Why Travel & Travel Medical Insurance Matters
Agents must be appointed with LocalEdge prior to submitting a quote request.
If you are not currently appointed, please click below to start the appointment process.
Appointed and ready to quote?
Travel is exciting—whether it’s a family vacation, destination wedding, cruise, international business trip, or study abroad experience. But even the best-planned trips can come with unexpected surprises. Flight cancellations. Lost baggage. Sudden illnesses. Medical emergencies in another country. That’s where travel insurance and travel medical insurance can make a major difference.
For agents, these products are also a valuable opportunity to provide additional protection and education to customers who may not realize the risks involved with traveling—especially internationally.
What Is Travel Insurance?
Travel insurance is designed to help protect a traveler’s financial investment before and during a trip. Depending on the plan, coverage may include trip cancellations or interruptions, flight delays, unexpected sickness or injury while traveling, and more.
Many travelers spend thousands of dollars upfront on flights, hotels, cruises, tours, and excursions. If something unexpected happens before departure, those prepaid, non-refundable expenses could be lost. Travel insurance can provide peace of mind by helping protect against those costs.
What Is Travel Medical Insurance?
Travel medical insurance focuses specifically on medical coverage while traveling outside of a traveler’s home country.
Many people assume their regular health insurance will automatically cover them overseas, but that’s often not the case. Some domestic plans may offer limited international coverage or none at all. Travel medical insurance may help cover the cost of emergency medical treatment, hospital stays, urgent care visits, etc. And these types of coverages can be especially important for international vacations, cruises, mission trips, students studying abroad, and more.
Why Travelers Should Consider Coverage
Medical Emergencies Can Be Expensive
Getting sick or injured while traveling internationally can quickly become costly. Travelers may face large out-of-pocket expenses, unfamiliar healthcare systems, and language barriers. Even a simple emergency room visit abroad can create unexpected financial stress.
Travel Disruptions Happen Every Day
Weather events, airline delays, missed connections, and cancellations can impact travel plans at any time. Travel insurance may help reimburse eligible expenses related to delayed flights, trip interruptions, additional hotel stays, and missed prepaid reservations.
Some Destinations Require Coverage
Certain countries and travel programs may require proof of travel medical insurance before entry or participation. Some international visas and organized travel programs also require travelers to carry medical evacuation coverage.
Peace of Mind While Traveling
One of the biggest benefits travelers mention is simply having support when something unexpected happens. Many travel protection plans include access to:
- 24/7 emergency assistance
- Multilingual support services
- Medical referrals
- Emergency coordination services
A Valuable Conversation for Agents
Travel coverage is often overlooked during the insurance conversation, but it can be a strong value-added discussion for agents.
Customers traveling internationally may not realize:
- Their health insurance may not fully cover them overseas
- Medicare generally offers very limited international coverage
- Travel suppliers may have strict cancellation penalties
- Emergency evacuations can be extremely expensive
As travel continues to increase, more customers are looking for ways to travel with greater confidence and protection. Helping customers understand the basics of travel and travel medical insurance can strengthen relationships and create additional opportunities to meet their coverage needs.
Important Reminder
As with any insurance product, coverage varies by plan, eligibility, exclusions, and policy terms. Travelers should always review plan details carefully and ask questions to ensure they understand what is and is not covered.
Ready to connect?
Our Life & Health team is here to help agents better understand available travel and travel medical insurance solutions and assist with questions about coverage options, traveler needs, and plan selection.
Submit an information request here. To contact a LocalEdge broker, reach out to Bryan Leitzinger at [email protected].