The Best Place To Buy Travel Insurance For Your Next Vacation
Joe Garza is looking for the best place to buy travel insurance for his next vacation. But like many travel insurance customers, his situation is a little complicated.
Garza, a retired airline worker, is on Medicare and has a pre-existing medical condition. He needs insurance to cover everything.
"That would also include hospitalization and recovery," he says. "And if you had a travel companion, it would cover their costs, so you're not left alone in a foreign land."
There are a lot of folks like Garza out there. As people start thinking about their upcoming winter trips, they're also looking for ways to protect themselves. Americans spent nearly $2.8 billion on travel protection, according to a 2017 survey by the US Travel Insurance Association, an increase of 19.1% from the year before. They want to know the best place to buy travel insurance.
Among their questions: Do I need separate health insurance? Does my current medical plan cover me? Do common travel insurance plans cover adventure sports? How about emergency evacuation and trip interruptions?
The answers don't have to be complicated. I've already shared my list of the best travel insurance companies. But as a consumer advocate, I also monitor the best sites for buying travel insurance. I poll my readers once a year to find out where they buy their policies. For the rest of the year, I watch the complaints to make sure customers are getting the service they deserve.
Where's the best place to buy travel insurance?
For the sake of simplicity, I'll focus on travel insurance sold to Americans for domestic and international trips. There are several terrific sites that specialize in selling insurance to international travelers, like VisitorsCoverage. I think they merit their own story.
Of course, you can buy a policy directly through an insurance company or a travel agent. Bear in mind, too, that your credit card may offer coverage. But an option I really like is a third-party website that allows you to compare and buy a policy. It gives you more control over the process.
✓ You can find a good price and the best value since the sites offer policies from a selection of insurance companies.
✓ You can also compare multiple policies across several insurance companies, finding the coverage that you need.
✓ If something goes wrong, you have an advocate -- the third-party company --to help you with a claim or an appeal.
A third-party site may be the best place to buy travel insurance. Working with independent sites helps answer pressing questions like Garza's. They'll tell you which policy has the best medical insurance or works with your health plans. Medical coverage is a huge issue for travelers, especially seniors on a bucket-list trip. When it comes to medical care, you can't be too careful. Treatment for emergency medical care can bankrupt you when you travel abroad. I've heard too many horror stories about sky-high medical expenses.
So where should you go shopping for peace of mind? Here's my latest list of the best places to buy travel insurance. Many of these companies are run by people I know personally, and whose paths to selling travel insurance online qualify them as advocates for their customers.
G1G.com
I've known the folks at G1G.com for a long time. I'm always impressed by their intuitive user interface and can-do customer service attitude. If you want to compare policies side-by-side, GIG's process is dead simple and fast. G1G also has a fascinating backstory that has turned it into an advocate for travelers, determined to cut through the "complexity of insurance jargon." I like that.
Insuremytrip.com
Insuremytrip.com is among the most established travel insurance sellers. The site allows you to compare benefits, get quotes and buy policies from a single source. Plus, its “Anytime Advocates” can help with your claim. Insuremytrip.com says it's put $1 million in coverage “back in travelers’ pockets,” presumably resulting from a wrongful denial. The site also offers a low-price guarantee. I’ve received very few complaints about policies purchased through the company. They’re usually resolved quickly and in the traveler’s favor.
Quotewright.com
Quotewright.com sets itself apart by selling quality, not quantity — “offering only the plans and companies that meet our exacting standards,” it says. John Cook, Quotewright.com’s president, is a leading authority on travel insurance. He has extensive experience in the insurance industry, and I often turn to him for expert help on my insurance stories. Also, I've had zero complaints about Quotewright's insurance policies, which is unusual.
Squaremouth.com
Among the reasons to consider Squaremouth.com: a more powerful search engine for finding the best policy and a philosophy to find you the least expensive policy. Squaremouth also promises to sell insurance from financially stable companies, and offers a “zero complaint guarantee.” I can speak to that last point. Whenever I receive a grievance that involves a policy bought through Squaremouth, it’s fixed quickly.
Travelinsurance.com
TravelInsurance.com is another useful source for helping you compare plans. “Our comparison engine allows you to decipher plan benefits and coverage easily,” it says. Its claim to fame is speed. You can quote, compare and buy in just a few minutes. Then the company sends your policy confirmation and documents via email instantly. Like the others, the company stands behind the policies it sells and complaints are rare.
“TravelInsurance.com was founded by consumer-focused internet executives and not by insurance executives,” says co-founder Stan Sandberg. “Everything we do starts with the question, ‘Is this good for the consumer?” and not, ‘Is this good for the insurance company?’”
TripInsurance.com
The story behind TripInsurance.com is inspiring. Dan Skilken, the site’s founder, created TripInsurance.com when he tried to navigate the insurance options for his travels. The result: a site that offers lower prices on the same coverage as the brand-name travel insurance companies. When you shop for a policy, it divides the options into “good,” “better” and “best” policies. That way, you can easily figure out which one is right for you. And like the others, it has 24/7 support and a promise to stand behind its policies.
A little shopping advice on the best place to buy travel insurance
But how do you use these sites to shop for your next travel insurance policy? Based on thousands of travel insurance cases I handle through my consumer advocacy organization every year, my first piece of advice is: Don't take the first offer.
If you're booking a trip online, your travel company may try to pressure you into choosing a policy during your initial booking. Although it can sometimes be a good deal, it often isn't. Travel insurance offered in the heat of the moment can be overpriced and stripped down. It may not even be real insurance, but a "protection" product offered directly by a company. Those plans have significant restrictions.
I recommend bookmarking all of these sites and spending a few minutes comparison shopping between them. But don’t forget your travel agent or your travel insurance company’s direct website. You might find a great price on the perfect policy there, too. In other words, shop around.
With these sites, you should be able to find the best place to buy travel insurance that meets your needs, regardless of your destination. Or a pre-existing condition. Long-Term Care Insurance For Singles: Do You Really Need It?
Social Security and Medicare—along with retirement income from sources ranging from pensions, a 401(k), an IRA or even rental income—are things you probably consider when planning for retirement. You may also worry about stock market performance and the costs of getting older. For most people, the biggest threat to their retirement is not a stock market crash. You can recover from that. A bigger threat is the cost of healthcare. A long illness requiring around-the-clock care can devastate your finances and few are prepared to cover those costs. This is where long-term care insurance (LTCI) can be a life-saver both emotionally and financially. The question is, as single person, do you really need it?
The costs of long-term care (LTC) will vary widely depending on where in the country you live. It can easily cost $8,000 per month ($96,000 annually) in many parts of the country. In Manhattan, the estimated cost is a whopping $405, per day, which is more than $147,000, per year. Those figures are well beyond the retirement income of the average American. The fact that few people have the resources to cover the cost of LTC may lead you to believe everyone should run out and buy some LTCI. However, those decisions are much more complex. In many cases LTCI is unnecessary, and in others, you are putting your spouse’s financial future at risk if you forgo it.
Singles and Long-Term Care
Would you believe singles now make up the majority of Americans? However, that includes widows and widowers, which is relevant since we are talking about end-of-life care. A study by the Boston College Center for Retirement Research asserts it will only make sense for the richest 20% to 30% of single (unmarried) people to purchase some type of LTC coverage or insurance. The study reported that individuals, not part of that richest group, will likely be better off going without care.
Additionally, the research gave estimates of the various lengths of nursing home stays for those who needed them. Using monthly statistics, as opposed to annual ones, it was discovered that people who went to nursing homes stayed there around 30% less than was previously thought. Nearly 45% of patients stayed three months or less? For the remaining 55%, it was reported that the average stay for a man was slightly less than a year. That compared to an average stay of 17 months for women. It’s important to note those were averages. My great- grandmother had around-the-clock care for nearly a decade before she passed. That isn’t how I hope to spend the last decade of my life but at least she had the means to be adequately cared for.
On the flip side, many nursing home stays end up being quite short. Often, a stay is right before death. I know that isn’t a happy thought but it’s better to talk about now, when you are younger and healthier. Short visits may be covered by Medicare whereas stays, up to 100 days, may qualify for Medicare reimbursements. Keep in mind that is unlikely to pay for the type of place you would want to visit, if given a choice.
The direst LTC scenarios are the ones for a long illness. Those could easily bankrupt the most financially prepared among us . If you don’t have much in the way of assets, you may be able to skip paying for LTC coverage and rely on Medicare for shorter stays. For those at the very bottom of income and assets you may end up qualifying for Medicaid. For 2018, unmarried individual’s incomes must be less than $2,250 per month and their assets, excluding their home and car, must be valued at worth than $2,000. On the other hand, if you need LTC, and are married, you could leave your spouse destitute for the rest of his or her life. Not to mention leaving little to nothing for them to pay for LTC if they happen to need it as well.
Which Singles Should Buy Long-Term Care Coverage?
According to the Boston College study estimates, the wealthiest 19% of single men and 31% of single women should invest in LTC coverage. Of course, that study missed a few points like the cost of medical care often being more expensive for single retirees. In my experience, single retirees are often more concerned about how they will be taken care of later in life. They often don’t have as much support from their immediate families. Those individuals will more likely need to pay for elder or home-health care.
That concern is especially prevalent among my LGBT clients who ponder "Who Will Care for LGBT Seniors". Highlighting the issues faced by seniors who do not have children.
LTCI isn’t just about dollars and cents. Many people look at it as ensuring they have the funds to stay in their home, if they so choose. It will also allow retirees to spend a bit more of their retirement nest eggs knowing that they have coverage for end-of-life care. The decision to purchase LTCI is often more about peace of mind than whether or not they can actually afford to pay for a long nursing home stay.
Alternatives to Long-Term Care Insurance
For the most part, I no longer recommend getting basic LTCI. Insurers have made policies harder to qualify for and many companies are no longer selling those types of policies. There are stories, across the personal finance world, of skyrocketing premiums on existing LTC policies. Insurance companies often hope that you drop the policy at some point before actually needing expensive care. Also, most LTCI is either use it or lose it. No one wants to go into a nursing home. At the same time, you don’t want to pay for insurance you will never use.
I’ve found life insurance, with an LTC benefit, will bea more effective option for many future retirees. There are more ways to get care and benefits from the policy. You are guaranteed to see some benefit from that type of policy provided you don’t require a stay in an LTC facility- we are all going to pass someday, right? You may also get coverage for terminal or critical illness, such as heart attacks or strokes. The bottom line is that will often provide a bit more value for your insurance dollars and increased flexibility to avoid premium increases seen on individual, LTC policies.
Regardless, if you are looking into LTC, do it earlier rather than later. I can’t tell you how many people I’ve spoken with over the years who were turned down for the most miniscule pre-existing conditions. Also, premiums can be hefty and the cost will compound the longer you wait to pursue coverage.
Who is Wealthy Enough to Need Long-Term Care Insurance?
Aforementioned “wealthier” singles have more to lose from not getting coverage. They also have more to gain by having it. I know my idea of wealth and high income is a bit skewed based on who I generally work with, and the fact I live on the edge of Beverly Hills. That aside, here are some statistics to know. To be in the top 25% of wealthiest Americans, it takes just $260,000 or so in investable assets (so not your stuff or home equity). If we are talking income, something around $90,000, per year, will put you in the top quartile of earners. Keep in mind, these are middle to upper-middle-class numbers.
While some of those statistics may assert that LTC is less useful for say the bottom 75% of the U.S. population, that is only looking at the financial side of the equation. The emotional side of the conversation may lead to a very different outcome. In reality, I think a billionaire can just pay for coverage. For the rest of us, paying for premiums may not be fun but having the peace of mind that you have funds to cover the care you need, and want, could be called “priceless.”
Bottom line- determine if Long Term Care coverage is, or is not, important to you. If it is, explore your options to find the best value for your hard-earned money.