Travel in a Time of Terrorism: Squaremouth Explains Travel Insurance Coverage

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Nov 20, 2015, 06:55 ET

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., Nov. 20, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Following last weekend's terrorist attacks in Paris and today's attack at a hotel in Mali, travelers may be looking for coverage to cancel a trip due to a future attack. Squaremouth, a leading travel insurance comparison website, explains four things to know when looking for terrorism coverage in a travel insurance policy.

Specific Triggers to Terrorism Coverage
Under most policies, terrorism coverage is triggered when the U.S. State Department deems an event terrorism. This means, the recent attacks in Paris would be covered, but the Mali hotel attack, which currently has not been declared terrorism by the U.S. government, would not.

Once an event is officially declared as terrorism, other requirements must be met for a traveler to be able to cancel their trip and receive reimbursement. Many policies will only provide coverage if the attack occurred within 7-30 days of the traveler's departure date. On most policies, the attacks must have also occurred in a city, or within 50-100 miles of a city, on the traveler's itinerary.

Previous Terror Attacks Could Negate Future Coverage
While travelers can buy insurance to cover a future attack, some policies will not cover a terrorist event if a previous terrorist attack has occurred in the same city within the past 30-90 days. This means travelers looking for terrorism coverage for an upcoming trip to Paris should carefully review a policy's details before purchasing.

Don't Wait Until It's Too Late to Be Covered
Travelers looking for coverage from potential future attacks should consider purchasing insurance sooner rather than later. Once an attack has occurred, travelers can no longer purchase a travel insurance policy for coverage related to that event.

Fear of Terrorism Only Covered by Cancel For Any Reason Upgrade
Those who want to be able to cancel their trip, regardless of whether a future attack meets their policy's requirements, may want to include the optional Cancel For Any Reason upgrade. While this upgrade adds about 40% to the cost of their premium, it provides coverage for reasons otherwise excluded, like fear. Cancel For Any Reason requires the traveler insure 100% of their prepaid, non-refundable trip costs and must be purchased within 14-30 days of their first trip deposit. If the benefit is used, the traveler must cancel their trip within at least 48-72 hours of their departure date, and will only be reimbursed up to 75% of their trip cost.

"With heightened awareness about terrorism, we're seeing a significant increase in calls from travelers looking to insure a future trip," said Squaremouth CEO Chris Harvey. "While most cancellation policies include terrorism coverage, their definitions and stipulations can vary - so customers should research their policy to ensure they get the coverage they want."

To keep travelers up to date, Squaremouth maintains travel insurance current event information centers for events that may affect travel plans, such as the recent Paris terrorist attacks. These online resources are updated with official provider position statements, answers to frequently asked questions, and current government travel alerts and notices.

ABOUT SQUAREMOUTH
Squaremouth is an online company that compares travel insurance products from virtually every major travel insurance provider in the United States. Using Squaremouth's comparison engine and third party customer reviews, travelers can research and compare insurance products side-by-side. More information can be found at www.squaremouth.com.

AVAILABLE TOPIC EXPERT
Megan Singh
[email protected]
727-378-0938

SOURCE Squaremouth