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Travel insurance is an important part of every vacation’s to-do list. A robust travel insurance policy provides financial protection for trip deposits, your health and travel problems such as delays.
The most comprehensive travel insurance plans provide benefits for trip cancellation, trip delay, trip interruption, baggage protection and emergency medical expenses, including medical evacuation.
But timing is everything. To lock in the best protection, buy travel insurance shortly after you’ve made your first trip deposit to give you the best coverage—and peace of mind— during your pre-departure time.
Best Time to Buy Travel Insurance: Early and with No Regrets
When you book a vacation and make trip deposits, it’s smart to buy a travel insurance plan as soon as possible. That way, you can maximize your coverage, and you won’t miss out on optional upgrades that require purchase soon after your initial trip deposits.
Here are the biggest benefits of buying travel insurance soon after booking your trip:
Better Trip Cancellation Travel Insurance
If you’re buying travel insurance for the first time, you may not realize that your trip cancellation benefits start the day you purchase the policy.
No one plans to get sick, but unfortunately, it does happen. If you get sick or hurt before leaving for your trip and need to cancel, travel insurance can help to recover your non-refundable, prepaid trip costs.
Standard trip cancellation insurance plan covers a specific list of cancellation reasons. You can get reimbursed for prepaid and non-refundable trip expenses if you have to cancel your trip for one of these covered reasons.
Acceptable cancellation reasons usually include illness or injury to you, a travel companion or a family member; death of a travel companion or close family member; military orders; a serious family emergency; a travel supplier going bankrupt; severe weather; a sudden job loss; civil unrest and acts of terrorism. Be sure to review the cancellation reasons in your policy.
When you purchase travel insurance early, you are protected for the longest length of time if you need to cancel for a reason listed in the policy.
If you’re concerned about COVID-19, look into plans with coverage or add-ons for COVID-related medical issues and cancellation, such as the COVID-19 Pandemic Travel Plans offered by Scotia Travel Insurance or Manulife Financial. As COVID-19 is a “known event” coverage is different than it was during the height of the pandemic, so read the fine print carefully.
Locking in “Cancel For Any Reason” Coverage
Not all reasons for cancellation are covered by a standard travel insurance policy, regardless of when you bought it. For example, if you discover that it will be raining during your beach trip, you would not be able to use trip cancellation benefits. If you want an escape hatch to cancel no matter what, consider adding Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) coverage to your travel insurance plan.
For example, CAA Travel Insurance offers a Cancel for Any Other Reason Benefit that will reimburse between 50% and 75% of your non-refundable trip costs. However, you need to purchase your policy within 72 hours of booking your travel arrangements or before cancellation penalties come into effect.
This gives you the ability to cancel your trip for any reason and receive some reimbursement, as long as you cancel three hours or more before your scheduled departure.
Only a few Canadian travel insurance companies offer CFAR, so if you’re interested in this option, make sure you buy a plan that has it.
Buying “Interruption For Any Reason” Coverage
Standard trip interruption travel insurance compensates prepaid, non-refundable trip expenses, such as airfare, hotel stays and activities that were booked in advance, if your trip is unexpectedly interrupted by a reason listed in your policy. It also pays for a last-minute flight home and associated expenses. But not all reasons to cut your trip short are covered.
Interruption For Any Reason (IFAR) coverage allows you to return home early, no matter what the reason. CAA Travel Insurance is one of the few insurers to also offer IFAR coverage, and like CFAR, you must buy IFAR coverage within the first 72 hours of booking your trip. This benefit gives you 50% to 75% of fully prepaid travel expenses when your trip is interrupted for 48 hours or more after your arrival at your trip destination.
Travel Assistance Before and During a Trip
All travel insurance companies provide 24/7 emergency support services, and some include concierge services in their travel insurance plans.
These services are often utilized during travel, but many travellers don’t realize they can be used right away when you purchase an insurance plan.
For example, many travel assistance providers offer pre-departure services, such as:
- Passport/visa requirements
- Travel-related health advisories
- Vaccine and inoculation requirements
- Currency information
- Weather information
- Restaurant/hotel/shopping recommendations and reservations
- Consulate and embassy locations
What if You Change Your Itinerary?
Even if you don’t have all the logistics for your trip, as soon as you have some money down on non-refundable costs, such as your flight or hotel, make it a priority to get your travel insurance.
If you’re still mapping out plans, or you change your itinerary, you can make adjustments to a travel insurance policy by requesting a plan change. You can then update your total trip cost or tweak your travel dates. Don’t feel like you need to have everything finalized before looking into travel insurance.
By buying your travel insurance as soon as you book your trip, you get peace of mind and the most comprehensive protection, freeing up time to plan the vacation of your dreams.
