What's the difference between travel insurance and trip 'protection'?

Do you have a Cambodian trip report you want to share? Post it here, and feel free to link to your blog if it's a travel blog for Cambodia, South East Asia, or anywhere really. You can ask and answer questions about travel advice in Cambodia or just share your pictures and videos with us. Most people who live in or visit Cambodia have also checked out nearby countries like Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines, and you can get to most of these countries by traveling overland, so put any travel plans, reviews or questions here. Discussions about dirt bike trails in here as well.
User avatar
CEOCambodiaNews
Expatriate
Posts: 62322
Joined: Sun Oct 12, 2014 5:13 am
Reputation: 4033
Location: CEO Newsroom in Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Contact:
Cambodia

What's the difference between travel insurance and trip 'protection'?

Post by CEOCambodiaNews »

What's the difference between travel insurance and trip 'protection'?
Christopher Elliott Special to USA TODAY
Published 8:07 AM EDT Aug 16, 2019
If you don't know the difference between travel insurance and trip protection, talk to Christopher Benson. He learned about that the hard way.

When Benson and his wife, Betty, planned a trip to Paris, Orbitz offered them a "vacation waiver" option that looked a lot like travel insurance. But when the Bensons tried to invoke the waiver, it didn't work as they expected. Lufthansa would not refund their tickets from Chicago to Paris.

"I feel I've been duped," says Benson. "They offer a vacation waiver, which does not seem to work."

Technically, the Orbitz vacation waiver isn't insurance. It's an add-on product that allows you to change or cancel your trip for any reason, with Orbitz waiving any cancellation fees and refunding any amounts refunded by the travel provider. It also offers a travel credit, good for a future trip.

Benson's confusion is common. Travelers who want to protect their trip may be considering insurance and tempted to buy a less expensive waiver or trip protection plan. But there are important differences worth knowing.

“Travelers do not understand the difference between travel protection versus travel insurance," says John Lovell, Travel Leaders Group's president for leisure travel, supplier relations and networks. "Many times these terms are used interchangeably from one provider to another."

Benson's request took a tragic turn when his wife passed away, leaving him with vouchers he wouldn't use. I contacted Orbitz on his behalf, and the company negotiated a full refund with Lufthansa.

But Benson is hardly the only traveler surprised by protection. James O’Connor, an attorney with the Nickless, Phillips and O'Connor in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, has filed a lawsuit against river cruise company Vantage Travel for selling a travel protection plan that promised to cover passengers for a mechanical breakdown that causes a complete cessation of services for at least 12 consecutive hours. O'Connor says Vantage did not honor the claims.

"This travel protection appears to be a rip-off,” he says.

Vantage says there was no cessation of services by the 12 consecutive hours. "The vessel was used as a hotel, with meals and all other shipboard activities," says Gary Greenstein, Vantage's chief financial officer. He noted its protection policy also contained a ‘‘cancel for any reason’’ provision that allows passengers to cancel their vacations before their trips.

"We think the plan is a very good one and well worth travelers considering its purchase," he adds.

Travel insurance is an actual insurance product underwritten by large insurance companies and regulated by state insurance agencies. But trip protection plans were much riskier propositions and could be full of exclusions. A trip protection plan might only cover a portion of the trip and not reimburse you for a cancellation but instead issue you a credit for future travel.
https://eu.usatoday.com/story/travel/ad ... 993387001/
Join the Cambodia Expats Online Telegram Channel: https://t.me/CambodiaExpatsOnline

Cambodia Expats Online: Bringing you breaking news from Cambodia before you read it anywhere else!

Have a story or an anonymous news tip for CEO? Need advertising? CONTACT US

Cambodia Expats Online is the most popular community in the country. JOIN TODAY

Follow CEO on social media:

Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
Instagram
  • Similar Topics
    Replies
    Views
    Last post

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Ot Mean Loi and 115 guests