Travel Insurance
Fri 30 July 2010
Travel insurance is one of those situations where we have to make a good choice with little experience. I spent a couple evenings researching the choices.
First, some background reading. Travelfish gives a good overview of terms and types. The State Department has another general introduction.
Travel Insurance Review helped me narrow down my needs. The length of my trip ruled out the 6 month unrenewable policies out. I'm most concerned about medical evacuation in the event of God Forbid. The plane ticket is the biggest expense so far, so a little coverage for interrupted travel would be nice. Less important is normal medical coverage. I can cover smaller expenses, so I'll trade a deductible for a lower cost. Theft coverage would be useless. The fine print of the policies I considered says they require original receipts, and I have very few of those.
Squaremouth gave side-by-side quotes. I was surprised by the range of prices, so I dug further. I checked some company websites directly, and they reflected the same variations. ( See the State Department suggestions for more companies and comparison sites .) ` <http://www.travelfish.org/board/topic/travelinsurance>`__
In the end I choose World Nomads. Travel Fish and Go Green Travel mentioned them favorably. I got a quote and read all the policy documents. The Better Business Bureau gave the underwriter good marks. Travel Fish forums had some reviews from customers, and while there were a couple grumbles, they didn't apply to me. What finally tipped the balance was online accessibility. World Nomads lets me log in to see my policy and renew online. I'm biased toward things that I can manage at a distance and from the web.
Here's hoping I never put them to the test. But, god forbid it should happen, I did my homework.