Following 911, SARS and the Iraq war, many people were suprised to
find that their travel insurance plans did not protect them if they
simply became to afraid to travel or, in the case of group travel,
they were suprised to find that their insurance did not protect them
if the trip organizer decided to cancel or indefinately postpone the
trip for safety or other liability reasons.

I am looking for a 'new world' travel protection plan that would allow
me to be reimbursed for prepaid travel expenses if I can't go on the
trip for any reason -- illness, fear, job loss, strikes, war,
whatever.  Does anyone offer such a plan?

Great answers get great tips.

---

Request for Question Clarification by knowledge_seeker-ga on 11 Jun 2003 15:23 PDT

Hi  jmhines123-ga,

I've been working on your question for about an hour and here's what
I'm finding:


1-- There are travel insurance companies that offer the kind of
coverage you are looking for, but they do not offer this coverage
directly to travelers. They offer it to travel agencies bundled with
specific travel packages or to HMO's or to cruise-lines or tour
companies. To use the insurance, you have to purchase specific trip
packages.

For example –

"CSA Travel Protection, a leading travel insurance provider, today
announced that Uniworld, America’s premiere river cruise and tour
company, has selected CSA to administer the insurance coverages in its
Worry-Free Travel Protection Plan, which contains a new “cancel for
any reason” provision."

Uniworld Selects CSA Travel Protection to Administer New Travel Plan
with “Cancel for Any Reason” Provision
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2002/9/prweb45314.php



2 – While other travel insurance companies also purport to offer the
full cancellation coverage, the fine print in their contracts show
that it's not really "full" coverage.

For example -- 

"…You may cancel your trip up to forty-six days prior to your
departure for any reason and receive a refund of all payments made."

"…  cancel for any reason right up until the day of departure, no
questions asked. If the reason is covered by our standard insurance,
you will receive a cash refund. If you cancel for any reason not
covered by cancellation insurance, you will receive a Travel
Certificate…"
http://198.64.147.121/html/travelProtection.htm


So, at this point I'm wondering if you'd like me to pursue this any
further, and if so, in what direction?

Look forward to hearing from you –

-K~

---

Clarification of Question by jmhines123-ga on 12 Jun 2003 08:55 PDT

This is great so far knowledge_seeker-ga.  I am actually on the trip
organizer side of the equation, so the info you found is great.

Can you grab the question again and "answer" it so I can make sure you
get paid.  If you want to dig further for additional conpensation,
focus on the insurance solutions, such as CA, that could be provided
by the trip organizer.

Thanks!!

Hi again jmhines 123,

Well, I'm sure glad I posted what I had!  It didn't even occur to me
that you were asking from the organizer's point of view.

In that case, I do have other information here for you –



---------------------------------------

CSA TRAVEL PROTECTION 
http://www.csatravelprotection.com/csa/jsp/index.jsp


NOTE - 


This confuses me regarding CSA's coverage. Am not sure if this is CSAs
stance, or this particular tour company's policy.

"We are pleased to offer as our preferred vacation protection
insurance provider CSA Travel Protection….

"…Please remember, vacation protection insurance is not "change of
mind" insurance.  Vacation insurance does NOT allow you to cancel for
any reason!  There must be a valid, covered circumstance for insurance
to protect you against cancellation penalties…"

GREAT VACATIONS - INSURANCE
http://www.greatvacationsinc.com/insurance.htm


 -------------------------------------------

WORLD ACCESS/ ACCESS AMERICA
http://www.worldaccess.com/index.html



As the nation’s leading provider of travel and medical assistance
services, World Access provides insurers, health care companies and
HMOs with valuable enhancement services for their members who travel.

"Through its Access America division, World Access is one of the
largest provider of travel protection products in the US. Access
America's product line is offered by more than 22,000 travel agencies,
insurance brokers, tour operators, cruise lines and travel clubs.."

WORLD ACCESS / ACCESS AMERICA – PRODUCTS
http://www.worldaccess.com/products/travel.html



" Now that many travel companies are offering "cancel for any reason"
policies, it's important for travelers to understand that all policies
are not created equal …Access America offers some of the most
comprehensive trip cancellation insurance in the industry, and it's
important for travelers to realize that the right travel protection
must be comprehensive, issued by a well-respected company, and cover
the time from the day after purchase until the trip concludes…"


ACCESS AMERICA Press Release  : 
NOW MORE THAN EVER, CHOOSE THE RIGHT TRAVEL PROTECTION
http://www.worldaccess.com/news/press/anxious.html


---------------------------------

TRAVEL IMPRESSIONS 
http://www.travelimpressions.com/index.html


Cancel For Any Reason & Travel Protection Plan 

"We are excited to announce our new enhanced Cancel For Any Reason &
Travel Protection Plan. Unlike our previous travel insurance plan that
provided reimbursement only for cancellations due to medical reasons,
our new plan provides your clients with the ultimate in flexibility.
The improved plan now provides a full refund to enrolled clients if
they need to cancel their trip right up to the departure time of the
flight for any reason. "

TRAVEL IMPRESSIONS - INSURANCE
http://www.travelimpressions.com/newins.html


---------------------------------------------------


THE BERKELY GROUP
http://www.berkely.com/index.jsp
 

These folks seem to be a big name in travel insurance, but they don't
give much information on their website.  It might be worth it to give
them a call.

BERKELY - PASSENGER PROTECTION PROGRAMS/TRAVEL INSURANCE
http://www.berkely.com/risk_management/travel.jsp

BERKELY – CONTACT US
http://www.berkely.com/contact_us/contact_us.jsp


I found them via this website, which leads me to believe they offer a
comprehensive cancellation product  –

" Part 1. Cancellation Fee Waiver. Cancellation fee waiver allows you
to cancel your trip for any reason, up to and including the day of
departure, and receive a full cash refund of the tour cost for land
tours, minus the cost of the Plan…."

And if you scroll down you'll see they are insuring through
BerkelyCare Travel Industry Insurance

TAUK – GUEST PROTECTION PLAN
http://www.tauck.com/docs/gpp_details.htm


----------------------------------------------

TRAVEL GUARD 
http://www.travelguard.com/


"Change Your Mind Coverage  -  Reimburses your penalty up to $250 if
you cancel your trip simply because you change your mind!"

TRAVEL GUARD COVERAGE
http://www.travelguard.com/products/ctt-age0202/coverage.asp




======================
USEFUL LINKS
======================


UNDERSTANDING TRAVEL INSURANCE
http://www.worldtravelcenter.com/eng/helpdesk/guides/gd_primer.cfm



TRIP PROTECTION PLANS COMPARED
http://www.worldtravelcenter.com/eng/tools/products.cfm?focus=trip_protection



UPDATE ON CRUISE INSURANCE
http://www.cruisecritic.com/tips/tipsarticle.cfm?ID=80


------------------------

So, that should give you some choices for shopping for the
cancellation insurance you need. Am glad to have been able to help you
after all.

If anything I've said isn't clear, or if any of the links don't work,
please feel free to ask for a clarification.

Thanks for your question and happy travels! 


-K~

search terms—

travel insurance "cancel for any reason"
trip cancellation insurance provider