The Need (or Why to get travel insurance?)
Travel insurance is for everyone heading out on a trip, at least to some degree. Some folks traveling strictly within the USA may already have some basic coverage thru their credit cards or auto club. This very basic coverage is great for a quick car trip a few hundred miles away, but will typically be lacking the coverage most folks want for more expensive trips to further away destinations.
What to know as you buy travel insurance:
There are several key factors you should consider when purchasing travel insurance.
- One of the key factors is current health insurance coverage of care at your destination. Some folks, especially those with Medicare, are at risk for no coverage for emergency health care needed at foreign destinations.
- If you got sick in a foreign land, how are you getting home, and who is footing that bill (can you afford to pay the bill yourself?). Most health insurance policies do not cover the tens of thousands it will cost to be flown home on a medical jet from outside the USA.
- Do you have non-refundable deposits paid towards your trip, if so can you afford to lose the money if the trip were cancelled or parts of the trip skipped?
- Is there a likely scenario where a missed connection (airplane to airplane, airplane to ship, ship to airplane) could be costly?
- If you had to return home from your trip, what costs would you end up having to pay unexpectedly?
- Do you have plans if your luggage is lost, will it make a mess of your trip or will it be just a minor bother?