When I was recently traveling out of the country, I had some trouble locating my bags when I landed at my destination airport. After a stressful and prolonged process of trying to find them, I assumed that there had to be a way to avoid this kind of pressure. After some research, I found out all of the information about getting travel insurance for luggage while traveling.
What is travel insurance and how does it work? Travel insurance is something that can be purchased to cover losses from unexpected medical expenses to trip cancellations and, of course, lost luggage. They will basically reimburse you for any expenses that you come across that are unexpected and covered by their policy.
Travel insurance must be purchased before any kind of accident happens in order for it to be covered. Although these occurrences are not very likely to happen during travel, it is better to be safe than sorry in the event that it does.
Getting on a plane and exploring new places from a few states over all the way to other countries around the world is something that is desired by everyone. When you find the time to take a vacation, your mind should be on relaxing and creating memories, not worrying about if you will have any unexpected losses or expenses.
With the use of travel insurance, you will be able to rest assured that you will not be stuck with any outstanding bills, and anything that you lose will be fully covered. If you are a frequent traveler or you are planning an upcoming trip, keep reading to find out everything you need to know about travel insurance.
How Travel Insurance Works
Travel insurance is an asset that can really be used to your benefit on any kind of vacation, especially if you will be traveling somewhere that is unfamiliar to you. In this article, we will be going over exactly what travel insurance is and how it works.
To start off, take a look at the list down below to get a better idea of how travel insurance works through some of its characteristics.
How Travel Insurance Works:
• Coverage purchased before anything bad happens
• Includes a list of benefits covered
• Structure of reimbursement (you pay now and get paid back later)
Travel insurance coverage is purchased by the traveler before anything bad happens. There is a specified time frame for when these policies can be bought, which should be no later than the day before travel begins.
There are several different travel insurance companies, with individual plans to choose from. Each of these plans will include a list of benefits that they will cover in the event of any emergency or mishap during your vacation.
Travel insurance is, however, structured in a way of reimbursement, meaning that you pay for the expenses up front and get paid back by the company later.
For example, if you are planning on boarding your flight in the morning but unforeseen weather conditions cause a delay that forces you to purchase another ticket, your travel insurance will cover the expenses.
However, you will be expected to pay for the additional plane ticket up front, and then file a claim to the insurance company after your trip has ended in order for them to send you the money back that you spent on the rescheduled flight.
Although travel insurance companies do not hand you a check immediately after you purchase a policy with them, you can benefit greatly in the event of any accidents, knowing that you will be reimbursed.
Keep reading to the next section to find out more about some of the services the travel insurance companies will cover on your trip, whether you’re a well seasons luxury traveler or a digital nomad looking for insurance coverage.
What Does Travel Insurance Cover?
So, now that you have a basic understanding of what travel insurance is and how it works, we will be going more into detail about all of the benefits that might be offered when you purchase a plan like this.
Each individual insurance plan will be different, but I have put together a list of some of the most basic perks that you can enjoy when you are insured during travel. Take a look at the main points down below and keep reading for a deeper explanation.
Travel Insurance Benefits:
• Trip cancellation
• Trip interruption
• Delays in travel
• Missed connection
• Change fees
• Frequent traveler rewards program
• Itinerary change
• Emergency medical services and transportation
• Baggage damage or loss
• Baggage delay
• Baggage insurance
• Collision Damage Waiver (rental car)
• 24 hour phone line
• Concierge
The benefits that you will receive when you purchase travel insurance begin before you even board the plane. In the event that your trip is unexpectedly cancelled or there was some kind of emergency at home, your travel insurance will reimburse you for the costs that you spent.
It can be very helpful to know that the pressure is not on your shoulders to continue on with your trip if there is something else that you need to handle. Instead, you can move on your own time, resting assured that anything you need to take care of will be compensated for.
Once you have boarded your plane and arrived to your destination airport, your travel insurance will cover a variety of expenses that might happen throughout this time frame.
First of all, if your trip is interrupted for any reason or your flight is delayed, you will. Not be charged any additional costs and your insurance will make up for any differences.
This also goes for missed connections. Usually, when you fail to board the plane on time, you will be forced to purchase another ticket and wait to get on the next one.
When you are insured, however, you won’t have to run through the airport stressing about missing your flight. Of course, you shouldn’t miss it on purpose, but there will be a solution for you if you do.
Additionally, if you have to change flights for one of these reasons, all change fees will be waived throughout the remainder of your travels.
Travel insurance also covers frequent traveler rewards programs. These types of programs are usually given in the form of a credit card, and all of your travel expenses are tracked.
For everything that you spend on things like flights and hotels, you will earn rewards points that can get you a free accommodation when you have saved up enough.
If you ever find yourself in a situation where you need to leave your trip early or cancel something, you would not have to be upset that you have spent all of your travel rewards points.
When you go to deposit your rewards back into your frequent traveler account, all associated fees with the transaction will be given back to you.
This entire process will involve you filing a claim and sending it off to your insurance company, but it will be worth it when you see the money back and know that you did not waste any expenses.
Just in case the itinerary of your trip changes at all, you might be eligible for reimbursement in the right circumstances. For instance, think about planning a trip to another country where you have pre-booked a guided kayaking tour across the ocean.
If you arrive to your destination airport and head off to your planned tour, but it turns out that the guide did not show up to work that day due to some kind of personal emergency, you would obviously not be able to take the tour that you paid for in advance.
In this case, you might be calling the touring company asking for a refund of your money or trying to call your financial institution to get the charge reversed. However, this would not be necessary if you purchased travel insurance before the trip.
In situations like these, your travel insurance would be able to give you the money back that you spent on something that you did not participate in during your trip.
Travel insurance also covers emergency medical services. Unlike some health insurances, you can be easily covered if you have an existing medical condition. This is under something that is called the pre-existing medical conditions clause, and will cover any medical expenses that come up due to your illness.
They will also cover emergency medical and dental, meaning that if you ever have to go to the doctor or dentist on an emergency basis in another state or country, you will not have to worry about covering the bill.
Along with the emergency medical coverage, travel insurance companies also provide transportation to those who are insured. This will happen when the emergency medical team on site makes the decision that any local hospitals will not be able to care for your injury or sickness.
In that case, you would be transported to the next closest establishment that will be able to help you. However, this will apply only to emergencies, and you must contact your insurance company beforehand to make these kinds of arrangements.
Many travel insurance agencies also cover primary or secondary insurance expenses. When you have primary medical insurance benefits listed in the services of your insurance, this means that all costs will be covered by the insurance that you purchased.
When you have secondary medical insurance from your travel insurance company, your primary health insurance will cover all of the costs, and the travel insurance benefits will take care of anything outstanding.
Along with bridging gaps throughout your trip and making sure that nothing goes terribly wrong while you are traveling, travel insurance also takes care of issues that have to do with your luggage.
If you ever lose or damage your suitcases during airport travel, your travel insurance company will go through a process where they either reimburse you for the amount or replace the item, whichever option amounts to less money.
Lost and damaged baggage is covered up to a certain limit, depending on which specific insurance company and plan that you choose during travel. Additionally, you must show a diligent effort to locate your bags before you file this kind of claim to get repaid for your items.
So, what happens when you haven’t actually lost your luggage but you simply do not have it? Take, for example, a situation where you are checking into your hotel room and waiting for your bags to be given to you by the hotel staff.
If you are posted in your hotel room for a full 24 hours without receiving your baggage, you obviously will not have the things that you need for the day and night. You likely won’t be able to brush your teeth or change into your pajamas before you sleep, since your bags are not in your possession.
Travel insurance will come in with baggage delay coverage when this has gone on for at least 24 hours, and you were missing essential items that you needed, such as your toothbrush and shampoo. They can help by reimbursing you for what you were missing during the time period where your bags were delayed.
Baggage insurance, on the other hand, is particularly concerned with your luggage being lost or stolen. If you arrive to the airport and your bags are nowhere to be found, you will be able to contact your travel insurance company to cover the costs.
Instead of scrambling around the airport to try and locate what you have lost, you can be compensated instead and simply replace the things that you brought with you, such as clothing, travel cameras, personal items, or even travel laptops, if possible.
When you are purchasing a rental car on a vacation, you are usually offered some kind of personal insurance plan from the company. While the amounts of coverage will vary from place to place, there is another option for insuring your car that doesn’t involve paying more on top at the rental car counter.
Travel insurance usually comes with another benefit that covers rental car collision damage. This applies to any and everything from getting into a car crash to even getting the vehicle stolen.
Most travel insurance companies will cover tens of thousands of dollars in these situations. The best part about this benefit is that it also comes with emergency roadside assistance.
So, if you do happen to get into an accident while you are cruising down the road to the beach, you can call someone from your travel insurance company to help you out as well as cover he expenses.
Along with all of the benefits that have to do with covering damages, travel insurance companies also offer personalized customer service experiences. Most of them will be able to provide you with 24 hour hotline assistance, meaning that you can call their phone number at any time to ask questions or make necessary arrangements.
The telephone services also come with a concierge, where you can call to ask for advice on things to do in the area or directions on how to get somewhere.
In general, travel insurance companies are very helpful when it comes to making their customers feel comfortable being protected by their policies. They offer a long list of benefits that will cover any extra costs during travel, and will usually have the customer service to match.
When You Should Buy Travel Insurance
Before embarking on your next adventure, make sure to explore our recommendations for the best travel insurance companies to ensure a worry-free and protected journey.
As you can see, when you purchase any kind of travel insurance, you will be covered by the company for any unforeseen costs or mishaps that occur throughout your trip, from the time that you board the plane to when you arrive back home.
While it is true that all of these benefits can be covered by the travel insurance policy that you choose, there are some limitations when it comes to the time frame in which you can purchase these plans for the trip that is in question.
Take a look at the list down below to discover what the cut-off times for buying travel insurance are, in relation to the time that you depart from your home city.
Time Frame For Buying Travel Insurance:
• Earliest: first trip deposit
• Latest: one day before departure
The earliest time that you will be able to buy travel insurance is immediately after you make your first trip deposit. A “trip deposit” is classified as anything that you spend toward planning your vacation.
This can be your plane ticket, your hotel room, or anything that shows record that you will be going on a trip to the destination that is in question.
The general time frame for purchasing travel insurance immediately after the initial trip deposit is about two weeks from the time that you make your first booking. However, it is always beneficial to get covered early, because the insurance will only cover emergencies that you are not expecting.
While it is true that you are much more likely to have to use your travel insurance while you are on flights or participating in activities during your trip, you might have to take advantage of your benefits before you even step foot onto the airplane.
For example, if you were planning a trip to Hawaii where you would depart in one week from the time you purchase your hotel and plane ticket, you would ideally want to get covered by travel insurance as soon as possible after the purchase.
(Find out the cheapest way to fly to Hawaii in this article.)
This is due to the fact that flights can be cancelled or unforeseen natural disasters can occur before you are ready to go. So, if you chose to put the travel insurance purchase on the back burner and a few days before your trip you are given notice that there is a hurricane on the island, you will not be reimbursed for any rescheduling.
However, if you had promptly made the purchase of a travel insurance plan, anything that could go wrong from cancelled flights to lost baggage would be covered with no problem.
Some of the regular benefits that are covered by most travel insurance companies are more time-sensitive than others. While a lot of the services that were outlined previously will automatically be included, no matter when you purchase, there are others that must be grabbed quickly before they are gone.
The list down below will give you a better idea of what you might miss out on if you choose to wait to purchase your travel insurance policy.
Benefits That Must Be Purchased Promptly:
• Cancellation costs (emergencies and work)
• Pre-existing medical condition coverage
• Hurricane coverage
If you do not promptly make the purchase of a travel insurance policy, you will not be automatically covered for cancellation costs. These cancellations can be anything from personal emergencies for any reason, as well as work-related scheduling conflicts.
Those who do not put urgency behind getting covered by travel insurance will not enjoy the benefits that are covered before the trip. Without an existing policy, a cancelled flight or hotel will not be the travel insurance company’s problem since you chose not to pay for coverage.
In addition to the cancellation costs, you will not be able to take advantage of pre-existing medical condition coverage. If you have some kind of existing medical condition such as Diabetes, you will need to plan ahead in order to make sure that you will be protected against any unexpected medical costs.
These types of conditions are very unpredictable, and even if you are being careful, you run the risk of encountering some kind of emergency. You wouldn’t want to be stuck in another state or country without any kind of medical insurance in the event that something happens, which is why it is best to come prepared with travel insurance.
If you fail to purchase your policy within the 14 day time limit, you will not be eligible to sign up for pre-existing medical condition coverage.
Hurricane and other natural disaster coverage benefits will also not be honored if you do not promptly take care of purchasing your travel insurance policy. Basically, if you are not covered by the travel insurance policy prior to anything bad happening, the company will not be able to help you.
The purchase of a travel insurance policy will not limit anything else that you might need to rearrange before or during your trip. For example, if you get covered early but you have not paid for your plane tickets yet, you will be able to add them on later and still be covered by the policy that you are currently under.
When purchasing a travel insurance plan, it is best to estimate high for what you expect to be spending on your trip. In the worst case scenario, you would be able to submit a claim after your trip and be reimbursed for the additional premium costs that you did not end up using.
However, if you go too low with your estimated costs, any additional expenses and arrangements that are added on later will not be able to be covered by the insurance company.
All in all, you should try to purchase your travel insurance promptly after you have planned your trip for the best results, although you are able to wait all the way up until the day before you depart to purchase it. If you need to add anything on to the policy, it will be covered as long as you have included it in your overall estimated costs.
Is It Necessary To Buy Travel Insurance?
While it is true that travel insurance can really help you out in a pinch, is it really necessary to purchase one of these policies? Or, better yet, is this kind of coverage right for you?
Factors To Consider:
• Existing coverage (ie if credit card already covers lost baggage, etc.)
• Frequent flier rewards programs (joining one instead of buying insurance)
• Cost of policy (making sure that it fits your budget)
• Terms and conditions (understanding everything that is covered before purchase)
The first factor to consider before buying into travel insurance is if you have any kind of existing coverage. If you have a travel rewards credit card, your financial institution might already cover lost baggage and other similar issues.
It is important to know whether or not you already have access to these benefits in order to avoid wasting any money on something that is not necessary.
Alternatively, you can look into joining a frequent flier rewards program instead of buying travel insurance if you are able to find better benefits on one of these cards.
If you do decide to go with the travel insurance plan, you will want to consider the cost of the policy and make sure that it is able to fit into your budget. Other than that, once you have reviewed and understand all of the terms and conditions, you will be on your way to your worry-free vacation with travel insurance in your back pocket.