I do for big trips, especially when one has to pay for tours upfront. I also do the cancel for any reason. There are stipulations, but it’s still worth it to me.
I don’t for trips in the continental U.S. for those trips I figure I’ll gamble and then pay the rescheduling fee for the flight if I have to.
I do, especially for vacations. We had to cancel at the last minute due to a family emergency, and we were able to get a full refund. I was so happy we had it.
If we are doing a tour and have to pay many $1000s of non-refundable funds in advance, I make sure to charge it on Chase Sapphire Preferred (CSP) for some travel insurance. I have only claimed for flight delay (22 hrs and the extra $160 unreimbursed food costs associated with the delay—United covered hotel and $60 in food). Our travel agency makes us pay 3% for the charges, since that’s what they have to pay. We pay it and get some insurance coverage.
We buy our plane tickets on CSP too. Have gotten a refund on trip cancellation fees when we had to cancel a trip to Europe due to Iceland volcanic eruption—my lung doc wrote a letter stating I couldn’t fly to Europe.
For big/expensive trips we do. With my ILs in worsening health, knowing that we’d have expenses covered if we had to cancel or come home early, it was a must for our trip last summer. As it was, we didn’t use it, but #2D was dealing with a lot of issues as FIL had a serious medical issue and was hospitalized and then put on hospice.
SIL and BIL used theirs when SIL broke her wrist in Italy. The coverage paid for all medical care, the canceled hotels, car rental, rebooked and upgraded flights home. The airline had very specific rules on air transport with a newly-broken bone.
Evacuation can run thousands and thousands.
Like any insurance, it depends on what you’re comfortable giving up if you have to cancel or interrupt a trip.
I didn’t used to, but once my favorite traveling buddy turned 60, we felt it was a wise choice. we never purchase from the place we buy our travel from though (airlines, cruise company, etc.). We use “insure my trip” dot com. It paid for itself the first time we bought it…she had her laptop going through security at the airport when the bucket they used to put it through security somehow got knocked off the conveyor belt. It was destroyed. The travel insurance reimbursed her 100% for the laptop. Another friend was traveling, tripped and broke her camera (lucky she wasn’t hurt). Again, the travel insurance covered the (very expensive) camera.
We don’t buy car insurance, we waive the coverage and use a credit card that offers coverage.
To give an idea of cost, we have a trip coming in February, total cost for us both is ~$6k. Travel insurance cost us $221 total. Peace of mind.
My travel insurance via CSP is up to $5k/person/trip. I also get points for chsrging it to that card. D uses those points to fly to join us on trips and in HI.
As the years advance, I have started getting it for all overseas trips. A friend was on a tour of Turkey with friends, bought the required insurance for the first time, and ended up with pneumonia, hospitalized. The tour went on without her, returned to the US and she was in a smaller city Turkish hospital alone with no English speakers, and unsure how she would get home. The insurance company took care of every detail, called daily, communicated with the doctors, arranged an easy series of flights home post discharge, and really helped her peace of mind. This experience sold us both on travel insurance. Evacuation insurance seems the most crucial of the benefits.
However, I am trying to figure out when credit cards benefits end up duplicating privately bought travel insurance. Last year I was to travel with my elderly mom to a relatives’ house in winter. We cancelled as the flu season was too virulent and it seemed an unnecessary risk. My mom’s Dr agreed, . wrote the appropriate letter, (or rather I did and the physician signed) and I got a full reimbursement for both of our fares from my American Airlines MasterCard. Insuring the full cost of a trip is usually not my issue, as I don’t take expensive trips, but I have been surprised that my cheap trips lead to cheaper insurance than for some.
OldFort, I see no place in my AmEx benefit list that lead me to think it provides evacuation insurance. Is this a specific Amex?
Regardless, to answer the question, I have used Travel Guard.
I never did until a short European trip last year, just after a kidney stone had acted up and after confirming my medical insurance wouldn’t cover geting sick in a foreign country.
My policy was $108 for both me and my daughter. The med coverage was excellent, plus the usual baggage lost or delayed, travel interruptions, etc. And the longer the trip, the cost can rise.
@Himom 5k coverage total? I was concerned about needing a hospital and possibly some surgery.
I was fine, btw, but glad to have the insurance.
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$5k coverage/person iirc with CSP. I only made small claims—excess food costs and trip cancellation fees. Its always best to read the fine print so you know exactly what your coverage is and call with any questions you have.
We also use CSP for primary car rental. Had to make fully reimbursed claim when burglars broke the SUV rear window. Submitted all the paperwork and got 100% refund.
The $95 annual fee has been reimbursed several times already!
I echo “read the fine print.” A family I know had purchased travel insurance for a beach visit. They were in the hit zone, and were under an evacuation order, and the state was in a state of emergency. Three days later, the evacuation order was lifted. Well, the trip was a 6 might trip. The only thing the insurance covered was the time during the evacuation order, yet there was no way the family could go back in time due to driving distance.
It depends on how much money we put up front.
If we go to Disney World, the whole trip is paid for ahead of time-- several thousand dollars for my family of 5. So we get travel insurance. If, say, something happened to my mom and forced us to cancel the trip, it would be covered. Likewise if a hurricane delayed our return, all expenses-- including food and hotel-- would be covered.
On the other hand, if we’re driving upstate for a week in a lakeside cabin, all we pay up front is one night’s stay in the cabin. We skip the insurance.
It’s AmEx Platinum. Annual fee is expensive, but I get $200 airline fees reimbursed, $15/mon uber credit, evacuation insurance, plus other benefits. I believe Chase Reserve offers many of those perks too.
https://www.tripsavvy.com/the-best-credit-cards-for-travel-insurance-4147438
We use insurance associated with credit cards as well.
My son’s a dive professional so he also has DAN (Divers Alert Network) insurance which covers him for regular trip emergencies but also for specialized care in case of a scuba-related accident or injury. We used their medical hotline once when he was a teen and we were concerned about a possible neurological symptom after an international dive. It turned out to be due to fatigue but it was good to have someone who really knew what they were talking about so we didn’t have to fret.
I always do, both domestically and especially internationally. We’ve had to use it once, and it’s totally worth it, IMO. It’s peace of mind. For our family of four, trip insurance usually costs about $100. It’s paid itself back in spades just from one claim. My son, 10 at the time, lost his carryon. It was a brand new bag with a DS, tons of games, and LEGO kits. Mostly all of it had been a gift from Grandma, who saved all of her receipts. When we added it up, it was over $600 worth of stuff. Got over $400 back from insurance.
For those who DO buy policies from a dedicated insurer (not CC) and have used successfully for the trip cancellation or disruption coverage, what company do you buy from? As I said earlier, SIL’s insurance through their tour company, Overseas Adventure Travel, did not cover an upgraded, changed air ticket when required by MD and carrier. I know SIL paid over $1000 for the “insurance”. After her experience, I goggled and found complaints from other travelers with this company. I have never booked a trip with a tour company, so don’t know what the norm is with insurers and tour related companies, but her experience made me quite cynical.
@Sue22, very interesting about the dedicated dive insurers. I have sat in several airport lounges with folks that were dive professionals and wondered what they did for insurance. That is one type of travel for which I would want special coverage!
I try to always buy it, but for our upcoming trip I forgot, and it could be a problem since our son is still in the hospital. Ack. I swear, every year when we try to go on this cruise, there’s a crisis with one of the “kids.” Whoever says raising kids is an 18-year responsibility has no clue!
I always use Squaremouth. It’s got the best range of insurers and the best prices.
Whenever H has gone on a dive trip, he always buys dive insurance.
Thanks for the recommendations of alternative travel insurance. I’m mostly afraid of a medical emergency.
Right now neither of the credit cards I have come with travel insurance. I checked. And I really don’t want to get another card.
Membership in DAN is really worth it if you have a diver. They’ll pay up to $100,000 for medical evacuation and cover the return cost for spouses and dependent children as well. It kicks in any time you’re more than 50 miles from home. That’s for both diving and non-diving medical emergencies. They also have a 24 hour hotline and can arrange treatment at local hospitals and at hyperbaric chambers.
When we traveled to China and when we traveled to Spain & Portugal (biking trip), I had BC BS’s Geo Blue. It was pretty reasonable and was just medical insurance. I can’t remember if they would send you back to the US but I’m sure that was at least an option. Medjet also is good.
I know you aren’t asking about car insurance but someone here mentioned it. If you travel to Ireland, double check because as far as I know, charge cards will not cover you in Ireland. We bought full coverage while there. We did use it as we lost a mirror and scratched up the side of the car (darn hedges).