Anyone use it? I am pretty much sold on Global rescue, but what about trip insurance?

Anyone need to use it if they had it?

Thanks

Yes, we have used it. Haven't needed the trip cancellation insurance but the included accident insurance was used last month in SA, my wife broke both bones at her ankle and required surgery/plates/screws. We called Travel Guard as soon as we could and received claim paperwork via email in less than 30 minutes. They also paid for business class seats on our return flight because her ankle had to be elevated the entire time; don't know how much of the other expenses they will pick up yet. We have used Global Rescue in the past and will do so again in the future, but I think Travel Guard is certainly worth the money.

Karl

on my recent trip, I just went ahead and bought coverage thru both. Global Rescue and Travel Guard just to have a little more peace of mind. thankfully didn't need to use either.

quote:

Originally posted by bobby7321:
on my recent trip, I just went ahead and bought coverage thru both. Global Rescue and Travel Guard just to have a little more peace of mind. thankfully didn't need to use either.

Yup, me too!

Gunslinger:
Look up consumer reports. TG is absolute crap. More complaints than one can count. Also read their brochure--2 pages of all the great stuff they will do for you and, if you request it (!) 32 pages of what they exclude. Lots of fine print. Be careful. Travel agents get a cut of the sale price so it is doubtful they will give you the complete picture.
Cheers,
Cal

quote:

Originally posted by cal pappas:
Gunslinger:
Also read their brochure--2 pages of all the great stuff they will do for you and, if you request it (!) 32 pages of what they exclude. Lots of fine print.

Well, you just described pretty much every insurance policy.

The TG policy is fine if you know what you need and you verify coverage for this (lots of options). Just like anything else, if you buy without research, prepare yourself for disappointment. But informed purchasers can benefit from the TG policies.

Always have it, always will. Sadly I have had to use it twice, trip cancellation one time and lost luggage and rifles another time. Zero issues, got paid, etc. I have heard others have issues with it but I did not. I was also realistic in knowing what would be covered and what was not.

TG is a POS.

quote:

Originally posted by Jim Anderson:
TG is a POS.

I'm listening. Can you elaborate?

I've had TG on all 3 safaris, thankfully so far haven't need it.
But like Todd, I'm listening.
Don't want to waste $$$ on something that's no good.
Also, don't want to be bull shitted.

That's exactly right BC. I linked to the GR discussion so that there might be some continuity between the two discussions.

I want to be covered but don't particularly care to waste money being double covered, nor to pay for something that is no good.

I don't want to hear the advertisements. I can pull that off of their web pages. I'd like to hear the real deal. You know, the meat and potatoes! Such as these countries have such and such infrastructure in place so TG or GR is better here but these countries, such as appears in Zim, with MARS, it's a wash. TG cost "X" amount so if you do 3 trips a year, GR is the better value, or something like that instead of the guys that represent GR just saying "it's great!".

Let me throw this one out. A few years ago on a Brown Bear hunt in Kamchatka Russia, pretty damn remote, a couple of weeks prior to my arrival in camp, one of the guides had a stroke in camp. The choppers could not get into camp due to weather for 4 days. He laid there the entire time. He survived but obviously will never be the same. Here is a question for GR or TG, if that had been a client, would alternate plans have been put into action to get the client to medical treatment or would the same choppers that couldn't make it in for the guide have been the only evacuation asset?

I buy it. My specialty is insurance litigation. I sue people for a living, but I mostly represent insurance companies. If they should pay and dont', I'll sue, but I can read a policy as to what's covered and what's not. Yeah, there are lots of exclusions, but I buy it anyway. More insurance is always good -- is my philosophy.

bought TG on my first safari 12 -13 years ago( in Rsa) because the travel agent pushed the hell out of it. didn't use it but have to wonder about how necessary it was on a game farm hunt in South Africa 3 hours from Pretoria, especially since my US health insurance covered out of country health care( albeit with probably a lot of paperwork). and i do remember it was expensive.

Yeah I am wondering all this as well. TG would be more of a trip insurance deal and GR would be the rescue deal.....But damn I am about broke after paying up and would like to know. I do agree that some trip insurance would be nice as well so if some logistical nightmare occored I wouldn't be out all my pesos....

I had a bad experience with TG.

My daughter was in the Peace Corp in Kenya a year ago. My youngest daughter, wife and myself decided to go over to see her and do a photo safari while we were there. This would be a trip of a life time for us. We had everything planned and booked for Kenya and Tanzania. After we had the airplane tickets purchased, I purchased trip insurance from TG. We were scheduled to go over in late Novemeber.

About six weeks before we were to leave, my daughter is robbed at gun point in Kenya. She did not hurt physically, but the experience traumatised her. She went into depression where she had to seek consuling. The Peace Corp determined that the best thing was to send her home. She has been seeing therapists and is on medication. She is getting along very well now.

We cancelled our trip as soon as we heard she was coming home. I guess that we could have went over to Kenya, but my daughter's well being comes first.

We got all the insurance claim forms and documentation from the Peace Corps and submitted it to TG. We were turned down because in the fine print, they do not reimburse anything because of phycological causes. I called TG and explained to them what happened to her and how she was traumatised by the whole experience. Their agent sounded like a broken record. They would have paid off if my daughter had been shot during the robbery but phycological damage did not qualify.

Yes, I am pissed, but I have gotten over it. I did get a partial refund from the safari company. You don't get a refund from the airlines, but we used the tickets for a trip to Toronto this summer. I don't care about any of the money I lost because my daughter is back and will be attending nursing school this fall.

So that is why I said TG is a POS. I guess I should have read the fine print, but who expects to have to use the insurance for an experience like my daughter went through.

Excue me for the long narrative and my spelling.

Jim
Very sorry about the bad experience your daughter had & all that your family went through. Hopefully this will not leave a permanent scare on her emotions.
Whether it is TG, All State or State Farm, if it is denied in the fine print you are S.O.L.
As a business man the cancelation part of TG was important to me because one never knows when the wheels will come off the wagon. That said, in the fine print, several reasons were denied, I had read this and accepted that if that was the case, I would just not be covered.
I can't fault any company when they tell me ahead of time, especially in writing. But it still sucks when it happens to you.

I saw on the gold if purchased within 15 days of initial deposit you can cancel for any reason? Past that for me

I've seen the cancel for any reason. the fine print will also state is is a (I believe) a 90% increase of the cost of the trip. So, if cancelled for any reason, you get back 10%.
Cal.

Haha i'll have to ask but that seems pretty lame