A vacation isn't as big an investment as your car or your home. But it's still a lot of money. You purchase airfare and accommodations. Maybe excursions or other activities. Most of it paid for entirely in advance. Isn’t all this value worth insuring, in case some unforeseen problem threatens your travel plans?
Here are the top 8 reasons to buy trip insurance:
1. Lost luggage
Whether your luggage is lost, stolen or damaged, it could get expensive to replace all the contents, including clothes, electronic devices and medication. Travel insurance could help cover much of the cost of these items.
2. Someone gets sick or hurt
This might be the most common cause of ruined vacations. If you or a travel companion were to get sick right before your planned trip and you have to cancel, you could lose the full cost of the trip. Or if a medical emergency crops up during your trip and you need to come home early, in many cases there may be no reimbursement available. That’s where travel insurance could come in handy.
3. Foreign hospitals
Your health insurance often doesn't apply in foreign countries, so you could get stuck paying for an entire hospital stay – unless you have the right travel coverage.
4. Emergency airlifts
If you need to be flown to a hospital or evacuated from a danger zone, helicopter transport could cost you thousands of dollars. Travel insurance may cover these types of costs.
5. Loss of a friend or family member
Say someone really close to you passes away just before your departure date. With trip cancellation coverage, you may be able to cancel or postpone your vacation in the event of a tragedy.
6. Early returns
If you have to fly home immediately and cancel the rest of your trip, the airline could charge you for your flight changes – even for an emergency. Travel insurance may help reimburse you those fees.
7. Damaged destinations
When a hurricane or winter storm closes the airport for days keeping you from reaching the resort you’re heading to, you could lose the cost of airfare, side trips and even what you’ve paid for the resort. Buying your travel insurance policy when you book your trip may help you get reimbursed for these costs.
8. Your job gets in the way
Even though your trip has been on the work schedule for weeks, what if your back-up leaves the company or you're offered a new job that starts immediately? Travel insurance may be able to help if you have a cancel for a work-related reason.
If you’re planning a trip, now is the time to start thinking seriously about buying travel insurance.
