Tips for Getting Better Travel Insurance Rates
If you're hopping on a plane for a last minute trip or planning a family vacation for spring break, you might need travel insurance. It can help cover unexpected costs while travelling outside Canada, such as emergency medical bills, and hotel accommodations if your flights are delayed or cancelled, or if your bags are lost in transit.
Some say buying travel insurance is a rip off because it's one of those financial products that you pay for, but don't always use. As soon as you have a medical emergency while in a foreign country, or you arrive at your hotel without your bags (both of which have happened to me) you'll be thankful you purchased travel insurance.
The way to make buying travel insurance worth it is to get the best travel insurance rates possible for the coverage you nee.
Figure out which coverage you need
You and your family need travel insurance, but you may not need all the available coverage. If you're not travelling by plane, you don't need flight delay insurance. This can significantly help you find the best travel insurance rates because you aren't buying more coverage than you need.
The key is to find the perfect balance between choosing the correct amount of coverage and finding the lowest rates. This also includes the time period. Don't purchase 30 days of travel insurance if you're only travelling for a week.
Check if you have additional coverage
Contact your credit card provider and your group benefits provider to inquire about out of country travel insurance. It would definitely be a waste of money to purchase one type of travel insurance if you're already covered somewhere else.
Very often credit cards offer flight delay and cancellation as well as baggage loss insurance. Your employer may offer emergency medical insurance with your group health benefits, so before you buy anything check if you already have it.
According to the Toronto Sun, knowing what you're covered for can help save big bucks because you're only buying what you need and nothing more: "Before you travel relying on this insurance alone, know what it covers and purchase additional coverage if necessary."
Shop around
Never accept the first offer. Just like most services you want to get three quotes before you commit to buying anything. Get several different travel insurance rates by using an online tool. From there you can choose the best provider at the best rate.
Ask questions
If this is your first time buying travel insurance (or even if it's not) my advice is to ask questions. I always ask questions when it comes to money, even if they seem stupid. "What am I covered for?", "When does the coverage end?" and "What happens if...?" are all good questions. I like to know everything as well as all the possible solutions and worst case scenarios before I sign on the dotted line.