Add me to the list of confused newbies looking for insurance

[shoppingfever]

Okay, I have researched and I have read and read and read, but I am still confused. I have looked at insuremytrip, I have compared policies and I guess I am looking at around $200 for trip insurance which seems like a lot but if something were to happen I suppose it is not.

 

I want cancel for any reason because if something happened to a family member (not going on trip), my son (not going on trip), or one of us prior to leaving (just my dh and I are going), then I want to be able to cancel without losing all our money. To add to the confusion, it appears that even for cancel for any reason, it is only 50% of what we will pay for the trip. Is that correct?

 

Do I insure for the total price after taxes, fees, etc? I have seen answers to both here so that is why I am confused.

[happy cruzer]

If you are trying to cover a cancellation for medical reasons, you may not need the cancel for any reason policy and the full amount is usually covered. Most policies cover medical reasons for family members and then the policy goes on to define family members.

 

Cancel for any reason is very expensive compared to most of the other coverages.

 

But the main thing is to determine what you want covered and what you are comfortable with. The devil is in the details and that means you have to read all the details to understand the policy.

[shoppingfever]

Thank you for the reply. I will keep searching then for the next couple of days. I know I need to book by Monday because that is a two week window from when I booked.

 

I need to read more in the details then because I thought you had to do the cancel for any reason if it was a family member not going with you.

[cruiseco]

Thank you for the reply. I will keep searching then for the next couple of days. I know I need to book by Monday because that is a two week window from when I booked.

 

I need to read more in the details then because I thought you had to do the cancel for any reason if it was a family member not going with you.

 

If you're worried about a medical situation involving a non-traveling family member then just about any plan will cover you without the extra expense of a Cancel For Any Reason option. For example, this is from TravelSafe's covered reasons for trip cancellation and trip interruption:

 

"TRIP CANCELLATION, TRIP INTERRUPTION, MISSED CONNECTION AND TRAVEL DELAY

 

Trip Cancellation : Benefits will be paid, up to the Maximum Benefit Amount shown in the Schedule of Benefits, to cover You for the unused non-refundable prepaid expenses for Travel Arrangements, including up to $150 for the cost of airline-imposed fees to rebank frequent flyer miles for air flights to join Your Trip when You are prevented from taking Your Trip due to:

 

1. Death involving You or Your Traveling Companion or Your or Your Traveling Companion's Business Partner or Your Family Member;

 

2. A covered Sickness or Injury involving You, Your Traveling Companion or Business Partner, or Your Family Member which necessitates Medical Treatment at the time of cancellation and results in medically imposed restrictions, as certified by a Legally Qualified Physician, which prevents Your participation in the Trip; or . . . "

 

Where you will need to check further into the plan wording is their definition of a "Family Member." If you're worried about Cousin Fred (who's like a brother to you) you'll probably find that cousins aren't covered as "Family Members" so in that case you would in fact need to buy a plan with a Cancel For Any Reason benefit. But I think you'll find that any family member close enough to you that you would cancel your trip if something happened will be on the list of "Family Members".

 

Here's TravelSafe's definition of "Family Member":

 

""Family Member" means any of the following who resides in the United States, Canada, or Mexico: Your or Your Traveling Companion's: legal spouse (or common-law spouse where legal), legal guardian, son or daughter (adopted, foster, step or in-law), brother or sister (includes step or in-law), parent (includes step or in-law), grandparent (includes in-law), grandchild, aunt, uncle, niece or nephew, Domestic Partner, an employed caregiver who lives with You, or a person for whom You are the primary caregiver with whom You have lived for 12 continuous months prior to the effective date of Your Plan, whether or not they travel with You."

 

As far as the payout on the Cancel For Any Reason plans they vary quite a bit. And keep in mind that if you do cancel for a covered reason they pay you 100% of your insured loss.

 

Here's from that same TravelSafe plan:

 

"Cancellation Penalty Schedule

If Cancellation Penalty Amount Is:. . . . . Percentage of Penalty Amount Payable Is:

Up to 25% of Trip Cost . . . . . . . . . 100% of Penalty Amount

26% to 50% of Trip Cost . . . . . . . . 85% of Penalty Amount

Over 50% of Trip Cost. . . . . . . . . . 75% of Penalty Amount "

 

So as you can see, the payout percentage is going to depend on where you are with the travel suppliers' penalty structure. A last-minute cancellation when you're in the cruise line's 100% penalty period would let you claim 75% of that loss. Other plans can be anywhere from 50% on up for a last minute cancellation.

[shoppingfever]

I cannot thank you enough for your help! It appears that I can probably go with the basic package. We have health insurance and dental insurance that will cover much of any other concerns.

 

You have saved me quite a bit of money!! THANK YOU!