I Was Curious If Travel Insurance Is Worth It, So I Asked An Expert (2024)

Even though I waited to travel until I was vaccinated (and still wear a mask when I'm around people), I feel the added stress of COVID-19 in my decision making. In addition to worrying about keeping myself and others safe, there's a financial risk.

If I were to test positive for COVID-19 before a flight out of Paris, I'd have to cancel my flight and cover the costs of my quarantine. That translates to around140 Euros a night for 10+ nights, plus the cost of rebooking your flight and ordering in food and groceries. That's at least an additional $2,000, and probably much more.

Of course, everything is dependent on the type of travel insurance you've bought (and from who), but in theory, if you've paid $600 for a nonrefundable plane ticket and $1,250 for a nonrefundable lodging deposit, your travel insurance should cover those costs and refund you if your trip is cancelled or interrupted.

"Travel insurance typically covers basic needs. For example, it can cover your financial investment toward the trip in case of cancellation or interruption," explained Gainullin.

In addition, it usually covers unforeseen expenses that come up — like if your trip is delayed, you lose a bag, or have a medical emergency.

The distinction between unforeseen and foreseen can be tricky. To add some clarity, Gainullin says, "I remember working with travelers who showed up at the airport with an expired passport, and their travel insurance policy didn’t provide coverage for this situation. Simply put, this scenario is foreseen and preventable."

So while a hurricane might be viewed as unforeseen, once the storm has been named and confirmed to be coming, it might become a foreseeable event. If you bought travel insurance before anyone was aware of the hurricane, it would be a covered, unforeseen expense, BUT if you bought travel insurance after the storm was confirmed and named, it might not be covered.

Phew.

The answer to that murky unforeseen-foreseen line is “cancel for any reason” coverage (usually an add-on or upgrade).

“'Cancel for any reason' is a great add-on if you wouldn’t want limitations. If you opt for 'cancel for any reason,' it’s important you understand any limits on the actual reimbursem*nt amount," explainedGainullin. "For example, at battleface, 'Cancel for Any Reason' refunds up to 75% of your prepaid trip cost."

For context, I also looked intoAIG Travel Guard, which has "cancel for any reason" coverage available as an add-on to their higher-tiered plans. The add-on would have cost me just under $35 and would cover up to 50% of the prepaid trip cost.

If you're worried about contracting COVID-19 while traveling and being forced to change your ticket and book a quarantine hotel, listen up: Gainullin says you should "look for products that specifically provide coverage for COVID-19, including for medical or quarantine expenses if you need to receive treatment while traveling. There could be an exclusion based on destination if government travel warnings are issued."

If this is a concern for you, you should look into that"cancel for any reason" benefit or choose a policy that treats COVID-19 like any other illness (which is battleface's policy).

If you have to cancel your trip, chances are there will be a mix of refundable and nonrefundable costs. For example, if you booked a Basic Economy fare through United, the airline is not likely to refund you, so that would be a nonrefundable cost that you would run through your travel insurance. The same goes for your lodging. Part of your Airbnb deposit may be refundable, but depending on how late you cancel, you may lose the deposit. Covering that nonrefundable deposit is where your travel insurance policy comes in.

"Usually, travel insurance companies refund back what was prepaid and non-refundable," explainsGainullin.

Waiting a couple weeks for a refund is better than no refund at all, but the delay can depend on the type of claim you make and the company you bought your policy through.

"Always check with the insurance company directly because this information should be easily available before you purchase your policy," says Gainullin. "Some expenses could be reimbursed instantly, and some require up to 14 days to process."

Gainullin estimates that travel insurance costs "roughly about $120 per person, where pricing is based on your age, trip costs, and the type of travel you're booking."

According to reporting by Business Insider (who gave a mid-2020 travel insurance cost of $111 on average), the more expensive a trip, the more expensive it will be to insure. And if you're over the age of 40, you may have to pay more.

I've always wondered when you're supposed to buy travel insurance — before you book stuff, right after, or anytime after? It turns out timing does matter.Apolicy typically kicks in the day after you buy it, so you would be covered for events that happen after that date. However, it's not retroactive, so if you wait to buy it after you break your leg or hear about a big storm, it may be too late.

To sum it up, Gainullin says, "We recommend booking travel insurance as soon as you start pre-paying for your expenses."

The process of buying travel insurance can vary based on what company you're buying from and where the policy is purchased, but Gainullin says the process is simple at battleface.

"To get a quote, you just plug in your state, age, total cost of your trip, dates of travel, and destination. From there, you’ll review the options. You can pick a package plan or create your own. It’s that simple. You should be able to purchase your policy in less than two minutes without having to answer unnecessary questions."

There are always exceptions (do your research!), but your healthplanwill often have limited or nocoverage in other countries. Plus, in addition to covering bodily injury or evacuation, travel insurance also covers things like lost baggage and trip delay.

"Interestingly, a study we conducted with Opinium found that 20% of Americans believe their primary medical insurance can cover their travel mishaps, but medical insurance often doesn’t provide the same coverage as travel insurance," explained Gainullin.

Anytime I'm about to confirm a flight, a little box appears asking if I want to purchase travel insurance. At first glance, it seems like booking travel insurance through an airline (which you hopefully trust to an extent) would be a smart move.

Not so much.

Like credit card insurance, Gainullin says that a lot of those airline-sponsored travel insurance policies have "low limits" and are "exclusion-driven products," meaning the coverage sucks — even though it might be cheap.

"Unfortunately, at present, airline insurance plans are designed to benefit the airline and not the passenger, and they offer the same package plans to all travelers without considering the traveler’s flight plans or needs. ... Also, these plans are limited in what they can cover," he says.

Things like badcustomer service, hidden fees, and complicated claims processes can make a service that's supposed to help you feel more like a hindrance.

Gainullin says travel insurance can get complicated "when services aren’t centralized through a single company," noting, "Many companies that sell travel insurance don’t handle their own systems, product creation, claims, or emergency travel assistance services."

His advice? "I’d only recommend a company that is responsible for their own products, services, and can respond to customer emergencies 24/7."

If you're flying to Mozambique for a month-long expedition, your travel insurance should look different than what you might buy to visit your mom in Milwaukee.

Every company does it differently, but at battleface,Gainullin explains, "We start with a base coverage for trip cancellation, and customers can then add benefits that are relevant to their needs. Making sure you have enough coverage for medical and evacuation expenses is important, especially for international travel."

Plenty of quick domestic trips end in disaster — ski accidents, hurricanes — but as a general rule, the more you pay for a trip, the more you have to lose.

With that in mind, Gainullin suggests"purchasing insurance for international trips, extended visits, and trips that are higher in cost. This helps you avoid fees and financial losses, especially when it’s a trip you’ve been saving months or years for."

You need to be honest about how much money you're willing to lose and buy (or not buy) travel insurance accordingly.

"Before embarking on a trip, do your research, ask questions, and don’t stop until you really understand your policy and benefits you are buying into," says Gainullin.

It's a complicated process, but once you do the legwork, you can apply what you learned to future trips.

Before you buy travel insurance, take a day (or even an afternoon) to dig through that super-wordy health insurance guide you likely have stashed somewhere. Does your medical insurance work in other states? What about internationally? In what destinations are you fully or partially covered?

Then, research your credit cards to see what is and isn't covered in regard to trip reimbursem*nt, baggage loss, travel delays, etc. No matter what, keep in mind that you probably won't be dealing with your credit card company if something goes wrong and will have to reach out to a third party to sort everything out.