EN Contact us
Member

Am I covered by travel insurance in case of a hurricane, cyclone or monsoon?

Just as you can’t insure your vehicle after an auto accident, you can’t get travel insurance for a hurricane after it’s been declared.

But if you do purchase your insurance in a hurricane-free time period, here are the coverages that are in the plan:

  • If the hurricane strikes your home, not your travel destination, within 10 days of your departure and makes it uninhabitable – the roof is ripped off, the power is out – you can cancel and seek reimbursement for prepaid, nonrefundable expenses
  • Similarly, if you’re on vacation and a hurricane has trashed your home, we reimburse you for lost prepaid, nonrefundable expenses and new airfare (up to your total trip cost value) to get home.
  • If you’re in the Army Reserves or National Guard and you get called up to be part of the aid or recovery effort you can cancel.
  • If you’re already away when you get the call-up, that’s classed as trip interruption and we cover lost prepaid, nonrefundable expenses and airfares.

Usually if a hurricane is coming, airlines and cruise lines will stop going to the destination. If your common carrier has a “cessation of service” which lasts 24 hours you can cancel your trip and seek reimbursement for lost prepaid, nonrefundable expenses.

If you’re just delayed by a common carrier (by at least 6 hours) there’s cover for defined “additional expenses” – you had to get a hotel room for the night, or you needed a toothbrush, and you had to have a meal. Keep receipts for all of that.

If you’re at your destination and the accommodation becomes uninhabitable - it gets destroyed by the hurricane - you can interrupt and be covered for lost prepaid expenses.

If the local authorities or the US Department of State make a recommendation that you leave your destination, there’s cover of up to $25,000 for you to be evacuated to the nearest place of safety.

When traveling you should also consider signing up for the US Department of State’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP), a free program that will notify you about travel alerts and warnings, as well as help family and friends contact you in case of emergency.

The preceding info is intended as an overview of the coverages. To get the full picture and better understand the coverages and exclusions, be sure to check out your policy’s terms and conditions. Or feel free to give us a call and we’ll talk you through it.

For customer service you can send a message or call Trip Mate direct: Telephone: +1-844-207-1930 (toll free within the US and Canada) Telephone: +1-816-905-3963 (international direct/collect) The Trip Mate customer service team is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to answer your questions.

Last updated: Dec 04, 2022 05:46 PM