If you secured a trip insurance plan, you made the first step in protecting your travel expenses in the event of the unexpected. Now, it’s important to understand how to use your trip insurance plan and some of the requirements when it comes to certain covered instances so you can take control of your plan and prevent frustration during the claims process.
Typically, trip insurance can offer cover for trip cancellations, interruptions, delays, missed connections, baggage loss, and other travel-related incidents. Let’s take a look at some of the typically covered travel hiccups and crucial knowledge that will help you navigate using your trip insurance plan with ease.
Trip Cancellation & Trip Interruption
If you have to cancel your trip unexpectedly due to covered reasons, benefits will be paid to you up to 100% of eligible nonrefundable prepaid expenses that you insured when purchasing your trip insurance plan.
If your trip is interrupted, benefits will be paid up to the maximum benefit amount for eligible nonrefundable prepaid expenses that you insured related to land or water travel arrangements plus any additional transportation costs paid to resume your trip.
The trip cancellation and trip interruption benefits can be taken advantage of if you are prevented from taking your trip or your trip is interrupted due to certain covered circumstances, such as:
- The death of yourself, a family member, traveling companion, business partner, or child caregiver before your trip’s departure date.
- You, a family member, traveling companion, business partner, or a child caregiver has a covered sickness or injury that occurs before your departure date and requires medical treatment at the time of cancellation which prevents travel (must be reported by a qualified physician).
- Other covered reasons such as documented theft of passport/visa, documented traffic accident, job loss, natural disasters, mechanical breakdown of a common carrier, and more.
Be aware that all cancellations must be reported to your insurance provider within a certain time frame of the event that occurred causing your need for cancellation. Read your policy’s wording for exact timing details.
Trip Delay
The trip delay benefit offers coverage if your travel plans are delayed for a specified amount of time in your policy’s wording while enroute to your destination. Covered reasons for trip delay can include:
- Certified common carrier delay
- A traffic accident causing delay that you are not directly involved in, that is substantiated by a police report
- Lost or stolen passport, visa, or money, substantiated by a police report
- A documented weather event that prevents you from getting to your point of departure
- Quarantine, strike, natural disasters, terrorism events, hijacking, or riot
Benefits will be paid up to the maximum benefit amount for eligible nonrefundable expenses, except for those which are reimbursed to you from the common carrier company.
Missed Connection
The missed connection benefit can offer coverage if you miss a cruise or tour departure due to a delayed arrival (usually for 6 hours or more), typically due to the following reasons:
- Certified common carrier delay
- A documented weather condition preventing you from getting to your point of departure
- Quarantine, strike, natural disasters, terrorism events, hijacking, or riot
Baggage & Personal Effects
The baggage and personal effects benefit can provide covered up to the maximum benefit amount for baggage delay, baggage loss, or damage to property for certain covered reasons.
Baggage Delay
If your checked baggage is delayed or misdirected by your common carrier for a certain amount of time, as specified in your policy’s wording, from your time of arrival at your destination, you may be eligible for paid benefits. Your common carrier must certify the delay or misdirection.
Baggage Loss & Damage
If your checked baggage is lost, stolen, or damaged, you may be paid benefits up to the maximum benefit amount for baggage and personal effects. However, in order to be eligible, you should do the following:
- Take all actions you can in order to save or recover your property
- Notify the police, airline, or other authorities associated with your travels who were in possession of your property
- Supply records to verify your claim and its amount
- Send proof of loss as soon as possible including the date, time, and causes of lost
- Provide a list of damaged and lost items
Accident & Sickness
If you fall sick or are injured during your travels, you can be paid benefits up to the maximum benefit amount for covered expenses associated with your accidental injury or illness.
Important things to remember for the accident & sickness benefit:
- It doesn’t not cover expenses incurred after your trip
- Emergency dental benefits only cover natural teeth
- Covered expenses can include medical services and prescriptions that are medically necessary and ordered by a physician
- Pre-existing conditions are typically not covered unless you qualify for a pre-existing condition waiver
Emergency Medical Evacuation
Emergency medical evacuation is a benefit of trip insurance that can provide coverage in the event that you need to be transported to a hospital or medical facility that is necessary to treat an unforeseen injury or illness if there isn’t a facility in the immediate area that has the necessary treatment available.
The injury or illness typically needs to be acute or life threatening and emergency medical evacuation needs to be recommended by an attending physician.
Exclusions and Limitations
It’s important to note that there are certain exclusions and limitations for coverage for each trip insurance policy. This can include pre-existing conditions, participating in adventurous sports, being intoxicated, and much more.
Read your policy’s exclusions and limitations carefully to understand what circumstances will result in not being covered for certain benefits listed above.
Filing Claims
When filing claims for your trip insurance policy, there may be a specified timeline required in which you must file your claim in order to be eligible for benefits.
Additionally, it is crucial to include all documentation, physician notes, proof of payments, hospital bills, and any other supporting information when filing your claim to ensure a smooth claims process.
Be Informed About Your Policy
Reading your policy’s documentation and understanding how coverage works, important timelines, and how to use your trip insurance policy will ensure that you get the coverage you need for eligible circumstances.
Read more about trip insurance or contact our customer success team with any questions or concerns.
