Travel Insurance

When traveling on vacation or for business many get confused as to whether they need to purchase additional types of insurance to help protect them from unexpected financial losses.  If you already have a major medical health plan than you are most likely protected from most medical expenses that are deemed medically necessary by your health plan carrier.

For those of you who travel outside your home countries borders you may need to consider other International Health Plans depending on the length of time that you will be gone as well as where you will be traveling to.  Major Medical Health plans should not be confused with a Travel Insurance policy.  Major Medical Plans are designed to provide coverage related to expenses that arise from illness or injury.  The scope of coverage is broad and in most cases in the multiple millions in total coverage.  However they do not cover expenses related to traveling such as lost luggage, trips being canceled, interrupted or financial default of the cruise line or tour operator and such.

Most plans provide coverage on a 24/7 basis.  Most will cover you while you travel even if you travel abroad.  However many domestic health plans have their limitations as to how long you can be outside your home country before the health plan carrier requires some sort of change.  If you plan to travel overseas for any length of time then you probably should consider some type of International Coverage. But this is not Travel Insurance.

Travel Insurance is primarily designed to insure against a loss during your planned trip due to cancellations, interruptions, or delays for unforeseen reasons.  Many people prepay some or all of their travel and accommodations prior to departure.  Travel Insurance provides the vehicle to protect your investment in your planned vacation or business trip by providing you protection from unforeseen events such as cancellations, interruptions, delays, some health issues, emergency evacuations, baggage loss and more.

You can't afford to travel without it!
There are hundreds of circumstances that could cause you to cancel your trip, return home early or even worse, force you to seek emergency medical treatment while traveling. To demonstrate the importance of purchasing travel insurance, here are 10 common examples of what could go wrong. Incidentally, all are covered by a Travel Guard travel insurance policy:

1. It's 10 p.m. and your family arrives at the airport for a connecting flight, only to find that your flight has been cancelled. How do you get your family home?
2. Your traveling companion's bag was lost with his insulin inside. He needs help to locate his bag as soon as possible and his emergency prescription filled. Who do you call?
3. Your first visit to Europe, and your passport and wallet are stolen. Where do you turn for emergency cash, and how will you get your passport replaced?
4. Your spouse is involved in an accident and adequate medical treatment is not available. Who will help arrange and pay for a medical evacuation?
5. If your sister-in-law becomes seriously ill and you choose to cancel your trip, what happens to your non-refundable deposits or pre-payments?
6. You arrive in Jamaica and your luggage doesn't. If it's lost, who will help you find it? If it's delayed, who will pay for your necessities? If it's stolen, who will pay to replace it?
7. Your cruise line, airline or tour operator goes bankrupt. Who will pay for your non-refundable expenses? Who will help get you to your destination?
8. You're walking down a street in Rio and twist your ankle. Who can help you find an English-speaking physician?
9. Three weeks before your scheduled arrival, a terrorist incident occurs in the city to which you are planning to visit. Who will pay if you want to cancel your trip?
10. You are at a beach resort in North Carolina, and you are forced to evacuate due to an approaching hurricane. Who will help you evacuate and who will reimburse your lost vacation?

I Need Travel Insurance - What Are My Options?