Travel Insurance

The travel insurance company I have been using is TripInsurance.com. When I have submitted claims, they paid promptly. TI has different levels of coverage at several price points. The site is easy to access, read, and understand. You decide what you need and purchase it when you buy your flight ticket.

For example, last September 2017, I purchased a round-trip ticket from New York’s JFK to Santiago, Chile, on Avianca Airlines, leaving the USA in mid-October 2017 and returning on March 29th, 2018. The Avianca ticket was 500 dollars cheaper than American Airlines. Five days before my flight to Chile, I tried to check my trip online, and there was nothing! I called and emailed the airline, but no answer. I looked at the news about Avianca and found out that its pilots were on strike and all flights were canceled. Since I had brought my tickets with my Chase Sapphire credit card through Chase Travel, they were able to cancel the trip for me, refund my money, and then book my seats on American Airlines for the same travel days. Lucky me! TripInsurance.com made up the difference in the cost of the flights. I recouped one-third of the value of the insurance.

Another example of TripInsurance.com working for me was in 2014. I made a month’s vacation to Argentina and Chile. When I was to fly back from Buenos Aires in January 2015, a tremendous snowstorm happened on the USA’s East Coast, and JFK was closed. I holed up at the Airport Hotel in BA for five days while waiting for a flight home. TripInsurance.com paid for the full stay, room, and board, read Argentinian Filet Mignon.

Remember that not all travel insurance companies are the same; Travelinsurance.com has worked well for me twice in the past 3 trips. I trust them.

I have also heard that American Airlines Credit Cards are worthwhile, but I have no experience with them.

My homeowners and renters insurance will cover me for theft and loss of personal property while traveling internationally but remember, watch your stuff! Keep everything tight and organized and look under the bed when you move to the next spot, and be sure not to leave your fly rods in the trunk of the cab! I photograph all my gear before I go, so there is a record of what I traveled with if I need to prove it.

Auto insurance for a rental car is the policy listed on the credit card you use to rent the vehicle and the car rental agency’s paperwork when you rent it. The auto insurance policy you have for your car at home will not cover you outside of the USA! Premium Credit Cards have adequate rental car insurance, but it is a complicated policy, make sure you understand it.

I cannot impress upon you enough the importance of health and travel insurance, even if your journey is only a couple of weeks long. Flight delays and cancellations, illness, and lost luggage or papers can be stressful and expensive. Travel insurance will cover your ass. It is worth it, buy it and relax.

Keep backup photocopies of passport, health and travel insurance, credit cards, & license, store the copies securely.

TripInsurance.com

https://www.aig.com/travel-guard

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