Travel Insurance - HELP - TripMate?????
 

For the first time in years, we had to use our insurance. We had to cancel for medical/surgical reasons this month and the cost of the trip for both was over $15,000. The insurance company only wants to pay us $7800. We booked through Grand Circle, paid in full and are wondering now why we bothered!!! All the past premiums and now they have fuzzy math and don't want to reimburse.

We really love this company (GRAND CIRCLE) and have referred lots of people but if this is the way insurance works, why bother!!!

Anyone else had problems with Grand Circle/OATS with TRIP MATE?

Maybe I'm the first to experience this and I would never want to spread bad rumors and if I didn't read the small print; shame on me! At this point, I expected more from Grand Circle!

PLEASE RESPOND DIRECT TO MY EMAIL;

THANKS

[email protected]

I can't offer any specific advice but a quick google search for OATS Trip Mate seems to turn up a number of complaints. Some are report on the website of someone named Christopher Elliott, who seems to intervene from time to time on complaints like yours. But he usually points out that there can be a difference between the fine print of your insurance policy and what you might have been told over the phone - only the former is binding, so you might want to check (or recheck your written policy) to see if your situation truly comes within its terms.

First, read everything.

I had to make a claim once with Access America and was given incorrect information over the phone initially. I was told that flight cancellation due to weather was excluded, when in fact in was not.

Also, carefully follow the directions and requirements for claims submission and make sure you have the correct documentation.

Note that with medical claims, you must make sure your doctor gets the reason right the first time as it cannot be modified later.

What do you mean by "fuzzy math"? Usually, you are covered in full, up to a certain amount (generally at least as much as you paid).

Sometimes with cruise coverage you can rebook, but if you want a refund - it's only partial.

Have you checked with Grand Circle? Travel insurance covers non-refundable prepaid costs, so if some was refundable, you'd have to collect that from Grand Circle?

It's hard to know if the insurance company is being reasonable or not without any details. What you can get up on cancellation is often limited by when you buy the insurance and by what the specific circumstances are regarding the cancellation.