Travel Insurance In the Aftermath of Eyjafjallajokull

Marnie Hunter from CNN reports: “Travelers who racked up unforeseen expenses during Europe’s recent volcanic ash cloud chaos — and those observing nervously from the sidelines — may want to look into travel insurance for their next trip. The right coverage can protect globetrotters from tacking thousands of dollars onto their trip costs when something such as a natural disaster, a weather event, a medical problem or an emergency at home gets in the way of a smooth vacation.”

We’ve been promoting the value of travel insurance, particularly for overseas trips, for years. We’re compelled to do so by the real stories

of calamities that occur to customers each year. It’s not unlike car insurance. Most of us drive every day, and probably see accidents every day. While we rarely are in one, many of us have experienced one. We live by the maxims of “you just never know” and ” better safe than sorry.” Even if it wasn’t the law to have auto insurance, most of us would take this coverage.

Unlike auto insurance, however, which is year-around coverage, you can buy travel insurance for a particular trip. That lowers the premium, of course, and allows one to insure properly for a specific trip. A variety of travel insurance coverage is available, and ours includes optional waivers that includes loss of employment or cancelation for any reason (not just medical). Some don’t want to spend any more on their vacation by buying travel insurance, but we sure appreciate it should we need to use it.

There are a number of companies that provide travel insurance, and we’ve experienced several of them over the years. We’ve vetted the main ones and settled on Travel Guard, offering some flexibility with two levels of coverage, and optional waivers. Ours may not be the absolute cheapest option, but it includes excellent coverage for some important categories, such as the level of evacuation coverage in the event of an emergency. After all, while it’s important to have travel insurance, it’s also important to have a policy that’ll be of value should circumstances require you to use it.

Do you have a travel insurance story to share?