Insurance when renting points

[WyoMickey]

I'm going to rent 11 months out through David's or the Rental Store. I see I have to purchase insurance at booking but I am undecided.

Do you or don't you purchase insurance and why?

BTW- we are healthy and expect to remain so. Our dvc rental will cost around $2000 dollars.

 

[dvcdream4fld]

Insurance is really a personal decision. It is buying policy to reduce your risk. In my opinion, renting DVC points has only slightly more risk than booking directly with Disney. Before becoming a DVC member, I rented points without a problem. After becoming a DVC member, I have rented my leftover points without a problem.

 

[supersnoop]

How much is the insurance? What are the chances you won't be able to go? How would your life be impacted if you lost the $2,000?

 

[WyoMickey]

How much is the insurance? What are the chances you won't be able to go? How would your life be impacted if you lost the $2,000?

Thanks. I know the questions. Asking what you do?

 

[supersnoop]

Every insurance product has a negative expected return. Whether it's home, auto, life, travel, healthcare, or even those warranties they sell on electronics. I buy liability insurance and protect large/expensive assets. I've never purchased any travel insurance, not even when I rented points.

 

[CarolMN]

We have always self-insured for domestic trips. For international, I ALWAYS make sure to at least have medical coverage.

My rationale is that we can afford to lose the cost of the trip if something unexpected happens. We've been lucky so far and even if we lost a trip, it will now have been less than buying insurance for every trip. As we age, I may re-think, though.

 

[princessfionasmom]

I only recently started to get the insurance but it’s because my husbands health is not good and we never know when he’s going to end up in the hospital. Before he got sick we never bought the insurance.

 

[Shellyred8]

We have never gotten trip insurance for our WDW trips. But we usually aren't locked into the payment that you would be with renting points. Even at that amount, we probably wouldn't get it for a WDW trip.

 

[Collette]

I do get insurance when renting points. The dollar amount is almost always more than we would want to be out if something unexpected prevents us from going. We fly Delta and the change fees are considerable there, too. I get insurance for all nonrefundable expenses which sometimes includes one night at another resort before check in - which would be refunded if prior to five days out. We have been very fortunate so far to have always been able to take trips as planned, but we never know so I feel more comfortable having it when the amount is high. If we have a room only reservation at a regular Disney resort, I usually don't get insurance because the loss of one night is doable.

 

[WyoMickey]

Thanks everyone. I'm not an insurance buyer. Don't like the industry. I wouldn't buy comprehensive insurance on a $2000 car, but for some reason a $2000 trip gets me mainly because it happens 11 months after the purchase. I still will probably swallow hard and let it go. I think I'll do what my tagline says.

 

[Marionnette]

I'm going to rent 11 months out through David's or the Rental Store. I see I have to purchase insurance at booking but I am undecided.

Do you or don't you purchase insurance and why?

BTW- we are healthy and expect to remain so. Our dvc rental will cost around $2000 dollars.

Read the fine print and make sure that you understand what it covers. You might do better to purchase insurance from another source rather than thru the rental agency.

Look at it this way - the rental agency promised the owner full payment regardless of what a fickle renter might do. They're going to pay the owner $13-$14 per point even if you cancel. The one that sells "cancel anytime insurance" is self-insuring against you doing that and they are charging you for the privilege. This isn't the same as true trip insurance, which will cover you for lost luggage, possible travel delays, emergency evacuation, and so on. They are solely covering you for the nonrefundable cost of your reservation and they do it on a sliding scale. Cancel with under 45 days to go? Get all but $4/pt. back (minus the $1.75 per point that you paid for the insurance). Cancel with 3 days to go and you're out the whole thing. Which means that if you have to cut your trip short due to an emergency, you're SOL. Whereas if you have real travel insurance, you can get reimbursed for your unused tickets, the cost of the unused nights in the villa, and increased cost of the return flight.

Personally, I don't insure for domestic travel. But we have elderly parents and my husband has a heart condition. So if we're traveling abroad, I make sure that we're covered.