Hurricane Travel Insurance
Apr 17th, 2007, 05:42 PM
#1
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Hurricane Travel Insurance
We are going to the Carribean during hurricane season, so I thought it might be wise to buy some travel insurance. I bought it once a LONG time ago for a trip oversees.
I seem to recall you had to purchase it within so many weeks of reserving your lodging/airfare etc..
Can someone enlighted me on this..concerning mother nature disasters.
When do I need to purchase it?
Will it cover my costs if a hurricane hit already and i have to cancel or if I'm there and I need to evacuate?
Or even if there is one a little too close for comfort and I chicken out of the trip?
Also, any recommendations for companies to buy from? I can't seem to find the name i used before.
Thanks!
I seem to recall you had to purchase it within so many weeks of reserving your lodging/airfare etc..
Can someone enlighted me on this..concerning mother nature disasters.
When do I need to purchase it?
Will it cover my costs if a hurricane hit already and i have to cancel or if I'm there and I need to evacuate?
Or even if there is one a little too close for comfort and I chicken out of the trip?
Also, any recommendations for companies to buy from? I can't seem to find the name i used before.
Thanks!
Apr 17th, 2007, 06:12 PM
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At www.insuremytrip.com, you can compare coverage and prices from multiple companies.
Apr 18th, 2007, 03:10 AM
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You only have to buy the policy within a certain period of time (two weeks, usually, but depends on the policy) if you want the pre-existing health condition waiver. Beyond that, you can pretty much buy a policy any time before you depart, bearing in mind that any condition in existence (strike, bankruptcy, tropical storm already formed) will not be covered.
The part of the coverage you are interested in is the trip delay and/or trip interruption coverage. Of course, you'll want to read the fine print, but generally this covers you for money lost or expended as a result of an actual hurricane. Thus, if your trip is interrupted and you don't get the benefit of what you paid for (and it's not refunded), trip insurance will cover it. (When making a claim, you will have to show the carrier the hotel's or airline's policy re: refunds to prove that the funds you lost were non-refundable). If you incur additional expenses because you are stuck on island for extra days because of the storm, those will be covered. If there is a mandatory evacuation, and you incur expenses, those should be covered.
No policy of which I'm aware covers you for decisions YOU make. If the airlines are operating and hotels are open, but YOU decide not to go, you're out of luck. You will need to show the carrier evidence that someone else made a decision that impacted your plans.
The part of the coverage you are interested in is the trip delay and/or trip interruption coverage. Of course, you'll want to read the fine print, but generally this covers you for money lost or expended as a result of an actual hurricane. Thus, if your trip is interrupted and you don't get the benefit of what you paid for (and it's not refunded), trip insurance will cover it. (When making a claim, you will have to show the carrier the hotel's or airline's policy re: refunds to prove that the funds you lost were non-refundable). If you incur additional expenses because you are stuck on island for extra days because of the storm, those will be covered. If there is a mandatory evacuation, and you incur expenses, those should be covered.
No policy of which I'm aware covers you for decisions YOU make. If the airlines are operating and hotels are open, but YOU decide not to go, you're out of luck. You will need to show the carrier evidence that someone else made a decision that impacted your plans.
Apr 19th, 2007, 04:35 AM
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Are you doing some sort of package tour? If not, you might just consider booking places that have a fair and liberal cancellation policy. In most cases you would not be out any money if you had to cancel due to an actual hurricane anyway, and generally speaking if the planes aren't flying to your destination, you're going to be able to get a refund or rebook also. If the hotel is closed down, they aren't going to charge you to cancel.
Most insurance as I understand it, isn't going to cover you if you decide to go because there's a bit of chaos going on from a near hit or a minor hit -- if the hotels are open and the planes are flying you may not be covered if you choose not to go.
Most insurance as I understand it, isn't going to cover you if you decide to go because there's a bit of chaos going on from a near hit or a minor hit -- if the hotels are open and the planes are flying you may not be covered if you choose not to go.
