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To Insure or Not to Insure
April 21st, 2009

 

As a travel planner I have witnessed debate after debate over whether travel insurance is necessary. Generally, the travel planners and frequent travelers (or those who have needed to use travel insurance in the past) are on the “pro” side, with most others on the “con” side. I was recently working with several honeymoon couples who were inquired about insurance, and it inspired me to write a blog that might help clear up a bit of the fog that surrounds this issue. As a travel planner, I can promise you the reason that we so strongly suggest travel insurance is NOT because we receive a giant commission for selling it – we do not. In fact, no offense to the travel insurance companies, the money I receive for selling insurance would generally not be worth the struggle I have convincing skeptical travelers, were it not so important. I thoroughly enjoy the excitement my clients have about their upcoming trip and do not enjoy the feeling I get when having to discuss the “worst case scenario” with them (and hence the reason for travel insurance). And let’s be honest, in addition to dampening their mood, it doesn’t exactly paint the perfect vacation picture that I’d like when trying to close a sale.  Still, it a vital part of what I do to take care of my clients and provide them with the best service I can. 

There is an old saying that goes, and I’m paraphrasing here, “expect the best and plan for the worst”. This is exactly what travel insurance does. Weather it’s a family illness that prevents you from traveling all together,  lost luggage and the value of all the contents within, or a hurricane that hits your resort a week before the trip, travel insurance can help you recoup your losses for any parts of your trip that were missed or ruined. For those who have been injured or fallen ill while traveling, it has literally been a life saver. The average cost of insurance for my clients is probably somewhere between $99 and $129 per person. This is a drop in the bucket compared to the thousands of dollars you could lose if you don’t insure your trip and the unthinkable happens. Though each insurance, and even each trip, might differ in coverage, here is a general list of issues that travel insurance generally covers:

• Pre-departure trip cancellation
• Post-departure trip interruption
• Travel delays
• Medical evacuation and emergency assistance
• Baggage and personal effects
• Baggage delay
• Cancel for any reason up to 100% of trip cost (generally an additional fee)

You insure virtually everything else that you spend a good chunk of change on, with insurance and warranties on everything from cars to electronics, jewelry and furniture. Many of them cost less than your vacation, and most aren’t based on such volatile factors (e.g. your health, mother nature, airports and airlines). So why not insure your vacation and in the process, your peace of mind?