Travel Insurance Tips

A kidney stone put an end to our dream vacation to Patagonia. Not my kidney stone, but my husband’s, and not just one, but apparently a whole bucketful.

Although our last minute cancellation brought into question the validity of that “in sickness and in health” clause of our marriage vows, it did reinforce the value of travel insurance.

Our trip to Chile cost about $6,000, and within five weeks of filing our paperwork with TravelGuard, we had our money back. For the two of us, in that 45-55 age category, the $300 investment was a pretty good one, we thought, to guarantee we didn’t lose $6,000.

So now, if our journey is to take us away from home for more than a day or two, or with a more than a dollar or two invested, we’re like Carl Malden when it comes to travel insurance. We won’t leave home without it.

More than 67 million people purchased travel insurance policies in 2006, about 80 percent of those for a one time trip. The problem with travel insurance is that it’s like any other insurance – the process can be a little confusing at first, and you’ve got to read the fine print.

But most travel insurance policy offer five primary coverages:

Trip cancellation and interruption - That’s the one that benefited us in the kidney stone fiasco. And even though my husband was the one who thought he was dying, the insurance benefit covered my costs because I had to stay home and hold his hand.

Medical – that’s if he had developed the kidney stones in some part of the world other than where our Blue Cross/Blue Shield policy provides coverage.

Evacuation – if he had broken his leg instead of passed a boulder, it would have been quite difficult and costly to get him home.

Baggage – on a recent trip to Manchester England, my bags were in outer space for about 36 hours. The baggage component kicked in and I was reimbursed for the toiletries and few personal items I had purchased to tide me over.

Flight insurance — the same as accidental death and dismemberment. If you lose a limb, are killed in a crash, that sort of thing.

Like any insurance, prices can run the gamut. However, most insurance will cost about eight to ten percent of the overall trip cost. For a few extra dollars, you may purchase supplemental policies for any variety of situations, such as terrorism or identity theft.

To make the best investment, investigate thoroughly what your credit card covers, what services the airlines guarantee, and how your own homeowners, auto or health insurance provides for travel situations.

And if you have any questions, contact the professionals at the U.S. Travel Insurance Association at www.ustia.org.

–Diana Lambdin Meyer, RED Travel Writer