Top 10 Reasons to Purchase Travel Insurance

Imagine this....

Today, a fellow agent told me the story of a perfectly healthy mid-30s client who experienced a freak collapsed lung while scuba diving. The cost for a medical evacuation and hospital stay? OVER $100,000. Yes. That is One. Hundred. Thousand. Dollars. that he had to pay out of pocket. The cost of the insurance? $250.

A couple of years ago, I was scheduled to take a 30-day cruise to the South Pacific with my husband and a couple of other family members.  About 2 months prior to the trip, I was diagnosed with a serious illness which required surgery.  After the surgery, I suffered severe, life-threatening complications that resulted in a long hospitalization and my doctors were absolute that my illness would preclude me from taking this trip.  Long story short...because we purchased insurance, we were able to get literally every penny back that we had expended for the trip!  None of us suffered the loss of even one dollar - although frankly we were all devastated that we missed the trip.

At least once a month, I have clients who suffer from an unexpected catastrophic illness or a family member has unexpectedly passed away while they are traveling, or even before they travel.  Even though a vacation isn't as always as big an investment as your car, your home or your life, it's still an important investment worth insuring. This is especially true when you consider the additional costs outside your initial investment, such as replacing lost or stolen luggage, and getting emergency medical care. 

Here are the top 10 reasons to buy travel insurance

1. Foreign hospitals can be expensive

Your health insurance doesn't apply in foreign countries, so you could get stuck paying for your entire hospital stay.

2. Your luggage was lost or stolen

Whether your luggage is lost, stolen or damaged, it could get expensive to replace all the contents, including clothes, electronic devices and medication.

3. Someone gets sick

If you or a fellow traveler gets sick right before the trip and you have to cancel, you could lose the full cost of the trip. 

4. Your resort is damaged

If a hurricane threatens or damages your resort just before you leave, you could lose the cost of airfare, side trips and even what you've paid for the resort.

5. You have a medical emergency

Whether you or a fellow traveler, or even a family member has a medical emergency before or during your trip, you'll have to cancel all or part of your trip.

6. Emergency airlifts aren't cheap

If you need to be flown to a hospital or evacuated from a danger zone, helicopter transport could cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars.

7. You have to return home early

If you have to cancel the remainder of your trip and fly home immediately, the airline could charge you for your flight changes – even in an emergency situation.

8. A close friend or family member passes away

Even if a funeral can be delayed until you return from vacation, will you truly enjoy yourself during this sad time?

9. You sustain an injury just before the trip

Backpacking across Europe won't be so easy if you break your leg the week before your trip.

10. Your job gets in the way

Even though your trip has been on the work schedule for weeks, your back-up leaves the company or you're offered a new job that starts immediately.

Travel protection insurance is not a scam or a way for your agent to increase their sales and commissions - it is for YOUR protection of your travel dollars and unexpected emergencies.  A travel specialist who cares about you will make sure you are provided with the best possible options for travel protection insurance - the policy that meets your needs - so that you can relax, enjoy, and not stress over the "what-ifs".