Should you get travel insurance?

I get asked this a ton, especially these days, so here’s my #hottake:

Travel insurance is great at protecting against fear and not great at protecting money.

[thread]
We buy travel insurance because we’re worried something will go wrong. That it’s a prudent precaution. It's completely understandable.

But only when something goes wrong—like say a pandemic—do we find out the fine print doesn’t cover us when we assumed it had. Not good! [2/10]
For example, many people woke up in early March, realized they wouldn’t be able to take that upcoming trip, and assumed they’d be reimbursed by the trip insurance they bought, only to be rudely informed that they couldn’t just cancel their trip and be fully reimbursed. [3/10]
“Insurance” is synonymous with “fine print” and that’s part of the problem—the first time many of us read it is not when we purchase, but when we need it (by which time, of course, it’s too late.) [4/10]
We assume buying insurance means we can cancel a flight—and it’s in the insurance company & airlines’ interest for you to assume that, otherwise you might be less inclined to buy it. [5/10]
In fact, when you buy a flight you already have far more “insurance” than you may realize.

Many credit cards will compensate you if your flight gets delayed or canceled, or your bag gets delayed/damaged/lost.

And airlines themselves will give compensation if you ask. [6/10]
In many cases, paying for insurance is superfluous; you’re already covered for flight delays, cancellations, bag mishaps, etc.

And if a delay means you miss a connection, you’re not stranded; the airline is still responsible for getting you to your final destination. [7/10]
There certainly are trips where buying travel insurance makes sense. If I were taking a cruise, I might buy insurance on my cruise because if the flight to Miami gets canceled, the boat’s not going to wait for me. [8/10]
Does insurance come out of this pandemic looking better? I would argue it looks worse.

- Lots of ppl had insurance claims denied.
- Ppl realized insurance didn’t let them cancel flights.
- Airlines gave refunds anyway.
- Airlines are offering free changes on new bookings. [9/10]
We’re taught to think of travel insurance in moral terms: “it’s irresponsible not to protect yourself.”

Instead, I we should be discussing it in practical terms: “what will insurance cover that I don’t already have coverage for, and is the cost worth it?” [10/10]
What do you think?

Travel insurance: 👍 or 👎
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