How Travel Inconvenience Insurance Works

It’s important to know that travel inconvenience insurance must be purchased as soon as possible after you book your trip, usually within a period of seven to 14 days. Not all insurance coverages include travel inconvenience benefits, so check your policy to make sure, and don’t assume that your existing insurance coverage will include this benefit.

If you make a claim for travel inconvenience, you’ll need to claim for any costs incurred during your stated inconvenience. Be sure to keep receipts, proof, and documentation of all relevant events, as that will help result in a successful claim.

For example, if you missed a day of scheduled work due to a delayed flight on your way home, or you missed out on using your lift tickets because the ski slopes were closed, or you had to book an emergency night in a hotel because your rental car broke down en route to your next planned stop — these are all possible claims.

What is Covered by Travel Inconvenience Insurance

Although there are a lot of possible scenarios that could be covered by travel inconvenience benefits, it’s typically for unplanned costs that won’t be included under the travel insurance coverages in your policy, such as trip cancellation, trip delay, or trip disruption.

Here are some examples of what might be considered covered trip inconveniences:

• Your flight home is delayed by a significant margin, and you were not home in time to clock in for your job the next day, causing you to miss out on earnings. You could claim for your lost wages under travel inconvenience benefits.
  • For Ripcord or Cavalry your flight must be delayed by 12 or more hours by a Common Carrier(up to $250 can be claimed)
• Your rental car broke down, delaying your road trip by half a day. You had to spend money on food and other essentials while you waited for a replacement car, and you didn’t get to enjoy a prepaid tour scheduled in your next destination. In this scenario, you could claim for the costs incurred while you waited, as well as for the prepaid tour.
  • For Ripcord or Cavalry your breakdown must cause you to arrive at least 24hrs late at your scheduled destination(up to $250 can be claimed)
• Your river cruise has to skip two planned stops, due to adverse conditions. You could make a claim for missing out on the full itinerary you paid for.
  • For Ripcord or Cavalry the travel supplier would also have to offer you only land-based alternative accommodations for this benefit to apply

What Inconveniences Are Not Covered by Travel Insurance

There are a few key situations where you can’t claim travel inconvenience insurance. The first is if you’re already claiming something under one of the other travel insurance coverages underwritten by your policy.

For example, if your flight is delayed and you have to spend an extra night in a hotel, you could make a claim on the travel delay benefit of your policy. You could not make a claim on the travel inconvenience benefit for the same thing as well.

You also can’t make a claim if the carrier who caused the inconvenience (meaning, the airline or the cruise company) is going to reimburse you for the inconvenience they caused — i.e., no double-dipping.

The second is if the inconvenience is caused by you or a member of your traveling party. For example, if you didn’t plan your route correctly and returned your rental car late — thereby incurring an extra day’s charge — you can’t make a successful claim.

Finally, you can’t usually make a claim if you waited too long to purchase your travel insurance. Travel inconvenience insurance is a time-sensitive benefit, which means you need to have purchased coverage within the stated time frame (usually seven to 14 days) after making your initial trip deposit (such as purchasing a flight and booking hotels).

The differences between travel inconvenience insurance and trip delay or interruption insurance

There is an important distinction between travel inconvenience insurance and trip delay, interruption, and cancellation, and you cannot claim on multiple benefits for the same inconvenience.

Generally speaking, travel inconvenience insurance covers minor disruptions, while trip interruption or delay insurance provides broader coverage for major disruptions, such as emergency trip cancellations or extended delays.

Travel inconvenience insurance is for costs incurred that wouldn’t be covered under the other benefits of your policy. So if your trip is delayed due to flight issues, and you can successfully claim on trip delay insurance for the costs incurred during the delay — such as extra meals, a hotel room, etc. — you can’t then also make a claim on your inconvenience benefit.

However, if you also missed work the next day due to the delay, that is a separate cost you could claim on your inconvenience benefit.

Tips & Factors to Consider When Shopping for a Travel Inconvenience Insurance Policy

• Check to see what your travel insurance policy considers a travel inconvenience, as the definition will vary by policy and provider.
• If you have concerns about a specific interruption or inconvenience and can’t determine whether you’d be able to claim for it under the delay, interruption, or inconvenience benefits in your policy, reach out to your provider to confirm before you buy.
• Check what the maximum benefit amount of your policy is, and make sure it fits with your expectations and trip cost.
• Check what the requirements are for a successful claim, such as receipts, proof of delay from the airline or carrier, and proof of when you originally booked your trip and took out insurance.
• Check on your insurance company’s process for making a claim, and familiarize yourself with how to contact them if needed.