Travel with peace of mind, agents stress

Spring is here and the Northeast is buzzing with plans for the brief window of enjoyable weather, but even the most ironclad of plans can be sunk without warning. Illness, an unexpected business trip, missed flights - any one of these scenarios can cause ruin for travel plans, yet most travelers don't buy travel insurance and travel on luck instead.

"Years ago (prior to AAA), a honeymoon couple came in booking a Hawaiian honeymoon - I will never forget it - I asked them if they wanted to purchase insurance and they said, `No, we are in love; we are not going to cancel," said Jill Rosenberg, manager of group and executive travel services for AAA Northeast, whose coverage area includes New York and Connecticut.

The couple ended up getting married in a hospital after the man broke his back defending his fiancee from an aggressive goose while touring the grounds for their wedding, Rosenberg said.

According to a 2014 US Travel Insurance Association survey, one in six Americans (17 percent) said their travel plans had been impacted by medical conditions, natural disasters including severe weather, or airline-caused problems.

Of those, only 22 percent had travel insurance, according to the survey.

In 18 years working with AAA and nearly 30 years in the travel industry, Rosenberg said she has seen consumers go from thinking of travel insurance as an afterthought to a serious consideration, as travelers are booking vacations earlier - a trend noticed by others in the industry as well.

"As the economy bounces back, hotels and cruise lines have gotten more stringent in their cancellation policies," said Jack Ezon, president of Ovation Corporate Travel, a Manhattan-based corporate travel agency with offices in Harrison, N.Y. "The improved economy has made it harder for people to find last-minute space - so they start to plan ahead to secure space but buy travel insurance as a backup."

According to Ezon, the use of travel insurance has grown 12 percent in the past year and 34 percent in the past 4 years.

Most travel advisers interviewed agree that the average cost of insurance is between 4 and 10 percent of the total travel package, and can vary widely depending on the coverage options chosen, age of travelers and destination.

At Tauck, a 90-year-old international guided tour and cruise company based in Norwalk, the typical cost of travel insurance is estimated at $400 per person, according to Tom Armstrong, corporate communications manager.

Armstrong declined to specify what percentage of Tauck guests buy trip insurance but did note that an "overwhelming majority" of Tauck clients make the purchase.

Bad weather affecting travel plans and concerns over vacation rentals are the top reasons summer travelers buy travel insurance, according to a recent survey of licensed travel insurance agents at InsureMyTrip, a Rhode Island-based company that compares travel insurance products.

Travel concerns among Tauck clients have remained consistent over the years, with potential illness and injury at the forefront for insurance-minded travelers, Armstrong said.

Julie Dan ziger, director of luxury travel services at Ovation, noted a travel concern not mentioned by other agencies - domestic and international unrest. In particular, the shooting of Walter Scott in South Carolina and the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris negatively affected Ovation travelers' plans, she said.

"That has been a big deal. You have one city that one day can be the most sought after vacation spot and the next day something totally out of the ordinary can happen," she said.

With so many different things that can go wrong, from the flu to terrorists on top of a plethora of terms and conditions that may apply, "anytime cancel" travel insurance is becoming increasingly popular - though it is not without significant costs.

"Anytime cancel insurance has become the most popular kind of insurance purchased," Ezon said. "With a premium of 35 to 50 percent over ordinary policies, anytime cancel policies basically allow a traveler to cancel their trip for any reason whatsoever - even a bad hair day. By canceling, they get between 70 to 80 percent of their trip cost back."

Representatives from Ovation, Tauck and AAA all emphasized the importance and convenience of using professional travel services to prepare trips and purchase insurance.

AAA warns that travelers should read the fine print. While many cruise lines and tour operators offer their own travel insurance, they may carry less coverage and benefits may stop between 24 and 72 hours before departure. The company advises travelers to request a copy of the insurance contract prior to purchase to understand what the policy does and does not cover (terms, limitations and exclusions apply), and examine other existing insurance policies such as auto, medical and umbrella policy insurance.

"It is a little bit scary and daunting as a consumer to go online and pick a vacation when it is something you save for and wait for all year," Rosenberg said. "It really is so important to go to a professional travel agency to have them find the best agent for you."