InsureMyTrip Blog

Given the headlines of the past month or so, I doubt very much that I have to work very hard to convince anyone at this point that travel insurance is a good investment.   It seems that the “why” of purchasing travel insurance isn’t really the question anymore.  What may be more important at this point is the “when” to buy it; too often, well-meaning travelers miss out on excellent coverage options because of timing.

Between airline strikes, civil unrest, and of course, the terrible tragedy of the Costa Concordia, there have been more than enough examples in recent days of travel gone awry.  And as a result, the InsureMyTrip Customer Care Center has seen what we by now expect to see after major travel news hits the airwaves: a big increase in calls from worried travelers who want to buy insurance.

You might expect that an increase in call volume would make us happy; after all, InsureMyTrip exists to help people find the right coverage for their trips, and to provide them with the peace of mind that they’re traveling with a solid insurance policy in their back pockets…just in case.  Unfortunately, when an influx of news-related calls comes in to our phone lines, it’s not always possible for us to help every one of those callers find the right insurance policy.  Too often, we have to tell customers the simple, but painful, truth: “You waited too long.”

Too long for what?  Too long to be eligible for that Cancel for Any Reason benefit you really wanted; too long to buy a policy with a pre-existing conditions waiver that our Customer Care rep can see you definitely need.  Too long to get the correct insurance coverage for your specific trip, so that you’re left with fewer options where once there might have been a virtual buffet.

We’ve said many times that if a volcano erupts in Iceland, you can’t call us the next day to get insurance against that volcano’s effects.  I’m pretty sure that message has gotten through to a number of travelers by now.  But what we need to add is the following piece of crucial information: If you want to be covered for the greatest possible number of unforeseen events, if you want to have travel insurance that offers the highest level of service and benefits to you, or even if you just want to have every option available when you buy…it’s worth at least taking a look at the range of plans that are out there as soon as you’ve booked your trip.

On behalf of our Customer Care Center, I ask you all not to wait before looking into travel insurance.  Not a week, not a month, not until a few days before your trip if you can help it.  As the days beyond your first payment on your trip continue to elapse, your options for insurance slowly diminish.  And nothing is more disappointing to us, or to a traveler we’re trying to help, than to have to say “I’m sorry…if you had called a week ago, you could have gotten that, but now you’re past the window.”  You don’t have to wait until every detail of your travels has been planned and paid for; in fact, your choices will be at their most broad when you’ve just made the first payment on your trip.

So go ahead — call us when the rush of that first booking is still fresh.  Call us when you’re still excited about making your plans for a new adventure.  We can’t wait to hear where you’re going, and we hope as always that you’ll want to take us with you.

Ed. Note: This post is the second part of a two-part fable.  The original installment can be found here.  If you’re following along to try to guess the number of travel preparation mishaps made by this family, answers appear in bold at the end of this post.

When we left our traveling family, just about every aspect of their holiday plans had gone painfully awry.  It would be both easy and false to try to wrap this story up with a neat bow and say that travel insurance could have prevented this family from experiencing any of the stresses they encountered.  Sadly, travel insurance can’t stop snowstorms, it can’t help you clear security properly, and it can’t turn back time to help the kids get to the sledding hill on time.  However, it is an important step in preparing for holiday travel, and it can make the inconveniences of botched plans a little easier to swallow, especially at a time of year when patience for disruptions is in such short supply.
If this family had been properly prepared for their trip, the story might have looked more like this:

Once upon a time, Mom, Dad, Sally, and Billy were on their way over the river, through the woods, and across the country on an airplane to Grandma’s house for the holidays.  They had already shipped most of their gifts directly to Grandma’s, but there were a few last-minute items that needed to be brought on the plane with them.  Realizing that they wouldn’t fit in the carry-on luggage, Mom snapped quick pictures of each gift with her smartphone, then packed them in her checked bag and slipped the  receipts for each present into her purse, just in case anything went wrong.

The family called the airline before leaving the house, and since their flight appeared to be on time, they set out for the airport.  Dad was adamant that they be in the security line three hours in advance, just to make sure there was plenty of time to get through the holiday crowds.  As Mom helped the kids out of the car, she noticed that Sally was carrying her purse.  Quickly, they went through the contents and left the larger bottles of hand lotion and nail polish in the glove compartment of their car, keeping only the items that would be sure to pass the 3-1-1 test.

Once they’d cleared security, the family found a flight status board, which showed that their plane was now delayed.  All of Sally and Billy’s wishing for snow on the sledding hills had paid off – a bit too much, in fact.  A snowstorm had brought the deep drifts they wanted; but it had also brought the airports near Grandma’s house to a standstill.

No aircraft but Santa’s sleigh could possibly fly in or out of the area until the snow had stopped and was cleared from the runways.  After a few hours of waiting, the flight was officially cancelled.  Mom immediately called their travel insurance company and explained the situation.  The representative she spoke with helped arrange comfortable lodgings for the family at a nearby hotel and reminded Mom that if she needed to feed the family at a restaurant, their travel insurance policy would help pay for those expenses – as long as Mom and Dad remembered to keep their receipts.  While the family went to the concourse to eat dinner, the travel insurance company continued to work on getting them booked on another flight.

Although they did have to sleep at the hotel that night, they were grateful for comfortable beds.  Dad spent some time that evening making sure that they had all the documentation they would need to file a claim with the insurance company, feeling relieved that their policy would be able to cover the cost of the hotel stay and the food and toiletries they’d had to buy to get through the night.  The family was able to catch an early morning flight to Grandma’s, thanks to the rebooking help they’d gotten from the insurance company’s travel assistance line.  They got there just in time for the first tasting of the hot cocoa, and while the kids hit the sledding hills, Dad called the travel insurance company yet again to make sure that they were covered for the extra gifts that had been lost with the family’s luggage.  Thanks to Mom’s quick thinking in bringing photos and receipts for all the packed items, he was assured he would have enough information to file a claim.  Better yet, Grandma had the wonderful idea of printing copies of the pictures and wrapping them for the children, so they could see the gifts Mom and Dad would be replacing for them when they got home from their trip.   It wasn’t exactly what everyone had hoped their holiday would be, but at least they were safe, warm, and together, with the majority of their gifts tucked beneath the tree and the peace of mind that they wouldn’t have to add the costs of all the travel disruptions to their post-holiday bills.

As always, we wish everyone safe and happy travels – whether you’re off to Grandma’s for the family sledding party, or heading someplace warm and sunny for your seasonal cheer.  When you’re making your preparations, please consider adding travel insurance to your must-have list this year.  If you have any questions about choosing the policy that’s best for your family, call our Customer Care Center at 800-487-4722.

For those who were keeping track of the travel mistakes made by our traveling family, we counted at least seven: 1) Packing gifts in checked luggage; 2) Wrapping the gifts before packing; 3) Not checking flight status before going to the airport; 4) Not leaving enough time to clear security; 5) Not preparing for security with appropriate footwear and abiding by the 3-1-1 rule; 6) Throwing away food receipts; 7) Not having documentation of valuables in lost luggage.
Can you see any other ways our family might have been better prepared?  Leave a comment and share your best holiday travel tips.

The holiday season can be stressful for most of us, what with all the shopping, cooking, wrapping, and planning to make sure every last detail is just perfect for every member of the family.  When travel arrangements get added to the equation, it’s even more stressful – and more important to be thoroughly prepared.  Small mistakes can add up to big disappointments.  See how many travel preparation errors you can spot in this holiday tale, then check your answers and find out how things might have gone more smoothly in Part II of the story.

Once upon a time, Mom, Dad, Sally, Billy were on their way over the river, through the woods, and across the country on an airplane to Grandma’s house for the holidays.  They had carefully packed most of their gifts into their checked luggage and were eagerly anticipating the next day’s family sledding party and annual hot cocoa competition.  In the rush of last-minute preparations, they arrived at the airport with just an hour to spare before their flight, each lugging a large carry-on bag and suitcases brimming with wrapped presents, ready to place under the tree at Grandma’s.

As they struggled through security, taking precious moments to wrestle with Billy’s double-zippered snow boots and Sally’s Hello Kitty purse of treasured nail polishes and hand lotions, Mom and Dad began to worry that they wouldn’t make their scheduled flight.  As it turned out, the family didn’t need to worry about the time.  All of Sally and Billy’s wishing for snow on the sledding hills had paid off – a bit too much, in fact.  A snowstorm had brought the deep drifts they wanted; but it had also brought the airports near Grandma’s house to a standstill.

No aircraft but Santa’s sleigh could possibly fly in or out of the area until the snow had stopped and was cleared from the runways.  As the hopeful family waited anxiously, the hours ticked by.  Their flight was delayed, then cancelled.  They had no choice but to wait in the rebooking lines to see if they could possibly find another way to Grandma’s house.  As still more time passed without a new arrangement, the children began to get hungry and tired.  Mom did her best to arrange the waiting-area chairs in the airport as makeshift beds for Sally and Billy, then went to find some fast food near their gate.  As she gathered up her purchases, she spilled soda all over the tray, the napkins, and her receipt.  Wondering what else could possibly go wrong, Mom dispiritedly threw the ruined items in the trash.  She couldn’t help wishing they could just go somewhere else to eat, sleep, and sort out their disappointments in the morning.

By the time the family finally got to Grandma’s house the next evening, it was too late for the hot cocoa competition; all that remained were a few lonely marshmallows.  The sun had set on the sledding hills, and the cousins and aunts and uncles had all gone home to hang their stockings.  Grandma warmed the cold dinners that had waited on the holiday table, then put the children to sleep in cozy beds at last.  Mom and Dad sat dejectedly looking at the empty space beneath the Christmas tree while Dad tried to call the airlines to track down the family’s luggage, which had been lost in all the confusion.  At the airline’s request, Mom painstakingly tried to recall exactly which gifts had been wrapped and stowed in the suitcases, wishing she’d kept the receipts instead of balling them up with the excess gift wrap and throwing them away.

Upstairs, as the children slept quietly in their beds, Grandma went into the attic to find the trunks of old toys she’d saved since her own children were small.  From the assortment of keepsakes, she filled up the stockings, knowing that Santa has to come on time, even if the luggage doesn’t.  It wouldn’t be the perfect holiday anyone had envisioned, but with Grandma’s help, Mom and Dad could at least watch Billy and Sally open something on Christmas morning.

Stay tuned for Part II…