Current best option for annual travel insurance

[lovetravellingoz]

My Westpac card, requires only $500 in bookings plus return ticket. Very good.

Note that it is $500 per person for those that may not be aware.

2. Each spouse and dependent child, spends at least $A500 on their prepaid travel costs (i.e. travel costs paid before leaving Australia) and they charge these costs (e.g. cost of their return overseas travel ticket; and/or airport/departure taxes; and/or their prepaid overseas accommodation/ travel; and/or their other prepaid overseas itinerary items) to the current Westpac cardholder’s eligible credit card

 

[TheRealTMA]

Note that it is $500 per person for those that may not be aware.

2. Each spouse and dependent child, spends at least $A500 on their prepaid travel costs (i.e. travel costs paid before leaving Australia) and they charge these costs (e.g. cost of their return overseas travel ticket; and/or airport/departure taxes; and/or their prepaid overseas accommodation/ travel; and/or their other prepaid overseas itinerary items) to the current Westpac cardholder’s eligible credit card

Yes of course. One hotel booking for 2-4 nights covers all of us.

$24K was the last claim on Westpac TI, paid promptly.

Important to make at least one qualifying booking on the Westpac card before booking air travel. The rest can be on 28 Degrees or a card that doesn't charge DCC and overseas fees.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

Important to make at least one qualifying booking on the Westpac card before booking air travel.

I am not sure why? I would regard it as important to have activation once significant expense is made as the cancellation insurance will commence. This may or may not be the flight.

If one is booking your international flights on points to depart Australia (and I only do at present) then cancelling those is not actually much of a risk as normally one can cancel redemptions for only a small fee and less than the excess.
** I often redeem at the maximum period and to minute if known. If there are fuel fines this may cause activation. If not then it may not. ie my J redemption MEL-NBO the total charges was on $57 out.
** I often redeem my retun flights as two one ways. So the second set of charges will occur at that time.
** If I am over the excess but less than the $500 I might then also book a "travel arangement" or hotel to reach the $500 per person.

If booking a paid international fare then in many cases the fare would be more than $500 (Westpac) pp and so booking the fare will activate the TI.

If you have to make a major expense more than when the flight booking period out window opens then you would need a conventional policy to provide cancellation insurance.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

. The rest can be on 28 Degrees or a card that doesn't charge DCC and overseas fees.

Lately I had been using the Citibank Signature Card to earn 3 points per $ for overseas spend as that was worth more to me than the extra cost per international tx. However the downgrading on this card on overseas spend plus the decrease of the transfer rate to Krisflyer may see me revert to a 28 Degree type card.

 

[get me outta here]

I just heard on the radio that Choice magazine is apparently saying on their website today that insurance companies are not covering Zika virus issues if the trip was booked after the world health organisation announcement.

 

[TheRealTMA]

I am not sure why? I would regard it as important to have activation once significant expense is made as the cancellation insurance will commence. This may or may not be the flight.

If one is booking your international flights on points to depart Australia (and I only do at present) then cancelling those is not actually much of a risk as normally one can cancel redemptions for only a small fee and less than the excess.
** I often redeem at the maximum period and to minute if known. If there are fuel fines this may cause activation. If not then it may not. ie my J redemption MEL-NBO the total charges was on $57 out.
** I often redeem my retun flights as two one ways. So the second set of charges will occur at that time.
** If I am over the excess but less than the $500 I might then also book a "travel arangement" or hotel to reach the $500 per person.

If booking a paid international fare then in many cases the fare would be more than $500 (Westpac) pp and so booking the fare will activate the TI.

If you have to make a major expense more than when the flight booking period out window opens then you would need a conventional policy to provide cancellation insurance.

My point is a simple one. It's important to activate the TI before you make any significant expenditure on a trip, otherwise you are at risk of needless loss. Some (Westpac) only require $500 pp, others require you to book the return ticket on the card. RTP for details.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

My point is a simple one. It's important to activate the TI before you make any significant expenditure on a trip, otherwise you are at risk of needless loss. Some (Westpac) only require $500 pp, others require you to book the return ticket on the card. RTP for details.

That I concur with, though it can be at the time of first major expense if you are using the Westpac Card (or ANZ etc) for the payment and already have the flight (or you are killing two birds with the one booking by booking the flight).


Even with paid TI the policy should be taken out as soon as significant expense occurs as a big part of the benefit of TI is the cancellation coverage. Many people only take out TI just before they go thinking that they save money (they do not as cost is the same) and forgo this major benefit.

I know from my sisters that any TI taken out late in the piece where cancellation is claimed is rigourousally examined and if they suspect any pre-existing condition and/or adverse knowledge that they will not pay the claim.

 

[There'sOnlyOneJimmy]

---snip
Even with paid TI the policy should be taken out as soon as significant expense occurs as a big part of the benefit of TI is the cancellation coverage.
---snip

I agree, but also be careful that some policies (eg. CitiBank) appear to exclude any bookings made before the policy starts -
Quote: "10 General Exclusions
We will not pay (under any section) for claims arising directly or indirectly from:
1. Costs or expenses incurred outside the period of insurance..."

If I'm reading this correctly, then you'd need to establish this policy before you started making any bookings if you wanted them covered for cancellation risk (or anything else)...

 

[Rugby]

Spent the afternoon readings PDSs as our annual multi-trip policy was up. Got there in the end with the help of a couple of wines. There must be an insurance broker who has this particular area in their product mix?

 

[lovetravellingoz]

I agree, but also be careful that some policies (eg. CitiBank) appear to exclude any bookings made before the policy starts -
Quote: "10 General Exclusions
We will not pay (under any section) for claims arising directly or indirectly from:
1. Costs or expenses incurred outside the period of insurance..."

If I'm reading this correctly, then you'd need to establish this policy before you started making any bookings if you wanted them covered for cancellation risk (or anything else)...

Citibank is not good for TI as you have to spend too much on it and it does not cover (or at least not last time I looked at it) flights redeemed by points earnt by other means than through Citibank.

I prefer the bank issued Amex' where FF covereage is broad and activation easy to achieve. Yes read the policy as every "free" TI is different. Many I would not use.

 

[TheRealTMA]

I agree, but also be careful that some policies (eg. CitiBank) appear to exclude any bookings made before the policy starts -
Quote: "10 General Exclusions
We will not pay (under any section) for claims arising directly or indirectly from:
1. Costs or expenses incurred outside the period of insurance..."

If I'm reading this correctly, then you'd need to establish this policy before you started making any bookings if you wanted them covered for cancellation risk (or anything else)...

Um. Why would you even think that a TI would cover expenses outside the period of insurance? Weird.

 

[There'sOnlyOneJimmy]

Um. Why would you even think that a TI would cover expenses outside the period of insurance? Weird.

To explain my thinking...
Up until the last couple of years, my flying hasn't been frequent enough to justify annual travel insurance policies.
So I used 'one-time' TI policies.
During that time, I would usually book some flights, book some accomodation, buy some insurance (usually in that order).
One of the risks I want my TI to cover is Cancellation Risk. Policy wording relating to cancellation is usually something along the lines of:
'We will pay your cancellation fees and lost deposits for travel and accommodation arrangements that you have paid in advance and cannot recover in any other way if your Journey is cancelled or shortened at any time through circumstances neither expected nor intended by you or outside your control'
My expectation (in the absence of any other policy wording to the contrary) is that in the event of an eligible cancellation event, that all of my lost deposits would be covered under this clause, whether I incurred them before or after the TI policy commenced. I think that expectation is valid, but I'd be very interested if any suitably qualified contributor to the forum thinks otherwise.

So...my reference to the CitiBank policy wording was to point out that they seem to have specifically excluded any 'pre-incurred' deposits.

 

[LordGarlic]

I looked up some reviews of Columbus and they were not favourable re claims. Cheaper, yes to buy and maybe there is a connection there.

agreed. they are very difficult to deal with when it comes to claim

 

[TheRealTMA]

To explain my thinking...
Up until the last couple of years, my flying hasn't been frequent enough to justify annual travel insurance policies.
So I used 'one-time' TI policies.
During that time, I would usually book some flights, book some accomodation, buy some insurance (usually in that order).
One of the risks I want my TI to cover is Cancellation Risk. Policy wording relating to cancellation is usually something along the lines of:
'We will pay your cancellation fees and lost deposits for travel and accommodation arrangements that you have paid in advance and cannot recover in any other way if your Journey is cancelled or shortened at any time through circumstances neither expected nor intended by you or outside your control'
My expectation (in the absence of any other policy wording to the contrary) is that in the event of an eligible cancellation event, that all of my lost deposits would be covered under this clause, whether I incurred them before or after the TI policy commenced. I think that expectation is valid, but I'd be very interested if any suitably qualified contributor to the forum thinks otherwise.

So...my reference to the CitiBank policy wording was to point out that they seem to have specifically excluded any 'pre-incurred' deposits.

No insurance covers for events before the policy has started. How can it possibly be thought of otherwise. Let's go out and crash the car then take out insurance? In the cases as you stated, you would not have been covered by your insurance policy for cancellations on bookings made before you took out the policy. "Paid in advance" means before the actual travel or accommodation, not in advance of taking out the TI policy. Health insurance doesn't cover for pregnancy until 12 months after policy has been started.

CC TI usually only ( mine anyway) requires you to put $500 on the card to activate the insurance, since I use the card to pay for the bookings, it's a non sequitur.

 

[drron]

No insurance covers for events before the policy has started. How can it possibly be thought of otherwise. Let's go out and crash the car then take out insurance? In the cases as you stated, you would not have been covered by your insurance policy for cancellations on bookings made before you took out the policy. "Paid in advance" means before the actual travel or accommodation, not in advance of taking out the TI policy. Health insurance doesn't cover for pregnancy until 12 months after policy has been started.

CC TI usually only ( mine anyway) requires you to put $500 on the card to activate the insurance, since I use the card to pay for the bookings, it's a non sequitur.

But surely the "event"which triggers the insurance is the cancellation not the original payment.
On all our trips I use the TA for air fares-so a definite booking but payment not made until~ 6 weeks before leaving and initially all hotels booked on cancellable rates so not something that affects me personally.

 

[TheRealTMA]

But surely the "event"which triggers the insurance is the cancellation not the original payment.
On all our trips I use the TA for air fares-so a definite booking but payment not made until~ 6 weeks before leaving and initially all hotels booked on cancellable rates so not something that affects me personally.

Maybe with quantum theory but not with insurance. With a TA, a deposit can be used to activate CC TI.

 

[There'sOnlyOneJimmy]

No insurance covers for events before the policy has started. How can it possibly be thought of otherwise. Let's go out and crash the car then take out insurance?
---snip

I think that we need to separate the risk event that's being insured against from the loss incurred by the risk event occuring.
It seems to me that the 'cancellation risk' in the TI policy is analogous to the 'loss or damage risk' in a house contents policy.
In both instances, what's being insured against is the risk of an undesirable event occurring (e.g. forced cancellation or burglary);
and in both instances, the asset that's lost (e.g. deposits or jewels) could have been purchased before or after the policy was purchased.

Any insurance experts out there who can give us an informed opinion??

 

[DC3]

Except that the jewels need to be stolen during the period of cover. You may buy them at any time, though.

 

[TheRealTMA]

Except that the jewels need to be stolen during the period of cover. You may buy them at any time, though.

Doesn't matter what we "think". Just what is defined in the T&Cs of the TI.

But the point is, it is easy to activate the CC TI so as to comply with them.

 

[TheRealTMA]

:evil:Baaaaah! What complete bollocks!

Just checked the T&C and and also rang them (Westpac/QBE) to check and the 'period' of the travel insurance is from when you leave Australia until you return. Providing you have activated the TI by putting $500 before leaving Australia, it is irrelevant 'when' you actually pay for accommodation, car hire, tickets or other things to be used 'during' the travel period either before of after you have activated the TI.

Personally I have always activated the TI as one of the first things of the trip planing but there's no actual need to do so.

So I am forced to tell you all that I was completely wrong in all the bollocks I was arguing above.

(slumps off back under the desk for a few days now.... planning next trip.)