Instant Travel Insurance

Unexpected incidents can (and do) occur before and during your trip that may cause you a financial loss. Travel insurance helps protect your investment in the event that things do go wrong.  You may be looking for instant travel insurance because you are going to travel right away; taking a little time now to get yourself covered may save you some major problems later.  For example, if you face an illness or accident you face two unexpected expenses; the money you spent to purchase the travel in the first place and the extra medical expenses not covered by your health insurance that you may incur.

Many service providers (cruise lines, airlines, tourism companies) provide some level of insurance on their own that will protect you in the event that something goes wrong.  Most of the time these policies will be very different from insurance provided by a third party (insurance you have purchased).  If you are thinking of using the default insurance or any special insurance your service provider may offer, I urge you to check their policies very carefully and compare them with those you can purchase on your own.  A lot of the time service provider insurance is geared to protect the company providing the insurance, not you.  And certainly if the provider goes bankrupt, their insurance coverage goes bankrupt with them and you get nothing.

There is a very wide variety of travel insurance types available.  Some types will be covered by others and most can be combined.  Coverage, limitation and cost will be different depending on several factors, including your destination, length and type of travel and coverages required.  Some of the different types of travel insurance are:

• Trip cancellation -the most common and important type of travel insurance.  This covers non-refundable payments in the event your trip is cancelled, changed or interrupted due to unforeseen circumstances.
• Trip delay – covers your costs if your travel plans are delayed (for example, weather delays when traveling by air).
• Sickness/Accident – covers your costs in the event of illness or injury.
• Emergency transport – covers your cost in the event you need to be transported for medical care (or other reasons, depending on the policy)
• Supplier default – covers your costs and investment in the event your service provider is unable to fulfill their commitment or enters default

These are just a few of the coverages provided.  Others include coverage for lost luggage or personal effects, crashes, terrorism…. if you can imagine it there is probably an insurance policy to cover it!

Instant travel insurance is most easily found online.  You don’t need to call around to try to get an agent, drive from office to office or fill out a bunch of forms.  Check out the links provided on this site, get a few quotes and see what other travelers are doing to cover their insurance needs.  You might even find a bargain when speaking with your travel agent; they deal with these issues all the time.  Some may even require you to sign a waiver if you decide against getting insurance!

• Trip cancellation -the most common and important type of travel insurance.  This covers non-refundable payments in the event your trip is cancelled, changed or interrupted due to unforeseen circumstances.
• Trip delay – covers your costs if your travel plans are delayed (for example, weather delays when traveling by air).
• Sickness/Accident – covers your costs in the event of illness or injury.
• Emergency transport – covers your cost in the event you need to be transported for medical care (or other reasons, depending on the policy)
• Supplier default – covers your costs and investment in the event your service provider is unable to fulfill their commitment or enters default

These are just a few of the coverages provided.  Others include coverage for lost luggage or personal effects, crashes, terrorism…. if you can imagine it there is probably an insurance policy to cover it!

Instant travel insurance is most easily found online.  You don’t need to call around to try to get an agent, drive from office to office or fill out a bunch of forms.  Check out the links provided on this site, get a few quotes and see what other travelers are doing to cover their insurance needs.  You might even find a bargain when speaking with your travel agent; they deal with these issues all the time.  Some may even require you to sign a waiver if you decide against getting insurance!

What is the best cruise travel insurance?
A full review of the various aspects of cruise travel insurance, including coverage details and a comparison chart.

How to Save Money on Travel Insurance
Whether leaving the country for a weekend, or planning a back-packing trip around the world, travel insurance is essential. But how can you get the best deal?

Jargon Free Money Guides: Travel Insurance
Many travel insurance policies do not include this as standard, but you may not need to add it if you are already covered under your home and contents policy; check the small print before you decide.

Why is it Vitally Important to Buy a Travel & Medical Insurance
A fool’s view on issues that matter for not only Canadians and Webmasters.

Popularity: 24% [?]