Travel Insurance

The Ultimate Explainer: Trip Delay, Interruption and Cancellation

The Ultimate Explainer: Trip Delay, Interruption and Cancellation

When preparing for your dream vacation, it’s important to plan for unexpected hitches and glitches. That’s why it’s always better to take the necessary precautions to protect your trip investment. Trip insurance provides coverage for non-refundable costs associated with your travel plans. When it comes to trip insurance, there are three key benefits: trip delay insurance, trip interruption insurance, and trip cancellation insurance. It’s important to understand the differences between these terms so you know exactly what benefit you need to use.

Trip Delay

Trip delay insurance is useful when a traveler has to delay their departure or return is delayed by an uncontrollable force. For example, let’s say you’re headed to Europe and a snowstorm rolls, causing your flight to be delayed. This coverage may provide you with reimbursement for additional meal, transportation and hotel expenses incurred due to the delay up to a certain amount.

Trip Interruption

Trip interruption is when a traveler encounters a situation in which they must end their trip for an unforeseen reason. What is trip interruption insurance? Say you’re taking a two-week long vacation in Europe. Within the first few days, a large earthquake leaves you with no choice but to return home immediately. Trip interruption insurance may ensure reimbursement for some non-refundable, unused travel expenses.

Trip Cancellation

Trip cancellation refers to when a traveler must cancel their trip completely before departure. Say you’re planning an elaborate trip to Europe. You’ve prepaid all airline tickets and hotel stays, but just three days before, you fell violently ill. Suddenly, you’re forced to cancel your travels before they even begin. Trip cancellation insurance coverage may provide reimbursement for some non-refundable travel expenses.

Things to Keep in Mind While Filing Claims

If you need to file a claim for a trip-related mishap, it’s important to know the differences between these types of trip coverage. Filing a claim under the wrong terminology can  result in the insurance company denying the claim. You may end up with a huge financial loss and a whole lot of frustration. Keep in mind that each trip insurance plan has different coverage amounts for trip delay, trip cancellation, and trip interruption.

Before you buy trip insurance, make sure you read the policy documents carefully. Pay particular attention to the policy maximums for delay, cancellation and interruptions. They may not only differ from each other, but from plan to plan as well. When you start filling out the claim form, you may be unsure of which terminology applies. Don’t just give it your best guess. Instead, contact your insurance company to clear up any unanswered questions before submission.

When you travel, anything can happen. These things can be great like scoring $20 Broadway tickets through a seat lottery.  But they can also be not-so-great, like being unable to use those tickets because you’re suddenly needed back at home. With trip insurance, you protect yourself from financial loss before embarking on your next adventure. Want to learn more about the benefits of trip insurance or explore available plans? Just click here!