I never bought travel insurance [health, cancellation, interruption etc]. until a few years ago when an emergency surgery stopped me from going on a scheduled trip. I lost a huge amount of money. Since then I have always taken out insurance and have of course never needed it. I am faced with the same dilemma now. Working out how much I would lose in non - refundable payments versus the cost of the insurance is driving me nuts. Some companies/hotels stipulate that you can get a portion of the payment back if you cancel within so many days others have different rules. Just reading all that gives me a headache. ITN [International Travel News] if you are not familiar with it it's a good magazine, always seems to have letters in it from people stating how thankful they are that they had insurance. I mustn' t forget to mention that I'm really old. Opinions and advice please.

My very elderly mother has occasionally been in poor health the last few years so we have purchased the insurance in case we needed to cancel everything at the last minute.

Whether or not you need it is a very personal decision. Only you know your circumstances. If possible, talk it over with a trusted friend or family member.

Ever since a good friend died following an accident in the Caribbean--he had to be airlifted to Miami--we have taken trip insurance that includes air evacuation, repatriation of remains, and emergency medical treatment. Better safe than sorry, I think.

I tend to think of the cost of an annual travel policy as being a tiny, tiny fraction of my travel costs in any given year. The annual policy cost may be the equivalent of one night in a hotel or some thing like that.

However, I had to make quite a substantial claim once so maybe I look at it slightly differently. I don't really consider whether my claim outweighs all my premiums paid to date but you never know how big a future claim may be.

Buy the insurance.

It'll give you peace of mind before and during the trip, if nothing else.

Be sure to get it from a reputable, independent company - not from the same company that sells you the cruise or the tour.

Travel safely!

I think of the medical/evacuation part of the trip insurance the same way I do insurance here at home - worth paying for, hope we never need it. The other types of coverage are handy, too. I usually get a decent policy on a per-trip basis for $85-105 (for both of us).

Here is a good website for comparing types and links to various companies:
http://insuremytrip.com/

If you have money tied up, might as well get it as long as you read the fine print and really think you are going to be covered for what you fear. I didn't think it was too terribly expensive for those spending huge amounts of money on vacations.

I don't ever buy it because I have health insurance and wouldn't lose anything if I didn't go on vacation -- maybe an airline ticket change fee, but that's it. I have never prepaid a hotel in my life, why are you doing that? I know you have to pay for cruises and tours in advance, of course.

If you are indeed really old, then don't you need it for the health insurance alone? Or do you have some Medicare supplemental policy for abroad already? If not, you should definitely get it.

Everytime I get trip insurance I never had to use it . Its like a good luck charm for me and my family members. For the amount you pay it is worth the piece of mind .

The true value of travel insurance is the coverage for medical evacuation and repatriation of your dead body should you be injured, get seriously ill or die overseas. Medical evacuation can cost up to $50,000.00 from Europe and shipping your dead body costs approximately $5,000.00. You can get this coverage plus trip cancellation costs, medical insurance, missed flights etc. for 31 days at a cost of under $50. Check with AAA auto club. A small cost for a lot of peace of mind. I wouldn't leave home without it.

Larry J

We buy travel insurance when we go on a pre-paid tour only. One thing that hasn't been mentioned is pre-existing conditions. This is VERY important if you have sick family members at home, or if you yourself have an illness. Most US companies waive pre-existing condition exclusions if you buy the insurance within 14 days or so of paying for the trip. Thanks to someone on this chat site we just used insuremytrip.com. Thank you to whomever suggested that. It is a wonderful site.

Thanks for all the input. I will conact AAA tomorrow and have looked insuremytrip.com . One or the other should offer me something I can live with. The reason I pre pay some hotels is because doing so quite often gets me a better price.

You should check with your medical insurance about coverage. Although Christina felt she already had health insurance and didn't need it, my understanding is your regular health insurance will reimburse you AFTER you get home. That means you have to pay (sometimes in cash) upfront. While that might not be a problem for something minor it would be a big problem for most people if you had a major problems such as a heart attack or serious injury.

kybourbon,I think you are right about being eligible for some benefits with your health insurance while travelling abroad but I have heard some horror stories aside from having to pay up front. in one instance the doctor's certificate and bill issued abroad was not sufficient for the U.S . health insurance. They wanted THEIR form completed by the doctor before they would consider the claim.Well, you just try and get that accomplished after your return home! If they offer coverage their demands for proof should be reasonable. You feel so helpless when dealing with burocratic nonsense

pipsil, I prepay for some hotel rooms (usually via Priceline) and I have travel insurance to cover me up to a set dollar amount. I would usually consider Priceline to be too much of a risk otherwise. I don't use the insurance that you can purchase with Priceline.

I would definitely look into a good travel health/cancellation/interruption insurance package. You might be able to get this through one of the major credit card providers.

I can only hope that all of my insurance payments are a waste of money. But they do provide peace of mind, and that's very helpful.

WillTravel,I never cosidered the credit card companies .Another avenue to explore. I also never thought of the premiums in such a positive way as you do. That it's the best waste of money one can possibly hope for. Thanks!

I am a consultant in the health insurance business, so I know that I do have coverage abroad, it wasn't just a "feeling". Yes, you may have to pay the bill abroad, that isn't a concern to me. If it is to you, buy supplemental insurance, but I do know what I have.

Christina - I didn't mean to imply that you didn't know what you were talking about. I just wanted pipsil to be aware that even if your health insurance covers you abroad you could be required to pay large sums of your own money up front. I saw this happen to an American having a heart attack in the islands one time. They wanted $2000 cash up front! Most people do not travel with that much cash. Travel insurance will arrange payment of the bill for you where your regular insurance will only reimburse later on your return to the states. They will also pay medical evacuation if you need it and I don't think your HMO/health insurance would pay for that.
Most travel polcies are inclusive of medical/trip interruption/baggage etc for one price. Peter Greenburg always recommends Travel Guard because they were the only one that actually covers default. He was on tv last week and mentioned another company too but I didn't catch the name.