Travel Safety: Insuring a Good Time
I’m a believer in insurance. I consider it just one of the necessities in life. So, for my mega trip, I decided to bone up on my coverage.Medical Coverage
My standard Aetna plan covers overseas procedures and care while traveling overseas. The catch is I need to front the money myself and they reimburse me when I submit the claim when I get home.
All well and fine, unless you have some kind of catastrophic accident and are outlaying tens of thousands of dollars. Most of us don’t have that kind of cash lying around.
I double checked my coverage and if I need emergency medical care overseas, I am charged at the in-network rate. For me, that makes a big difference since my deductible is super-sized: $2,500 in network / $5,000 out of network. Cost of keeping my current state-side medical and dental coverage: $3,800 / year.
International Insurance
I usually get international insurance too just before my trip. (Note: you can only sign up for it 30 days before you leave.) This means I can get coverage anywhere in the world with only a $250 deductible (much more reasonable that I’ll have this amount on hand). This Multinational Underwriters’ “Citizen Secure” insurance covers:
- · Supplemental Medical Insurance
- · Medical Evacuation
- · Emergency Reunion
- · Repatriation of Remains
- · Optional term Life and AD&D
I really look at it as a secondary form of health insurance. Cost: $2,250 / year.
Sports Rider
Since I like my adventure sports, I also get the Sports Rider option, which covers my ATV riding, white water rafting, mountain climbing that I’m so fond of. This might come in handy during my upcoming multi-day sea kayaking trip. (Cost of an additional $25,000 in coverage is included in quote above.)
Dive Insurance
Every diver is afraid of getting the bends. I like to make sure a decompression chamber is available if I need one. It also covers dive accident coverage, AD&D, Permanent Disability, transportation, accommodation, and equipment. Cost of DAN membership is $35 + $35 for “Master Plan” insurance coverage = $70 / year. A relative bargain.
Trip Insurance
This is a new one for me, which I’m considering since I’m going on such a whomba of a trip. American Express’ Global Travel Shield covers:
- · Emergency Medical Care (but only for the first 31 days of a trip)
- · Trip Interruption (of more than 6 hours and after 11:00 pm at night)
- · Trip Cancellation
- · Lost Luggage
- · Stolen Items / Luggage in Hotel
- · Alternative Transportation
Cost: $20,000 of “deluxe” coverage is $1,334 / year. I’m not fully convinced I need this.
“Extenuating Circumstances” Insurance: We’re just going to leave it at that: $1,500 / year.
Margaritas All Around!
So to “insure” I have a good trip ahead of me, it will cost me a grand total of $8,954. That’s a lot of margaritas – which, in my mind, is a much cheaper way of ensuring I have a good time. He he he.
Tags: dive insurance, international health insurance, margaritas, sports rider, travel insurance
This entry was posted on Saturday, November 13th, 2010 and is filed under Travel Favorites.