travel insurance | is Consumer Reports right?

Consumer Reports researched travel insurance in its May issue. CR's conclusion? It is rarely needed. "Many people don't realize it," said Editor at Large Greg Daugherty, "but travel insurance often duplicates coverage they already have through their credit cards, homeowners insurance, life insurance, and other policies."

You should definitely do your due diligence. What will your health and auto insurance cover if you are out of the country? What coverage does your credit card offer? Duplicating coverage is an unnecessary expense. Consider, however, that the number one reason to purchase travel insurance is for trip cancellation, interruption, or delays. According to a travel industry spokesperson,

The article ignores a very important fact: the vast majority (70%) of travel insurance claims are for trip cancellation, interruption and travel delay. Covered reasons for these benefits include: sickness, injury or death of a traveler or a non-traveling family member; or for non-medical reasons such as adverse weather; or damage or destruction of a home, etc. While we agree it is important to see if coverage is provided by other policies, for the vast majority of the above claim types, consumers will find there is very little coverage, other than travel insurance, that would reimburse their loss.

Here are scenarios in which you should seriously consider trip insurance.

• You are going on a cruise. Cruises are pre-paid, and cancellation penalties get higher as your cruise approaches. Heavily discounted, promotional cruise rates are often totally pre-paid and non-refundable. Check to see if your cruise company offers some sort of "peace of mind" insurance that refunds your deposits if you cancel for whatever reason.
• You are taking a packaged tour. Tour packages, likewise, involve deposits and full pre-payments. If you have to cancel for health reasons or for a personal or family emergency ... trip insurance can protect you.
• You are staying in a resort during high season. Resorts often require deposits and can have rather lengthy cancellation deadlines. Again, trip insurance can save you thousands of dollars.

A company to consider: Travelex. Why? With their Travel Plus or TravelLite policies, multiple children under the age of 16 are covered at no additional cost when accompanied by a covered adult family member.

If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.
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