Travel insurance is a crucial safeguard for your trips, but it’s a common misconception that it covers absolutely everything that could possibly go wrong. With Allianz Travel Insurance, coverage operates based on covered reasons that are specifically outlined in your policy documents for benefits like trip cancellation, trip interruption, and others. If a situation isn’t explicitly listed as a covered reason, unfortunately, it’s not covered.
This approach is fundamental to keeping travel insurance affordable. If policies were designed to cover every conceivable travel mishap, the cost would become prohibitively expensive for most travelers. So, what exactly are these “covered reasons,” and how do they work with trip cancellation and interruption insurance? Let’s delve into the details.
Allianz Travel Insurance aims to offer robust protection by including a wide array of covered reasons. Our goal is to shield you from the most frequent and impactful situations that can disrupt your travel plans.
Depending on the specific Allianz Travel Insurance plan you select, you could have up to 28 covered reasons for trip cancellation and up to 20 covered reasons for trip interruption. It’s important to remember that these covered reasons can differ between plans. Therefore, carefully reviewing your plan documents is essential to understand your specific coverage. Below is a list of common covered reasons for trip cancellation and interruption found in many of our popular plans. (Note: Specific conditions and exclusions may apply to each reason).
It’s also important to note that some covered reasons are exclusive to trip cancellation, while others apply only to trip interruption. Always consult your individual plan details for clarity.
- Serious Illness or Injury: Coverage applies if you or a traveling companion experiences a serious illness, injury, or a debilitating medical condition that forces trip cancellation. This includes illnesses such as COVID-19 or other epidemic or pandemic-related illnesses.
- Family Medical Emergency: If a non-traveling family member suffers a life-threatening illness, injury, or a medical condition requiring hospitalization, trip cancellation or interruption can be covered.
- Death: The unfortunate event of death of you, a traveling companion, or a family member is a covered reason.
- Quarantine: If you or your traveling companion are placed under mandatory quarantine due to exposure to a contagious disease just before your trip begins, coverage can apply.
- Car Accident: Being involved in a traffic accident on your departure date that results in the need for medical attention or vehicle damage requiring repair for safe operation is a covered reason.
- Uninhabitable Dwelling: If your primary residence becomes uninhabitable due to unforeseen circumstances, your trip can be impacted and potentially covered.
- Legal Obligation: Being legally compelled to attend a legal proceeding during your scheduled trip dates is a covered reason.
- Military Duty: If you, a traveling companion, or a family member in the U.S. Armed Forces face reassignment or a change in personal leave status, it can be a covered reason.
- Significant Travel Delay: When your travel carrier causes a delay of at least 24 consecutive hours to your original destination due to reasons listed in your policy, such as natural disasters, coverage may apply.
- Job Loss: Unexpected termination or layoff from a current employer after your policy purchase date can be a covered reason for trip changes.
- Inability to Receive Vaccination: If you or a travel companion cannot get a required vaccination for your trip due to medical reasons (illness, injury, or medical condition), it can be covered.
- Mandatory Evacuation: If government authorities issue a mandatory evacuation order at your destination due to a natural disaster within 24 hours of your scheduled departure, your trip may be covered.
- New Employment: Securing new permanent, full-time employment after purchasing your policy that necessitates your presence at work during your trip dates is a covered reason.
- Job Relocation: If your or your traveling companion’s primary residence is permanently relocated by at least 100 miles due to a job transfer, it can be a covered reason.
- First Responder Duty: If you or a traveling companion serving as a first responder are called to duty to provide aid during an emergency during your trip dates, coverage may apply.
- Adoption Proceedings: Receiving a legal notice to attend adoption proceedings that fall during your trip dates is a covered reason.
- Stolen Travel Documents: The theft of passports or other essential travel documents required for your trip is a covered reason.
- Uninhabitable Destination: If your intended destination becomes uninhabitable, your trip can be affected and potentially covered.
- Separation or Divorce: Legal separation or divorce occurring on or after your policy’s effective date but before your departure can be a covered reason.
- Host Accommodation Issues: If family or friends outside the U.S. can no longer host you due to death, serious illness, injury, or medical condition in their household, your trip can be impacted.
- Visa Refusal: Being denied a tourist visa by authorities of your destination or transit country through no fault of your own is a covered reason.
- Pregnancy: Discovering you are pregnant after purchasing your policy can be a covered reason.
- Birth in the Family: Needing to attend the birth of a family member’s child is a covered reason.
- Vehicle Breakdown: Experiencing a mechanical breakdown of your or a traveling companion’s vehicle en route to your trip departure point is a covered reason.
- Vehicle Theft: If your or a traveling companion’s primary vehicle, intended for trip transportation, is stolen, it can be a covered reason.
- Tour or Event Cancellation: If a pre-booked multi-day tour or event, which is the primary purpose of your trip, is cancelled by the operator due to a natural disaster or severe weather, it’s a covered reason for trip cancellation. (Trip cancellation only)
- Terrorism: A terrorist event occurring within 30 days of your departure and within 100 miles of any city on your itinerary is a covered reason.
- Hijacking: Being a traveler on a hijacked aircraft, train, vehicle, or vessel is a covered reason.
- Significant Trip Disruption: Missing at least 50% of your trip’s length due to a covered reason can trigger coverage.
Remember, this is not an exhaustive list, and your specific plan may include more, fewer, or different covered reasons. Always prioritize reading your plan documents thoroughly!
Covered Reasons: Delving into the Fine Print
Another crucial aspect of understanding your Allianz Travel Insurance is recognizing that most covered reasons come with specific definitions and requirements. Careful reading is essential. For instance, if you’re considering canceling your trip due to a family member’s illness, you need to understand:
- Definition of Family Member: Who exactly is considered a “family member” under your policy? You can find more details here about how travel insurance covers family members.
- Severity of Illness: What level of severity of illness, injury, or medical condition is required for coverage? Typically, for trip cancellation to be covered, the condition must be deemed life-threatening by the family member’s doctor or necessitate hospitalization.
Covered Reasons and Pre-Existing Medical Conditions
It’s vital to be aware that pre-existing medical conditions are generally excluded from coverage unless you meet the requirements for a Pre-Existing Condition Exclusion Waiver. You can often secure this waiver if you purchase your travel insurance policy within 14 days of making your initial trip deposit and are medically fit to travel at the time of purchase. This waiver can provide coverage for most pre-existing medical conditions. Learn more about pre-existing condition coverage.
Covered Reasons vs. Foreseeable Events
Travel insurance policies are designed to protect against the unexpected. Therefore, they generally do not cover losses that arise from expected or reasonably foreseeable events or problems – even if the event itself is listed as a covered reason. A foreseeable event is something a reasonable person in similar circumstances would anticipate happening.
For example, imagine you buy travel insurance for a Caribbean vacation while a named hurricane is already heading directly towards your destination. If the hurricane damages your resort, leading to trip cancellation, your insurance claim might be denied. While “natural disaster making your destination uninhabitable” may be a covered reason in your policy, the fact that the hurricane was imminent and known when you purchased the policy makes the resulting damage a foreseeable event.
Covered Reasons vs. Exclusions
Finally, your Allianz Travel Insurance plan will also include a list of general exclusions. These are specific situations and circumstances that are explicitly not covered by your travel insurance. Common exclusions include participation in extreme or high-risk sports and activities, acts of gross negligence by you or a traveling companion, and issues arising from the misuse or abuse of alcohol or drugs, among others.
Even if a situation appears to align with a covered reason, your claim may be denied if a general exclusion applies. For instance, while a serious injury is typically a covered reason for trip interruption, it would likely not be covered if the injury occurred while skydiving, as high-risk sports are often excluded.
If you are uncertain about which Allianz Travel Insurance plan best fits your needs or have questions about how travel insurance works, our experts are here to help. Call us at 1-866-884-3556, and our travel insurance specialists will guide you through the plan documents and clarify your benefits. Remember, you have a review period (15 days or more, depending on your state) to request a full refund if you are not completely satisfied with your coverage, provided you haven’t yet started your trip or filed a claim. After this period, your premium becomes nonrefundable.
Learn more about Allianz Travel Insurance plans and get a quote today.
