Tips

Why Travel Insurance is Worth the Expense

A travel emergency can cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars. Is it really worth the risk?

By Claire Newell /

Credit: Flickr / Loren Sztajer

Don’t spend your vacation hiding under an umbrella just because you don’t have travel insurance!

Some people think of travel insurance as an added expense or luxury, but not having it can end up costing you even more

Even small, unexpected medical emergencies away from home can lead to thousands of dollars in medical bills. Here are a few examples that will hopefully make you think twice about not buying travel insurance.

Why Travel Insurance Is Worth the Expense

  • According to BCAA and its travel insurance underwriters – respiratory illnesses such as pneumonia, asthma and bronchitis are the most common medical claims.
  • The average cost you’d have to pay out of pocket if you left home with no insurance…. more than $2,700.
  • Stomach problems are also common. Illnesses such as food poisoning, ulcers or gallstones can run you up to $2,100 in medical care.
  • Even just a skin, blood or ear infection can cost close to $700.
  • And check out heart attacks… a whopping $17,000 if you don’t have insurance. And that’s just the average. Claims can reach as high as $300,000 for something like a quadruple bypass.

Health Insurance Limitations

One of the biggest problems is that many people think they have enough protection through their credit card or employer plan, but those can often have limits.

  • There’s a chance those plans don’t protect your spouse or children, or apply to trips 30 days or longer.
  • Some may also cap coverage at $100,000 of medical expenses.

Help ensure you’re covered properly by checking if your insurance allows access to a network of health providers, including top-tier hospitals, incidental expenses such as phone charges or renting wheelchairs or crutches, and transportation back to Canada or transportation for someone to be at your bedside.

It’s really not something most of us want to think about when we’re heading out on vacation, but it’s a case of better to be safe than sorry.

Travel Deals to Go with Your Travel Insurance

Here are a couple of deals you may be interested in checking out:

  • Stay at the brand new Disney Resort in Oahu – April 14 – air from Bellingham, 4 nights Waikiki & 3 nights at the Aulani Resort in Ko Olina, adults $1499, kids 17 & under $499
  • Or, an escorted coach tour of Britain & Ireland – May 24 – including Air, 9 nights accommodations, some meals & transfers, $1999

For details call 1-877-5-BEST BETS or visit Travel Best Bets.

Founder and president of Travel Best Bets, Claire Newell has appeared on The Today Show, Fox & Friends, Good Day New York, ABC Morning News – Chicago, Martha Stewart Living Radio, and CNN Radio, and is the official travel consultant for Global TV. She has been a spokesperson for Disney’s www.family.com, and featured in promotions for the Vancouver International Airport and the Canadian Tourism Commission. Newell has authored or been featured in articles for Success, Professional Woman, Today’s Parent, Readers Digest and for various newspapers. She is the best selling author of Travel Best Bests – An Insider’s Guide to Taking Your Best Trips, Ever and has just finished her second book.
 
This wife and mother of two has also launched two lines of luggage & travel accessories. Visit www.clairenewell.com for more information.