I read today that Carnival Corp, the owner of the ill-fated Costa Concordia has stated that they are providing “lodging, refunds and other support to people affected by the accident”.  I instantly thought about what would have been covered by travel insurance if Carnival didn’t step up to the plate to do the right thing. [...]

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 [...]

The United States Department of Transportation has established new rules governing advertising that go into effect on January 24, 2012.  The new rules establish higher standards for how airlines, tour operators, and travel agents advertise airfares.  Here are some highlights: Airfares will now have to be advertised inclusive of all fees including taxes. Post-purchase increases [...]

Part of the college student experience is often at least some traveling, whether it’s a week for spring break or a longer period taking online courses while abroad or in an exchange program. When you’re away from home, especially in another country, your risks increase for a wide range of issues from theft to injury [...]

What is a “moral hazard”?  It is a term used in insurance circles that describes the subjective choices a person makes or could make because they have insurance.  Wikipedia describes it as: In economic theory, moral hazard is a situation in which a party insulated from risk behaves differently from how it would behave if [...]