group travel insurance

If you think that your health insurance, personal auto insurance or homeowners insurance will cover you on your vacation, you will be surprised to find out that under most circumstance you will have little to no coverage. Group Travel Insurance is the most cost effective way to protect yourself and the rest of your group members if you get in an auto accident, sustain an injury, misplace your luggage(lost or stolen by you or the tour operator), get sick, need to cancel because of loss of job, have travel delays or numerous other things that can go wrong. The small cost of purchasing this insurance is well worth the protection it affords.

People always tell me that they don’t need the insurance because they think their credit cards will cover them. It is true that some credit cards provide some type of coverage but please read the fine print. They usually only cover certain circumstances and it is defiantly not all as encompassing as purchasing a separate policy.

Another thing people tell me is that they spent all of their money on their trip and can’t afford the insurance. I tell them that, “You are exactly the type of person that needs the coverage.” Imagine spending all of your savings for your great upcoming trip and then getting in a bad auto accident right before your scheduled departure. If you purchased insurance, you will get a refund or the chance to re-schedule depending on the type of policy you scheduled. If you did not purchase travel insurance, you will not get to take your trip and you will not get any of your money back.

If you still don’t think you need it, here are the top 10 reasons to purchase group travel insurance:
1. Coverage for medical expenses while outside of your home country.
2. Coverage for emergency dental care.
3. Coverage for transportation home for a major medical emergency.
4. Coverage to bring a family member to you in case of Emergency Medical Evacuation.
5. Accidental death benefits.
6. In case of accidental death, your remains will be returned home.
7. Covered minor children being returned home if you hospitalization lasts longer than 36+ hours.
8. Optional coverage during extreme sport activities.
9. Trip interruption, terrorism, and political evacuation coverage.
10. Assistance with problems with passport and travel documents.

All group travel insurance policies are not equal. Read all of their inclusions and exclusions before purchase. Your Group Travel Organizer should be able to recommend the right plan for your group. After all a group of senior citizens needs different coverage than a group of adventure travelers.

SBI!