and, at the drop of a hat, would fly you home in an emergency. That incorrect assumption came as a shock to those who, for the first time, had to actually read their policies.
While numerous travel insurance companies offer evacuation coverage if you get injured overseas (if you meet the plan conditions), they typically are not there to get you home unless there is a particular clause in your policy that warrants such action and a doctor orders it.
And, as numerous rapidly learned, pandemics are typically excluded from insurance policies.
Many of the emails I got from people screaming about their insurance policy when the pandemic began were issues related to such policy misunderstandings.
I know travel insurance is a complicated (and boring) topic. I understand it’s not fun to read about or research.
And reading an actual policy can put you to sleep. many people gloss over it the way we gloss over iTunes user agreements.
But if COVID-19 has taught us travelers anything, it’s that we need to be much more familiar with what exactly our travel insurance policy covers. It is literally of life-and-death importance.
Today, I want to offer a much more complete picture of what travel insurance actually is — and what scenarios you may or may not be covered for. but use this only as general advice: terms and conditions will differ according to the travel insurance policy and the provider.
I know we’ve dealt with this in the past, but it’s always a good time for a refresher, especially because of COVID-19 and as people begin to start thinking about travel again.
Let’s look at some common questions:
What exactly is travel insurance?
First, travel insurance is emergency coverage. It’s there if you get in trouble and need assistance. depending on your policy, it offers support (and reimbursement) if you break a bone while hiking, if you lose your luggage, if you get robbed, or if you need to return home due to a death in your immediate family. In short, it’s a financial safety net for emergencies abroad.
However, it is not a substitute for health insurance in your home country. (It’s also not a license to be foolish either, because injuries while dumb or drunk aren’t cover either.)
It’s your emergency lifeline ought to something bad happen unexpectedly during your travels.
What’s really covered if I’m sick?
Suffering from a recurring, preexisting allergy, or other condition? Du er helt alene. get some medicine from a pharmacy and ride it out. Preventive or routine care resulting from a preexisting condition is not covered.
Unexpected and/or emergency situation? need to go to the hospital? That’s where travel insurance kicks in. call your insurance provider’s emergency support line and let them know (when you can). They’ll be able to help you with the red tape and make sure you’re taken care of.
You may also need pre-approval of treatment or providers. For that reason, make sure you have the insurance company’s emergency 24-hour hotline saved on your phone before you travel. That way, you or someone with you can call them ought to the worst happen.
Since you may have to pay for everything up front and then make an insurance claim to get reimbursed, keep your receipts.
What is covered if I am robbed?
If you’re robbed during your trip, you’ll be able to get compensation for the stolen items (usually not including cash and certain other items), up to a certain per-item amount and total maximum amount (both of which are typically ganske lav).
You’ll need to fill out a police report and offer that, as well as documentation for the stolen items, to your insurance company. (If you have any receipts, send those in. I also like to take pictures of my items before I travel to show I took them along.)
However, don’t expect travel insurance to give you money for the most recent iphone — you’ll either get an equivalent replacement or get reimbursed for the depreciated value of your stolen item. That is, if you purchased a video camera five years ago for $1,000 but it’s only worth $100 now, you’ll get $100.
Since it takes a while for claims to be processed, you’ll likely need to replace your items out of pocket and then make a claim for reimbursement. However, if you cannot make any purchases because your purse and passport were stolen, you’ll need to contact your insurance provider’s emergency support, as well as the nearest embassy or consulate.
My [insert company] went bankrupt. What’s covered?
If your airline/tour/whatever company goes bankrupt while traveling, you may be able to get reimbursed under the “trip cancellation” or “trip interruption” clause of your plan, depending on the timing of when you purchased your policy andwhen the bankruptcy occurred. Some insurance policies only reimburse if the travel company has completely ceased services; if there are alternative arrangements available, it may only pay for change fees.
However, in the case of airline bankruptcies, you may need to organize alternative transportation yourself and pay for it upfront. then you can submit a claim to have that amount reimbursed.
If you have not yet departed, your “trip cancellation” coverage would come into effect, and you would be reimbursed for what you spent.
While this all seems helpful, keep in mind that there likely are limits on what you can claim. read the schedule of benefits for maximum amounts covered (and specifically for trip interruption and trip cancellation). From my experience, these claims typically reimburse up to the trip, cost with a max of around $5,000–10,000 USD (be sure to check the specifics in your policy), so if you have spent a ton of money on accommodation and new flights, you might not be able to get all of it back. but something is much better than nothing!
My trip was canceled. Can I get a refund on my policy if I didn’t use it?
If you haven’t started your policy or made a claim, you might be able to get a refund. numerous companies also offer a “review period” (usually 7–14 days from purchase) during which you can cancel your plan without penalty, though some states don’t have one. If you pay for six months of insurance and need to cancel after one or two months, you’re typically out of luck.
However, if you’re outside of that review period, chances are you won’t be able to cancel your plan. Some companies may be making exceptions due to COVID-19, but you shouldn’t take that as a given. Hvorfor? This is just an industry practice. because travel insurance works in retrospect (you go on your trip, you come home, file a claim, and then get paid) and they have to pay the full amount, you have to pay the full amount of the policy.
I tend to purchase my insurance in three-month chunks. That way, I can extend my coverage or let it expire based on how things are going.
But, a caveat: depending on how preexisting conditions work on your policy, you may not want to do this. For example, say you’re not feeling well during one policy. You go to get a COVID test, and while waiting for the results, your policy lapses and you purchase a new plan. because you showed signs of the disease in a prior policy, it may be considered a preexisting condition in the new policy and thus not be covered.
So keep that in mind when you are purchasing policies. It’s a risk I personally take — but it might not be good for you.
There’s a pandemic, so I’ve chose to come home to play it safe. Do I get anything?
To be eligible for coverage, your claim has to be based on a covered reason. If you had a policy without a pandemic exclusion, then trip interruption could come into play. but you’ll need to read the fine print before making claim. getting sick from the pandemic may be covered, but if, say, you chose to rearrange your trip because you’d feel safer at home, that wouldn’t be.
Before you file a claim, you’ll want to first contact the trip companies, hotels, and airlines directly for a refund. only after that would I make a claim to the insurance company.
Remember, these payouts typically only apply to prepaid, nonrefundable purchases (and in addition, may include one-way airfare home).
If filing a claim, you’ll need to gather all your supporting files and receipts and submit them for review. It can take weeks (or months) for a claim to be processed, so be prepared for a wait (especially if there is a major crisis, like the COVID-19 pandemic). That implies your change of plans will have to be paid out of pocket.
But the government urged citizens to come home and I did!
Depending on your policy, you may be entitled to some benefits. If you have a policy that includes trip interruption, you might be able to submit a claim to cover any nonrefundable purchases (such as flights and tours).
However, the reason why you need to return home is important. natural disasters, terrorism, political upheaval, and pandemics are all covered differently, so the fine print of your policy is really essential here.
Your government saying, “I think you ought to come home because of XYZ” is not the same as a government forcing you to return home (which does not exist*). If you’re making the choice to come home in that situation, travel insurance plans aren’t going to cover you. (This was a big issue during COVID and the source of many complaints.)
Circumstances that are not discussed (outside the exclusion section) are typically not covered.
So it’s essential to look at the specifics of your policy to see what is covered.
* Unless there’s you’re being extradited or have been declared personality non grata, but those are unlikely scenarios. check your policy!
I had to come home and couldn’t reach the airline, so I purchased a new ticket.Dette var en annen sak under Covid da folk krøp for å komme hjem på grunn av advarsler om regjering og grenseavstengninger. Etter hvert som flyselskapene ble overveldet og folk ikke kunne komme seg gjennom, kjøpte mange mennesker en andre billett, og tenkte (feil) den automatisk ville bli dekket.
Reiseforsikring gjør deg hele; Det gir deg ikke ekstra penger. Hvis du allerede er på reise, kan flyreiser refunderes under turavbruddsdelen av politikken hvis det å reise hjem tidlig er en dekket hendelse, som vanligvis inkluderer uventede sykdommer, streik osv.
Imidlertid, hvis flyreisen din blir kansellert, er flyselskapet ansvarlig for planlegging og ombooking. Hvis du kjøper en annen billett og deretter sender den inn for refusjon gjennom policyen din, vil du bli nektet.
Dessuten er “ikke å føle seg trygg” ikke en dekket grunn, og den nye flyvningen ville ikke bli refundert.
Kan jeg få noen dekningsrelatert Covid-19?
Som mange fant ut på den harde måten, dekker ikke mange reiseforsikringsselskaper pandemier. Selv om det sakte har endret seg, inkluderer mange selskaper fortsatt ikke pandemisk dekning.
Heldigvis dekker noen selskaper, som World Nomader, Allianz og Safety Wing, nå noen pandemi-relaterte kostnader.
Imidlertid er denne dekningen begrenset til medisinsk behandling og relaterte kostnader (selv om noen retningslinjer også dekker kansellering av tur og turavbruddskostnader hvis du kontrakter Covid). Sørg for å lese detaljene i planen din, da det er mange advarsler og unntak, og du vil ha fullstendig klarhet fra leverandøren din.
I tillegg gir MedJet nå gjennomføringen av medlemmer som er innlagt på Covid-19 hvis de reiser i de sammenhengende 48 USA, Canada, Mexico og Karibia, til deres hjemmesykehus.
For teppedekning og “Avbryt av en eller annen grunn” -politikk, må du sjekke ut Forsikre turen min.
Hva med dekning av kredittrapport?
Reisekredittrapportkort tilbyr begrenset beskyttelse – selv de aller beste. Vanligvis tilbyr kort dekning for varer som er tapt eller stjålet; veldig, veldig begrensede medisinske utgifter; og kansellering av tur. Men det er et stort forbehold her: disse gjelder bare hvis du bestilte turen med det aktuelle kortet.
Jeg har hatt dusinvis av reisekredittrapportkort gjennom årene. Selv om kortet ditt tilbyr litt dekning, er grensen vanligvis veldig lav. Det innebærer at du må betale forskjellen ut av lommen (og du vil bli overrasket over hvor dyrt det kan være!).
Selv om det er bra å ha kredittrapportkortbeskyttelse som sikkerhetskopi, ville jeg ikke stole på det for min primære dekning når jeg er i utlandet.
***
Reiseforsikring er et komplisert (og kjedelig) emne. Men som vi har lært under pandemien, er det verdt å ta seg tid til å forstå – og det er verdt å bruke pengene på å investere i en plan med en rekke dekningsalternativer som holder deg trygg og gir deg trygghet.
Jeg forlater aldri hjemmefra uten reiseforsikring. Du burde ikke heller.
Bare husk å alltid lese utskriften på policyen du kjøper.
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