Travel insurance recommendation for European visiting USA?
January 4, 2014 9:34 PM Subscribe
Other questions address other nationalities/situations, or are quite dated. Looking for recommendation of good travel insurance for an EU resident visiting the US on a tourist visa. No medical problems, just looking to cover incidentals/emergencies. Thanks!
Best answer: I used to get American Express travel insurance as an annual policy when I lived in the UK. They do good service and pricing was reasonable.
posted by arcticseal at 10:01 PM on January 4, 2014
posted by arcticseal at 10:01 PM on January 4, 2014
Best answer: Country of residence? There are likely many local, low-cost options in your country! Check out the automobile club and your credit card company. If you are young, annual travel insurance can be cheap, like 15 Euro p.a. cheap. However, it might only cover a limited number of consecutive days per trip - so check the details!
For a general public, world nomads is recommended by lonely planet/rough guide. Allianz insurance is good as well. You can also book it through STA travel. (I am linking to the co.uk versions, those services are available for most/many countries though).
The USA being what it is, you REALLY want to make sure the policy covers a bit more than emergencies. Read the fine print. And assess what is truly important to you. Focus on the medical side vs. the travel side.
Depending on your travel style, you might want to include an option for coverage of costs in case of search and rescue missions, loss of sight / limbs etc. You might also consider adding insurance for legal expenses.
Let me stress this: Pay attention that the insurance covers repatriation costs in case of illness and death. Many ugly stories there.
Happy travels!
posted by travelwithcats at 2:02 AM on January 5, 2014
For a general public, world nomads is recommended by lonely planet/rough guide. Allianz insurance is good as well. You can also book it through STA travel. (I am linking to the co.uk versions, those services are available for most/many countries though).
The USA being what it is, you REALLY want to make sure the policy covers a bit more than emergencies. Read the fine print. And assess what is truly important to you. Focus on the medical side vs. the travel side.
Depending on your travel style, you might want to include an option for coverage of costs in case of search and rescue missions, loss of sight / limbs etc. You might also consider adding insurance for legal expenses.
Let me stress this: Pay attention that the insurance covers repatriation costs in case of illness and death. Many ugly stories there.
Happy travels!
posted by travelwithcats at 2:02 AM on January 5, 2014
Best answer: Travel insurance policies vary from country to country because they depend on country specific legal framework as well as other insurance offered/required in that country. The policy will also contain a clause that you have to reside in that country. So EU is not sufficiently precise a location for this one and specific recommendations may not be appropriate based on your actual location.
Researching travel insurance in a few countries in Europe that I have lived in I'd recommend understanding what the various policy options you're considering cover regarding the following:
- understand the maximum trip length covered - your visa will be 90 days but the policy may stipulate a maximum individual trip length of 30 days. Different policies will be available for longer trips but you may have to ask for that and expect to pay a different price.
- Be clear what activities the policy covers and what it doesn't cover. Stick to what is covered. e.g. even if the policy covers whitewater rafting check what grade is covered. If you're covered up to grade 3 and you go rafting on grade 4 rapids you're not covered...
- Repatriation is ridiculously expensive. Be sure you have good cover for that.
- Personal liability cover is really important. More covered amount is better than less.
- some policies may have some kind of vehicle cover options. chances are they do not apply to rentals in the US
- if you're travelling with somebody in poor health ensure that trip cancellation due to illness of travel companion is covered. sometimes you and travel companions need to book the trip together to get this.
- medical expenses in the US are very high, be clear what the rules about any pre-existing conditions are and make sure you're as covered as you need to be.
- read reviews about customer service - none of us assume that anything will happen that causes us to claim on travel insurance but if anything does happen you're probably going to be stressed enough without having to fight with the insurer every step of the way.
- if you are covered through any credit cards read those policies carefully bearing in mind the above points. you may not have as much cover as you want. you may only be covered if you paid the trip with that card etc...
posted by koahiatamadl at 7:04 AM on January 5, 2014
Researching travel insurance in a few countries in Europe that I have lived in I'd recommend understanding what the various policy options you're considering cover regarding the following:
- understand the maximum trip length covered - your visa will be 90 days but the policy may stipulate a maximum individual trip length of 30 days. Different policies will be available for longer trips but you may have to ask for that and expect to pay a different price.
- Be clear what activities the policy covers and what it doesn't cover. Stick to what is covered. e.g. even if the policy covers whitewater rafting check what grade is covered. If you're covered up to grade 3 and you go rafting on grade 4 rapids you're not covered...
- Repatriation is ridiculously expensive. Be sure you have good cover for that.
- Personal liability cover is really important. More covered amount is better than less.
- some policies may have some kind of vehicle cover options. chances are they do not apply to rentals in the US
- if you're travelling with somebody in poor health ensure that trip cancellation due to illness of travel companion is covered. sometimes you and travel companions need to book the trip together to get this.
- medical expenses in the US are very high, be clear what the rules about any pre-existing conditions are and make sure you're as covered as you need to be.
- read reviews about customer service - none of us assume that anything will happen that causes us to claim on travel insurance but if anything does happen you're probably going to be stressed enough without having to fight with the insurer every step of the way.
- if you are covered through any credit cards read those policies carefully bearing in mind the above points. you may not have as much cover as you want. you may only be covered if you paid the trip with that card etc...
posted by koahiatamadl at 7:04 AM on January 5, 2014
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posted by caek at 9:41 PM on January 4, 2014