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Back in 2006, a consumer study conducted by the US Travel Insurance Association (UStiA) showed that many trip goers who optioned not to insure their travels were, nevertheless, familiar with flight and trip cancellation protection plans; however, the majority of those travelers were not familiar with travel health insurance, baggage coverage, and medical evacuation insurance. In fact, even when surveying travelers who did purchase travel insurance plans, the study found only 50% of those consumers were aware of medical evacuation insurance.
Much has changed in the travel insurance industry over the past 10 years. More travelers are purchasing insurance than in years past and, in a risk-laden travel landscape, the demand for trip protection is on the rise. Though the UStiA study suggests Trip Cancellation was once a more widely-known travel protection coverage, many standard travel insurance plans have always included, and continue to include, a number of perhaps lesser-known post-departure coverages that take effect when your clients begin their scheduled trip.
Helping your clients familiarize themselves with these valuable components of a protection plan could help reveal the product’s overall value and also help them decide if insuring their next trip is the right choice for them.
What Post-Departure Coverages Do
Post-departure coverages are designed to reimburse your clients for specific financial losses that they might suffer as a result of travel misfortune. Unlike Trip Cancellation, the post departure coverages don’t take effect until they begin their trip. Many plans include a variety of post-departure coverages and depending on the plan they purchase, multiple coverages could be of use to them if they encounter an unexpected event that interrupts their vacation.
For instance, say one of your clients is out sight-seeing on the second day of a long-awaited family tour package when, the next thing he knows, an extra step backwards to capture the perfect photograph sends him tumbling down an unfamiliar set of stairs. A hurried visit to the nearest Emergency Room (which happens to be by no means “near” his original hotel booking) results in a fractured ankle, a string of medical bills for out-of-network medical treatment, the family’s overnight stay at a hotel near the ER, and a now useless—and completely non-refundable—tour package because it’s medically necessary for him to return home.
In this scenario, Medical and Dental, Travel Delay, and Trip Interruption are three post-departure coverages that could potentially help your client recoup his losses. In addition to seeking reimbursement for the out-of-network emergency room bills that his primary insurance provider may not cover, he can also claim compensation for lodging, meals, local transportation, and telephone calls while he’s delayed; the unused, prepaid portion of his tour package; and even additional transportation costs to return home early. Provided your client insured the entire family’s arrangements when he bought his plan, your client and his family could all return home together and claim for the full remainder of the pre-paid family trip while limiting the stress of having to give up their vacation with no opportunity for reimbursement. Like Trip Cancellation, post-departure coverages are intended to make travelers “whole” again after suffering losses resulting from a listed covered event, like an unexpected injury.
Generally speaking, Medical and Dental typically provides coverage for physician-ordered medical services varying from prescription drugs and medicines to local ambulance services if your clients get sick or injured while on their trip, while Travel Delay aims to reimburse for reasonable additional expenses like lodging, meals, and local transportation while they’re delayed. Trip Interruption provides reimbursement for the prepaid nonrefundable portion of their trip that they had to forfeit due to the unexpected interruption as well as additional transportation costs that they had to pay to return home early or rejoin the rest of their travel party.
But these are just three of several post-departure coverages included with many standard travel insurance plans. Others include Baggage Coverage, Baggage Delay, Emergency Assistance and Transportation, Accidental Death and Dismemberment, Missed Connection, and even Rental Car Damage Coverage.
What’s Right for Your Clients
Depending on the nature of your clients’ arrangements, their destination, and their unique individual needs and medical histories, many different types of travel insurance plans could be a good fit for their next trip. For instance, when traveling abroad, the U.S. Department of State advises travelers to learn about a protection plan’s health insurance and medical evacuation features to ensure they’re properly protected overseas or in the event of an emergency. Or perhaps they’re scheduling a cruise and intend to bring a variety of jewelry and formal wear on board. In that case, maybe a plan with increased baggage coverage limits appeals.
Wherever their next trip takes them, be sure to look beyond Trip Cancellation and explore what a plan’s post-departure coverages have to offer your clients. To learn more about the post-departure coverages available with CSA Travel Protection’s insurance offerings, contact your dedicated account manager.
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Travel insurance plans are administered by Customized Services Administrators, Inc., CA Lic. No. 821931, located in San Diego, CA and doing business as Generali Global Assistance and Insurance Services. Plans are available to residents of the U.S. but may not be available in all jurisdictions. Benefits and services are described on a general basis; certain conditions and exclusions apply. Travel Retailers may not be licensed to sell insurance, in all states, and are not authorized to answer technical questions about the benefits, exclusions, and conditions of this insurance and cannot evaluate the adequacy of your existing insurance. This plan provides insurance coverage for your trip that applies only during the covered trip. You may have coverage from other sources that provides you with similar benefits but may be subject to different restrictions depending upon your other coverages. You may wish to compare the terms of this policy with your existing life, health, home and automobile policies. The purchase of this plan is not required in order to purchase any other travel product or service offered to you by your travel retailers. If you have any questions about your current coverage, call your insurer, insurance agent or broker. This notice provides general information on Generali Global Assistance’s products and services only. The information contained herein is not part of an insurance policy and may not be used to modify any insurance policy that might be issued. In the event the actual policy forms are inconsistent with any information provided herein, the language of the policy forms shall govern.
Travel insurance plans are underwritten by: Generali U.S. Branch, New York, NY; NAIC # 11231. Generali US Branch operates under the following names: Generali Assicurazioni Generali S.P.A. (U.S. Branch) in California, Assicurazioni Generali – U.S. Branch in Colorado, Generali U.S. Branch DBA The General Insurance Company of Trieste & Venice in Oregon, and The General Insurance Company of Trieste and Venice – U.S. Branch in Virginia. Generali US Branch is admitted or licensed to do business in all states and the District of Columbia.
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