Trip Insurance Worth Getting

[aml3679]

My husband and I were due to go to DC in two weeks. Tore a calf muscle at work. Paid for hotel upfront because we booked via Priceline ($1100+). Paid $35 for trip insurance and got a full refund. Also called and got a refund or credit for planned activities.

[cindym]

Three years ago my husband had a serious accident 2 weeks before we were to go to WDW. I had a package paid for and tickets for the Christmas party. We didn't have trip insurance. Disney refunded all of my money (except $50) including the party tickets. I offered to provide documentation of the accident but they didn't need it. This was a trip scheduled for the second week of Nov. That said I would definitely get trip insurance now. I think I was very lucky last time!

[Pakey]

I get trip insurance if I'm traveling non-Disney. I have a travel policy that inludes medical care too. I have used medical care in Tibet when I got sick and in Italy when I fell. My regular health insurance will not cover international expenses.

[patty57]

I've never bought trip insurance, nor have I ever needed it. I'm sure it's just dumb luck, and someday I may be sorry.

[ArmyVet80]

We always get the Disney insurance. We flew out of South Bend, IN on Christmas day 2010 and got stuck in Detroit because of a snow storm that shut down Atlanta's airport. We called the insurance people and they got us a flight on Airtran but it would cost us $500 out of pocket (little did we know it was Business/First class). The insurance covered 2 of 3 meals we could have used that day, airfare from Detroit to Orlando, park tickets and helped us reschedule our dining plans for that evening. We were stuck in Detroit for 5 hours before finally getting to WDW. After we arrived they upgraded our room at the resort because they had been called and told what had happened. After the trip we got home to a check for $850 from Delta refunding our airfare tickets completely and two complimentary tickets to anywhere in the continental U.S. After all was said and done we actually made money for having an extra 5 hour lay over. If you want to call it a plus while we were stuck in Detroit Delta gave us food vouchers for $20 per person to eat. Delta also bumped us up to Business/First class on our flight back to South Bend for no extra fee.

We live in Indianapolis and normally fly Airtran's direct flights to Orlando but we were visiting family for Christmas and decided that it would be easier to fly out of South Bend.

Not necessarily the way we wanted to spend out Christmas dinner (Commissary at HS) since we had reservations for the Hollywood Brown Derby Christmas dinner but in the long run the insurance definitely came through for us.

[goofy78]

Originally Posted by cindym

Three years ago my husband had a serious accident 2 weeks before we were to go to WDW. I had a package paid for and tickets for the Christmas party. We didn't have trip insurance. Disney refunded all of my money (except $50) including the party tickets. I offered to provide documentation of the accident but they didn't need it. This was a trip scheduled for the second week of Nov. That said I would definitely get trip insurance now. I think I was very lucky last time!

What exactly is Disney's cancellation policy? I thought and that's a big thought that you can cancel up to 45 days before your trip with no fee. After that 45 day mark I thought there was a fee but maybe it is just $50?

[DebbieB]

Originally Posted by goofy78

What exactly is Disney's cancellation policy? I thought and that's a big thought that you can cancel up to 45 days before your trip with no fee. After that 45 day mark I thought there was a fee but maybe it is just $50?

Trip insurance isn't just about cancelling in advance. It also covers if something happens during the trip. What if you would have to return home early? You could lose quite a bit in unused room money, ticket money, activities money, increased airfare to return home, some policies will cover medical.

[goofy78]

Originally Posted by DebbieB

Trip insurance isn't just about cancelling in advance. It also covers if something happens during the trip. What if you would have to return home early? You could lose quite a bit in unused room money, ticket money, activities money, increased airfare to return home, some policies will cover medical.

You can add this to your package directly through Disney right?

[DebbieB]

Originally Posted by goofy78

You can add this to your package directly through Disney right?

Yes, or shop around.

http://www.insuremytrip.com/

[squirrel4569]

I've only bought trip insurance on two trips before. The first time was on a trip to Europe because it was quite expensive and I had no idea what I was getting into. The second was for our upcoming Disney trip. We're going in August and would hate for us to lose money because we couldn't get to Disney due to a hurricane or had to evacuate for the same reason.

The like PP I've had great luck on the many trips I took without it, but something this expensive really isn't much to be trifled with. I'm mainly concerned about the flights getting cancelled in this case due to weather.

[snykymom]

I only buy trip insurance to go out of the country or on cruise, when I have to worry about repatriation in case of medical emergencies, or where my health insurance may not cover. Otherwise, I self-insure. I only book vacations that I can afford to lose, and I figure that all the premiums I haven't paid over the years have saved me more than any one vacation would cost if I had to cancel. The trip interruption or delay and lost baggage is gravy, but to me, not really necessary.

[KNJWDW]

Originally Posted by aml3679

My husband and I were due to go to DC in two weeks. Tore a calf muscle at work. Paid for hotel upfront because we booked via Priceline ($1100+). Paid $35 for trip insurance and got a full refund. Also called and got a refund or credit for planned activities.

This sounds like a great policy. Can I ask who the carrier was - was it through Priceline? I have looked at many through the years and purchased a plan once, which we didn't need. Sorry you had to cancel your trip though!

[tarak]

I'm sorry you had to use it, but that's great you had insurance. This last trip to Disney was our sixth and the first where we bought trip insurance. We were renting DVC points, so I wanted to make sure we weren't out of luck if something happened. We also have a child who has a pre-existing health condition, so I looked around to find a policy that would cover that (the catch was getting the policy within twenty-one days of booking the trip, which we did). Our trip went off without a hitch. But I would absolutely get the insurance again.