Many travellers feel as though their credit card is their safety net when they go on holiday. Credit card companies offer travel rewards with “built-in travel protection,” which often leads to people using their cards in order to rack up points for a dream vacation where they assume they are fully covered for incidents such as flight delays, lost luggage, and medical emergencies.
As experienced insurance brokers, we at Lane’s Insurance know that relying solely on your credit card for travel insurance can be a costly error. Credit card coverage can work very well for domestic getaways, however their travel perks are often restrictive.
There are quite a few situations where relying on a credit card can leave you without coverage when you most need it. Here are five, and why comprehensive travel insurance bridges the gap.
- Luxury vacations often exceed the cancellation cap
Many save for years — even decades — for a bucket-list safari or luxury cruise that can easily cost more than $25,000. A couple has done exactly that, unfortunately just two weeks before departure, a serious illness has forced them to cancel.
The entire trip was charged to their credit card and the couple assumed they would be fully reimbursed. However, most credit cards, even those with high annual fees, cap the reimbursement allowed for trip cancellations. Typical benefits cap payouts at $1,500 to $2,500 per person, or a maximum of $10,000 per trip across all covered passengers, meaning the couple is about to lose $15,000 or more of their hard-earned savings.
Travel insurance trip cancellation policies are tailored for the actual non-refundable cost of the trip. Our Lane’s brokers can secure coverage with our partners at TuGo for 100% of your prepaid expenses, regardless of how much the trip costs. This ensures full financial reimbursement if an unforeseen incident occurs.
- A prescription change voids pre-existing condition coverage
There are plenty of Albertans who take prescription medications, with one example being blood pressure medication. An additional situation in which credit card travel insurance may not be sufficient is if a medication’s dosage is increased a few weeks before a trip. Then, during a vacation, a traveller experiences a hypertension-related emergency that requires a hospital stay.
It is not common knowledge that credit card travel insurance almost universally enforces strict pre-existing condition exclusion periods, usually 60 to 180 days prior to departure. Because the traveller’s prescription changed during that window, the condition is then classified as “unstable,” which can lead a card company to deny a claim for medical expenses.
We know exactly how to help navigate the fine print of pre-existing medical condition waivers. Within a specific timeframe of the departure date (an example is a seven days for a trip of 35 days or less for a person 59 years old or younger), a standalone travel insurance policy with TuGo will provide full coverage for pre-existing conditions.
- The active retiree celebrates their 65th (or 70th) birthday
The third situation in which credit card travel insurance is insufficient also has to do with medical coverage. Let’s say a newly retired couple plans a month-long trip through southern Europe under the assumption that their credit card’s complimentary emergency medical coverage will assist them if an injury or illness occurs abroad.
Unfortunately, the reality is that credit card issuers often base the amount available for emergency medical coverage on age and trip duration. Many popular travel credit cards only allow a duration of just three to 10 days for emergency medical coverage for people aged 65 and older. For travellers under 65, that duration is generally from 15 to 31 days. If a medical crisis happens on day 12 of a 30-day trip, the new retirees have zero coverage. For some cards, medical coverage vanishes entirely once the cardholder turns 70 or 75.
Our TuGo travel insurance provides dedicated emergency medical plans designed specifically for older travellers and extended stays. These policies offer full medical coverage (often up to $5,000,000 or more) regardless of age or length of stay.
- The partial payment trap (reward points and split bookings)
Airline frequent-flyer miles are a popular perk of travel credit cards. The fourth situation in which travel credit cards are not sufficient for travel insurance is if you book your flights using your points, paying a minimal amount in taxes and fees. Then you pay for your hotel using cash or a different credit card. Halfway through your trip, severe weather causes a major disruption.
Many don’t realize that credit card travel benefits are often contingent upon charging 100% of the full cost of the trip to that specific card. Paying only taxes, using points from a different program, or splitting expenses across multiple payment methods often nullifies coverage. If something happens to interrupt the vacation, the traveller is left to cover the cost.
TuGo travel insurance purchased through an insurance broker covers the traveller and the trip itself, regardless of how individual items are paid for. Our travel insurance policies ensure comprehensive trip protection, even when using reward points, gift certificates, or payments from different accounts.
- Remote medical evacuation costs outpace the card’s allowance
While trekking in a remote region, a traveller suffers a severe fracture or infection that requires an emergency evacuation to the nearest medical facility, followed by another medivac back home.
Medical evacuations from isolated international destinations frequently exceed $100,000 to $250,000. Most credit cards provide either very low medical evacuation limits or offer basic travel assistance, which means they will help line up an air ambulance, but the traveller must foot the bill.
Our TuGo travel insurance policies treat emergency medical evacuations as a primary benefit, and typically offer coverage limits ranging from $250,000 to more than $1,000,000. Make sure you let our brokers know that you are planning on visiting remote destinations in order to ensure you have the best coverage possible.
Safe travelling with TuGo
We at Lane’s insurance are proud to partner with TuGo, which has been proudly Canadian-owned and operated since 1964. Travel insurance by TuGo provides payment for a wide range of medical services, including hospital room stays, outpatient services by physicians, transportation to and from the hospital by ground or air ambulance, prescriptions and treatments, or other hospital incidentals. Policies can also include emergency dental care.
Although emergency medical benefits are the core of many travel insurance plans, there are several optional coverage options that you may want to include in your travel insurance package, such as:
- Trip cancellation insurance: Protect your investment against circumstances that may cause you to reschedule or cancel your travel plans.
- Baggage and personal effects: Coverage typically includes reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses if your baggage is delayed for a certain number of hours, or replacement of clothing, toiletries, or important documents such as your passport or drivers license.
- Rental car damage waiver: This waiver provides the same protection as the rental car company at a fraction of the cost.
Travel insurance in Alberta: Get a quote From Lane’s today
Lane’s Insurance is a leading provider of travel insurance and a complete range of related products that cover every aspect of your travel needs. Get started by contacting us at our Calgary, Edmonton, Banff, and greater Alberta offices today for a fast, free, no-obligation quote.
