Travelex Insurance -- worth it?

[Ladylotus]

I'm a brand new owner and just accessed the DVC members website this week. Whoo Hooo such a great feeling anticipating all the possibilities of future vacations

Then I noticed the travel insurance specifically through Travelex geared toward DVC owners. The insurance includes: "Trip Cancellation or Interruption – Protects your travel investment by reimbursing you for pre-paid, non-refundable dues and other out-of-pocket expenses if you must cancel or interrupt your trip." for $89 per year.

Has anyone used this service and, if so, is it worth it? Does it reimburse for the point cost (membership fee) lost if points cannot be used after a cancellation and are set to expire?

 

[bluecruiser]

I haven't used it because the cost is per use year, not per calendar year for your trip.

As an example, I am using 3 different use years' points for an upcoming trip later this year. I'd bet I can get a much better price going with trip insurance on my own vs. the $267 that DVC would charge me.

 

[jekjones1558]

I think it depends on how many trips you do in a use year, whether or not you fly, how old/healthy you are, and whether or not you have other issues (e.g. parents with health issues) that might cause you to cancel. DH and I take several DVC trips per year, we are old and he has health issues, and we fly to WDW. $89/use year for us is a bargain. Most travel insurance is priced by your age. DVC Travelex is not. Most travel insurance policies have pre-existing conditions exclusion clauses and those exclusions can be dicey to determine. DVC Travelex waives pre-existing conditions if you buy the insurance when annual dues are payable. If you drive to WDW then you don't have to worry about dealing with airfare for canceled or interrupted trips but if you fly, Travelex pays for airline tickets if you cancel. I know this first hand because we had to cancel our December trip and Travelex paid 100% of our non-refundable first class airline tickets. The Travelex coverage for points lost is minimal, only the value of the annual dues paid for the lost points. In most cases you are better off to use or rent out holding points if possible, unless the cancellation is on checkin day.
OP, there aren't that many insurance companies that cover timeshare points, so if you are thinking of insurance you best do some checking before making a decision about Travelex.

 

[jerseygal]

TOO MANY unexpected events in life can happen, imo!

We ALWAYS fly and we have elderly relatives.....LOVE the trip interruption feature as well. We took 2 trips in one use year; well worth it!
PEACE OF MIND for us!

 

[mjillard]

If u have two contracts with same use year is it still just 89?

 

[jekjones1558]

I have 7 contracts at 2 resorts and I pay one $89 fee per use year.

 

[TeeterTots]

I have 7 contracts at 2 resorts and I pay one $89 fee per use year.

I'm assuming that's $89 pp? Is there a lower rate for children? We're traveling in April and October this year, will both trips be covered if I buy in march? Can I get a march 2016 trip out of it too (I guess I'm thinking like an annual pass)

 

[jekjones1558]

I'm assuming that's $89 pp? Is there a lower rate for children? We're traveling in April and October this year, will both trips be covered if I buy in march? Can I get a march 2016 trip out of it too (I guess I'm thinking like an annual pass)

No, $89 covers those traveling on the points for that use year. There are some yearly limits on claims. If you use more than one use year's points then you must have insurance for both use years. Here is a summary:

https://www.travelexinsurance.com/static/SDVC_0201_00000.pdf

 

[TeeterTots]

No, $89 covers those traveling on the points for that use year. There are some yearly limits on claims. If you use more than one use year's points then you must have insurance for both use years. Here is a summary: https://www.travelexinsurance.com/static/SDVC_0201_00000.pdf

Thank you! This is helpful.

 

[skier_pete]

I haven't used it because the cost is per use year, not per calendar year for your trip.

As an example, I am using 3 different use years' points for an upcoming trip later this year. I'd bet I can get a much better price going with trip insurance on my own vs. the $267 that DVC would charge me.

This is the biggest issue I saw with it. If you travel once a year but are using points from multiple use years, it wouldn't cover all the points.

What I wondered was if I used 50 points from one 2014 UY, and 110 points from 2015 UY, if I just bought insurance on the 2015 UY points, how would the other coverages (air fare and such) be affected? Would it cover all the trip expenses or only a portion, or none at all? And if I had to buy both UY insurance, it would likely be cheaper to buy trip insurance elsewhere.

 

[jtkboston]

Does the policy cover all travelers staying on points in the DVC property, or only the DVC contract owner? I see on then member services web site that associate members can't buy the policy, only primary members.

The rate seems like a true bargain if it covers everyone for trip interruption/cancellation!

 

[jerseygal]

I believe that the DVC Travelex insurance does cover everyone on that reservation. Yes, if you have a reservation that utilizes 2 different use years you must purchase the insurance for both years. If you have any questions, MS can either answer them or refer you directly to Travelex.

 

[Muhlenberg]

If you buy the insurance on points from, say your '16 Use Year, any reservation made using that use year is covered, and you won't be charged again for the '16 portion of any future reservation. So if you make a reservation for Nov. '15 using points from a '16 Use Year, and you make another reservation using '16 points, you won't be charged for insurance a second time (for the '16 portion).

I hope that wasn't clear as mud. lol

 

[Huggups]

I'm considering purchasing this insurance but had a question. My husband and I are visiting WDW this December and I'm using points borrowed from my 2016 Use Year. I'm guessing since I'm borrowing these points from '16 that they now become 2015 points? Is this correct? Because when I fill out the Purchase Plan form and put 2016 UY, it won't let me put 2015 as a start date. I know once I borrow these points from next year to use this year they officially fall into 2015 if I cancel so I'm guessing it would work the same way with the insurance. Can anyone confirm this?

 

[jekjones1558]

I'm considering purchasing this insurance but had a question. My husband and I are visiting WDW this December and I'm using points borrowed from my 2016 Use Year. I'm guessing since I'm borrowing these points from '16 that they now become 2015 points? Is this correct? Because when I fill out the Purchase Plan form and put 2016 UY, it won't let me put 2015 as a start date. I know once I borrow these points from next year to use this year they officially fall into 2015 if I cancel so I'm guessing it would work the same way with the insurance. Can anyone confirm this?

Insurance covers the points from the original use year. So if you are using banked, current and borrowed points for a reservation you would need to buy insurance for all 3 use years. I always buy the insurance when maintenance fees are due. And I always buy one year ahead in case I borrow points.

 

[SuzanneSLO]

Insurance covers the points from the original use year. So if you are using banked, current and borrowed points for a reservation you would need to buy insurance for all 3 use years. I always buy the insurance when maintenance fees are due. And I always buy one year ahead in case I borrow points.

After reading this thread and the coverage summary, I had a fairly lengthy telephone conversation with Travelex because I was still confused.

You probably know this, but by buying a year ahead when you pay dues, you are getting a waiver of the pre-existing condition exclusion. For those who have not already purchased the insurance for 2015 points, that waiver is no longer available.

And, I was told that if you have a pre-existing condition waiver for some -but not all-- of your UYs, reimbursement for flights will be based on the the UY in which the trip falls. So if you have a pre-existing condition waiver for 2016 points, but are travelling in your 2015 UY, your flight cancellation expenses won't be reimbursed if cancellation was due to a pre-existing condition.

Also, I was also told that the only expenses reimbursed on a cancellation were flights, points (based on your maintenance fees) and related costs (such as the $95 fee to book a cruise using points).

Finally, I was told that it covers airfare costs for others staying in your room (up to 12 total) but not those staying on your points in another room. The primary insured needs to make the claim for all those staying in their room and then dole out the reimbursement.
-- Suzanne

 

[skier_pete]

I also called, because we technically have three UY worth of points for our upcoming trip. 33 from 2013, 31 from 2014, and 110 from 2015.

I asked about whether I just buy insurance to cover one UY if it would still cover my travel. What I was told is it would cover the travel, but ONLY the loss of the 2015 UY points. Since I am more concerned about delays (going during hurricane season) than I am in cancellation I just bought insurance on the 2015 UY points. I'll take the risk of losing the other points.

 

[SuzanneSLO]

I also called, because we technically have three UY worth of points for our upcoming trip. 33 from 2013, 31 from 2014, and 110 from 2015.

I asked about whether I just buy insurance to cover one UY if it would still cover my travel. What I was told is it would cover the travel, but ONLY the loss of the 2015 UY points. Since I am more concerned about delays (going during hurricane season) than I am in cancellation I just bought insurance on the 2015 UY points. I'll take the risk of losing the other points.

Another option in the future if you are looking at coverage primarily for trip delay may be your credit card.

Chase Sapphire Preferred (as well as some other credit cards issued by Chase but not the Chase Disney ViSA) covers you for up to $500 per airline ticket if your flight is delayed by more than 12 hours or requires an overnight stay. The Travelex benefit is limited to up to $1000 but kicks in after a 5 hour delay. The Chase benefit is limited to immediate family members while Travelex also covers those staying with you in your DVC room. The credit card coverage is included in the annual fee for the card (as long as you charge your ticket to the credit card), while the Travelex costs $89 per UY.
We just had a cancellation claim paid in full for a Disney cruise which was charged to our Sapphire Preferred when we had to cancel due to 'flu.
-- Suzanne

 

[jtkboston]

Does the Travelex insurance cover an associate member traveling with companions, but not with the primary (deeded) member?

 

[abner1776]

So from reading over the previous posts, it looks like the DVC coverage is only applicable to the member and those staying in the members room, but would not apply to say a members daughter or niece who is using the members points to stay at a DVC resort on their own without the member.