YOUR FUNDS
Vacation time? Make sure you’re covered
REBECCA WARREN is a certified financial planner professional and certified senior adviser in Mesa. She can be reached at (480) 357-8380 or by e-mail at Rebecca@ WarrenFinancialServices.com.
Travel delays can potentially cost a lot of money, so it might be a good idea to carry travel insurance on expensive trips to cover missed connections that can delay your arrival for a day or more. The same goes for lost baggage or sudden medical expenses in different regions of the United States or other parts of the world. Travel insurance, like any coverage, should be tailored to your specific needs. You’ll see it sold as a onesize-fits-all product, but that’s not how you should buy it. Here are some pointers:
• Call your HR department or health insurer. The biggest potential money risk on any trip is that your health benefits won’t cross state lines, much less international borders. As you’re planning your trip, check to see if your personal health coverage for you and family members will be effective at your destination. If not, see whether your credit card company offers health care coverage there and if so, what it costs and what it entails. If not, consider purchasing specific travel health insurance that will be accepted at your destination, which may be sold in a package with other coverage. Also, it might make sense to make an action plan for a health emergency. Call the concierge at your destination to get information on the best nearby hospitals and clinics so you can check if your coverage applies, and see what ground or air transport options exist to get you to the best hospital. Transport can be costly if you’re in a remote location.
• Start at least a month in advance. You’ll find that travel insurance carriers are particularly picky about pre-existing conditions for medical or dental treatments, so read the fine print. There’s no such thing as full coverage. Your carrier might not offer protection on your chosen airline or cruise line. Terrorism insurance is rare and complicated. And you have to examine medical insurance options closely to understand exactly what is covered. The rare soup-tonuts coverage — covering trip cancellations, lost luggage, delays that leave you stranded, flight accident, emergency medical and medical evacuations — is typically priced in the hundreds of dollars and may only cover only up to 75 percent of the total cost of your trip. Make sure your insurance covers missed connections. Cancellation insurance sometimes doesn’t cover the resulting meals, overnight hotel bills and taxi or train transportation you’ll need if you’re stuck overnight in a strange city.
• Start online. Go to some Web sites that deal in single- or multipleinsurer offerings. InsureMyTrip.com is a market leader and a good first stop in analyzing coverage.
• Ask about hurricane coverage. The 2008 Atlantic hurricane season began June 1 and will run through the end of November. Even if you don’t live in a hurricane area, hurricanes can disrupt the flow of air travel all over the country.
• Watch that cell phone. Increasingly, domestic cellular phones are working in more areas of the world. That’s the good news. The bad news is whether you’ll be charged extra fees for using your phone in those areas. Check before you leave.
• Marooned? Ask for a break. If you’re sidetracked as the result of a major disaster (weather-related or otherwise), always ask if your airline, hotel or other components of your vacation might be willing to give you a credit or discount on your bill. The worst thing they can do is say no.
