What Is Travel Insurance And Who Are The Best Providers?
Traveling is the best possible way of deceiving the ever-growing the mundanity that can impact our well-being negatively. Taking a bit of time and exploring new places not only helps in refreshing our minds but also brings physical fitness in our ways. However, issues are common everywhere. Even when you are traveling you should be ready to face common problems, delays and trip interruption. And it is quite hard to find a solution or an assistance when you are in a completely new place. This is where the concept of travel insurance stands out the most.
Travel insurance plans provides you with the coverage options for the common disruptions that you can face while traveling. You can face several issues, such as full cancellation, trip interruptions, medical emergencies, lost luggage and some of the other negative experiences. Purchasing travel insurance plans protects your money in such situations and helps you in continuing your trip peacefully.
The importance of travel insurance plans
Travel insurance plans may not seem to be as much important as your homeowner insurance and auto insurance, which is very natural. However, you only realize the significance of it once you face an unexpected cancellation or unprecedented trip interruption that can cause you a lot of unnecessary expenses. Travel insurance does not only help you with your cancellations but also the medical emergencies that you face during your trips.
However, if you are a routine traveler or you are traveling just across the country then travel insurance might not be necessary for you. Nevertheless, if you are opting for a long foreign trip and investing a good amount of money in it then it is wise to consider the assistance of an insurance policy. You need to check the travel insurance coverage along with all the inclusions and exclusions before purchasing one.
Inclusions of travel insurance coverage
There are some of the common coverage options that are included in the standard travel insurance policies. Anything other than these common features may be a subject to be referred as a coverage add-on. The common inclusions are presented below:
- Cancellation of the trip
- Any kind of interruption within the trip
- Delayed trips
- Delayed luggage
- Theft and damage of personal belongings and luggage
- Medical emergency
- Medical evacuation
- AD&D (Accidental death and dismemberment)
The additional coverages have even more flexible options, and those can be customized as per your need too. Hence, it is recommended to check the additional coverage options too before proceeding with the purchase.
Exclusions of travel insurance plans coverage
Exclusions are necessary when it comes to insurance policies. Not anything and everything will be covered by your insurance provider, and it is important for you to know what the exclusions are. Here we are mentioning some of the standard exclusions, however, excluding an event totally depends on the choice of the provider.
- Delays or cancellations that are related to any act of terrorism.
- Cancellations that take place due to a pandemic
- Cancellations and delays that happens due to any weather-related interruptions.
- Injuries that one acquires while participating in an extreme sport or adventurous activities.
- Lost luggage due to extreme negligence.
- Severely ignoring the road rules, or breaking traveling rules of prescribed by the government
- Participating in traveling going against government advice
- Having an unapproved medical condition. Such as if you are diagnosed with a complicated medical condition and you have not informed the insurer about it then you cannot claim against any medical emergency.
- Being engaged in reckless activities, for an example heavy drinking and drug use, will not be covered by the insurer.
- Pregnancy is excluded by most of the travel insurance providers. And the insurers which include it, have strict conditions.
Along with all of the mentioned exclusions, some of the insurers exclude the course of cancellations as well. Any type of cancellation is excluded from their travel insurance coverage options. And it is not recommended to consider the companies which do not cover cancellation, since it is one of the most common issues to be faced while traveling. Thus, it is recommended to go through the terms & conditions and coverage options before considering the purchase.
Average cost for travel insurance plans
The average cost for travel insurance varies quite lot. The differences are based on the insurance providers as well as the coverage they provide or the coverage that you choose. The average cost can be as low as $10 dollars a day and as high as a few hundred dollars. The cost also depends on your trip being short-term or long-term along with the total cost of your trip.
A single long-term trip can most likely cost $20, and the price can face a hike reaching up to a few hundred dollars. If you are opting for an annual policy then it will cost you around $500 each year, however, it will have an extremely high level of coverage.
Some of the inexpensive travel insurances may look attractive, but mostly they lack in the area of quality service. If you are considering purchasing travel insurance plans, then it is recommended to go for a comprehensive coverage. This choice will be providing you with the least possible inconvenience while filing for a claim.
Parameters of comparing a travel insurance
In the insurance market of the US, you will be getting a good number of options for insurance providers. The area of travel insurance is nothing different in this matter. There are more than ten travel insurance providers who will be assuring you about their convenient policies. In this scenario you need to compare the companies and choose the best possible one for you. The parameters that will be helping you in comparing the companies are explained in the following table.
| Parameters | Descriptions |
| Pricing | Pricing is one of the most important factors to evaluate while opting for a travel insurance policy. You should always choose a provider that offers all the important services under an affordable price. However, do not go for too cheap prices, as those often contain issues regarding customer service. |
| Coverages | Look for the coverage options that your provider is offering you. There will always be different type of coverage offerings in the case of different providers. Choose the one that covers most of your travel needs as well as covers for most of the risk factors. And do not skip comparing the coverage limits as well. |
| Policy types | As travel insurances are not meant for lasting long, you need to choose a policy that serves your purpose right. Such as, if you are going for trip for only a week, then purchasing a week-long policy will be both cheap and appropriate for you. |
| Excluded factors | This is another of the most important parameters to judge your travel insurance. Going through the exclusions is important before purchasing the policy. If the exclusion includes one of your requirements, then you can eliminate the provider from your list. |
| Customer satisfaction review | Some of the providers may offer you cheap prices along with all the coverages that another company with a premium price offers. Hence, to judge which one is the best option for you, you will be needing the customer satisfaction tool. By checking the customer satisfaction rating or review you will be able to understand, which company is the best when it comes to file claiming, and you can easily proceed with the choice. |
Top five travel insurance companies in 2022
For making your comparing task easy, we have listed top five travel insurance companies to purchase from if you are planning on a trip in the year of 2022. The following analysis will be containing the pros and cons of each of the companies, which will be helpful for your choice determination. However, before diving into the analysis let’s compare the expertise and the prices of the company.
| Company | Best for | Coverage limit | Starting price |
| Travelex | Overall | $25,000 | $28 |
| Allianz Travel insurance | Runner-up, overall | $5,000 | $120 |
| InsureMyTrip | value | Varies | $25 to $100 |
| World Nomads | Comprehensive coverage | $2,500 to $10,000 | $100 to $200 |
| HTH Travel Insurance | Senior travelers | $5,000 to $50,000 | Varies |
Table 1
1. Travelex
| Pros | Cons |
|
|
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Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance company overwrites the policies of Travelex. The mentioned company has earned an A++ rating from AM Best, which ensures the effectiveness of the company in the case of customer satisfaction. Hence, if you want a quality service you can go forward with Travelex.
Travelex is certainly one of the most affordable companies for purchasing travel insurance plans. The plans of the company start only from $28, which includes trip cancellation along with medical coverages and trip interruption. However, you can always customize and upgrade your coverage option with by going through the additional coverage options. The coverage limits of Travelex are provided below:
| Coverage option | Coverage limit |
| Trip cancellation | $25,000 (100% covered) |
| Trip Interruption | $37,500 (up to 150% can be received) |
| Medical emergency | $50,000 |
| Emergency evacuation | $500,000 |
Table 2
2. Allianz Travel Insurance
| Pros | Cons |
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|
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Allianz Travel insurance can prove to be the best choice for the people who opt for more than one trip each year. The annual plans of the company are associated with almost all the requirements that a traveler may need while hitting the road. There are four different annual plans that come with a number of benefits added to them. Among these four different plans the AllTrips Executive plan is the most beneficial one, as it offers the highest limits with the most coverages. The limits of AllTrips Executive are presented below:
| Coverage option | Coverage limit |
| Trip cancellation | $5,000 |
| Trip Interruption | $5,000 |
| Medical emergency | $50,000 |
| Emergency evacuation | $250,000 |
Table 3
3. InsureMyTrip
| Pros | Cons |
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|
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InsureMyTrip is not an insurance company, it is an online tool that lets you compare the quotes of different companies under a single interface. There are more than 20 insurers that are added to this website, and you can easily search for them by using the intake form. Even filters can be used for policy search, such as highest limits, medical coverage and many more. It needs to be noted that this website only lets you choose the most effective and efficient insurance provider for you, you will be dealing and buying insurance from the company directly. Hence, always remember to read the details of the insurance policy before purchasing a quote.
4. World Nomads
| Pros | Cons |
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 |
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If you are an adventure lover and you are looking forward towards experiencing some adventures during your trip, then World Nomads is the best option for you. Unlike the other insurance providers, the company has included coverage for extreme sports coverage in many of its policies. You can enjoy more than 200 activities under your coverage options. Nationwide has underwritten the US based policies of the company. The coverage limits associated with the company’s plans are mentioned below,
| Coverage option | Coverage limit |
| Trip cancellation | $10,000 |
| Trip Interruption | $10,000 |
| Medical emergency | $100,000 |
| Emergency evacuation | $500,000 |
Table 4
5. HTH Travel Insurance
| Pros | Cons |
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If you are opting for a trip with your old parents or grandparents, then HTH Travel Insurance can prove to be the best choice for you. The company offers up to $1 million for medical coverage. If you have an existing health insurance plan then you can enjoy 100% coverage, which even includes surgeries. And this is available for all of the travelers who are under 96 years old. The medical evacuation coverage is extended up to $500,000. The company also offers travel plans for the uninsured travelers; however, the age limit remains up to 74 years old.
We have included each of the companies that you may need according to your travel choices. Although, we will still recommend you compare the quotes online once before proceeding with the purchase and obviously go through the details of the policy to avoid any unnecessary circumstances.
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