diann

Yes that is worth it. Ours was through Us airways. They are not great to deal with at all. They had a special several days afer I booked which I would have saved some money. There reply was basically "tough luck.". I won't use them again.

hunterblu

I bought travel insurance when we went to London. That's the only time I've bought travel insurance, and we did have to use it. Our flight on Northwest was delayed and we didn't get to London until a day later than expected. The hotel we stayed at, Chesterfield Mayfair (do NOT recommend it), made us pay for the 1st night even tho we were delayed. With the exchange rate, it was about $375, and TravelGuard reimbursed us the whole amount. The insurance cost a couple hundred.

Now, planning a trip to Las Vegas, I'm debating whether to buy insurance or not. Flight is with Northwest again, and who knows what could happen there.

P_M

We're looking into buying insurance for our upcoming Hawaii trip. Our biggest concern is FIL getting sick, but of course, other things could interfere as well. What's the best company to reimburse for a sick loved one?

chasechow

P.M. we purchased travel insurance through "Travelguard" www.travelguard.com, which offers different plans for different prices. We wanted to have the same kind of plan because my father is elderly and we also had a new grandson.

We didn't have to use it for our last trip but it did cause me to start thinking about it and is why I originally posted this question.

Feel free to look at their website and see what you think. It was recommended to us by the travel agent who booked our trip (if that means anything).

Good luck

kybourbon

P_M - You have to do a little homework and read the fine print on the policies from several companies. You can compare companies/policies on www.insuremytrip.com but it still comes down to the fine print of each one. Most have 800 numbers so you can call and they will send you copies of the policies to read before you purchase.

Kerry392

My husband and I buy the insurance when we are going to an island just in case we need to be flown back to the US. Fortunatley, we have not had to use it but we always felt better having it!

djkbooks

chasechow: It is essential that you understand the coverage and, especially, the exclusions.

<< We wanted to have the same kind of plan because my father is elderly and we also had a new grandson.>>

Trip cancellation/interruption coverage with TravelGuard, for example, would exclude your elderly father and your grandson as a "covered reason", unless they are your travel companions on the trip...

chasechow

djkbooks - THANKS FOR THE INFO!!!

Is it possible that they revised their policies?

I can't swear to it (I've got to go find my old policy) but I thought it was in there and was spelled out. The reason I think this is because this was the main reason we went with this company and with that particular coverage wtih them.

I'm glad you brought this up. I"M RIGHT NOW researching this for an upcoming trip and was going to start with Travelguard. Now, I'm back to square 1 with this.

Thank you so much!

JJ5

I didn't when I was younger, but now I do for out of country trips. Extended family responsibilities do happen, and have twice- as I and others have aged. It's relatively cheap and worth it.

And I know of one young person injured in Germany during a parade mishap that had bills for 3 years and although she was insured here in the USA, she was not covered or reimbursed because it was not an approved treatment. I do not want that to happen to me.

Yes, they treat you. But it may not be the treatment that would be covered if begun here, nor the one that your insurance will reimburse for if it has to be completed at home in another mode.

Also transport during accident, sickness etc. is not covered by most insurance and is by travel insurance. Sometimes the "fly-out" helicopter or lift is more expensive than 4 or 5 insurance premiums would be.

I've just used the cancel, not the medical. But I will take the low premium level for transport and medical mishap.

And I do use Priceline. I've saved so much money using Priceline over the years that if you added it all up- the insurance premiums would be miniscule in comparison. And the stays were almost all 4 star besides, not what I would have done with rack rate deals.

djkbooks

http://www.travelguard.com/TGContent...ertificate.pdf

Print this and read carefully.

Most trip insurance providers have similar inclusions/exclusions, though sometimes there is additional coverage that it offered for other situations.

It is a common mistake to assume "covered reasons" include your potential situations.

crefloors

Just bought trip insurance for my trip to Paris. I went to insuremytrip.com and selected a policy. Be sure to read all the info and also the companies have a list of airlines and tour companies etc. that they will not insure you if you travel with them, or for certain things if you travel with them. so read everything.

chasechow

djkbooks - Have you ever found a company that did provide the type of coverage we're looking for?

JJ5

Yes, I did. I had/have elderly in dire physical conditions, still do. So I never know when I can really get away. Nothing in life is set in stone.

I used both TRAVELGUARD and insuremytrip and got a specific policy that included my parents illness or death as a provision for cancellation within a certain period.

One was for a cruise and I think that one had a week or prior timeframe and so was fairly cheap. If it (death or dire circumstances) would have happened the day before I was leaving or the day after, I would have been out of luck.

I read everything and got the best I could for the least money. My Dad is 87 and a multiple stroke survivor, so I continue on that same page.

sumreknot

I have not read through all of the responses, but let me say that I would NEVER leave home without it. We had booked an all-inclusive vacation thru Worry Free Vacations. Husband got struck with the sudden onset of Rheumatoid Arthritis and could barely move. We had no problem getting our money back. Purchased the insurance thru the travel agent...finally, after 5 1/2 mos. he is on the move again and so are we!

Neopolitan

I feel I travel too much to afford travel insurance. In the past 15 years I've spent roughly 4 of those years traveling (if I added up all the trips). Travel insurance for all that would be counted in the tens of thousands of dollars.

Most of my plans if cancelled won't cost me a lot, if anything. Meanwhile if something happens and I have to "eat" an entire 6 week planned trip and lose everything on it, I'm still thousands of dollars ahead by never having spent money on the insurance for all those trips.

hunterblu

About the link to TravelGuard's "Savvy Traveler" Policy -

There is a different policy offered by TravelGuard called "Protect Assist" policy ---- and for those of you interested it does provide for trip cancellation/interruption due to the unforeseen sickness, injury, or death of an immediate family member, and it defines immediate family member to include parents/in-laws/grandchildren.

crefloors

I appreciate those who have the financial resources to be able to not worry about lost funds etc. if something goes wrong. I, and I think I'm not alone in this, am not in a position to just kiss off a couple of grand. I also don't have the luxery of being able to say "oh well, I'll just go next month instead"...if wishes were horses. I also can't afford that great a medical insurance policy so if something happened to me and I had to be evacuated, it really could almost break me. And sadly I usually only travel every couple of years...this year it's VERY unusual for me to be going twice. My policy cost 138.00, so for me, that's a bargin.

chasechow

hunterblu - thank you for this. I thought I was going crazy there for a minute because I didn't see that one on the website, but I was pretty sure that was the policy that we purchased last year for our trip to Maui.

JJ5

crefloors, I think your situation is most common. And I think there are also many, many people in the same straits as I am too.

And the more people you have as family that rely upon you, the more it may apply throughout your life, regardless of age. Almost like life insurance, some of us do not need it. Some of us do.

I can't imagine taking a couple thousand dollar hit either.

Neopolitan

crefloors, I hope you weren't referring to my post or circumstances like that. I don't want to give up a couple thousand dollars either. That's my point. If I had been buying insurance for all those trips I've taken -- I would have been out tens of thousands of dollars. Which is worse, POSSIBLY losing a couple thousand on one trip, or DEFINITELY losing tens of thousands?

Meanwhile -- I guess I understand it more for a package tour or cruise where you can't get your money back, but most of everything I schedule I won't take a loss on if something happens. I can cancel the hotels, etc., and even get a credit back on the FF flights.

On the other hand if $138 protects you from a likely possibility of losing a couple thousand, then I'd probably go for it too. And if there are circumstances which would cause you to think there was a good possibility of something happening, then the insurance makes a lot more sense too.