Key Takeaways

  • Trip Cancellation is the most robust type of plan, with pre-departure coverage, travel medical, and additional protection while you are traveling
  • Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) is an optional add-on for certain trip cancellation policies and must be purchased within 21 days of your first trip deposit
  • Travel Medical is essential if you are traveling outside your home country to ensure you have coverage for accidental injuries or illnesses

With so many options available when it comes to travel insurance, it can be confusing to know which type of policy you need. Read on to learn more about a few of the most popular types of plans and their benefits:

Trip Cancellation Insurance

Trip Cancellation insurance policies help protect you and the financial investment you have made in your trip. Benefits include:

  • Trip Cancellation - Reimburses up to 100% for any prepaid, non-refundable travel expenses you insured if you have to cancel your trip for a covered reason such as you, your travel partner, or a family member falling ill before you travel.

  • Trip Interruption – Provides reimbursement of insured, non-refundable, pre-paid trip costs if a trip is interrupted for a covered reason. Covered reasons can include sickness, accidents, a stolen passport, natural disasters, traffic accidents, inclement weather, and more.

  • Travel Delay - Provides reimbursement of additional costs for accommodations, transportation, and meals if a trip is delayed for a certain amount of time due to a covered reason. Depending on the plan purchased, the minimum delay for coverage to be activated is between 6 and 12 hours.

  • Baggage Delay - Provides reimbursement for costs incurred due to baggage delay en route to your destination. It is worth noting that baggage delay only covers delays of a specific minimum time on the way to your destination; it does not cover delays on the way home.

  • Emergency Travel Medical - Provides reimbursement for emergency medical treatment if sickness or injury occurs while traveling.

  • Missed Connection, Baggage Loss, Emergency Evacuation, and more

Benefits and levels of coverage vary based on the plan selected. Our most robust plan, Safe Travels Voyager, covers up to 30 different cancellation reasons, while Safe Travels Single Trip covers up to 15.

Trip Cancellation plans are only available for U.S. citizens.

Learn more about our Trip Cancellation plans

Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR)

Cancel for Any Reason (CFAR) picks up where trip cancellation leaves off, reimbursing up to 75% of non-refundable travel expenses when you cancel for a reason not otherwise covered by the policy. It is an optional benefit that can be added to certain Trip Cancellation plans. Things like fear of travel or a sailing canceled by the cruise line would not be covered by travel insurance but would be covered by CFAR.

To purchase CFAR, you must:

  1. Select a trip cancellation policy that offers it as an optional add-on, such as Trawick International Safe Travels Voyager or Safe Travels First Class.
  2. Purchase it with the initial policy and within 21 days of the initial trip deposit date.
  3. Insure the full, nonrefundable trip cost.

To use the CFAR option when canceling your trip, you must cancel your trip in its entirety, at least two (2) days prior to your scheduled departure date.

Typically, when making a trip cancellation claim with CFAR, the insurance company will first try to process the claim under the initial policy to try to get you the maximum reimbursement. If that is not possible, it will be processed under CFAR for up to 75% reimbursement.

Since CFAR is part of Trip Cancellation, it is only available to U.S. Citizens.

Learn more about our plans that offer CFAR

Travel Medical Insurance

Travel Medical Insurance policies provide coverage for medical treatment related to sickness or accidental injury when traveling outside your home country. Most primary health insurance plans do not work outside your home country, so a travel medical plan is a good idea to make sure you can get the care you need.

There are different travel medical policies based on where you are located and where you are heading.

  • Inbound to the USA – If you are headed to the USA from another country, this travel medical insurance is essential. Healthcare in the USA can be prohibitively expensive, and medical providers expect to be paid when they treat you. The US government does not provide healthcare for visitors to the USA.

  • International for Outside the USA – For US Citizens or residents and foreign nationals traveling to other countries but NOT traveling to the USA.

  • Travel Medical for US Citizens/Residents Outside the USA – This policy provides coverage for US Citizens or residents while traveling from the USA to other countries.

Another thing to be aware of when buying a travel medical policy is if the policy is Primary or Excess. A Primary travel medical plan will process your claim(s) as if no other insurance plan exists. Excess coverage means the claim will be processed only after receiving an explanation of benefits showing how your primary insurance company processed the claim(s).

Travel medical plans also offer trip interruption, baggage delay, and more.

Additionally, most of our travel medical plans treat COVID-19 as any other illness and provide emergency medical evacuation and repatriation coverage.

24/7 Customer Service to help you decide

If you still aren’t sure what the right plan is for your upcoming trip, our best-in-class 24/7 customer service team can help. Contact us via phone, email, or live chat at any time, and a customer service rep will be happy to answer all your questions.

Or, if you know what you need, get a no-obligation travel insurance quote today.