| ?What If???: Top Travel Insurance and Assistance Trends for 2014 |
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| ?What If???: Top Travel Insurance and Assistance Trends for 2014November 18, 2013 By: Susan Young Travel Agent Agents can effectively use simple examples of client trips gone wrong to show clients why travel insurance is a necessity. It?s been a great year for the majority of travelers who took a vacation, had a fabulous time and avoided any serious travel hiccups. For others, though, the year brought unexpected challenges. Political upheaval across the globe left some clients stuck abroad. Loss of power by several ships at sea interrupted sailing schedules. Mother Nature had her say with wildfires, storms and earthquakes. Other issues were more personal, such as a traveler getting hurt or becoming ill abroad, or cutting short a vacation or delaying the start of a trip due to a family emergency or illness. ?If we learned anything from 2013, it?s that no form of travel is without risk,? stresses Alan Josephs, chief marketing officer, Allianz Global Assistance USA. ?Whether it?s cruise ship breakdowns or large events such as fires, floods or earthquakes that may disrupt plans, no one can guarantee a trouble-free trip. In an increasingly risky world, trip insurance gives travelers the confidence to travel.? RELATED: Travel Insurance - Getting to ?Yes? Putting it in perspective, a survey conducted for the US Travel Insurance Association last year found that one in eight U.S. adults?12 percent of travelers?had their travel impacted, or considered changing their travel plans, because of natural disasters or world events. Yet, of the travelers impacted, only 29 percent had purchased insurance. Echoing the philosophy of most agents, ?I always stress the importance of travel protection to my clients,? says Alan Rosenbaum, vacation specialist, CruiseOne, Johns Creek, GA, noting it?s not because of the few dollars of commission he makes on an insurance sale but because they need to be protected. ?I?ve had clients make claims ranging from delayed luggage to a heart attack onboard a cruise,? says Rosenbaum. ?Although the odds of something bad happening are very small, the cost can be very large.? He cites the cost of an emergency medical evacuation at tens of thousands of dollars, and he sells policies that cover up to $250,000, so clients feel safe traveling abroad. Without any protection, ?that?s a lot to self-insure,? he emphasizes. So as 2013 draws to a close, though, what travel protection trends do insurers see, continuing over from 2013 or newly emerging for the coming year? More Creative and Inexpensive Insurance Options: In mid-October, Allianz Global Assistance USA launched a new ?Classic Plan,? a portfolio of plans that includes basic core coverage popular with many travelers, yet flexible enough so agents can add in other coverage elements, depending on client needs. For example, the agent might add ?Required to Work? coverage to cover the traveler?s work obligations, or ?Trip+,? which provides double the coverage limits of the base plan. Insurers are seeing a rise in multigenerational family travel and responding accordingly. ?Family travel isn?t just about parents traveling with kids anymore,? Josephs says. ?It?s often grandparents with grandchildren or all three generations traveling together.? On all his firm?s Classic Plans, kids 17 and under can be added for no additional cost when traveling with parents or grandparents. RELATED: Travel Agents, Suppliers Lead in Travel Insurance Sales In addition, ?the rise of low-cost domestic air tickets has made long weekend trips to visit family or friends more attractive to the traveling public,? says Josephs. So his firm just introduced an inexpensive Essential Plan, designed for domestic air travelers who have their own domestic health insurance. They usually don?t need the robust insurance coverage that a couple might buy for a two-week cruise or a three-week tour of Europe. An emergency or illness can delay the start of a vacation or cause the trip to be canceled altogether. Sheri Machat, senior vice president, MH Ross Travel Insurance Services, says all her firm?s plans now feature the same coverage, with only benefit limits changing from plan to plan. Plus, it offers new children?s rates with flat premiums regardless of the trip cost; only one adult is required to be on the policy. Carlos Cividanes, executive vice president of industry relations, TravelSafe Insurance, mentions that his company has introduced flat-rate pricing for those 18 and younger, which ?allowed us to lower prices for other age categories as well in our vacation plans.? TravelSafe now includes non-medical trip cancellation reasons such as Hurricane Warning or Cancel for Work reasons in its Classic and Classic Plus Plans, instead of making them options that must be selected and paid for. Other insurers have also enhanced their offerings. Enhanced Focus on Government Legislation or Improved Regulations: As the industry moves into 2014, Cividanes wonders: ?Will Obamacare eliminate international medical coverage from the few major medical plans that still offer it, leaving travel insurance as one of the few ways to be covered, as is the case with Medicare?? Machat, too, says that that?s something to watch in 2014. Cividanes stresses that, as yet, the industry can?t likely predict what the effects will be, but hopes that the issue could make more consumers aware that when they travel abroad they don?t usually have international medical coverage. Cividanes and other executives also wonder how soon it will be before agents will have the ability to offer travel insurance products to clients outside their own state. Machat reports that ASTA and the U.S. Travel Insurance Association, an organization representing insurers, have been working together with the various states to come up with uniform licensing standards on how agents are licensed. ?That model has been approved in 20 states and is being discussed or proposed for future legislation in other states,? Machat says. Scott Ackerman, senior vice president, sales, Travel Guard North America, is impressed with how the travel industry has pulled together on the issue: ?In particular, industry associations are pressing for important reforms like the Travel Retailer Model Law, which will enable travel agents to discuss travel insurance with their clients in a meaningful way, but without the need to secure potentially dozens of licenses to sell insurance.? More Robust Resources for Easier Sales: Isaac Cymrot, vice president of sales and industry relations at Travel Insured International, says his company has a new TravelInsured Agent Portal (TAP), a travel agent dashboard for fast travel insurance quotes and purchases. It?s designed to help agents save time and shorten the overall booking process. It will also generate policy options and price quotes instantly; house all contact information, trip details, insurance estimates and purchase history; pull data from GDS and Clientbase systems, making the integration effortless, and incorporate previous customer data for new quotes. The cost of an emergency medical evacuation can run to tens of thousands of dollars without any protection. Suppliers also have developed e-marketing tools to assist agents in keeping track of client purchases. ?Too often the agent quotes insurance once, and never follows up, even when the client doesn?t say no,? says Cymrot. ?Follow-up, like with anything you sell, is vital and there are resources available to help you.? ?Travel agents are doing more with less and they tell us they want selling travel insurance to be a very simple process,? Allianz Global Assistance?s Josephs acknowledges. About 25 percent of his group?s customers buy his firm?s basic product, while 75 percent purchase a plan with more benefits and higher coverage levels. With the introduction of a new family of plans, ?we?ve eliminated non-commissionable fees and made selling travel insurance easier for agents,? he says. USTIA has also developed resources for agents. Earlier this year, it launched a dedicated YouTube Channel that gives consumers a look at medical evacuations and educates viewers about the value of travel insurance. Titled ?When Travel Medical Disaster Strikes: Saving Travelers? Lives,? the videos feature interviews with medical personnel who are on the frontline of transporting sick and injured travelers. Viewers learn about what happens when life?saving medical transport is needed to get a patient to a hospital or to return safely home. Videos range from 1:43 to 4:34 minutes in length and can be accessed at www.youtube.com/user/USTravelInsurance. The association also operates a consumer outreach web site?www.trip.ustia.org?with tips on travel, health, safety and security. Increasing Value of Travel Assistance: ?Probably the most important thing to take away from the events of 2013 is the impact of a good travel assistance company,? Cymrot emphasizes. ?The ability to contact an expert at a moment?s notice was vital to so many travelers this year.? Assistance services?included with many travel insurance policies or available separately?aid travelers caught in emergency situations, such as the 2011 Egypt political uprising or the 2012 Costa Concordia tragedy off the coast of Italy. Services can include providing important safety intelligence, assisting in replacement of lost documents such as passports, and even helping arrange transportation out of a destination deemed unsafe. In the past, Cymrot says many travelers thought the assistance company was only there to provide emergency medical assistance. Now, they?ve learned about how valuable the other provided services can be. The Rise of Medevac Options: Some clients opt for emergency medical evacuation protection, rather than full-bodied insurance. For example, Medjet Assist, a global air, medical transportation membership program for travelers, isn?t insurance but a helpful supplement. The cost is $260 per individual or $395 per family per year. Medjet says its biggest challenge is that most travelers don?t know it exists, or they think that their own credit card or standard trip insurance covers medical evacuation, not always the case. If a Medjet member is hospitalized more than 150 miles from home, Medjet reviews his or her condition with the attending medical staff, and will arrange for a medically equipped and staffed aircraft to fly the traveler free of charge to the hospital of their choice in their home country. There are no health restrictions, co-pays or cost limitations, and no extra charges after the membership fee is paid. Need to Educate Consumers About Policy Terms: When agents are able to educate their clients about the value of purchasing comprehensive travel insurance solutions?such as coverage for common to more complex travel disruptions, 24/7 access to travel assistance, and emergency medical services?selling the products becomes much easier, Travel Guard?s Ackerman believes. In the USTIA study, of the people who bought travel insurance, 96 percent reported satisfaction with their travel insurance, and nearly half?49 percent?said they were very satisfied. But there certainly are times when clients are unhappy, particularly when a claim is denied. Often, that?s because the policy didn?t fit what the client actually needed, or, more commonly, that the traveler just didn?t understand what he or she bought. Insurers say agents should encourage clients to ask lots of questions to insurers. Suppliers have toll-free numbers and employees who can assist in making sure the client has the right policy for his or her travel circumstances. How important is it? John W. Cook of QuoteWright.com, a division of the BC Group LLC, a travel insurance aggregator, points to the many woeful travelers? tales on the Web. ?Most boil down to misunderstandings surrounding pre-existing medical conditions, or a trip cancellation or interruption for other than a covered reason,? says Cook. ?Ask any traveler who?s had a less-than-favorable experience trying to collect a travel insurance claim whether or not their expectations were unreasonable, and, as one would expect, the traveler will adamantly argue that a canceled trip warrants reimbursement.? Cook says that until a client reads the policy completely and consults an expert when purchasing the insurance, the expectation of reimbursement may be ?unrealistic.? The Rise of Social Media for Insurance Content: ?Just like with travel, there are more choices than ever, and more places than ever, on the Internet to find travel insurance,? says Cymrot. While consumers may not understand all the nuances, they are more educated than in the past about insurance, Cymrot says, crediting mainstream media, social media and current events for the shift in the right direction: ?We have moved on from the days of ?what?s travel insurance? to ?what?s the right type of travel insurance.? ? Social media has helped agents tell the insurance story. When Travel Guard recently recognized that more agents were using social media to gather and redistribute travel trends and tips to their clients, it increased the distribution frequency of its resources to agents, so retailers can use those to communicate with followers in social media channels. ?Being present in the places agents turn to for a helpful tip was an important decision,? says Ackerman, who reports agents are now sharing that insurance content in their social channels. Shifts in Length of Coverage and Costs: ?This year we saw a trend back towards longer trips and higher trip costs,? says Cymrot. He says both the average length of trips and average policy cost have increased, which is ?no surprise considering the similar trend in travel sales, and how dependent our premiums are on those details.? Separately, Cividanes says the issue of primary versus secondary medical coverage is also something to watch moving forward. ?The traveling public has been trained to look for primary coverage, so agents should check to see if what they are offering clients is primary and, if it is not, that they have a primary medical offering.? His firm?s plans include primary medical with no deductibles as well as automatic commission protection for agents. Of the primary coverage issue, Cividanes says, ?It?s so important that the U.S. State Department puts a warning in every U.S. passport advising people to see if their medical coverage applies internationally, provides medical evacuation, and upfront payment.? As 2014 is just weeks away, Medjet reports it?s seeing a trend of resurging international travel compared to the past two to three years. It also has seen a double digit increase in corporate business the past two years. Medjet also notes that one in 30 people will become hospitalized while traveling abroad. As the industry transitions into the new year, travel agents might share their best examples with clients. Explain exactly what can happen before or during a trip that could cause a client to cancel or interrupt his or her vacation. ?By providing examples of times that travel insurance has saved the day for other customers, travel agents can make a compelling case about why travel insurance is such an important part of the booking process,? says Allianz Global Assistance?s Josephs. Cividanes adds that upfront payment is a very strong argument that agents can use when clients say they don?t need coverage because they have it through a credit card. Cividanes adds that most of those plans request the client to carry the full medical cost on their credit card balance until the claim is settled. Ackerman stresses the continuing value of two-way communication between partners: ?It?s important to us that our agent partners feel as cared for as their clients we serve,? Ackerman says. ?We continue to listen to and learn from the agent community, with a goal of making their experience as pleasurable as that of their clients.? Agents also need to keep abreast of supplier policy changes. Recently added for no extra premium by M. H. Ross are: normal pregnancy even if it occurs after insurance is purchased; attending a family member?s childbirth; and extension of the school year, say an extra day, that creates a conflict in trip dates. Machat also says the insurer now offers an optional Sports Upgrade Pack to cover medical benefits if a client is injured while bungee jumping or skydiving. Cymrot urges agents to not be afraid to tell the clients that you offer the best protection that complements their vacation. ?Don?t wait until it?s too late to talk about insurance,? says Cymrot. ?Travel protection should be included in the qualifying conversation. It helps establish the value proposition of using a travel agent and most agents leave it out. It fits right in with ASTA?s motto of ?without a travel agent you?re on your own.? ? Who Buys Travel Insurance? Allianz Global Assistance USA says the average customer purchasing its insurance products is someone who is mid-50s in age. Slightly more than 50 percent of buyers are women. Buyers are frequently booking travel for two. ?While we have many other customers with different characteristics, the trend points to the importance of empty nesters,? says Alan Josephs, Allianz?s chief marketing officer, noting this group has the time and money to travel and they are often interested in traveling outside the country. ?They tend to be thoughtful and conservative and are very interested in protecting their travel investment with trip insurance.? In a recent survey, Allianz Global Assistance asked customers to name the top reason for purchasing travel insurance. Most (46 percent) buy it to protect against losing their pre-paid trip costs if they have to cancel their trip. The second most popular reason was to obtain coverage for medical emergencies while traveling (37 percent). Other reasons cited by customers were to protect against trip interruption (9 percent); for luggage delays or loss (2 percent); for travel assistance (1 percent); and other reasons (6 percent). Want more intel? In a survey conducted last year by the United States Travel Insurance Association, more than a quarter (27 percent) of consumers surveyed?whose household income exceeded $50,000?said they would likely buy travel insurance. Slightly more than one in five (22 percent) aged 55 or older said they planned to purchase travel insurance. According to the USTIA survey, those 18?34 years of age were the most likely to have their travel plans changed or impacted by natural or other events (20 percent), followed by college graduates (17 percent) and parents of a child under 18 (16 percent). |
| Perkins on travel: When riots, strikes affect your destination |
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| Perkins on travel: When riots, strikes affect your destination By Ed Perkins Tribune Content Agency San Jose Mercury News Posted: MercuryNews.com The U.S. State Department issued a travel alert and closed more than two dozen embassies and legations in much of Africa and the Middle East -- some for just a few days, while others remain closed. You don't have to ask why; just check the headlines. Recent events would certainly give pause to many travelers headed into the identified "risk" areas that include such destinations as Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Qatar. The obvious question from many travelers arises: "If this type of problem arises again, and we have prepaid travel plans or nonrefundable tickets to one of the affected areas, could we expect refunds? Or would trip-cancellation insurance have covered us?" The short answer is an unequivocal, "Maybe." Here's the rundown: Airlines Airlines, when faced with imminent cancellations, immediately offer to reschedule ticketholders on alternate flights, with no exchange fees on refundable tickets and no increase in fare, or, alternatively, to provide full refunds. But the no-charge exchange offers generally apply only for flights over a short period of time and may provide no relief for travelers who decide they just don't want to travel. Moreover, the time "window" to take the alternative flights is often short -- a week or so. Cruise lines Cruise lines have wide latitude to substitute itineraries and ports if bad weather or local unrest requires that the ship skip a scheduled port. Often, cruise passengers have no right to demand refunds as long as the cruise line operates something resembling the original cruise -- and that resemblance can be pretty remote. Lines may offer optional no-fee cancellations and refunds, but the "refunds" are generally in the form of credit toward a future cruise rather than cash. That credit may have a time window as short as six months. Tour operators Tour operators do about the same as cruise lines, although, as far as I can tell, they're a bit less likely to substitute an unacceptable no-refund alternative. And, again, you may be faced with a future credit rather than a full refund. Trip-cancellation insurance is quite iffy. The one thing you know is that if the reason you want to or have to cancel is not a specified "covered reason" or "named peril" in the contract, you aren't likely to collect anything. My go-to source for the realities of travel insurance, Quotewright's John W. Cook, noted some of the limitations: ?Although most trip-cancellation policies include "terrorism" as a named peril, they generally limit coverage to an actual terrorist act in your destination city. General unrest and riots are not included; although "strikes" may be covered, you sometimes have a tough time differentiating a strike from a riot. ?Even within that narrow definition, different policies vary in the time window covered: Some allow cancellation for an event within 30 days of your scheduled arrival, others just seven days of your departure date. Some kick in if the State Department issues an official "warning," others do not; moreover, most won't cover you if you buy your tickets within six months after an event or warning. ?No named peril policy would have covered anyone who wanted to cancel because of the State Department's recent closures. Ditto sit-ins and other civil unrest. To paraphrase a slogan, the rule is, "No harm, no payout." All in all, the question of named perils and covered reasons is a minefield. So if you want cancellation insurance, you should buy a "cancel for any reason" policy. Payouts may be more limited, and costs are usually higher. But when you might want to cancel, you're better off if you make the decision, not some actuarial bean-counter who's paid to deny claims. |
| Travel insurance: The two big complaints |
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| chicagotribune.com Ed Perkins On Travel Travel insurance: The two big complaints Ed Perkins Ed Perkins on Travel October 29, 2013 Advertisement When you start to look at the subject of travel insurance, you find a bimodal distribution among both consumers and travel mavens: Some say it's a scam; others say it's indispensible, at least for some trips. Count me in the second group. My overall take for decades is that trip-cancellation insurance is a valuable protection any time you face lots of cancellation penalties and that travel medical insurance is a good idea for many travelers. I agree, however, that many travelers believe that travel insurance companies cheated them out of promised benefits. A recent release by my go-to authority on travel insurance, QuoteWright's John Cook, helps shed some light on the problem. The number one cause of disappointment (often rage) over travel insurance has been the denial of claims ? for cancellation, interruption or medical expenses ? due to a traveler's "pre-existing medical condition." Most policies include blanket exclusions for pre-existing medical conditions. Typically, pre-existing conditions may be defined as any medical condition for which the traveler has seen a doctor within a period of three to six months previous to buying the insurance. That can be pretty draconian, and insurance company bean counters love draconian. Many policies cover cancellation or interruption due to a problem experienced by a traveling companion or by relatives who remain at home, and the pre-existing conditions exclusion may apply to them, as well. Fortunately, however, you can get around a large part of the problem: Most good travel insurers waive this pre-existing exemption, provided: ? You buy the insurance within a set number of days ? typically 10 to 30 days ? within making the first payment or deposit for your trip, ? You be physically able to travel at the time you buy the insurance and cannot foresee any specific upcoming problems, and ? You insure the entire amount of money you have at risk in prepayments. According to Cook, that last one "causes the most heartache." With most policies, you can't insure just part of your risk, and if you underinsure, even just by "rounding down," many companies can deny your entire claim. Moreover, as far as I can tell, policies vary in terms of whether you have to cover the total outlay or just the outlay for nonrefundable services. The number two cause of complaints is about denials of claims when something actually happens that requires you to cancel or interrupt a trip. As Cook points out, trip insurance policies are "named peril coverages," meaning that they reimburse you only in the case of an event or occurrence specifically included as a "covered" reason in the policy fine print. You experience lousy weather at your golf resort? No coverage unless the resort actually has to close down or the airline can't fly there. Street demonstrations in a city you plan to visit? No coverage unless the city suffers an actual "terrorist" act. Hardly any policies cover cancellation for work reasons. Taken together, these two problems are why I recommend policies that include a "cancel for any reason" provision. That way you decide whether to travel, not an insurance company bean counter paid to figure out ways to deny claims. Yes, any-reason policies are usually more expensive than conventional policies, they don't cover any-reason cancellation within the last 48 hours before scheduled departure, and most of them pay off less than 100 percent of the value. But the any-reason provision is an add-on to a conventional policy, not a substitute: If you cancel for a "covered reason," you get the full recovery; the any-reason option kicks in only when your reason isn't covered. Travel insurance remains a complicated issue. One of the best sources of further information I know is Travel Insurance Ratings and Reviews (travelinsurancerating.org), an online resource maintained by Cook. As an agent, he obviously carries favorable bias to insurance, but his company arranges policies with all the big insurers and he is unbiased in recommending policies he prefers. Check it out if you're at all unsure about whether to buy insurance for your next trip. |
| Don't Make Assumptions Buying Trip Insurance |
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| Don?t make assumptions buying trip insurance Purchasing trip insurance doesn?t always ensure peace of mind. Just ask Jane Recine. The 80-year-old Punta Gorda resident booked two Delta airline tickets with American Express Travel from Fort Myers to New York in February 2012 so she and her husband could visit their granddaughter in May. The tickets were a little over $600. At checkout, she opted to buy trip insurance offered for about $60. Unfortunately, a month later Anthony had a serious accident and Jane canceled the tickets. She filed a claim with AMEX Assurance Co. in April, including a required physician form. ?I thought the insurance would save the unused tickets,? said Jane. With Anthony recovered, Jane called Delta a year later in April 2013 to ?cash in? the tickets and rebook the trip to attend their granddaughter?s high school graduation. ?They informed me our tickets expired in February,? said Jane. Passed ?from person to person, department to department,? the answer was still the same. ?Tired and frustrated,? Jane reached out to me. I gave American Express Jane and Anthony?s information and in less than a half hour Jane got a call from the company with the news that they?d soon be getting two checks totaling $612. While I?m happy to have helped, this was by no means all because of me. In fact, Jane could have done this all on her own, if only she understood the extensive terms and conditions of this insurance policy. And that?s the problem. Most people buy trip insurance for a ?sense of comfort? or ?peace of mind.? Few read or understand the policy language. When Jane canceled her tickets, Delta gave her a $612 credit good for a year from purchase (February 2012), not from travel (May 2012). If used, Delta would have reduced the credit by a $150 change fee per ticket. Trip insurance policies only cover actual losses. When Jane filed her April 2012 claim with AMEX, the credit hadn?t been used, no change fees paid, so no actual loss. Therefore, Delta was correct when it told her in April 2013 that the credits had expired. However, Jane now had an actual loss of $612 and could have refiled her AMEX insurance claim then. In essence, all I did was re-open the claim and American Express fasttracked the refund process. Major airline cancellation change fees are now up to $200, representing over half the cost of an average ticket. Trips outside the U.S. may require medical evaluation. Travel insurance packages offer protection against costs from unforeseeable circumstances, early return and emergency medical needs. However, before you buy, check any trip interruption or lost luggage services offered by your credit card issuer so you don?t duplicate existing coverage. Also, understand you?re not required to insure the entire cost of the trip. Purchasing a specific dollar amount and assuming some risk reduces the premium. Then there are exclusions, like coverage denial for those with a pre-existing medical condition. Some policies waive that if purchased early enough. Policies that are more expensive allow cancellation for any reason. Compare premium costs, coverage limits, when coverage begins and covered perils between companies by contacting www.quotewright.com ? or 800-821-4940, www. insuremytrip.com ? or 800-487-4722, and www. squaremouth.com ? or 800-240-0369. Policies offered on all these sites quote premiums based on age. An 80-year-old will pay about twice that of a 60-year-old. So, if appropriate, also consider basic one-sizefits-all packages only offered on airline and travel sites where everyone pays the same rate. David Morris is the Sun?s consumer advocate. Contact him c/o the Sun, 23170 Harborview Road, Charlotte Harbor, Fla. 33980, email dmorris@ sun-herald.com? , or leave a message at 941-206-1114. |
| Carnival Triumph Fallout: What Are Cruise Passengers' Rights? |
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| February 23, 2013|Kevin Hunt - The Bottom Line, The Bottom Line After five days adrift in the Gulf of Mexico with no working toilets, sewage oozing down walls and no air conditioning in their cabins, passengers on the Carnival Triumph cruise ship were offered a full refund, reimbursed on-board expenses, a free flight home, a free future cruise and a check for $500. And, Carnival tweeted, they could keep the ship-issued bathrobes. The 3,000-plus passengers might classify it meager compensation, even with the bathrobes, for an ordeal that began earlier this month with an engine-room fire that left the Triumph dead in the water. But it's a lot more than Carnival is obligated to pay based on its ticket-contract agreement with passengers. Cruise passengers have few rights, even fewer than airline passengers, and little hope to recover costs or damages in court. Cruise ships are not like U.S. airlines, which are regulated by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The cruise industry is governed by the Federal Maritime Commission, but the ships are typically registered in foreign countries, allowing their owners to avoid U.S. labor laws, safety regulations and paying federal taxes. Carnival, which is incorporated in Panama, registered the Triumph in the Bahamas. That's how the Bahamas became the lead investigator in the Triumph case, with U.S. interests represented by the National Transportation Safety Board and the Coast Guard. "As part of the terms and conditions, when consumers purchase a cruise ticket, they agree to expect the unexpected" says the Connecticut Better Business Bureau's Howard Schwartz. "However, nobody expects to be stranded at sea without fresh air, plentiful food and sanitary facilities." The Carnival ticket contract specifically covers what happened to the Triumph, when "the proposed voyage is hindered or prevented by . . . breakdown of the vessel." In those cases, passengers essentially get nothing: "the guest and his baggage may be landed at the port of embarkation or at any port or place at which the vessel may call, at which time the responsibility of Carnival shall cease and this contract shall be deemed to have been fully performed." A Texas woman who called the Triumph a "floating toilet" sued shortly after the ship was towed to Mobile, Ala., seeking unspecified damages. If she's claiming emotional distress, mental suffering or anguish, the suit won't go far because Carnival isn't liable. It's in the contract. Other passengers who wish to sue must notify Carnival within six months and file the suit with a year. It's in the ticket contract. A class-action suit with other passengers might be more effective. A suit filed in federal court Feb. 18 in Miami seeks class-action status. Let's see how far that goes: Passengers, in the ticket contract, relinquished their right to sue collectively. The contract also limits Carnival's liability for lost or damaged bags (including contents) to $50 for each guest or $100 for each stateroom. With such threadbare protection, travel experts recommend insurance for cruises and other trips. Cruise lines, conveniently, sell travel insurance. Better coverage at a better price is available elsewhere, though travel insurance might not have helped Triumph passengers much. "What makes this unique from a travel insurance standpoint," says John Cook, president of QuoteWright.com, a travel-insurance comparison site based in East Hartford, "is the absence of financial loss. Travel insurance and insurance in general is all about the replacement of financial loss, which is suffered due to a covered circumstance ? a policy peril or hazard. While there may have been a covered peril or hazard ? mechanical breakdown in some policies ? there doesn't appear to be a financial loss." If the 900-foot ship had been docked when the engine-room fire started, says Cook, travel insurance with "mechanical breakdown of a common carrier" coverage would have paid off. The covered passengers then would have been reimbursed, says Cook, for the "unused and nonrefundable portion of the cruise," up to the cost of economy airfare home. Travel-delay coverage also would have reimbursed passengers for living expenses caused by the delay. Medical claims also could be submitted no matter where the ship came to port, Cook says. Travel insurance also would provide additional coverage for lost or damaged bags, or bags ruined by sewage. "This incident serves as a potent example of travel insurance," says the BBB's Schwartz, "but more importantly, carefully reading policies to see what situations are excluded from coverage. Fine print is more important now than ever before." |
| Travel Insurance aimed at active boomers. |
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| While vacationing in the Swiss Alps last summer Mark L. Welton, chief of colorectal surgery at the Stanford Cancer Center and an advisor to Men?s Health magazine, fell off his mountain bike and broke his collarbone. ?I wasn?t doing anything unreasonable,? says the athletic 56-year-old. He had pulled over to let a hiker pass, he explains, when he lost his balance and toppled over. ?You could?ve tripped in your driveway and done this,? his orthopedist later told him. With one arm in a sling and an ice pack on his shoulder, Welton cut short a two-week journey and flew home for surgery. His wife, Cindy, 49, who?d been scheduled to rendezvous with him in Geneva after completing a bike race (she?s a triathlete), flew to Zurich to see him off before continuing the vacation with two of the couple?s children. Welton paid out of pocket for all the related expenses: X-rays and a sling at a hospital in the Swiss village of Murren (about $350); airline change fees for switching flights booked with frequent-flier miles (another $350); a taxi from the nearby village of Lauterbrunnen to Zurich ($531); and one night at an airport hotel before flying home ($660). Had he not been using frequent-flier miles, the tally would have been thousands more. But if Welton had purchased travel insurance, all his extra expenses and those of family members would have been covered, notes Chris Harvey, CEO of SquareMouth, a website where consumers can comparison shop for policies offered by 23 different travel insurers. Folks like Welton and his wife are, says Harvey, the industry?s target demographic: active boomers who are continuing to undertake exotic or physically demanding travel but are increasingly susceptible to illness or injury. (See my post, ?Boomers Give Up Backpacks As They Stack Up Birthdays.?) Sure, you can cover the sort of out-of-pocket tab Welton paid. But what if you developed a life-threatening infection and needed to be evacuated by helicopter from a Tanzania game preserve at a cost of $150,000, interrupting a $15,000 per person once-in-a-lifetime safari? Or you passed out twice and become incoherent on your second night in Lhasa, Tibet (altitude: 11,975), far from your cardiologist? (See my post, ?Six High-Altitude Vacations To Take While You Can.?) Suddenly the travel insurance you deemed unnecessary when you were younger seems worth considering. Here?s what to look for. MEDICAL EXPENSES With very few exceptions Medicare won?t reimburse you for expenses overseas. For other health insurance check to see whether and under which circumstances (for example, whether it?s only for a life-threatening situation) you?re covered abroad. With managed care and preferred provider plans, benefits for this out-of-network care may be limited, but your annual out-of-pocket cap should still apply. If you?ll be relying on travel insurance, look for a policy that picks up at least $50,000 worth of medical expenses, says John W. Cook, president of QuoteWright.com, another travel insurance comparison site. Claims from high-risk activities such as scuba diving are commonly excluded and most insurers won?t cover ?preexisting conditions,? either, unless you buy the insurance within 10 to 30 days after making a first payment for the trip (including paying tax when you cash in your frequent-flier miles). EVACUATION Insure for at least $100,000 in costs through a package insurance deal or a separate policy from a company like Global Rescue, MedjetAssist or On Call International. Michael F. Thiel, 68, the founder of Hideaways.com, says his $600-a-year evacuation policy gave him peace of mind during a 2011 white-water rafting trip down the Salmon River in Idaho. Had he broken a leg, it would have been necessary to use a satellite radio to call the medevac helicopter. Read the fine print. Who gets to decide whether evacuation is necessary and where you are treated? Typically it?s a service working for the insurer, in consultation with local doctors?not your own. You?ll have more leeway if a policy covers transport to the ?hospital of choice.? PACKAGE DEALS It?s usually easier and cheaper to buy comprehensive insurance covering trip cancelation and interruption as well as medical and evacuation costs. A good package should cover expenses if your trip is canceled or interrupted for a variety of reasons, including your illness, a companion?s illness and a death or emergency at home, as well as the cost of missed connections that aren?t your fault. Many tour and cruise operators require you to be insured and offer a policy, for which they get a commission, but most will let you buy that required insurance elsewhere, so shop around. Premiums depend not only on the length and cost of a trip but also on your age. For example, comprehensive insurance for a 15-day trip costing $3,500 would run a 56-year-old $154 and a 65-year-old $220, says Cook. Buy cancelation coverage only for nonrefundable out-of-pocket costs. You?ll still get the crucial $50,000 medical/$100,000 evacuation coverage, the premium will be less and the insurer will reimburse you anyway for, say, a missed connection if a flight procured with frequent-flier miles is canceled. You can get a policy directly from an insurer, through a travel agent or through one of the sites representing multiple insurers, including InsureMyTrip.com and TravelInsuranceReview.net. Before you buy, ask to see the full certificate of coverage?not just excerpts on a website. Make sure your specific concerns (say, a canceled trip because of the medical emergency of an aging parent) would be covered. Don?t fall for the come-on of a ?free look? at the policy, with the right to cancel and receive a full refund as long as you haven?t left for your trip. If you don?t like what you find, you probably will have passed the time to get the preexisting condition exception waived on a different policy. |
| Is travel insurance a good deal? |
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| Is travel insurance a good deal? By Laura Daily Special to The Miami Herald Emergencies, accidents, and just bad luck can occur when you?re on the road. Is it better to take a chance at a financial wallop or play it safe and invest in travel insurance? Depending on your destination and how much you stand to lose, the answer varies. Here are some questions to ask. ? Isn?t travel insurance just for medical issues? These days it?s a lot more. Sure, comprehensive travel policies cover medical service and hospitalization, but you?re also covered for trip cancellation, delay or lost luggage. Dan Margoni, a retired certified financial planner in Durham, N.C., has purchased policies through Allianz Global Assistance (allianztravelinsurance.com) for more than a decade. In 2012, he was returning home from Rome through Dulles International Airport when he got word of Superstorm Sandy. An unexpected hotel night and meals (about $105) was reimbursed. When Margoni?s laptop was stolen at a Buenos Aires bus station, Allianz reimbursed him $500. ?Travel insurance doesn?t eliminate the risk but the cost of the risk,? he says. John Monroe?s summer vacation to St. George Island off the Florida Panhandle was cut short by a tropical storm. ?Every summer we rent a house and though we knew the weather was bad, we didn?t realize how bad,? he says. The family checked in on a Saturday. On Sunday morning, boom! The electricity went off and a mandatory evacuation was announced. The island wasn?t reopened for five days. ?We went to Tallahassee and then on to a friend?s house in Georgia,? says Monroe, who not only recouped the cost of the non-refundable home rental, but the night at a Tallahassee hotel. ? Can?t I chance it? If you are traveling within the United States and aren?t forking over a hefty non-refundable sum, then you probably don?t need travel insurance. But head overseas and, more times than not, the insurance is warranted. Most of us have some form of health insurance, but your policy may not be worth much outside U.S. borders. Even a trip to a cruise ship?s infirmary can lighten your pocketbook, because once you set sail you?re considered to be in international waters. In general, medical plans will cover you for emergencies or urgent care regardless of location. What?s an emergency? Anything a prudent person concludes would jeopardize her life if she didn?t seek care. So chest pains, broken bones, or dehydration caused by food poisoning would likely be covered; toothache, sunburn, or a mild case of the flu probably would not. Medicare won?t cover illness or injury outside the United States. Medigap (plans C and above) provides foreign travel emergency coverage, but with a $50,000 lifetime limit. ? If I cancel my trip, do I get my money back? The best thing about trip cancellation is that it covers travelers for 100 percent of all prepaid, nonrefundable expenses as long as cancellation is for one of the policy?s listed reasons. That could include sickness or injury of the traveler, a traveling companion, family member and even business partner. It also applies if there is a death in the family. Many plans will cover you for cancellation if you are required to work during a trip. Be sure you can submit a written statement from human resources confirming that your previously requested time off has been revoked. If you are prevented from taking a trip because you are laid off from your job, you may be covered as well. Other covered reasons include financial default of your airline, cruise line or tour operator, being subpoenaed, quarantined or selected for jury duty, or called to active military duty. And here?s the biggie for residents in states such as Florida. ?Fear? that a hurricane will hit your house is not reason enough to cancel a trip and expect reimbursement. However, policies will cover those who cancel their trip if a hurricane causes delay or cancellation of their flights. Policies can also cover you if your home is made uninhabitable (due to structural damage or power outage) because of a natural disaster such as a hurricane. Similarly, travelers can cancel their trip if their destination lodging is made uninhabitable. The key to hurricane coverage: Purchase a policy before a storm is named. If you start your trip but have to cut it short for any of the above reasons, you are likely covered. The trip interruption benefit reimburses travelers for any unused days of their trip. Trip interruption should also pay for additional expenses to get home early. ? Where are the best deals? Do some comparison shopping. Try Squaremouth.com or QuoteWright.com. After asking a few questions (such as age and trip details), each displays a variety of policies and lets you compare them by price and benefits. Expect to pay about 5 percent of your trip cost and as high as 9 percent if you are 70 or older. But before you snap up the lowest offer, read the policy carefully. Coverage on a $5,000 trip to Peru for a 60-year-old ranged from $250 to $1,030. Every policy included $5,000 in cancellation coverage, but medical evacuation ranged from $250,000 to a whopping $1 million. The average emergency medical evacuation costs less than $40,000. Don?t waste money on a $1 million policy. Want to save more? If you don?t lose any money if you never make it to your destination, skip the cancellation insurance option altogether. That can cut the cost dramatically, so that $250 policy now offers the same coverage and perks for about $50. ? I?m young and healthy, why bother? Todd Strong never imagined a bike race before a business meeting could so quickly become a medical nightmare. Along with a colleague, the 45-year-old Birmingham businessman entered a 100-mile bicycle ride through the Canadian countryside south of Vancouver, British Columbia. Just over 50 miles into the ride, a mishap sent Strong smashing onto the concrete. A broken clavicle, five broken ribs and a collapsed lung meant days of hospitalization. Though Strong received excellent care, all he wanted was to go home for treatment in familiar surroundings. Fortunately Strong subscribed to MedjetAssist (medjetassist.com) which specializes in medical evacuations. Medjet guarantees that members are taken to the hospital of their choice, not just the closest facility. A few days after the accident, a Medjet air ambulance staffed with an EMT and a flight nurse arrived. Five hours later, the jet landed in Birmingham. Total cost: $260. ?I slept the whole way back and never saw a bill,? says Strong. ?I?m a healthy guy but you never know. If I go skiing and get hurt I want to know I can be taken home.? ? What if I need someone at night or on a weekend? That?s the hidden gem of travel insurance. Firms provide 24-hour access to both emergency personnel and a travel agency. Think of it as your own personal round-the-clock concierge desk. Jill and Jeff Waytashek of Sartell, Minn., planned the perfect family vacation to Curacao, along with daughter Lindsey, a law student at the University of Denver. Things were on track until Lindsey stepped off the airplane in Minneapolis the night before their flight to Curacao through Miami and announced, ?I forgot my passport.? After trying to vain to reach someone at American Airlines, Jill thought to call the Travel Guard Insurance (travelguard.com) service desk, hoping to get a special phone number for the airline. ?I explained the situation to the Travel Guard agent, who told me this wasn?t something they covered, but she would help me figure it out. We started to look at flights to send Lindsey back to Denver and then meet us in Miami. Then we commiserated it was too bad there wasn?t someone in Denver to take Lindsey?s passport to the airport,? Jill recalls. Good idea. Turns out Lindsey had a willing roommate and Travel Guard was able to work with airline personnel to have Lindsey?s passport flown to Miami, where the Waytasheks were waiting, Lindsey holding up a sign saying ?My name is Lindsey. Do you have my passport?? Says Jill: ?Sometimes I think my family is the poster child for travel insurance. We?ve had medical emergencies, lost luggage, a stolen cell phone and each time they come through. But the 24/7 concierge service may be the best benefit of all.? ? What might catch me in the fine-print? Not declaring pre-existing medical conditions is one of the most common reasons for ?payment denied.? Since most policies cover medical conditions if you purchase within two weeks of buying your travel package, be honest. If you file a claim, the insurer gets access to all your medical notes and records. Save every receipt, police report, physician?s diagnosis, X-ray, lab result or other scrap of paper to prove your case to the travel insurer. Check whether you are covered if your travel supplier (cruise line, airline or tour operator) should go bankrupt. Consumer travel strategist Laura Daily is executive editor of LivingOnTheCheap.com Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/04/20/v-print/3349445/is-travel-insurance-a-good-deal.html#storylink=cpy |
| Planning a trip? Some sensible travel tips to consider |
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| Resolution 1: Make sure you qualify for pre-existing conditions coverage. The biggest ?gotcha? is the exclusion for pre-existing conditions. Many plans offer a ?waiver of pre-existing conditions? provided you buy the insurance early, within the required time period ? usually 10 to 30 days depending on the plan following your first trip payment date. We recommend shopping for coverage within 10 days of your first trip payment in order to have the most options. Resolution 2: shop around for travel insurance. There can be over a 300% difference in price between reputable plans for the same trip. Buy the one that is right for you at the right price. Resolution 3: Remember the ABC?s of travel insurance; Always shop around for insurance. Find the plan that is right for you. Be aware of policy limitations and exclusions. Travel Insurance plans have limitation and exclusions ? make sure you understand them. Coverage for most travel insurance plans is ?named peril?. It is call ?named peril? because it only covers those perils and hazards specifically listed in the policy. So make sure the risk you need covered is listed. Some plans offer ?cancel for any reason? as an augmentation to the trip cancellation coverage however, unless you have a special need that isn?t covered by the basic trip cancellation perils than you should avoid this option. Resolution 4: Read and understand the plan before you buy it. Ask a knowledgeable source If you have a question. Best place to ask is with a travel insurance professional at a comparison web site. Resolution 5: Be aware of plans that seem too good to be true ? because they probably are. Plans are priced according to insurance company experience and expenses. When you see a plan that is priced substantially less than other plans and it appears to have the same coverage than something is probably wrong. Resolution 6: Be aware of ?opt-out? travel insurance offerings through airlines, tour operators, cruise lines, or travel agents when buying any type of travel that contains airfare. The Federal Department of Transportation, beginning on January 24, 2012, will no longer allows airlines, tour operators, cruise lines, or travel agents to follow that questionable marketing practice which they believe to be ?unfair and deceptive?. |
| Seniors on the Go: Fall/winter trip ? do you need cancellation insurance? |
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| By now, many of you are planning where you'll go for a fall or winter trip. Many of those trips will likely require you to pony up a large deposit or advance payment ? payments that often are either nonrefundable or carry large cancellation penalties ? if you subsequently have to cancel your trip. You may also have to make those payments a long time in advance. If your trip fits either category, you're a candidate for trip-cancellation insurance (TCI) and trip-interruption insurance (TII), almost always sold together in a bundle. And if so, you need to know what TCI/TII does do, doesn't do, and how to avoid pitfalls if you aren't careful when you buy. What TCI/TII does. The TCI component refunds whatever advance deposits and prepayments you can't first recover if you have to cancel your trip before you leave, and TII pays those costs plus possible extra costs of returning home early if you have to abort your trip after you've started. All TCI/TII covers cancellations or interruptions required by something that happens to you or a traveling companion ? sickness, accident, and such ? and most covers you if something happens to a close family member who isn't traveling with you. But when you buy TCI/TII, the devil is in the details: Pre-existing medical conditions. Typical policies exclude cancellation or interruption due to a pre-existing medical condition ? a flare up or recurrence of some sickness treated within a certain period before purchase, typically 90 or 180 days. According to John Cook, who runs the popular travel insurance agency, QuoteWright (http://www.quotewright.com; 800-821-4940), "up to 25 percent" of all TCI/TII claims involve a pre-existing medical condition. Fortunately, you have an easy way to avoid arguments about pre-existing medical conditions: Many policies waive that exclusion if you buy the insurance shortly after you make your first payment or deposit, usually one or two weeks. Full payment. Cook also notes that "the biggest pitfall is not insuring the full, pre-paid value of your trip." If you cover less than the full cost ? even if you just "round down" your prepayments ? some policies will invalidate the entire coverage. Foreseen conditions. Even if you take advantage of a pre-existing conditions waiver, an insurer can still deny your claim for a loss due to a pre-existing condition that is foreseeable at the time you buy the policy. If, for example, a close family member has previously been diagnosed with late-stage terminal cancer, you probably can't cancel your trip because that person suddenly gets worse or dies. Named perils. TCI/TII policies include a list of specific "covered reasons" or "named perils" that are covered as reasons for cancellation/interruption. The corollary, of course, is that, "If it isn't specified, it isn't covered." And although almost all policies cover sickness and accidents, they vary considerably in how they cover problems at your destination that might make you want to reconsider your visit: hurricanes, civil unrest, and such. What TCI/TII doesn't do. Like most insurance, TCI/TII is about money ? and only money. It can't preserve your vacation, arrange or pay for an alternate trip, or otherwise preserve your trip experience. And because all TCI/TII is inherently secondary, it compensates you only for the amounts you can't first claim from your travel suppliers or other insurance policies. That means you could remain out-of-pocket for months, and you'll have to pay up front for any substitute arrangements. |
| Planning a trip? Some sensible travel tips to consider |
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| Resolution 1: Make sure you qualify for pre-existing conditions coverage. The biggest ?gotcha? is the exclusion for pre-existing conditions. Many plans offer a ?waiver of pre-existing conditions? provided you buy the insurance early, within the required time period ? usually 10 to 30 days depending on the plan following your first trip payment date. We recommend shopping for coverage within 10 days of your first trip payment in order to have the most options. Resolution 2: shop around for travel insurance. There can be over a 300% difference in price between reputable plans for the same trip. Buy the one that is right for you at the right price. Resolution 3: Remember the ABC?s of travel insurance; Always shop around for insurance. Find the plan that is right for you. Be aware of policy limitations and exclusions. Travel Insurance plans have limitation and exclusions ? make sure you understand them. Coverage for most travel insurance plans is ?named peril?. It is call ?named peril? because it only covers those perils and hazards specifically listed in the policy. So make sure the risk you need covered is listed. Some plans offer ?cancel for any reason? as an augmentation to the trip cancellation coverage however, unless you have a special need that isn?t covered by the basic trip cancellation perils than you should avoid this option. Resolution 4: Read and understand the plan before you buy it. Ask a knowledgeable source If you have a question. Best place to ask is with a travel insurance professional at a comparison web site. Resolution 5: Be aware of plans that seem too good to be true ? because they probably are. Plans are priced according to insurance company experience and expenses. When you see a plan that is priced substantially less than other plans and it appears to have the same coverage than something is probably wrong. Resolution 6: Be aware of ?opt-out? travel insurance offerings through airlines, tour operators, cruise lines, or travel agents when buying any type of travel that contains airfare. The Federal Department of Transportation, beginning on January 24, 2012, will no longer allows airlines, tour operators, cruise lines, or travel agents to follow that questionable marketing practice which they believe to be ?unfair and deceptive?. |
| Seniors on the Go: Fall/winter trip ? do you need cancellation insurance? |
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| By now, many of you are planning where you'll go for a fall or winter trip. Many of those trips will likely require you to pony up a large deposit or advance payment ? payments that often are either nonrefundable or carry large cancellation penalties ? if you subsequently have to cancel your trip. You may also have to make those payments a long time in advance. If your trip fits either category, you're a candidate for trip-cancellation insurance (TCI) and trip-interruption insurance (TII), almost always sold together in a bundle. And if so, you need to know what TCI/TII does do, doesn't do, and how to avoid pitfalls if you aren't careful when you buy. What TCI/TII does. The TCI component refunds whatever advance deposits and prepayments you can't first recover if you have to cancel your trip before you leave, and TII pays those costs plus possible extra costs of returning home early if you have to abort your trip after you've started. All TCI/TII covers cancellations or interruptions required by something that happens to you or a traveling companion ? sickness, accident, and such ? and most covers you if something happens to a close family member who isn't traveling with you. But when you buy TCI/TII, the devil is in the details: Pre-existing medical conditions. Typical policies exclude cancellation or interruption due to a pre-existing medical condition ? a flare up or recurrence of some sickness treated within a certain period before purchase, typically 90 or 180 days. According to John Cook, who runs the popular travel insurance agency, QuoteWright (http://www.quotewright.com; 800-821-4940), "up to 25 percent" of all TCI/TII claims involve a pre-existing medical condition. Fortunately, you have an easy way to avoid arguments about pre-existing medical conditions: Many policies waive that exclusion if you buy the insurance shortly after you make your first payment or deposit, usually one or two weeks. Full payment. Cook also notes that "the biggest pitfall is not insuring the full, pre-paid value of your trip." If you cover less than the full cost ? even if you just "round down" your prepayments ? some policies will invalidate the entire coverage. Foreseen conditions. Even if you take advantage of a pre-existing conditions waiver, an insurer can still deny your claim for a loss due to a pre-existing condition that is foreseeable at the time you buy the policy. If, for example, a close family member has previously been diagnosed with late-stage terminal cancer, you probably can't cancel your trip because that person suddenly gets worse or dies. Named perils. TCI/TII policies include a list of specific "covered reasons" or "named perils" that are covered as reasons for cancellation/interruption. The corollary, of course, is that, "If it isn't specified, it isn't covered." And although almost all policies cover sickness and accidents, they vary considerably in how they cover problems at your destination that might make you want to reconsider your visit: hurricanes, civil unrest, and such. What TCI/TII doesn't do. Like most insurance, TCI/TII is about money ? and only money. It can't preserve your vacation, arrange or pay for an alternate trip, or otherwise preserve your trip experience. And because all TCI/TII is inherently secondary, it compensates you only for the amounts you can't first claim from your travel suppliers or other insurance policies. That means you could remain out-of-pocket for months, and you'll have to pay up front for any substitute arrangements. |
| Travel insurance for 2012 |
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| Ed Perkins On Travel January 17, 2012 Don't forget to consider travel insurance when you plan your 2012 travels: Decide if you need it and figure the cost into your budgeting. Chances are it won't be a budget-buster, but failure to buy the right coverage could, in fact, bust your budget beyond any expectations. When do you need travel insurance? I suggest that you consider two important coverages: -- You need trip cancellation (TCI) any time you have large prepayments -- either nonrefundable or carrying cancellation penalties -- that are more than you can afford to walk away from if you unexpectedly have to cancel a trip. -- You probably need medical insurance if your regular health insurance doesn't cover you adequately when you're out of the United States. That includes everybody on Medicare and many others. John Cook, President of Quotewright, a leading online travel insurance agency (www.quotewright.com), recently distributed his checklist of travel insurance "resolutions" for 2012, which I find generally appropriate. In sum, Cook says (with a few of my personal tweaks): -- Make sure that you buy your insurance early enough to get a "waiver for pre-existing medical conditions." That waiver generally avoids hassles about whether or not an ongoing medical problem qualifies for coverage; typically, you have to buy the insurance within 10 days or so of the time you make your first payments. -- Shop around for the best deal -- you can find 300 percent differences among policies with essentially the same coverage. -- Make sure you understand the fine print. Most TCI policies cover only "perils" that are specifically "named" in the fine print, and often events like civil unrest are not covered. Specifically, most policies no not cover cancellation unless and until a named peril actually occurs: You can't cancel just because you anticipate a problem or feel uneasy about a destination. -- Avoid "opt out" insurance that a tour operator, cruise line, or airline may offer, don't automatically accept the first policy that a travel agent offers, and don't accept "waivers" instead of real insurance. You could well overpay or face inadequate coverage. Instead, see "shop around," above. To those sound recommendations, I add four of my own: -- If you don't have expensive prepayments that are nonrefundable or carry a big cancellation penalty, you probably don't need TCI, so buying it is probably a waste of money. As long as you can get your money back, you don't need to insure it -- especially since any insurer will demand you get all available refunds before they pay anything. -- Unless the price is prohibitive, buy TCI that includes a "cancel for any reason" provision. If a more typical policy doesn't specify "civil unrest" as a "named peril," for example, the policy wouldn't cover you if you decided to cancel a trip to Greece because you're worried about street demonstrations. "Any reason" coverage means you make the go/no go decision, not an insurance company bean counter. -- If you need medical insurance, get a policy that provides primary coverage. Primary means the insurance company pays all the costs, up front, not just what you can't first recover from your other medical insurance. Even travelers with regular health insurance often buy primary travel medical to avoid the problem of having to pay a big bill on the spot, then go through a drawn-out claims process after they return. -- Consider minor coverages -- personal property, lost baggage, delayed baggage, delay expenses, and such -- as a plus when they're included in a good bundled TCI or medical program. But they often duplicate coverages you have from other sources so don't pay extra for them. Quotewright is one of several online insurance comparison sites and sales agencies I recommend. They all work in about the same way: Enter your trip and personal details, specify what kinds of coverages you need, and the site pops up a comprehensive list of available policies, with prices. Other good comparison sites include 1Travelinsurance (www.1travelinsurance.com), G1G (www.g1g.com), InsureMyTrip.com (www.insuremytrip.com), Squaremouth (www.quotetravelinsurance.com) and Total Travel Insurance (www.totaltravelinsurance.com). (Send e-mail to Ed Perkins at eperkins(at)mind.net. Perkins' new book for small business and independent professionals, "Business Travel When It's Your Money," is now available through www.mybusinesstravel.com or www.amazon.com) Copyright © 2012, Tribune Media Services |
| 2010 Spring Issue: Travel Insurance Issue |
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| Table of Contents Getting paid for getting waylaid on your travels Avoiding the ?gotchas? Don?t trip on vacation illness or injury Longstanding medical trip insurance providers Researching and buying travel insurance on the Internet New limit on tarmac strandings Credit card travel/emergency services Trip insurance questions answered Getting paid for getting waylaid on your travels By Michelle De Mooy Got the travel bug? Travel insurance is one way to make sure the fun doesn?t end when unexpected things happen?but is this kind of coverage really worth the price? Americans are buying travel insurance more often than ever before, to the tune of more than $1.6 billion a year according to a U.S. Travel Insurance Association report. As with any insurance, travel insurance is designed to protect you from financial devastation, not supplement incidental travel costs. If you are deciding whether to purchase travel insurance, start by taking a look at your expenses to determine what monetary hit you would take if the trip was canceled. Travel insurance can cover anything from trip cancellation to lost or delayed luggage to medical costs. Trip cancellation is perhaps one of the biggest reasons travelers purchase insurance, as it will reimburse you if have to cancel or cut short a trip due to unforeseen circumstances, like getting sick or losing your job. Trip cancellation usually reimburses you for money lost on the non-refundable parts of your excursion, such as a hotel deposit or prepaid meal plan. You can also get ?cancel for any reason? coverage, which is sold as an add-on to existing policies. Adding this upgrade to your policy makes it more expensive but may give you peace of mind about your travel investment. Basic trip insurance usually covers unexpected weather events, like hurricanes or tornadoes, so it might make sense if you are traveling to a storm-prone area. If the airport shuts down or your resort gets washed out to sea, you won?t lose all the money you paid. One perk of travel insurance is getting reimbursed for unexpected, but increasingly common headaches like cancelled or delayed flights, even missed connections. For example, some policies cover a hotel room and a rental car if your flight gets delayed. Depending on the policy, you may even get emergency cash or help if your wallet or travel documents get stolen while you?re voyaging. What is not covered can be as important as what is covered. Traveling to an unstable region? Terrorist attacks are often not covered, particularly if you are traveling to an area that has experienced them before, and war is usually not covered. Also, plain old bad weather (rather than hurricanes or earthquakes) and outbreaks of disease are not likely to be covered by your travel insurer. Accident-prone travelers Took a tumble down Machu Picchu? Forget to boil the water in Cancun? Some insurance policies will provide emergency medical evacuation, and will pay for hospital stays and medical treatment. Typical medical coverage in travel insurance policies includes accidental death or dismemberment clauses, though these are normally covered if you carry health or life insurance policies. When you are traveling abroad many health insurance policies, including Medicare, do not cover hospital or medical expenses. Pre-existing medical conditions may not be covered at all and when they are it may increase the cost of the policy significantly. Read the fine print and ask the travel insurance provider if your pre-existing condition is covered. (See ?Researching and buying travel insurance on the Internet? for more about travel medical insurance.) For students studying abroad, typically the same insurance limitations apply. At a time in life when a low checking account balance and high student loan debt often go hand in hand, it can be appealing to safeguard what you do have. If you are a student about to take a trip, you should carefully review your healthcare policy and consider adding coverage. If you get sick or need medical care while overseas, you may want emergency medical evacuation coverage with transport to a hospital in your host country, or back to the U.S. Some travel insurance policies offer coverage for up to one year. If a parent or guardian gets ill while you are away, travel insurance will pay for a one-way ticket back home. (For more on trip insurance see ?Avoiding the ?gotchas??.) Already covered? When deciding whether to purchase trip insurance you?ll want to weigh your risks against the cost of the coverage. In fact, you may already be covered for some of your worst travel fears. Many life insurance policies cover you and your family when you travel, and homeowners? or renters? policies often provide coverage for theft and other losses when you?re away from home. Check to see if your auto insurance policy is valid overseas. Often airlines or hotels will reimburse you or credit you themselves if they cancel or drastically delay your trip. What?s more, if the travel provider has to cancel your trip due to a natural disaster or other major incident, you may get a refund or credit, regardless of whether you have travel insurance. Take the time to know precisely what the travel provider guarantees. Credit cards also may offer cardholders perks like travel insurance. For instance, most American Express cards provide accidental death and dismemberment coverage, insurance for car rental loss and damage, and lost baggage protection. But some card issuers actually offer assistance, or referrals, rather than insurance. (See ?Credit card travel/emergency services? for more about credit card services.) Travel agents, tour operators and cruise lines all hawk travel insurance, but your safest bet is to obtain coverage through an established insurance agency, so that you?re protected financially if the travel company goes belly up. This is an increasing concern in today?s economy. Be particularly wary of purchasing travel or medical insurance through a cruise line. Cruise lines are notorious for creating disgruntled consumers when the companies that operate them sink into bankruptcy. Costs The cost of travel insurance varies widely, but packages can cost from 4% to 8% of the cost of the trip to a high of 15%. The cost varies considerably based on the type of coverage, trip destination, length of time you?re away, the age of the policyholder, and the company from which you purchase the policy. Coverage for a $3,000 trip could run you around $120 to $240. Check your existing policies first. Homeowner?s policies may kick in for the loss of your clothing and personal items. Health insurance policies often cover you and your family when you travel within the U.S. Coverage does not generally extend overseas but may apply on cruises. Plane-crash and flight insurance both top the ?not worth it? list. If your flight goes down, your dependents are likely to be covered by your life insurance policy (unless you bring down the plane yourself) or by the credit card company you used to purchase the ticket. Also, airlines may reimburse you or reschedule you at no extra charge for a cancelled or delayed flight, not to mention lost bags. If you decide to buy travel insurance, do it as soon as possible after booking your trip. Buying early may qualify you for benefits such as a waiver of pre-existing medical conditions. Think about putting your airline tickets or other travel expenses on a credit card (if it has a low interest rate and you are able to pay it off quickly). Your card may offer trip insurance or access to medical services that could save you a substantial sum. Check the card?s policy to know if benefits kick in before or after any other coverage. (See ?Credit card travel/emergency services? for more information.) From here to reimbursement There is a long list of exclusions to any insurance policy and travel insurance is no exception. Insurance benefits will be denied to travelers who participate in a whole range of activities such as skydiving or piloting a plane (though you may be able to buy separate policies), for injuries stemming from anything illegal or intoxication, and for self-inflicted injuries. Before you sign up, check to see if the company you are purchasing the policy from is regulated by a state insurance department. If you have a dispute or reimbursement claim that the company is refusing to honor you?ll have somewhere to turn for help. Keep all insurance documents and receipts for expenses incurred while you were covered in case you need to file a claim. Avoiding the ?gotchas? Investigate specifics when buying trip cancellation and interruption coverage By Ruth Susswein Your much anticipated two-week trip overseas is ruined. You?ve missed your connection to the tour because of flight delays and you?re stuck in no-man?s land. Now what do you do? Maybe you?re stuck in a damaged hotel in the middle of a hurricane? Can you get your money back? What if your parent becomes suddenly ill and you have to fly home two days into your vacation? These situations?or the fear of them?are some of the reasons you might choose to get trip cancellation and interruption coverage. But, would it have provided protection? Travel can be very expensive and trip coverage is designed to help you protect your investment. Trip cancellation insurance typically covers accidents, illness and death. Most policies will reimburse you for the non-refundable portions of your trip. For instance, airfare is often not refundable. Neither are cruises and some tours. To help you decide what type of coverage is best for you, consider your situation. Whether you are particularly concerned about a relative?s health, your company?s health (layoffs), or weather conditions, your particular needs can be a guide to the type of coverage you purchase. John Cook, president of the online trip insurance agency Quotewright, recommends purchasing a package policy that bundles many types of insurance into one policy. In his view, a good package would include trip cancellation and interruption coverage, travel delay, accidental death benefits, baggage loss and delay, and some medical coverage. ?Insurance companies will let you add options but you can?t subtract coverage,? Cook explains. So you might not want accidental death coverage but it?s part of the package. The drawback is that you?ll pay for the coverage you want as well as the parts you don?t. Some packages will allow you to drop the trip cancellation/interruption portion of the policy. That can save up to 50% of the cost of the policy. Often, the policy?s price is based on the cost of the trip, its length, and your age. Who?s covered Trip cancellation/interruption insurance covers you in the event that you, your traveling companions or your family have a problem that requires you to cancel or interrupt your trip. Typically, family includes parents, grandparents, grandchildren, siblings, in-laws and business partners. Check to see if the policy you?re considering includes your traveling companions? families as well. Travel insurance companies list the reasons that will qualify you for reimbursement. It is key to read what is covered?and to be aware of what is not covered. If you cancel for a reason that is not listed, you will not be reimbursed. For example, a policy may not cover cancellations due to terrorist activity, particularly if the travel agent/tour operator offers a substitute itinerary. Some policies must be purchased within two weeks of making a deposit on the trip to qualify for a refund. Many policies will not cover injuries due to adventure sports such as para-sailing, hang gliding, mountain climbing, etc. In addition to serious illness, injury or death, here are some areas that might be covered under a trip cancellation/interruption policy: Cancellations due to a major disaster at home (flood, fire) that has made your house uninhabitable. Jury duty. Natural disasters or bad weather that have caused the tour operator/cruise line to stop operating for at least 24 hours. Layoffs or job losses. Be aware each category comes with its own limitations. For example, coverage for job loss often requires that you?ve been employed for at least a year. Hurricane coverage requires you to have the policy before the storm has been named and recognized by weather authorities. Each policy may offer somewhat different protection. Review what?s covered before choosing a policy. Quotewright rates the various trip cancellation policies and details what each one does or does not cover by insurance category. The baggage loss category covers your luggage and personal items up to a set limit of $2,000 or $3,000, plus per article or category limits such as a $600 limit on lost jewelry. Some items like eyeglasses, telephones, and computers may be excluded from coverage. In this category, refunds kick in after an airline or hotel fails to reimburse you. In the case of baggage delay, save all receipts to prove the expenses you incurred during the delay, such as new clothing and toiletries. Cancel for any reason Cancel for any reason policies are designed to cover gaps in the package policy. This type of policy puts some travelers at ease. But it may add about 50% to any trip insurance premiums. To qualify, you must have purchased a package policy first. Cook cautions that you must insure the ?full value? of the trip, which includes all pre-paid travel arrangements. If you underinsure your trip you risk being disqualified when it?s time to file a claim. ?This is one of the ?gotchas,?? warns Cook. ?Don?t try to save money by rounding down, round up to be sure you?re covered.? From his vantage point of 29 years in the insurance industry, Cook tells the story of a client whose trip cost $8,100 but was insured for $8,000. The traveler filed a claim and was refused reimbursement because the insurer could prove the trip cost more than it was insured for. Cancel for any reason coverage has another big catch. This benefit expires two days before your trip begins so that people don?t cancel at the last minute for frivolous reasons. However, coverage continues on your underlying package policy for the duration of your trip. Claims Should you need to file a claim, expect the insurer to reimburse you for 75% to 80% of your covered expenses. Cook says even policies that claim to cover 100% of your loss will only return all your money if your travel plans are six months or more in the future, when it?s less likely that you will cancel. The closer you are to your travel date the greater the chance is that you?ll be responsible for a portion of your losses. With these caveats in mind, you can decide if the financial protection that trip insurance offers is worth the price. Don?t trip on vacation illness or injury Travel medical insurance can help you deal with the unforeseen By Linda Sherry While many Americans have health insurance, coverage is rarely accepted outside the United States. Travel medical insurance and emergency evacuation services can provide peace of mind for prices that range from several dollars a day to a percentage of the cost of your travel. You can buy the coverage on a per-day, per-trip or annual basis from independent companies, travel agents and online travel brokers. While many people set off without travel medical insurance, there are reasons to consider it. Health care without insurance can be expensive and without the guarantee of payment offered by some companies, admission to a hospital overseas may be difficult. In foreign lands, language barriers can affect access to providers and the course of your treatment. Most medical travel insurance is designed to help you deal with these issues. ?Getting the right care, communicating with medical professionals and those back home, and paying for emergencies are issues that travelers may ignore until they are confronted with an illness or accident, especially abroad,? says Mike Ambrose, president of the U.S. Travel Insurance Association. Many travel medical insurance plans are bundled with other forms of travel insurance, such as trip cancellation, lost luggage, etc. Yet others offer a menu of insurance options, including travel medical insurance as a stand-alone policy. But like any insurance product, the devil?s in the details. Every policy has limitations and exclusions that may significantly limit their value. And there is a difference between insurance products, which will reimburse you for eligible medical expenses, and ?benefit services contracts,? which basically provide advice and referrals to English-speaking health care providers. According to Frommers.com, the travel guide, ?The travel insurance industry is a hall of mirrors, full of unclear language and companies masquerading by various names.? In a recent survey, Frommers found eight insurance companies that passed its scrutiny (see ?Longstanding medical trip insurance providers?). Before you research travel health insurance, make sure you really need it. Call your health and homeowner insurers and your credit card issuer to get the low-down on how far you?re covered if you?re injured or fall ill while outside of the U.S. Ask if the coverage is primary or secondary. Does the policy kick in once you?ve depleted other coverage? You may also want to check if the country you are visiting has universal health care that covers visitors at reasonable cost. Travel medical insurance You can buy short-term medical insurance for shorter vacations on a per-day basis, or spring for an annual policy if you travel frequently. In most cases you must purchase travel health insurance within days or a few weeks of the time you book and pay for your travel. Many travel brokers, such as Orbitz and Travelocity, traditional travel agents and tour companies offer travel insurance when you purchase cruises, flights, hotels and packages. You can also contact an insurance provider directly, but do so immediately upon purchasing your flights, hotels and packages so you don?t miss the best rates. If you wait too long, coverage becomes more expensive, less comprehensive, or even impossible to get. Most medical policies come with required co-payments and cost sharing, as well as deductibles that you must pay before the insurance kicks in. Most policies also have significant limitations and exclusions. A good place to shop for and compare travel medical insurance is with a major online broker, such as InsureMyTrip.com, TripInsuranceStore.com, Squaremouth or QuoteWright.com. These companies don?t issue the policies, so for additional assurance, make sure the underwriting company is a member of the U.S. Travel Insurance Association. According to Christopher Elliott, a respected travel journalist and ombudsman, there are scammers in the travel insurance industry selling unlicensed and illegal insurance products. Elliot recommends that you always ask in which state the travel insurance company is regulated and get its state license number. Check the license number with your state insurance department, which you can find at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners? website. Medical evacuation Evacuation costs vary depending on the location and the severity of the medical problem. Typically, an evacuation can run anywhere from $10,000 to as much as $100,000. The U.S. Travel Insurance Association notes that when the quality of care needed is not available locally, medical evacuation services provide special transport arrangements, which can range from ground ambulance to medically staffed air ambulance. Depending on the patient?s condition, and the policy, transportation may be to the nearest medically adequate facility or to a hospital close to home. Ask the insurance broker who decides which hospital you end up at, a medical doctor, you, or the insurer? Exclusions It?s crucial to understand what?s not covered when weighing the merits and cost of a policy. As we?ve stated earlier, most companies will not cover claims from travelers in areas of the world where there is war or civil unrest. If you are pregnant or may become pregnant, coverage of any pregnancy related condition might be excluded. Make sure you are not traveling against the advice of your physician, since this is a common cop-out by insurers. Another is being under the influence of alcohol or non-prescription drugs when you become injured. If you are engaged in anything illegal when you get hurt, forget about coverage. Many people today travel in order to seek medical care in another country. Unfortunately, most medical travel policies exclude coverage for ?medical tourists.? Most standard travel medical insurance excludes injuries sustained while you are involved in extreme sports activities such as rock climbing, snow boarding, hiking in remote regions, etc. There are some companies that offer special policies for sports enthusiasts, but be prepared to pay a hefty premium for coverage of dangerous activities. Pre-existing conditions Various companies treat pre-existing conditions differently. Some will not pay for emergency care related to your pre-existing condition, some will cover conditions that have not reoccurred for specific time periods, and some will cover only acute onset of a pre-existing condition. Insurance companies may rule out pre-existing conditions that occurred anywhere from 60 days to three years prior to the date of coverage. Some insurers offer a ?waiver of pre-existing conditions? on package policies, if you purchase the policy shortly after booking the trip. Pre-existing condition coverage, if available, may exclude people above a certain age, such as age 70. Expect to pay more for a policy that covers pre-existing conditions. Due diligence Before you purchase travel medical insurance, ask for the following information: The insurance company?s licensing state and the license number. The policy underwriter, which is generally but not always different from the travel insurance company. Check the license with your state insurance regulator (find the agency at National Association of Insurance Commissioners) and verify the underwriter?s status with A.M. Best, the insurance rating company. When you have satisfied yourself that the company you are dealing with is a good risk, make sure everything that matters to you is down in writing in the policy before you sign and pay for it. Questions to ask Depending on which provisions are important to you, here are some questions to ask when shopping for medical trip insurance: Does the policy provide insurance coverage to pay for medical and hospital fees or just medical and emergency referral services, sometimes called ?benefit services?? What effect does choosing a higher deductible have on your premium? When does the coverage begin and end?when you leave home, or after you arrive at your destination? Does the company have a cancellation and refund policy, and if so, how does it work? How far must you travel from your permanent residence for coverage to apply? If pertinent, can you get a waiver of pre-existing medical conditions? If not, does the company offer a ?lookback period? for coverage of pre-existing medical conditions? Can the company be reached 24/7? Are there doctors and nurses on staff? Does the company have multilingual operators? Does the company pay for emergency hospital or medical costs? What is the out of pocket deductible and percentage of cost-sharing, if any? Does the company guarantee hospital payment, or will you be required to pay up front and submit reimbursement forms later? If pertinent, are pregnancy-related emergencies covered? Are children covered at no additional cost when traveling with a covered adult family member? Is medical evacuation included, or available for an additional premium? Is dental care included, or available for an additional premium? What other travel related benefits are included, such as trip cancellation, lost baggage, rental car loss-damage waiver, etc.? Longstanding medical trip insurance providers Source : Frommers.com, Nov 24, 2009 Company name /location Parent company Underwriter/A.M. Best Ratings Access America (aka Mondial) Richmond, VA Allianz BCS Insurance Company/A- (Excellent) Jefferson Insurance Company/A (Excellent) American Express Global Travel Shield New York, NY Amex Assurance Company Amex Assurance Company/A (Excellent) CSA Travel Protection San Diego, CA Same as company name U.S. Fire Insurance Company/A (Excellent) Stonebridge Casualty Insurance Company/A- (Excellent) MH Ross Travel Insurance Services Kansas City, MO Travel Insurance Services Old Republic Insurance Company/A+ (Superior) Travel Guard Stevens Point, WI AIU Holdings (formerly AIG) National Union Fire Insurance Company/A (Excellent) Travel Insured International East Hartford, CT Same as company name Arch Insurance Group/A (Excellent) Travelex Insurance Services Omaha, NE Travelex Insurance Group Old Republic Insurance Company/A+ (Superior) TravelSafe Insurance Wyomissing, PA Chester Perfetto Agency Stonebridge Casualty Insurance Company/A- (Excellent) Researching and buying travel insurance on the Internet American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) This industry association offers travel tips and advice at its TravelSense website. It also helps with consumer complaints about member travel agents. Visit ?About ASTA? at American Society of Travel Agents website. Elliott.org Run by travel expert and ombudsman Christopher Elliott, this site carries news and advice about travel related scams and mishaps of every variety, including travel insurance snafus. Users can register to add comments about their own experiences to educate others. Insure.com This website, which provides quotes on various kinds of insurance, also has consumer education articles about travel insurance, as well as other types of coverage. Visit http://www.insure.com/articles and choose Travel from the list at left. InsureMyTrip.com A popular website that offers an easy-to-use and read comparison of travel insurance policies from 16 major carriers. Visit the site or call 800-487-4722 for more information. International Association for Medical Assistance to Travelers (IAMAT) Offers access to U.S. trained, English speaking doctors worldwide. This non-profit connects consumers in need of emergency care to medical professionals, plus provides free travel health advice, immunization and disease risk information online. Referrals are free but donations are requested. Visit www.iamat.org or call 716-754-4883. Quotewright.com Compiles and compares insurance options based on user input and spells out some of the ?gotchas? buried in policy fine print, such as what constitutes a weather emergency. Includes online video tutorials. Visit the site or call 800-821-4940. Squaremouth.com Similar to InsureMyTrip.com and Quotewright.com, the site claims to offer more comprehensive results. It has a ?zero complaint? policy that removes an insurance carrier from the site if a complaint is not resolved to its satisfaction. Visit the site or call 800-240-0369. Travel Insurance Review This company?s editors review various travel companies. Individuals can also comment and post reviews. Visit Travel Insurance Review website. U.S Department of State Travel.state.gov, official source of information for Americans traveling abroad, has a site full of news, tips and alerts. The site is run by the Bureau of Consular Affairs. The agency strongly suggests that travelers who plan to leave the U.S. investigate if their existing health insurance covers them abroad and if necessary, urges them to consider purchasing medical and evacuation insurance. U.S. Travel Insurance Association The U.S. Travel Insurance Association website provides a list of questions consumer should ask before purchasing travel insurance, as well as a list of companies that are members in good standing with the organization. Visit www.ustia.org or call 800-224-6164. New limit on tarmac strandings Under new rules effective April 29, airline passengers can?t be kept on grounded planes for more than three hours without being allowed to disembark. Within two hours, carriers must provide passengers stuck on the tarmac with food and drinking water. Airlines also must keep bathrooms clean and in good order and provide medical attention. ?These new rules will require airlines to live up to their obligation to treat their customers fairly,? said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. Adopted last December, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) rules come in response to incidents where passengers were locked aboard grounded aircraft for hours on end. The DOT recently fined three airlines $175,000 for stranding passengers for six hours on a Minnesota airfield. The rule also: Prohibits airlines from retroactively changing contract terms for consumers who already purchased tickets. Prohibits airlines from scheduling chronically delayed flights and subjects them to fines for unfair and deceptive practices. Requires airlines to designate a staff member to monitor flight delays and cancellations, respond promptly to consumer complaints and give consumers information on how to file complaints. Requires airlines to post flight delay information on their websites for all domestic flights. Requires airlines to adopt customer service plans and carry out compliance audits on a regular basis. Credit card travel emergency services By Linda Sherry Many credit cards offer certain travel benefits, such as car rental loss and damage waiver provisions. However, premium credit cards may have even richer benefits for travelers. Credit cards with Visa Signature and World MasterCard premium status provide emergency medical and travel assistance and referral services when you travel?although the costs will fall on you in most cases. These cards are so-called ?preferred? accounts and are tough to get if you have poor or damaged credit. The services on Visa Signature include medical referral assistance, emergency transportation to medical facilities, prescription assistance and emergency translation services. Cardholders receive a minimum of $250,000 in accidental death and dismemberment insurance while flying, if the tickets were charged to the Visa card. The services on World MasterCard include family coverage against accidental death or dismemberment, if you purchase common carrier travel tickets with your card. MasterCard helps cardholders get referrals to a network of physicians and helps arrange hospital transfers if you are more than 100 miles from home. In addition, automatic World MasterCard trip cancellation insurance protects you if your trip (paid for on the card) is interrupted or canceled. Most American Express cards come with some basic benefits such as accidental death and dismemberment insurance and referrals to physicians through its Global Assist 24/7, but the company also offers cardholders additional services for a fee. For example, if you purchase your airline ticket using your eligible American Express card, and enroll in Travel Protection Delay for $9.95 per covered person, you are provided with up to $200 per day for two days when stranded with no alternative transportation. Its Global Medical plan covers emergency medical, dental and medical transport expenses for an extra fee. Trip insurance questions answered By Ruth Susswein Q If I buy trip insurance will the insurance company pay the bills directly? No. Typically, you are expected to pay the bill upfront and the insurer will reimburse you. Trip insurance is usually secondary coverage, meaning that your trip insurance policy would apply once any other coverage is exhausted. If you have another policy (homeowner?s, etc.) or another company (the airline, tour operator, etc.) in line to pay for, repair, replace or cover a loss, that coverage would be the primary protection. Q There are so many policies to choose from ? how will I know which is the right one for me? Make your choice based on coverage and cost. Is the policy likely to protect you from the things you are most concerned about, such as medical coverage or financial losses? Insurance expert John Cook says most companies have four different price levels. Ask for the ?basic? plan and compare it to the more pricey options. Q How do I know if the trip insurance company is healthy? Focus on the insurance company and underwriter rather than the sales agent. Insurance companies are state regulated and are rated by A.M.Best, the credit rating agency for financial service companies. The trip insurance comparison site Squaremouth.com is one source that lists each insurer?s rating. You also can go to the A.M. Best website and click on ?Consumers? to check ratings for individual companies. Q Does it matter when I purchase trip insurance? It depends on the type of coverage you are seeking. If you want medical coverage and are concerned about a pre-existing condition, or you want cancel for any reason coverage, usually you must purchase it within two weeks of making a deposit on your trip. Q If I buy the optional cancel for any reason policy and I cancel my trip, will I get 100% of my money back? Probably not. Unless you cancel many months in advance of the trip, you may not get a full refund. Typically, cancel for any reason plans reimburse only 75% to 80% of your expenses. Q What if I submit a claim and it?s denied. Do I have the right to dispute it? Yes. Be sure you obtain the reason for the denial in writing. If you believe your claim is valid, file an appeal with the insurance company. Don?t ignore a company?s request for information because this alone could cause a claim?s denial. If you are still dissatisfied with the outcome take your dispute to your state insurance department. To find your state agency, use the nationwide search function on the National Association of Insurance Commissioners? website. |
| When in Doubt, Insure |
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| June 14, 2010 When in Doubt, Insure By DAVID A. KELLY IT?S only June, and already what a year it?s been for travelers: volcanic ash clouds shutting down dozens of European airports; unrest in Thailand, Jamaica and Greece; an oil spill undermining the plans of vacationers bound for the Gulf of Mexico coast. The summer ? with its risk of hurricanes and the threat of airline strikes ? promises little respite. No wonder so many people are looking into travel insurance. ?We?ve seen a nearly 50 percent increase in calls since the Icelandic volcano eruption in April,? said Bob Chambers, director of operations for the San Diego-based CSA Travel Protection. ?The calls are coming from prospective customers inquiring about plan coverage for things such as the volcano, oil spill and other events, as well as current customers seeking reassurance they will be covered.? Other companies are reporting similar interest. Daniel Durazo, director of communications for Access America, in Richmond, Va., estimates that his company has received a 30 percent increase in inquiries since April. But navigating the complexities of travel insurance can be onerous, especially since it?s unclear exactly what kind of insurance is needed for what eventuality. Different policies offer coverage of accidental death; emergency medical care and evacuation; canceled, interrupted or delayed trips; and lost, damaged, stolen or delayed luggage. To decide which policy is right, first identify your concerns. Are you looking for trip cancellation insurance in case you get sick or need to return home early or can?t go at all? Or are you looking to protect yourself against a trip being interrupted or delayed ? which was the situation during the recent volcano? Next step: price it out. Costs can vary from about 3 to 16 percent or more of the total trip price, depending on the traveler?s age, and the cost and length of the trip. According to John W. Cook, president of QuoteWright.com, a Web site that compares travel policies, the price for a comprehensive policy for a 55-year-old from New York going to Europe on a $3,000 trip would vary from $102 to $486. ?It?s not unusual for plan costs to vary over 300 percent, so make sure you shop around for the best coverage,? Mr. Cook said. Sites such as QuoteWright or InsureMyTrip.com compare policies according to various criteria, including price and coverage details. It?s important to understand the limitations of various policies. In situations where potential problem scenarios aren?t covered, or you?re concerned about loopholes, consider purchasing a ?cancel for any reason? option, which ?allows a traveler to cancel a trip for any reason whatsoever, no questions asked,? said Samuel H. Rabin, senior vice president of the Tzell New Jersey Travel Group, who noted that such policies come at a price. ?The premium is an additional 50 percent of the base premium of the normal comprehensive plan, and it only pays out 75 percent of your losses, not 100 percent.? Here?s a primer on how travel insurance works in various scenarios: Volcanic ash clouds Experts say the Icelandic volcano could erupt intermittently for quite a while and that ash clouds could form at any time. So far, such clouds have generally been considered a ?weather situation? by insurance companies, and expenses related to the disruption ? including hotels and transportation ? have been covered under trip cancellation, trip interruption, missed connection and travel delay policies. However, if an ash cloud is currently hovering over a particular region you are flying into or out of, or is imminently expected, new policies probably won?t cover it until the condition clears. Thus, make sure to purchase insurance while ash is not an issue. Airline strikes In general, strikes by workers on airlines or trains are ?named perils? and, if specified in the policy, are covered, though the insurance should be purchased before a strike is announced. For example, the recent strike by Spirit Airlines pilots, or a strike by British Airways? cabin crews would be covered by trip cancellation, trip interruption or travel delay policies, as long as the strike is reasonably unforeseeable at the time you buy your policy. ?If you cancel your trip due to a strike, the insurance would have covered expenses associated with the cancellation,? Mr. Rabin said in an e-mail message. ?If you were stuck and couldn?t get home due to the strike, your expenses would have been covered (up to the cap, of course, which varies by policy).? Civil or political unrest Travel disruptions due to political or civil unrest, or by State Department travel warnings, are generally not covered by insurance. Most policies won?t reimburse you for expenses related to riots, protests or police activity. However, if the disruption is a result of a terrorist incident and the city is on your itinerary during the event, the policy will most likely cover it. Oil Spills Oil spills are not typically ?named perils? and are usually not covered. Insurance is a highly regulated industry, and new perils such as oil spills the size of the one in the Gulf of Mexico are typically not included in existing policies. ?If you want potential coverage for trips impacted by an oil spill, purchase a plan with a ?cancel for any reason? option,? Mr. Cook said. ?That will provide a safety net for reasons not covered under basic plans.? Hurricanes Hurricanes are covered as weather events or natural disasters, and insurance must be bought before the storm is named. Also, your destination would have to be made uninhabitable or your flight unable to leave for a minimum of 24 hours in order for the policy to pay out. ?The biggest thing about coverage for a hurricane is that it?s got to be unforeseeable at the time of purchase and you cannot cancel your trip out of worry or fear,? Mr. Cook said. Medical emergency Medical expense and medical evacuation insurance covers urgent medical assistance when something unforeseen happens while you?re abroad, or when you need to be evacuated. Both are usually part of a comprehensive travel insurance policy and are included in the price. ?Consider what would happen if you?re riding a camel in Egypt and get thrown off it,? said David Rowell, publisher of The Travel Insider Web site and newsletter, who recommends travel medical insurance. ?If you have medical evacuation insurance, you can have a helicopter fly out to get you. It takes nine seats to put a stretcher in a plane. That?s a huge cost that people never think about when it comes to medical evacuation.? Also consider Tour operators and cruise lines often sell insurance, but it is not always advantageous to travelers who adjust a packaged trip. For example, if you?re taking a cruise but buying the airfare on your own, or adding a few days before or after the cruise, it probably makes sense to buy insurance separately, so that the whole trip (and not just the cruise or tour portion) is covered. Also, most tour operator and cruise line plans exclude their own bankruptcy. You should also make sure you understand your existing insurance policies (medical, for instance) and what it covers when you?re traveling. For example, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts covers medical emergencies for its members when they?re traveling abroad. Medicare and Medigap plans provide little or no coverage outside the United States, so purchasing travel medical insurance can be an important consideration. Finally, know whether the policy provides primary or secondary coverage. Primary coverage tends to be more expensive, but the company pays claims first. If you?ve purchased secondary coverage, you?ll have to first tap your homeowners?, personal medical or other insurance that might apply. |
| Take the Mystery Out of Trip Cancellation Insurance |
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An easy way to analyze and compare trip cancellation insurance from QuoteWright.com.
East Hartford, CT., April 11, 2005 -- Insurance can be confusing and in some cases overwhelming. There are many things to consider but the foremost concern that most people think of is: Can I afford to lose the cost of my trip if I have to cancel or interrupt my travel plans? If the answer is that you can?t afford to lose the money, then you want to buy trip cancellation insurance. But how do you find the right plan? John Cook, President of QuoteWright.com has the following advice: ?It?s not as hard as you think. The first thing you have to understand is that trip cancellation insurance is sold as part of a ?package? of travel insurance. Packages are plans that are pre-bundled by the insurance companies. The second thing to understand is that not all trip cancellation insurance is the same. They do have some commonalities where the benefits are concerned but they don?t all share the same covered reasons or exclusions. Because of the differences it is important that you shop around and find the plan that is closest to your needs. How do you determine the plan that best fits your needs? It?s easy if you follow a 4 step process: 1. Take a look at the plans? benefits. These are the financial losses that will be reimbursed by the insurance company. This is the area of trip cancellation/interruption coverage where the plans are basically similar. Most of them will reimburse you non-refundable deposits and fees if you have to cancel or interrupt your trip and will pay additional, economy transportation charges if you must interrupt your trip. 2. Trip cancellation/interruption coverage is ?named peril? coverage. Translated that means that the policies have specific ?covered reasons? that are recognized by the travel insurance companies as valid reasons for a claim. Read these ?covered reasons? carefully because if the reason you cancel is not listed within the plan then you will not be covered. As an example some companies say that in order to be covered for ?financial default? of an airline, cruise line, or tour operator that you must buy your travel through a third party rather than directly with the airline, cruise line, or tour operator and you must buy the coverage within a specific time period of your intial trip deposit. 3. Look at the exclusions and the pre-existing medical conditions clause. These exclusions are used to limit the ?covered reasons? and should be read carefully and in concert with the ?covered reasons?. Many of the plans will waive the pre-existing conditions clause if you purchase your insurance within a 10 to 21 day period(depends on the plan) from when you pay your initial trip deposit. 4. Finally, look at the definition of ?family member." Trip cancellation/interruption coverage usually will include coverage if you must cancel or interrupt your trip due to a medical reason or death of a ?family member? regardless of whether they are traveling with you. However, not all companies define ?family members? the same. Some companies will provide a broader definition than others. Some companies will provide coverage if you must cancel or interrupt your trip because of the ?family members? of traveling companions while others will only cover you if the travel companion has cancelled due to a medical reason or has died. Another helpful hint is that when you are reading a policy you will find some terms and words capitalized. Usually when you find a word or phrase that is capitalized when it normally shouldn?t be it indicates that it has a special meaning and you should look at the plan?s definitions to understand what it means within the plan you are comparing.? Keeping these points in mind will help you find the travel insurance plan that will best fit your traveling needs. There are other coverages that you have to view as well but if trip cancellation/interruption insurance is your primary concern stay focused on that first and than review the others coverages after you've found the trip cancellation that is best for you.. About QuoteWright.com QuoteWright.com is a division of BC Group, LLC. It is an on-line travel insurance comparison site that provides consumers with the ability to compare and select the plan that is best for their travel needs. BC Group is highly intergraded with their travel insurance partners and offers coverages from the major travel insurance companies. The principals of BC are nationally known and respected experts in the field of travel insurance and have over 80 years of combined experience. Interested parties can find BC Group at http://www.quotewright.com or by calling them at 800-821-4940. ### |
| QuoteWright.com Announces a New Service for Clients Trying to Apply for Schengen Visa's |
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QuoteWright.com announces a new service for consumers that need to comply with Schengen medical insurance requirements for their entry Visa. March 10, 2005 -- QuoteWright.com, the leading aggregator of travel insurance in the USA, announced today an improved service for travelers who need travel medical insurance in order to qualify for a visa to visit a Schengen country. Travelers who must obtain a visa in order to visit a Schengen country must show proof of medical insurance when applying for their entry visa. QuoteWright has improved their system so consumers can now compare and view travel medical insurance plans that conform to these requirement by simply selecting the option to "Fulfill Visa Insurance Requirement" when starting a quote. "By selecting this option, our system will only show the client those plans that they qualify for and that meet or exceed the Schengen visa requirement for insurance" explained John Cook, President of QuoteWright.com. "In most cases clients will have their choice of over 50 plans that meet or exceed their requirements." He further explained that QuoteWright.com will fax proof of coverage to them within minutes of their request. "This is a value added service that we provide free of charge to our clients and that supports our pledge to provide quality service." About QuoteWright.com QuoteWright is a division of the BC Group, LLC. of East Hartford, CT. BC Group, LLC. is a licensed insurance agency that specializes in travel insurance coverages. It was established in 2001 and is headquartered in East Hartford, CT. Ever since its creation, it has been assisting consumers in finding appropriate travel coverages. BC Group is highly integrated with their partners and offers coverages from the major travel insurance companies. The principals of BC are nationally known and respected experts in the field of travel insurance and have over 80 years of combined experience. Interested parties can find BC Group at http://www.quotewright.com or by calling them at 800-821-4940. |
| QuoteWright.com and HTH Worldwide Announce Travel Insurance Partnership |
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The Nation's Leading Online Travel Insurance Marketplace to Offer HTH Worldwide International Health Insurance and Trip Protection Plans. East Hartford, CT. February 16, 2005 -- QuoteWright.com, the nation's leading online travel insurance market source announced today a business partnership with HTH Worldwide, a leader in international health insurance and medical assistance services, serving hundreds of thousands of world travelers annually. "This relationship strengthens the ability of consumer's all over the USA and Canada to compare and gain access to the very comprehensive HTH Worldwide protection plans," said QuoteWright.com President John Cook. "HTH provides cost effective travel insurance plans. Consumers who visit our site can use our marketplace to do a side by side comparison of available plans and make clear and informed decisions about coverage for their trip." About QuoteWright.com QuoteWright.com is a division of BC Group, LLC. The BC Group is a travel insurance aggregator that was established in 2001 and is headquartered in East Hartford, CT. Ever since it's creation it has been assisting consumers in finding appropriate travel insurance coverage. BC Group is highly intergraded with their partners and offers coverages from the major travel insurance companies. The principals of BC are nationally known and respected experts in the field of travel insurance and have over 80 years of combined experience. Interested parties can find BC Group at http://www.quotewright.com or by calling them at 800-821-4940. |
| Leading Online Travel Insurance Marketplace to Offer IMG-Administered Plans |
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East Hartford, CT (PRWEB) January 19, 2005 -- QuoteWright.com, the nation's top online travel insurance marketplace, announced today they will offer travel medical plans that are administered by International Medical Group® (IMG®).
"By offering these products, our clients have access to a very broad range of comprehensive travel and medical protection plans," said QuoteWright President John Cook. "IMG® offers cost-effective travel insurance plans that are highly competitive. Our clients have more options when visiting our site to compare plans, side by side, giving them the ability to make clear and informed decisions about coverage that they need for their trips." QuoteWright.com is the leading, one-stop, consolidated marketplace specifically designed to provide consumers with the ability to compare and select travel insurance that is best for their trips. About QuoteWright: QuoteWright is a division of the BC Group, LLC. of East Hartford, CT. BC Group, LLC. is a licensed insurance agency that specializes in travel insurance coverages. It was established in 2001 and is headquartered in East Hartford, CT. Ever since its creation, it has been assisting consumers in finding appropriate travel coverages. BC Group is highly integrated with their partners and offers coverages from the major travel insurance companies. The principals of BC are nationally known and respected experts in the field of travel insurance and have over 80 years of combined experience. Interested parties can find BC Group at www.quotewright.com or by calling them at 800-821-4940. QuoteWright is a trademark of the BC Group, LLC About International Medical Group, Inc.: IMG is a worldwide leader in designing, distributing and administering global healthcare benefits. Since 1990, they have built a solid reputation by providing medical security to hundreds of thousands of individuals, families and groups in more than 150 countries. For more information, please call 800-628-4664 or visit them at www.imglobal.com. |
| Travel Insurance and Natural Disasters |
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(PRWEB) January 7, 2005 -- Recently there have been many questions about travel insurance and natural disasters and whether or not coverage exists for these "acts of God." John Cook, President of QuoteWright.com a division of the BC Group, LLC., explained recently that there are many travel insurance policies and that most of them will respond to these types of emergencies. Perhaps the most popular type of travel insurance are the "Package" plans that are pre-bundled by insurance companies and sold as a Package of coverages. Coverages contained in these packages will vary from policy to policy even within the same insurance company. Some of the coverages will pay for losses due to a natural disaster. Here are some of the more popular coverages found in Package Policies and how they may respond: Trip Cancellation/Interruption: Usually not covered. Trip Cancellation/Interruption is named "peril" coverage and most policies do not include the "peril" of natural disaster. Those that do will require that the disaster causes your home or destination to be uninhabitable. Natural disasters that are caused by weather are also covered by some policies as long as your common carrier is delayed or cancelled as a direct result. Travel Delay: Most policies will cover travel delays (additional living expense) due to a natural disaster. This coverage is also named "peril" coverage and most policies include natural disasters as a "peril". Medical Expense: Most travel medical coverages are broad coverages and will cover medical expenses due to injuries sustained as a result of a natural disaster. Emergency Medical Evacuation: Same as medical expense. Generally this a broad form of coverage that will pay for Emergency Medical Evacuations caused by either injuries or sicknesses as a result of a natural disaster. This coverage usually also provides for the shipment of mortal remains and sometimes will pay for a family member to join an injured client. Accidental Death and Dismemberment: Most policies that offer this coverage do so as a broad form that will provide benefits as a result of Death or Dismemberment caused by injuries received as a result of a natural disaster. Some Accidental Death and Dismemberment coverage are restricted to accidents that occur while riding on a common carrier or on a scheduled airline. These types would not respond unless the accident occurred while as passenger. Baggage: Usually broad coverage that would provide coverage for lost or damaged baggage and personal effects that were the result of the natural disaster. "It is important that consumers understand the travel insurance that is available and that they make an informed decision when they choose a policy for their trip" explained Mr. Cook. About BC Group, LLC.: BC Group, LLC. is a travel insurance aggregator that was established in 2001 and is headquartered in East Hartford, CT. Ever since it's creation it has been assisting consumers in finding appropriate travel insurance coverage. BC Group is highly intergraded with their partners and offers coverages from the major travel insurance companies. The principals of BC are nationally known and respected experts in the field of travel insurance and have over 80 years of combined experience. Interested parties can find BC Group at http://www.quotewright.com or by calling them at 800-821-4940. QuoteWright is a trademark of the BC Group, LLC. |
| Leading Online Travel Insurance Marketplace to Offer CSA Plans. |
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East Hartford, CT (PRWEB) November 24, 2004 -- www.quotewright.com, the nation's top online travel insurance marketplace, announced today a business partnership with CSA Travel Protection, a leading supplier of travel protection plans. "Adding this relationship gives our client's access to the very comprehensive CSA protection plans," said QuoteWright President John Cook. "CSA provides cost effective travel insurance packages that are highly competitive. Consumers have another option when visiting our site to compare plans, side by side, and make clear and informed decisions about coverage that they need for their trip."
QuoteWright.com is the leading, one-stop, consolidated marketplace specifically designed to provide consumers with the ability to compare and select travel insurance that is best for their trip. About QuoteWright: QuoteWright is a division of the BC Group, LLC. of East Hartford, CT. BC Group, LLC. is a licensed insurance agency that specializes in travel insurance coverages. It was established in 2001 and is headquartered in East Hartford, CT. Ever since it's creation it has been assisting consumers in finding appropriate travel insurance coverage. BC Group is highly intergraded with their partners and offers coverages from the major travel insurance companies. The principals of BC are nationally known and respected experts in the field of travel insurance and have over 80 years of combined experience. Interested parties can find BC Group at http://www.quotewright.com or by calling them at 800-821-4940. QuoteWright is a trademark of the BC Group, LLC |
| Statler's CruiseTrends |
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World Traveler & Reporter Takes Cruising Passion to the Air & Internet
S. Earl Statler, 40-year TV and radio veteran reporter/anchor, has been hosting and producing his radio cruise magazine program in the Southern California radio market for the last two years. His radio reports and programs - hour-long Porthole to the Cruise World and Statler's Cruise Trends, have been broadcast on KCAA 1050AM and KRLA 590AM. KCAA 1050AM, the Southern California NBC radio news affiliate, is the program's flag station for its radio syndication on the Genesis Communications Network. Statler's CruiseTrends will air on Sunday evenings 8 PM (Central Time) on the Genesis Network. National program time will vary according to time zones. The program will be broadcast "live" so that Statler can take "callers" from across America. Genesis Network also syndicates Barry Lynn's Culture Shock, The Alex Jones Show, and Linda Salvin's Visions and Solutions. Genesis will syndicate Statler's program to over 130 stations across America. Statler's CruiseTrends format features interviews with cruise industries' movers and shakers; the latest cruise fare deals; exotic Ports-of Call features; cruise travel book reviews, and the latest cruise news. Since June of 2004, Statler has completed 200 radio features on cruise topics such as: cruising the wine country of California; selecting the best cruise travel and medical insurance; Bob Dickinson's (Carnival Cruises' president) new book, "The Complete 21st Century Travel Marketing Textbook," and cruising the great rivers of China on Viking River Cruises. Statler's 40 years as a print and electronic media reporter is obvious due to his in-depth interviewing techniques. He explains that he gets behind the story by delving into "what makes the people behind the scenes tick. Often you find, that the 'why' is more interesting that the 'what' when you get to the end of the interview," Statler notes. His guest list reads like a "Who's Who" of the cruise industry. Statler's CruiseTrends can be heard each weekend via broadcast radio, satellite transmission, and Internet streaming. S. Earl Statler's 40-year career as a broadcaster and reporter and his career as a cruise port lecturer for Princess Cruises, Holland America Lines, and the Cunard Line uniquely makes him..."The Savvy Cruiser." In the last two years, Statler's radio broadcasts have been broadcast on satellite in Southern California from Royal Caribbean International's Radiance of the Seas from San Diego, Calif.; Astoria, Ore.; Vancouver and Victoria, B.C., and Juneau, Ketchikan, and Skagway, Alaska. He has also done his program, "Live from Carnival's Pride" from Long Beach, Calif.; Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta, and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. In mid-November Statler's production company, Statler Media Group, started broadcasting Cruise information related programming on the Internet 24/7 at WWW.CruiseTrendsRadio.com. Dennis Baxter, Vice President of Programming, for the Internet Company announced this week that the station's programming will include Statler's radio programs, world news, world destination cruiser weather, along with additional Cruise related "Specials." Baxter also notes that, "CruiseTrendsRadio.com will also air Captain's Table, which stars Internationally known corporate staging, etiquette and Protocol expert Bet Martin." John Cook owner of QuoteWright.com will also host a half hour program about travel insurance and staying safe while on vacation. Mr. Cook has been an insurance broker for over twenty-five years on the East coast. Also joining the WWW.CruiseTrendsRadio.Com radio line-up is Dr Cass Ingram who is a world-renowned expert on health issues, author, lecturer, and has been a guest on hundreds of radio and television programs. Dr. Ingram's radio program will discuss ways to stay healthy on your cruise, vaccinations and health issue. Dr. Cass will host Better Health for Better Cruising weekly. Statler comments, "Although it's a lot more work, we enjoy doing the show from exotic locations. I've been cruising since the early 1950s and I am third generation Hawaii-born. We always traveled at least one way on our yearly trip to the mainland by ship. Cruising is in my blood," he added, with the look of wanderlust in his eyes. Statler's Porthole to the Cruise World can be heard on KCAA 1050AM in Southern California; check www.portholeradio.com for air time or call 909-889-3455. You can e-mail S. Earl Statler at statler@searlstatler.com. |
| QuoteWright.com Publishes "Fairness Pledge" for Consumers |
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East Hartford, CT (PRWEB) November 19, 2004 -- BC Group, LLC a leading travel insurance broker since 2001, pledges to consumer that they will be unbiased and not influenced by commissions paid to BC Group, LLC.
John Cook, President of BC Group, today announced the publication of their "Fairness Pledge" to travel insurance consumers. John states that "in today's environment consumers need to know that we will always fairly display travel insurance products on our site without being biased by the level of commission that we receive from our partner insurance companies. It's for this reason we decided to publish our own company policy as a pledge to our current and future client's." "Our Fairness Pledge states: BC Group, LLC. is a licensed insurance agency located in East Hartford, CT. We are paid commissions by the insurance companies on our site. Commissions are a percentage of the premium that you pay and are built into the cost of the insurance policy. They vary by company and by plan. We do not receive any bonus or contingency commissions from any of our companies. It is unlawful for us to offer you a discount (rebate) by discounting our commission. Additionally it is unlawful for our insurance companies to offer you the same coverage at a lower rate because of a discounted commission. We promise you that we will not steer you to plans that offer us higher or better commissions. At all times we will fairly and accurately show all plans from our partner companies so that you will be able to choose based on your needs regardless of their profitability to our company. We will make no distinction based on our commission." About BC Group, LLC.: BC Group, LLC. is a travel insurance aggregator that was established in 2001 and is headquartered in East Hartford, CT. Ever since it's creation it has been assisting consumers in finding appropriate travel insurance coverage. BC Group is highly intergraded with their partners and offers coverages from the major travel insurance companies. The principals of BC are nationally known and respected experts in the field of travel insurance and have over 80 years of combined experience. Interested parties can find BC Group at http://www.quotewright.com or by calling them at 800-821-4940. QuoteWright is a trademark of the BC Group, LLC. |
| When Should You Buy Travel Insurance? |
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East Hartford, CT (PRWEB) October 27, 2004 -- BC Group, LLC a leading travel insurance broker since 2001, encourages travel insurance consumers to buy travel insurance at the same time that they are putting deposits down for their trips.
John Cook, President of BC Group and one of the most respected experts in the field of travel insurance strongly recommends that today's consumers seriously consider buying travel insurance at the same time that they are putting down their initial trip deposit. "The reason is simple", John explains, "most travel insurance companies that offer the broad, comprehensive travel insurance that includes trip cancellation coverage, offer very valuable incentives that are time sensitive in order to encourage clients to buy the insurance early. The most important incentive is that the majority of companies will waive their pre-existing conditions exclusion if the insurance is purchased around the time of the client's first trip payment. Eliminating the pre-existing conditions exclusion is a major benefit for the client and removes an area of the policy that has always caused confusion and misunderstanding. In addition most companies will also provide financial default coverage incase an airline, cruise line, or tour operator goes bankrupt and your trip is cancelled or interrupted. Both of these benefits are important and can be added to most policies just by buying them within the required time period." About BC Group, LLC. BC Group, LLC. is a national online travel insurance broker that was created in 2001. It is Headquartered in East Hartford, CT. Ever since it's creation it has been educating and assisting consumers and insurance professionals in find appropriate travel insurance coverage. BC Group is highly integrated with their partner companies and offers consumers coverage from the major travel insurance companies. The principals of BC are nationally known and respected experts in the field of travel insurance and have over 80 years of combined experience. Interested parties can find BC Group at http://www.quotewright.com or by calling them at 800-821-4940. QuoteWright is a trademark of the BC Group, LLC. |
| Revolutionary Technology From One of the Leading Travel Insurance Brokers |
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BC Group, LLC. of East Hartford, CT introduces new, proprietary, web based technology to assist consumers in finding, comparing, and buying travel insurance online.
East Hartford, CT (PRWEB) September 21, 2004 -- BC Group, LLC a leading travel insurance broker since 2001, unveils a revolutionary web based technology that allows consumers to find, research, compare, and buy travel insurance online. John Cook, President of BC Group, today announced the introduction of their new "QuoteWright" system for the quoting, comparing, and purchasing of travel insurance. John states that "our new 'QuoteWright' technology, allows a consumer more control over how they can research and buy travel insurance online. QuoteWright provides the consumer with only those plans for which they qualify. The consumer controls how the plans are sorted thus giving them a tool when shopping for travel insurance that is based on their needs. With our new web based system, clients can, for the first time, sort through applicable plans and compare coverages on a side-by-side basis. Never before has the consumer had this much control in finding which travel insurance policy is the right one. This is exciting and new technology. And if they need help in finding a plan we have the most experienced customer support staff just a phone call away." About BC Group, LLC.: BC Group, LLC. is a national travel insurance broker that was established in 2001 and is headquartered in East Hartford, CT. Ever since it's creation it has been assisting consumers in finding appropriate travel insurance coverage. BC Group is highly intergraded with their partners and offers coverages from the major travel insurance companies. The principals of BC are nationally known and respected experts in the field of travel insurance and have over 80 years of combined experience. Interested parties can find BC Group at http://www.travelnsurance.com and http://www.quotewright.com or by calling them at 800-821-4940. Travelnsurance and QuoteWright are trademarks of the BC Group, LLC. |
| A NEW MARKET FOR TRAVEL INSURANCE |
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| East Hartford, CT. Jan 15, 2002 - BC Group, LLC. on Monday announced a revolutionary new service designed specifically to provide insurance professionals with market access to America's leading underwriters of travel insurance.The service, www.insuremyclient.com, is designed to provide Agents with access to the leading travel insurance products allowing both agents and their clients to analyze, rate and compare different plans and policies all in real time. Registered agents can order policies online and participate in the competitive commission program available as part of the service. John Cook, President of BC Group, said, "This is the first time that insurance professionals have been offered direct access to the travel insurance markets in such a centralized, comprehensive way. Now, instead of losing sales because agents lacked access to the market, they can now go to a single source to find the latest travel insurance products offered by the Nation's leading underwriters." Cook further stated that there are no fees or other obligations for registering. InsureMyClient.Com is a joint venture of BC Group, LLC. and IMT Services Corp., a leading provider of internet technology solutions for the travel insurance industry. |
