Travel Insurance Through Your Credit Card Provider?

Many credit card companies offer perks, extra bonus goodies that help us to see that card as being more valuable than another credit card. Some of these perks can be fantastic, while others seem to be fantastic – but don’t fully meet your needs. The travel insurance coverage offered with some credit cards falls into the latter group; there are often some holes in coverage – the kind of holes that are potentially large enough to put a burden on your finances for years to come.

In many cases, the travel accident coverage offered through credit cards is “Common Carrier Travel Accident Insurance”. Our eyes see the last part. After all, travel accidents are exactly what we want to cover. Most of us aren’t quite sure what a common carrier is – but if there’s travel accident insurance, we’re good, right? Not quite.

An insurance policy is a contract and all policies rely on definitions to determine if coverage exists for a certain situation. When we see “common carrier”, we might think of large insurance carriers. Combined with “travel accident insurance”, it sounds pretty good. However, “common carrier” actually refers to transportation, like plane rides, train rides, bus rides, or taxi rides. You might find that some credit card companies limit coverage to plane flights only.  If you were wondering, a rental car isn’t a common carrier, so that part of your travel isn’t covered by most travel accident insurance that’s available through credit card providers.

The largest part of your trip – the actual vacation part – may not be covered at all by the travel accident insurance provided by your credit card company. If you trip over the invisible line at the border and suffer an injury, you’re probably on your own to cover your medical expenses if you land on the other side of the border. The same is true for traveling outside of your province. Emergency medical needs can result in a massive bill while traveling and, despite the confidence-inspiring name, common carrier travel accident insurance probably won’t offer any assistance.
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A dedicated travel insurance policy fills these gaps in coverage by providing protection for the entire duration of your trip. Most policies offer plenty of extras as well, including trip cancellation coverage and coverage for lost or delayed baggage. Just reach out to your broker before your trip to secure the right coverage for you and your family.