[Travelandtourism] Travel Insurance why is it important and how did it help my client during Huricanne Irene

[cheryl echevarria]

Hello everyone:

I do hope that everyone made it through the bad weather if Irene effected 
you, and that the heat wave in many parts of the country is cooling off I 
hope, and possibly get the rain that is needed.

Anyway, as the subject states is Travel Insurance and why is it important 
and how did it my recent clients with their trip.

First of all my clients are blind, not that would it make a difference here, 
but father is partial, wife is total and daughter is not total yet.

My client is Christine and Gary Grassman, and her daughter; she said I can 
use her name here.

I will also be giving her review of what she did in Ireland, they went for 
Christine's daughter's sweet 16.  Christine has been part of the NFB for 
many years, and she belongs to my chapter here on Long Island.

Anyway, when Irene was hitting here on the East Coast, she was over in 
Dublin trying to get home to NY, her flight was due back on the 27th, which 
was this past Saturday, NY. The flight was of course cancelled and the next 
flight home to NY wouldn't be until this coming Saturday which is the 3rd.

Needing to get back to NY, she e-mailed me, and said help, I called the 
insurance company that she had the travel insurance with and said what can 
she do.

Well this is when the part of the travel called in some travel insurances 
weather related travel and or travel interruption, which means she was 
covered. Please read to see what went on trying to get her home.

Her airline was Aer Lingus, which they told her that if she wanted to get 
back to the states the next available flight was going to O'Hare which is in 
Chicago for those who do not know the airports, and since they were already 
at the airport they took it. She called me and told me that she would be 
needing a hotel in Chicago for 2 days, which I was on it right away.

There was very few I could get but I was able to get a best western right 
near the airport, since there were so many people trying to get back to the 
east coast, all the hotels were booked, and also if you are a Chicago 
Baseball fan, these is busy time as well.

Then once home; she got a flight on Tuesday from Midway which was an hour 
away from O'Hare since they didn't have flights until later in the week, 
just due to all the cancellations, to Baltimore, and then from there she had 
to take the amtrak to PA, since many of the Amtrak stations from Baltimore 
to NY were not running, and her dad picked her up in Philadelphia.

Now, here is where the travel insurance comes in.

The hotel, the food they ate, the flight to Baltimore, the amtrak to Philly, 
is covered.

She must submit all receipts that were spent, and then of course it is a 
document reason, Hurricane Irene, she will either get partially it all back 
or 100 percent. All depending on the claims department but she has to 
contact them herself.

Now, Travel Insurance doesn't cover when traveling, another case scenario.

Let's just say you are booked on a cruise out of NY, which many were not any 
of my clients, but there were many. And your cruise ship was suppose to 
leave on the 28th which was Sunday, 99.9 percent show up to your ship, if 
you have a good travel agent we will be on the look out to tell you what is 
going on with you cruise, now one of the cruise lines kept the current ship 
at sea an extra day so that way everyone was safe and they could sail back 
to port, and the people who were sailing on Sunday would have to wait until 
Monday to sail.

Many of you are thinking, well what happens I paid for a 7 day cruise, but I 
am only going for a 6 day, the cruise lines will reimburse you the day, they 
will not charge the passengers at sea the extra day. Or if you are in the 
Caribbean and were suppose to go to the Bahamas but you couldn't, and had to 
be at sea the extra day, they will not charge for the port fee and return 
what was charged.

But to not show up at all and say there was a hurricane, you will not get 
anything back even with travel insurance, it is a natural disaster, they 
will accommodate, like above.

If you are traveling home and purchased insurance your air from the cruise 
line and the ship was cancelled or you missed the flight due to what 
happened this weekend, then that is weather related issues and is covered. 
Just keep the receipts.






Leading the Way in Independent Travel!

Cheryl Echevarria
http://www.echevarriatravel.com
631-456-5394
reservations at echevarriatravel.com

Affiliated as an Independent Contractor with Superior Travel, located in 
Baldwin, NY. www.superiortravel.com

Affiliated as an Independent Contractor with Absolute Cruise & Travel, Inc.