RedSquirrelUK
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,924 
Location: The UK's beautiful West Country
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Post by RedSquirrelUK on Apr 18, 2024 11:47:58 GMT
Travel outside the UK - always.
Within the UK, health is covered under the NHS and we wouldn't travel anywhere we couldn't afford to get home from, or lose the booking.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Nov 29, 2024 5:36:05 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Apr 18, 2024 11:58:42 GMT
Definitely for international. It would make me far too nervous not to do so. I'm able to buy a plan through my employer.
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anniebeth24
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,783
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Post by anniebeth24 on Apr 18, 2024 12:02:10 GMT
We're going on a National Geographic tour (in 2 weeks!) which requires participants to show proof of having certain minimum coverage.
Lesson learned- if you don't purchase within a few days of your initial deposit, most companies will not offer coverage for pre-existing conditions. We waited to buy it when our full payment was due.
While it didn't work for us this time, I also learned that Costco has great coverage with no increase based on your age. If any part of your trip (even just the rental car) is purchased through Costco, you are eligible.
My parents (in their 80s) have found AAA to have the best value.
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keithurbanlovinpea
Pearl Clutcher
Flowing with the go...
Posts: 4,307
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Post by keithurbanlovinpea on Apr 18, 2024 12:17:01 GMT
For those interested, go to insuremytrip.com
You enter your trip info and then you can compare coverage and rates from different carriers, and choose from there.
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Nanner
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,987
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Post by Nanner on Apr 18, 2024 13:28:58 GMT
I used to, but not any more. I priced it out and it would cost me a fortune for health because I have a form of leukemia, but I do have travel insurance for health through work (til the end of the year) and some through retiree benefits from a previous employer.
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Post by librarylady on Apr 18, 2024 13:30:15 GMT
International trips= yes
Domestic = no
Read the terms. I learned that if we were to cancel because of a death in the family-if the deceased were ill before we left on the trip, the cancelation would not be covered.
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scrappinmama
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,130
Jun 26, 2014 12:54:09 GMT
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Post by scrappinmama on Apr 18, 2024 13:30:20 GMT
If we are traveling overseas, we always buy travel insurance. Anything can happen. You can have a long flight delay, lost luggage, get sick or injured. We look for insurance that covers at least $50,000 for medical expenses, $100,000 for medical evacuation, covers lost luggage, trip interruptions, etc. My credit card covers some of this, but not all, so travel insurance is a must.
I usually get quotes from insuremytrip.com. Make sure you read the reviews, because there are good and bad insurance companies.
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Tearisci
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,268
Nov 6, 2018 16:34:30 GMT
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Post by Tearisci on Apr 18, 2024 13:34:23 GMT
I never used to but I had my appendix rupture when I was on a trip to Scotland a few years ago. Now I won't travel internationally without it.
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GiantsFan
Prolific Pea
Posts: 8,516
Site Supporter
Jun 27, 2014 14:44:56 GMT
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Post by GiantsFan on Apr 18, 2024 13:50:43 GMT
Always when traveling internationally.
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Post by shanniebananie on Apr 18, 2024 13:57:00 GMT
When we travel internationally, we always purchase a plan.
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Post by Bridget in MD on Apr 18, 2024 14:01:51 GMT
For those interested, go to insuremytrip.com You enter your trip info and then you can compare coverage and rates from different carriers, and choose from there. So I just went there and it asks ""Trip Cost" is the total of all pre-paid, non-refundable travel arrangements to be insured." Well I purchased refundable plane tix, and the hotels I booked can be cancelled up to 24 hrs before the day of checkin... So does that mean I don't have any travel expenses really, I am looking more for health emergency coverage? |
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Post by crazy4scraps on Apr 18, 2024 14:26:22 GMT
For any expensive vacation, any cruises or anything international, always. For domestic trips where we could likely get home without breaking the bank, maybe or maybe not. I suppose though with out of network costs being what they are, it probably makes sense to get it for domestic travel too.
One of my clients went on a 13-14 day international cruise with a friend who fell and broke her leg on the second day in. They had no travel insurance and it cost them over $6K each to fly home on top of missing out on the vacation of a lifetime that they had planned for over a year. I have no idea what the medical costs were on top of all that.
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Post by buddysmom on Apr 18, 2024 14:30:43 GMT
Yikes! We are traveling in 11 days. Internationally. Our first time. The people we are going with travel a lot and never get insurance so neither did we! Any suggestions where I can get last minute health insurance? It depends if you want them to cover a pre-existing condition. Insurance that includes pre-existing conditions usually has to be bought within about two weeks of making your first payment (hotel/flight/cruise, etc). Then different ones have different lookback periods. I usually get Geo-Blue. Some employer health insurance covers overseas and my medicare covers 50K lifetime. But I don't take any chances and always get health insurance. |
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huskergal
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,449
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Post by huskergal on Apr 18, 2024 14:34:26 GMT
I have only been on 2 international trips. I didn't buy travel insurance for either. Should I go again, after reading the responses, I probably will.
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Post by buddysmom on Apr 18, 2024 14:35:11 GMT
Even if you don't get travel insurance to cover your flight/hotel/cruise etc-- (flights can sometimes be changed and hotels until a few days before) plus there's a finite amount you can lose-- health insurance and medical evac is a must for us. Med evac can cost 100K from Europe.
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Post by Judie in Oz on Apr 18, 2024 15:03:20 GMT
Travel insurance helped me when I fell ill in Cambodia in 2017 and was hospitalised for five days. The hospital bill was high enough, and we also had to cancel the rest of our trip through Vietnam and fly straight home. I think my insurance claim was around $9,000 v travel insurance of around $200 p.p. Definitely worth it. I made sure we had a high level of cover when we came to the US in 2019!
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scrappinmama
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,130
Jun 26, 2014 12:54:09 GMT
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Post by scrappinmama on Apr 18, 2024 15:29:58 GMT
Yikes! We are traveling in 11 days. Internationally. Our first time. The people we are going with travel a lot and never get insurance so neither did we! Any suggestions where I can get last minute health insurance? It's not too late, but pre-existing conditions won't be covered. I would definitely buy coverage. Insuremytrip.com, aardy.com are good websites to get quotes. |
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scrappinmama
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,130
Jun 26, 2014 12:54:09 GMT
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Post by scrappinmama on Apr 18, 2024 15:32:40 GMT
For those interested, go to insuremytrip.com You enter your trip info and then you can compare coverage and rates from different carriers, and choose from there. So I just went there and it asks ""Trip Cost" is the total of all pre-paid, non-refundable travel arrangements to be insured." Well I purchased refundable plane tix, and the hotels I booked can be cancelled up to 24 hrs before the day of checkin... So does that mean I don't have any travel expenses really, I am looking more for health emergency coverage? I include the costs. Because what if you are on day one and get hurt or have a death in the family? The travel insurance will cover the cost of the hotel that you won't use, but still have to pay for. |
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Post by Darcy Collins on Apr 18, 2024 15:38:46 GMT
I have good coverage from my premium travel credit card, so it's just typically an extra expense. Our health coverage also covers in many place abroad (not everywhere, so I have added medical coverage insurance when we were going to countries which aren't well served). I did add it to the cruise we've booked as the costs can get so high so quickly if we end up missing the boat at some point that I didn't want to risk it. It really depends on where you're going and what coverage you're already paying for through other services.
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Post by karenk on Apr 18, 2024 15:48:34 GMT
In February I broke my ankle on my second day in Cancun. I had Allianz coverage up to 20,000 dollars plus extras. My bills were 35,000 dollars for the ER, surgery, 6 days in the hospital and the cost of the surgeon, which was extra. So, I had to pay 15,000 on my credit cards in order for the surgery to take place. My Medicare Advantage coverage includes up to 10,000 for emergencies out of our area. I have to file that claim.
Next year I will renew the coverage, but up it to 50,000 dollars. I did have 100,000 for what was called repatriation, which was my return to my home with a companion.
The surgeon said I could have the surgery there or return home. I can only imagine what it would have been like to return to the US with a broken ankle and just an ace bandage! I had 2 plates and numerous screws!
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twinsmomfla99
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,119
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Post by twinsmomfla99 on Apr 18, 2024 16:16:14 GMT
We don’t travel much, and when we do it is usually a drivable distance (we hate flying!). We have not purchased travel insurance in the past unless we flew because we didn’t want to face unreasonable expenses if we had to purchase last minute flight gets to get home. If we didn’t fly, we figured we would be able to drive home if we had to cut the trip short.
The summer before COVID, my aunt (mid-80s at the time) fell and broke her hip in SC. The cost of getting her back to OH was astronomical if she needed an ambulance to get her back home. She couldn’t sit in a car for the length of time they had to drive right after her surgery, and Medicaid paid for her to go into a rehab facility for a few weeks. They incurred so many extra expenses for her husband while she was recovering enough to get home.
She could have gone home earlier with travel insurance. I’m not sure what they paid out of pocket for the extended rehab stay. She wouldn’t have had as much time in the facility if she had been in OH bc they would have released her to go home earlier. On the plus side, the extended rehab stay really helped her recovery because she got more PT at the rehab center than she would have at home, and she came through the broken hip experience better than most do at her age.
But wow—it was an expensive trip for two retirees.
Her experience has me rethinking travel insurance for DH and me for any trips over 3 hours in the future. And there is no way I would travel abroad without it!
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Post by tealpaperowl on Apr 18, 2024 19:25:19 GMT
We buy it when we travel internationally. It has saved us once, we were all set to go and then my husband got a blood clot in his femural artery and couldn't fly. Thankfully we had the insurance!
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Post by melanell on Apr 18, 2024 19:27:08 GMT
Yes, for any larger trip I do. I figure any portion of my money I can get back is better than none if something goes wrong.
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Post by scrapcat on Apr 18, 2024 19:29:40 GMT
Yes due to pre-existing health conditions. I pay the premium that will get us helivaced back to the US.
I always use Travel Guard through AIG. It has also come in handy for cancelled flights, delays, lost luggage, etc. I've had no problem receiving payment for claims, it's always been an easy process.
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Post by merry27 on Apr 18, 2024 22:41:04 GMT
I got 'free' travel insurance through my bank. The conditions were that I had to pay for any part of my trip (airfares, accomodation etc) to the value of $500 per person on my credit card, and I was eligible for free insurance. Most banks offer a similar thing.  My credit card also offers this trip insurance. It also offers car insurance. I NEVER EVER give out my personal car insurance whenever I rent a car, either in Canada or the USA. I don't drive in Mexico or other International. I had a rental car that was bashed in a parking lot in Huntington Beach many years ago. Big dent. I called my credit card insurance and told them it was a hit & run in a parking lot. I took photos and filled out the downloaded forms regarding this collision. Everything was handled between Enterprise Rental and my Insurance company. I was cc'd on the paperwork but I didn't pay a penny. The damage was over $6,000.00 US$. As a Canadian, with the exchange rate, it would have been a lot of money. Since I didn't give out my own car insurance, nothing was noted on my car insurance. This is a premium card with an annual fee of $145./year. This fee is waived due to all of the business and longevity with this bank. I have been banking with this bank for 54 years, consecutively and even worked for this bank for over 10 years. I have a very old account number that has grandfathered many benefits. I refuse to even consider contributing to a Go Fund Me helping out people who didn't *think* of travel insurance. I am sick and tired of the sad sob stories where people have the money to travel but are too cheap to buy travel insurance. Just like tipping at a restaurant, if you can afford the base price of the meal, you can afford the tip (this seems to be the way the peas seem to think on that topic and I believe it is applicable here). Anything can happen anywhere and usually if you don't have the insurance, you will probably need it. Lack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part. No- I would never ask for someone to contribute to a Go Fund Me if something happened. I despise those for people that make poor decisions (but have contributed to others). Ninety percent of our travel the past few years has been around the US or US territories. I never got it before because our medical insurance would have covered anything. The last time we traveled to Europe we were young and didn’t think about getting it. After reading all the replies in here I immediately paid for the policy that Delta Airlines offered us and will always do so in the future for Internatiinal travel. Thanks for the responses and stories! |
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Post by Karene on Apr 18, 2024 23:03:51 GMT
I always get medical travel insurance although we are also covered through my husband's work benefits. I don't always get trip cancellation insurance. I also get the rent and walk away insurance from car rental places. It's a bit of a scam but I'd rather not have to worry about being charged thousands of dollars for a small scratch.
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Post by littlemama on Apr 18, 2024 23:11:24 GMT
Yes, especially for foreign/expensive travel
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Post by kamper on Apr 19, 2024 0:14:06 GMT
Typically, we don't buy 'travel insurance' for international travel (exception was our Antarctic cruise because they required it). I buy a medical plan because, our current policy doesn't cover us outside the US. I'm in the process switching to Cigna Global so, we will use one plan worldwide. Insurance for lost bags and such comes from our credit card.
I guess I never considered that the public health plans don't cover you overseas (I knew about Medicare). When my husband worked he had full coverage worldwide including medical evacuation. Is that not common?
I never worried about insurance for cancellations. I just excepted the fact that I could lose all the money we had paid.
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Post by kamper on Apr 19, 2024 0:17:59 GMT
For those interested, go to insuremytrip.com You enter your trip info and then you can compare coverage and rates from different carriers, and choose from there. So I just went there and it asks ""Trip Cost" is the total of all pre-paid, non-refundable travel arrangements to be insured." Well I purchased refundable plane tix, and the hotels I booked can be cancelled up to 24 hrs before the day of checkin... So does that mean I don't have any travel expenses really, I am looking more for health emergency coverage? If you are just interested in medical insurance you should check out SafetyWing.com |
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Chinagirl828
Drama Llama
Melbourne, Australia
Posts: 6,688
Jun 28, 2014 6:28:53 GMT
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Post by Chinagirl828 on Apr 19, 2024 6:59:10 GMT
I have also heard that the travel insurance companies make it REALLY difficult for you to get any money. IME it really depends on the nature of the claim. We had to jump through all sorts of hoops for our lost luggage and didn't end up getting much back compared to what it cost to replace the things we lost. When our flights out of Cuba were cancelled, we needed to provide a letter from the airline confirming we were booked on that flight and it had been cancelled, and then proof of our pre-paid accommodation we had to cancel. When my partner was hospitalised in the UK we just needed to provide proof of his hospital stay and the accommodation and travel costs that we had to cancel. Getting a payout for the last two was much easier than the lost luggage claim. |
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My credit card also offers this trip insurance. It also offers car insurance. I NEVER EVER give out my personal car insurance whenever I rent a car, either in Canada or the USA. I don't drive in Mexico or other International. 
