Flight Insurance
 

Does anyone know of any flight insurance for a RTW XONEX?

Some friends of mine are afraid that a RTW can take a long time. What happens if they are unable to complete their travels for illness?

A quick Google on "Travel Insurance" will give you thousands of products to choose from.

But what are you expecting the Insurance to give you? They may well calculate the amount insured as "the price paid for the whole ticket less the price you would have had to pay otherwise for the travel that has been completed". Once you get past the first intercontinental flight this is likely to be a negative number.

The ONE rules state that there is no penalty for refunds after departure in the event of certified illness of the passenger or an accompanying passenger. I don't have any first hand experience but I suggest the refund value is likely to be calculated as above.

I rationalized it this way. If I am ill enough where I have to cancel my remaining trip and return home, that means I am really not going to worry about it. I look at the airline ticket as being self insured and will eat the cost in that rare case, or purchase a roundtrip home and then back at a leter date to resume my ONE. If there is something built into the ONE rules, then so much the better. Now, any part of my trip that is non-refundable, like a live aboard dive boat, for that I get travel insurance and I get medical insurance coverage in conjunction for the entire duration of the ONE. Depending on where you are in the world, the health care may be as good there, or better in light of the distance and time it takes to get home, than back home. Change the tickets for a later departure, recover from the illness/accident and continue on your ONE. Granted it may well extend your trip a few weeks or months, but if that option works for you then go for it. If the accident/illness is so severe that that recovery and continuation of the trip is not an option, then your worries about the cost of your airline ticket will pale in comparison to your heath concerns.

You are doing the right thing in thinking about contingency plans should the unexpected occur. In doing so you will have a plan of action ready and waiting and won't have the weight of uncertainty plague you should something happen.

As another poster mentioned there is Travel Insurance and while you WILL want at least a small portion of this for the travel interruption and baggage loss benefits, and also you definitely want the medical portion, or a separate medical policy as most US policies will not cover you outside the US. However, purchasing a Travel Policy to include your Airfare and other non-refundable portions of your trip priced out, in my case, to about $960. Insuring just my Live aboard trip (my only non-refundable portion) with a policy that included medical and other coverage (interruption, lost baggage, etc.) for the duration of the ONE, priced out to under $242.

I have personally used www.travelsafe.com in the past, and on one occasion had to cancel and after following the requisite procedures all monies excluding the cost of the travel insurance were refunded.

Annual
 

I have an annual policy that covers me for all travel in a year. Only priviso is that no single trip takes me away (from home) for more than three months.

But what would that policy actually pay out against the airfare if you had done, say, two continents of an AONE6 and were unable to complete it?

And, would you please share some useful information about this policy, like the name of the company/web site that provides this coverage so others can benefit from your experience. TIA

Since you are a diver... Well I have used dive Master travel insurance . Their annual premium is GBP64.70 for the travel insurance plus GBP51.45 for the diving cover . Total GBP116.15 . The diving coverage provides cover for all diving/snorkelling with a max depth based on diving qualification.. v useful when wanting to dive to 50m+ .

Dave

Yes, DAN has similar plans which I subscribe to regularly in the event of dive accidents. Their Master Plan for $64 US provides $125,000 medical dive accident insurance to unlimited depths, and also includes extra transportation/accommodation and lost dive equipment coverage at $1000, $1500, and $2500 respectively. They added a preferred plan for $99 US last year that includes higher limits and new coverage for Medical non-dive accident coverage, and diving vacation cancellation and interruption insurance at $10000, $10000, and $5000 lifetime maximums respectively. For your average dive trip this is fine, but for a ONE those limits are way too low, especially if you happen to be in an area where you need air evac.

Well, the Dive-master insurance covers

The total amount payable in respect of each insured person in respect of loss or damage to personal belongings is the lesser of £1,500, £200 in respect of any single article, pair or sets of articles, £200 in respect of valuables and £1,000 in respect of diving equipment. The maximum amount payable in respect of each insured in respect of personal money is £400 and the maximum sum payable for cash or bank notes is £200.
The maximum amount payable in respect of cancellation and curtailment is £3,000.
The maximum amount payable in respect of medical and emergency expenses and in respect of liability is £1,000,000.
The maximum amount payable in respect of delayed departure is £60 or £3,000 in the event of cancellation.
The maximum amount payable in respect of additional accommodation and travel expenses because of missed departure is £500 and the maximum amount in respect of non-recoverable deposits and pre-paid holiday charges is £3,000.
The maximum amount payable in respect of loss of passport is £100.
The maximum amount payable in respect of holiday inconvenience benefit is £15 for each complete day that you are hospitalised and £300 in total.
The maximum amount payable in respect of legal expenses and advice is £25,000.
The amount payable in respect of loss of activity days is £15 per day up to a limit of £150.


GBP1,000,000 for medical is a fairly decent coverage imo. I've never had that much time for DAN's insurance

Dave

As I live in Australia, the policy I use comes from this site: Travel Insurance Direct. I am not sure if is available to non australian residients; however I am sure there similar types of policies for you country of residence.
The T&C refer calculation based on: "the value of the unused arrangements, less any refunds due to you if you have to cancel any pre-paid transport or accommodation arrangements, due to any unforeseen or unforeseeable circumstances outside of your control. "

I would check your insurance before buying this. I have had medical expenses abroad 3 times in the last 15 years, and was covered each time (3 different insurance companies). I had to pay the costs on-site, and got a check from the insurance company (minus usual deductables and co-insurance) after filing when I got home. And, of course, I earned miles because I put it on a credit card. :)