Travel Insurance Cancel for Any Reason
Have you purchased a regular travel insurance policy that only provides coverage for limited reasons of cancelation of the trip? You need to buy an add-on CFAR to get the chance to cancel the trip for any possible reason and get reimbursement.
The typical travel insurance policy provides an option of covering the damage to your personal belongings that get lost, stolen, or damaged during the trip and also reimburse for the non-refundable costs for the unused parts of the trip under limited options of canceling the trip. The accepted reasons for canceling the trip usually include bankruptcy, natural disasters, rough weather, and terrorist attack.
Travel insurance cancels for any reason provides you the option of canceling the trip for any possible reason whether an urgent one or they want that you just don’t want to go. The policy reimburses you for the unused parts of nonrefundable costs that can only be acquired if you have purchased an add-on policy or canceled any reason policy. Make sure that you don’t accept the vouchers and credits from your airline that can affect your reimbursement claims.
Travel Insurance policy explained
Travel insurance is the coverage of the costs and losses that happen with a traveler on domestic or international travel. It covers the losses or emergency incidents associated with traveling. These losses can be minor such as a delayed suitcase or bigger like last-minute flight cancellation or medical emergency overseas.
A survey was conducted by the insurance company Battleface that suggested that 31% of Americans are likely to purchase travel insurance when on a visit abroad following the COVID-19 situation while 34% are likely to buy it while traveling. Companies that sell tickets or travel packages offer their customers to buy travel insurance that covers any damage to personal property, rented equipment such as rental cars or rental places. Some of them even cover the cost of paying a ransom.
There are several categories that are included in the travel insurance package but the main categories include:
- Trip cancellation or interruption coverage
- Baggage and personal effects coverage
- Medical expense coverage
- Accidental death or flight accident coverage
The coverage often includes 24/7 emergency services which facilitate the customers with any incident such as replacing lost passports, rebooking canceled flights, cash wire assistance. Some insurance policies may facilitate you to duplicate existing coverage from other providers if the current policy does not include any peril that you want at the time of need.
In addition to financial coverage, some insurance packages also provide access to assistance services that can arrange medical treatment in an emergency, serve as interpreters, monitor your care, help you replace lost passports and so much more.
A few things should keep in mind if you plan to buy travel insurance for your upcoming trip(s):
- The benefits of each travel insurance are different with different plans. You have to check if the plan you are purchasing fits your needs, your budget, and your travel plan.
- Travel insurance does not cover every emergency situation; rather the plan covers the damage caused as a result of covered perils, which means it covers specific situations, events, and losses that are already mentioned in your plan documents, and only covers the conditions that are already described.
- Like other insurance policies, a travel insurance policy usually covers the damages caused by unforeseeable events, not the situation that you can see coming or you can easily control. For instance, you plan to buy beach insurance until after a named hurricane is already approaching. In this case, your losses would not be covered.
How does travel insurance work?
In most scenarios, travel insurance reimburses the covered financial losses as you file a claim. Filing a claim is easy and simple for many companies where you can claim the reimbursement online by submitting proof of your loss. The company then verifies the situation and reimburses the covered financial loss if they found the mentioned information correct.
Consider that you have purchased a travel plan for an upcoming cruise to Cozumel that covers trip cancellation benefits. Two days before the departure, you feel fever and develop severe chest pain and your doctor diagnoses bacterial pneumonia and advises you to cancel your trip. When you call the cruise line and notify them of your condition, they refuse to cancel it siting that it’s too late to provide a refund.
Without travel insurance, you can lose all the money you have spent on the vacation. But this serious and disabling disease can be claimed as a covered reason for canceling your trip. This means that your travel insurance company will reimburse for your prepaid, nonrefundable trip costs. Once you get better you can contact the company to file a claim with your relevant travel documents such as your airfare and cruise line receipts and information about any refunds you did and did not receive so far. The company can reimburse you directly via deposit to your debit card or check.
Sometimes, your travel insurance company may pay upfront for emergency situations related to your health or baggage delay. For instance, for one trip Premium plan, you get $100 per day for the covered travel delay, emergency medical condition, or baggage delay. You don’t need to provide any receipts for this coverage, all you need to do is to produce proof of your covered delay.
Different types of travel insurance policies
There are a variety of travel insurance plans based on the type of coverage you want for your travel plan. Typically travel insurance is sold as travel packages that are called a comprehensive plan. Some insurer companies let you customize your travel plan based on your needs while you can also compare the policies offered by different companies through various websites. For instance, travelInsurance.com is the comparison site where you can find different quotes provided by different providers.
Here are seven types of travel insurance policies:
1. Travel medical insurance
This type of policy insurance provides health insurance while you are on your trip, away from home. The coverage is different from typical health insurance that includes routine checkups. This plan does not include routine checkups, you would only be provided for emergency medical conditions. On the other hand, travel medical insurance is not valid when you are back home or use it as general health insurance. This policy usually includes some provisions and excludes certain conditions such as pre-existing health issues.
Some insurance policies also include recreational activities such as horse riding and skiing while excluding other activities such as parasailing and skydiving, or competition in organized sports. If you plan for any of these activities during your travel, you can buy a special travel policy that covers these adventures.
If you think that you already have health insurance that can cover your medical cost abroad, mind that your U.S based medical insurance won’t work internationally. In fact, once you leave the United States, your policy does not provide you any coverage except a few specific exemptions.
2. Baggage and personal belongings
This policy coverage reimburses you if your belongings have been lost, stolen, or damaged during the trip. They also cover any expenses that you do if your baggage is delayed more than 12 hours per se. Some policies cover items lost or stolen throughout the trip and just not during the flight.
Some of the renters’ policies cover damage to your personal belongings while traveling. If your policy covers such peril, you need to check it first and avoid paying for the benefit you already have.
3. Trip cancellation, interruption, and delay
Trip cancellation coverage reimburses you for prepaid and non-refundable expenses that you have to face if your tour organizer is not available or you have to cancel your trip for any reason that you see not coming which is one of the covered reasons in the policy outline such as:
- The illness or the death of a family member who is not traveling with you
- You suddenly develop severe illness
- Natural disasters that were not predicted
The policy covers the nonrefundable cost of the unused parts of the trip that you have to cancel due to the above-mentioned reasons.
Trip delay coverage however reimburses for the delays during your flight. For example, your flight got canceled by the company or rescheduled due to rough weather. So, during this time the insurers reimburse for the expenses such as lodging and meals at the airport.
Many package policies cover all three situations but these policies are different from cancellation waivers that tour operators or cruise lines offer. Compared to the full insurance policy, cancellation waivers are cheaper, ranging from $40 to $60, and often include restrictions for the trip. For example, waivers don’t reimburse you if you cancel right before the departure because waivers don’t work like an insurance policy.
Based on different companies, the policy keeps on changing. As some companies may ask you to pay extra for additional layers of coverage. Cancel for any reason coverage however covers a large part of your trip for any reason you cancel the trip.
4. 24-hour assistance
This insurance package provides you 24-hour assistance service that you can turn to any time during your trip when you need help such as booking a flight if you have missed connection with your travel agency, finding lost luggage, or locating a lawyer or doctor on an urgent basis.
It depends on what services you get included in your policy because different companies offer a wider array of services such as concierge services that help you locate restaurant referrals, tea time reservations, and much more. While other services may offer information before departure such as if you need specific vaccinations for the trip. You need to ensure the provision in your policy before leaving.
5. Emergency medical assistance, evacuation, and repatriation
If you get sick or injured during your trip, this policy will pay for emergency medical care. Medical evacuation pays for transporting you to the nearest hospital if it is needed while medical repatriation pays for flying you back to your home if your medical condition gets severe.
6. Rental car coverage
This policy covers for the damage caused to the rental car in a wreck by natural disaster or vandals but does not include liabilities coverage which pays for any damage caused to your other vehicles or you have to pay for the medical treatment of the person you injured or you are sued by the responsible person.
U.S car insurance policies usually don’t cover when you drive outside the U.S except for Canada but you can check your car insurance policy if they cover when you rent a car on an international trip.
7. Accidental death and dismemberment insurance
This package covers a worst-case scenario on your trip which is if you die in an accident during the trip. This policy then reimburses your family to cover the funeral expenses. Dismemberment insurance however pays you if you lose a hand, limb, foot, eyesight, speech, or hearing. Some plans may not include dismemberment coverage and only pays for accidental death.
Cancel for any reason travel insurance (CFAR)
Travel insurance usually covers the unused parts of your trip or pays you non-refundable dues that you could not gain because of the cancellation of the trip. But that policy only covers certain reasons that you mention in the policy. If you want more flexibility in your plan, you need to buy “cancel for any reason (CFAR)” coverage. This way you get partially paid for the amount you spent while canceling for any possible reason.
There are some important elements of CFAR coverage, if you plan to buy one, you need to check them out:
- You cannot purchase CFAR independently as it is an add-on service by the insurer if you buy primary travel insurance
- You can’t purchase it from every insurance company, it is offered by insurers.
- It is a supplement coverage that you can get when the damage is not covered in your primary travel insurance policy. You are partially paid in this scenario.
- There is no other policy that can cover for any reason of cancellation, so if you want to have one, you should choose CFAR
- If your travel agency compensates you by giving you a voucher or credit for the cancellation of the trip, you won’t be reimbursed by CFAR. your claim, in this case, won’t be considered as an eligible one. But if you are provided with half a voucher or credit, you can claim the remaining amount from your insurer for leftover unreimbursed expenses.
How to purchase CFAR?
You can buy your travel insurance policy from any insurance company using their website. If you buy it online, check out different policies by visiting comparison sites such as Squaremouth or Travel Guard where you can have an idea of policies offered by different sites. When you choose a policy based on your needs and budget, make sure to select for cancellation for any reason add-on because it is optional in various policies.
It can be the case that cancels for any reason policy is not available for every state due to coronavirus because it is unexpected so make sure that the insurer offers CFAR for the state you live in.
After visiting some comparison websites, you can conclude one policy online and purchase by entering your information about your travel plan and submitting the required documents.
There are other ways to get your travel insurance. Below is the description of each method along with attached pros and cons:
Credit cards
Some credit cards offer trip cancellation coverage and rental car insurance for a limited number of reasons. So if your credit card offers you such an opportunity and it meets your necessary demands, you don’t need to spend additional money to buy a regular travel insurance policy.
Pros | Cons |
Coverage is free | You don’t get the option to customize the travel policy that meets your travel needs. Most of the policies offer secondary car rental insurance which means it only pays for the costs not covered by your regular car insurance plan. |
Travel insurance companies
If you can find a travel insurance company near your residential area, you can directly go there and purchase the policy in real-time. This way you will get to process it more quickly.
Pros | Cons |
You get the chance to customize your policy according to your needs. Many insurance websites offer you full assistance regarding the information about the policy. | You have to visit multiple websites to compare the quotes and packages that will give you insight into the suitable policy according to your needs |
Travel insurance comparison sites
There are multiple websites that allow you to compare the travel policies offered by different insurers. You can thoroughly check each policy and their packages which better suit your travel demand that also go align with your set budget. You can check review quotes at once based on the trip search criteria you have put into the search form.
Pros | Cons |
You can check different policies and choose the one that fits your need and compare the policies and prices in one place | It is time taking to check each policy and compare |
Travel agents and travel reservation sites
There are some travel agents that offer you travel insurance when you book your flight, hotel, and rental car. These sites help you get your travel insurance along with the tickets.
Pros | Cons |
Purchasing the insurance is really quick because you only have to click yes while buying your tickets. Coverage is also inexpensive | You don’t get the chance to customize your travel policy |
Limitations of CFAR
Although cancel for any reason travel insurance can reimburse you for your non-refundable dues for canceling the trip there are some limitations on the policy such as:
- You cannot cancel the trip at the very last moment and claim for reimbursement. You should notify of the cancellation at least two days after the departure in order to get paid for the money loss.
- You have to ensure 100% for non-refundable travel costs, you cannot pick and choose different parts of the trip for reimbursement
- Different policies have varying reimbursement percentages ranging from 50% to 70%, the CFAR does not offer full reimbursement.
- You can purchase the add-on or cancel for any reason policy within a limited time period usually 10 to 12 days after purchasing your primary travel insurance policy.
- Accepting vouchers from your airline can affect your claim for reimbursement from your insurer for CFAR. If you accept vouchers or credit from the airline, you won’t be reimbursed by the company. But if you were provided a half voucher or credit, you can claim for the leftover non-refundable expenses.
Common asked questions about CFAR
How much will I pay for CFAR?
Cancel for any reason coverage may cost you 50% of your primary travel insurance policy. The US Travel Insurance Association states that an individual pays 4% to 8% of the total cost of a trip for travel insurance. Based on these numbers, if you want to purchase a cancellation of any reason policy, you will be paying 6% to 12% additional cost for the insurance along with the cost of your trip.
When should I purchase CFAR?
There are different time limits for different insurance providers. But on average there is 10-21 days time in which you can purchase your cancel for any reason add-on after making your initial payment. In the case of cruise-specific policies, you have to purchase before making a final payment to your cruise. You won’t be entertained by your insurer if you want to purchase the policy after the trip has already begun.
Will CFAR give me a full refund for the trip?
On a normal basis, the policy pays 75% reimbursement of prepaid nonrefundable trip plans. For instance, if you have purchased a travel insurance policy amounting to $1000, without purchasing CFAR. if you have to cancel the trip for any non-covered reason, you will lose the $1000 you paid. But if you have purchased the policy with a CFAR add-on, you would be paid $750 in case you have to cancel your trip for any expected or unexpected reason. You will only lose $250 in this case.
You just have to essentially pay $16-$40 which will save $1000 for you if you cancel your trip for any reason. So, when you plan to buy a regular travel insurance policy, it is safe and smart to purchase a CFAR add-on for your policy.
Can I cancel my trip for any reason? What does it cover?
Yes, with cancel for any reason add-on in your regular travel insurance policy, you can cancel your trip for any reason you want as long as you cancel it within the given time which is usually two days for most policies. Also, you have to take care of the fact that if you accept the voucher or credit from your airline, your reimbursement from the insurer will get affected.
My credit card offers trip cancellation coverage, do I still need to buy CFAR?
As the regular trip cancellation policies have a long list of exclusions for the reasons of cancellation and refund, credit card trip cancellation coverage also has many limitations on which bases you will be refunded if you cancel your trip. Reasons such as bankruptcy, natural disaster, terrorist attack, and extreme weather that prevents a trip from starting are accepted as valid for cancellation of the trip. The only way to get reimbursed fully for all the nonrefundable costs is by purchasing a travel insurance policy with a CFAR upgrade.
Conclusion
Traveling is all-time fun and planning recreational activities always incites an adventurous feeling but one unexpected and uncomfortable event can destroy the whole experience. For instance, if you have planned a bachelor trip with your friends and your flight got canceled because of a natural disaster of rough weather, you can be upset, and on top of that if you have to cancel your trip and you don’t get any refund back from your travel organizer because it is too late to cancel. If you don’t have any travel insurance coverage, you can lose all of the non-refundable costs of the trip. This is what you would never want to happen.
Travel insurance is what gives you peace of mind in these case scenarios. It covers any potential damage to your personal belongings and your health. You get reimbursement if your belongings have been lost, stolen, or damaged during the trip. As you never know what is going to unfold, purchasing travel insurance with a cancel for any reason add-on is the smart decision.