What is trip cancellation travel insurance? (2024)

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Travel Insurance

Lizzie Nealon

What is trip cancellation travel insurance? (1)

Kara McGinley

Kara McGinley

Kara McGinley

Verified by an expert

“Verified by an expert” means that this article has been thoroughly reviewed and evaluated for accuracy.

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Updated 9:17 a.m. UTC Nov. 13, 2023

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Key points

  • Trip cancellation insurance covers your prepaid, nonrefundable trip expenses if you’re unable to travel due to certain unforeseen circumstances, such as an illness or the death of a family member.
  • Trip cancellation insurance generally won’t cover foreseeable or preventable events, such as a hurricane that was named before you bought coverage.
  • Basic trip cancellation insurance typically costs between 5% and 10% of the total cost of your trip.

The average household spent more than $2,000 a year on travel before the pandemic. As traveling rebounds and you’re ready to plan your next trip, a trip cancellation policy can give you peace of mind. But it’s important to understand what trip cancellation insurance does and does not cover.

What is trip cancellation insurance?

Trip cancellation insurance is a type of travel insurance designed to reimburse you for prepaid, nonrefundable travel expenses when you cancel your trip because of a reason listed in your policy.

Trip cancellation insurance is often part of a comprehensive travel insurance plan, but it can also be purchased separately.

You can typically purchase trip cancellation insurance up to the day before your scheduled departure. It’s best, however, to buy a travel insurance plan as soon as you make your first trip deposit. You won’t be charged extra for buying a plan earlier, and you will be covered for a longer period of time.

What trip cancellation insurance covers

Trip cancellation insurance can reimburse you for 100% of your nonrefundable and prepaid trip costs if you cancel for a covered reason, which may include:

  • Death of your travel companion, business partner or family member (policies differ on who is considered a family member).
  • Injury or illness of you or a travel companion (documented by a doctor).
  • Complications from pregnancy for you or your travel companion.
  • Traffic accident en route to departure.
  • Mechanical breakdown or other failure of your transportation.
  • Mandated shutdown of an airport or air traffic control system.
  • Air traffic control or airport shutdown due to fire or power outage.
  • Mandatory evacuation due to an unforeseen natural disaster.
  • Severe, sudden weather.
  • Your home or your trip lodging is uninhabitable due to a natural disaster, vandalism or burglary.
  • Hurricane warning or hurricane watch (you must have purchased the policy before the storm was named).
  • Jury duty.
  • Terrorist attack.

What trip cancellation insurance does not cover

While trip cancellation policies differ, most plans will not cover incidents that could be foreseen or planned around. For instance, most trip cancellation policies will not cover cancellations resulting from:

  • Alcohol or substance use.
  • Committing a felony.
  • Dental treatment or elective procedures.
  • Harm resulting from dangerous activities such as skydiving or bungee jumping.
  • Mental or nervous health disorders.
  • Normal pregnancy and childbirth.
  • Participation in amateur or professional sporting events.
  • Self-harm.
  • War.

What is “cancel for any reason” coverage?

If you want to be able to cancel your trip for any reason, not only those specified in your policy, consider buying “cancel for any reason” (CFAR) coverage. This premium upgrade will add about 50% to the cost of your trip cancellation insurance but will give you greater flexibility with your plans.

CFAR coverage typically reimburses up to 75% of your nonrefundable trip costs when you cancel a trip. But you have to cancel at least 48 hours before your scheduled departure if you hope to file a successful CFAR claim.

How much does trip cancellation insurance cost?

A basic travel insurance policy with trip cancellation coverage typically costs between 5% and 10% of the total cost of your trip. That means if you take a $5,000 safari trip to Tanzania, your travel insurance might cost between $250 and $500.

How much you pay for trip cancellation insurance will depend on the travel insurance company, the plan and level of coverage you choose, the number of travelers in your party and their ages, your trip length and trip expenses.

How to get trip cancellation insurance

Comprehensive travel insurance policies usually include trip cancellation benefits, but you can also buy a standalone trip cancellation policy.

To shop for trip cancellation insurance, follow these steps.

  1. Check if your credit card has travel insurance. If your credit card provides trip cancellation benefits when you pay for trip expenses with that card, you may opt to skip buying a separate trip insurance policy.
  2. Compare quotes. Choose a travel insurance company by comparing travel insurance plans and quotes online.
  3. Buy the plan you want. You can buy travel insurance online. Be prepared to enter your travel dates and destination, the total value of your trip and information about your travel companions.
  4. Review your plan. After buying travel insurance, you typically have a free look period of 14 or 15 days. If you read the details of your plan and decide it’s not a good fit, you can cancel and request a refund during that period.

Credit card rewards and trip cancellation insurance

The following cards provide complimentary travel insurance with trip cancellation benefits when you pay for your travel using the card:

  • Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card*The information for the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer..
  • Chase Freedom Flex℠*The information for the Chase Freedom Flex℠ has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer..
  • Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card.
  • Chase Sapphire Reserve®.
  • Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card
  • Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card*The information for the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer..
  • The Business Platinum Card® from American Express*The information for the The Business Platinum Card® from American Express has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
  • The Platinum Card® from American Express
  • United℠ Explorer Card*The information for the United℠ Explorer Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer..
  • United Club℠ Infinite Card*The information for the United Club℠ Infinite Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

All information about The Business Platinum Card® from American Express has been collected independently by Blueprint.

Check to see if your credit card offers travel insurance with trip purchases and what coverage it provides. Travel insurance provided by credit cards isn’t usually as comprehensive as a separate policy.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

Trip cancellation insurance reimburses you for prepaid, nonrefundable expenses if you need to cancel a trip for a covered reason. Valid reasons for trip cancellation typically include unforeseen events such as a death in the family, sudden weather that leaves your destination uninhabitable or an illness that is documented by a doctor.

Most travel insurance plans bundle together several types of coverage, including trip cancellation insurance. If you have trip cancellation insurance, you can file a claim for any prepaid and nonrefundable expenses associated with a trip when you decide to cancel for a reason listed in your policy.

When it comes to travel insurance, you’re not limited to cancellation coverage. The best comprehensive travel insurance plans also include coverage for incidents related to epidemics, emergency medical needs, baggage loss and damage, travel delays and trip interruption.

¹Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by New Hampshire Insurance Company, an AIG Company.

For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the above benefits are provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.

*The information for the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, Chase Freedom Flex℠, Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, United Club℠ Infinite Card and United℠ Explorer Card has been collected independently by Blueprint.The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Blueprint is an independent publisher and comparison service, not an investment advisor. The information provided is for educational purposes only and we encourage you to seek personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding specific financial decisions. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Blueprint has an advertiser disclosure policy. The opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the Blueprint editorial staff alone. Blueprint adheres to strict editorial integrity standards. The information is accurate as of the publish date, but always check the provider’s website for the most current information.

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Lizzie's commentary has been published in Bankrate, CNBC, the Washington Post, the Washington Examiner, MSN and more.

Kara McGinley

BLUEPRINT

Kara McGinley is deputy editor of insurance at USA TODAY Blueprint and a licensed home insurance expert. Previously, she was a senior editor at Policygenius, where she specialized in homeowners and renters insurance. Her work and insights have been featured in MSN, Lifehacker, Kiplinger, PropertyCasualty360 and more.

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What is trip cancellation travel insurance? (2024)

FAQs

What is trip cancellation travel insurance? ›

Trip cancellation insurance provides prepaid, nonrefundable reimbursement for trip expenses if you must cancel a trip due to an unforeseen circumstance such as illness, injury, or the death of the traveler or a loved one.

What does trip cancellation mean in travel insurance? ›

Trip cancellation insurance covers your prepaid, nonrefundable trip expenses if you're unable to travel due to certain unforeseen circumstances, such as an illness or the death of a family member.

Is it good to get trip cancellation insurance? ›

While trip cancellation insurance can help reimburse you in the event you have to cancel your trip, it won't cover every possible problem. Before you purchase a policy it's important to understand what it does and doesn't cover.

What does cancellation cover on travel insurance? ›

You can usually claim back the cost of your tickets to travel, plus accommodation for the time you should have been on holiday. So, if you were unable to travel at all, you can claim back the entire cost of your portion of the holiday, less the excess on your policy, up to a certain amount.

Does travel insurance cover cancellation of a trip? ›

Travel insurance can help if you have to unexpectedly cancel your planned trip for a number of reasons, allowing you to claim back your non-refundable expenses and keep your money where it belongs… in your pocket.

Will I get a refund with travel insurance if I cancel my flight? ›

When you buy travel insurance, comprehensive plans typically reimburse you the costs of canceled and delayed flights through travel delay coverage and trip cancellation insurance. Depending on the plan you choose, you can get reimbursed full refunds or prepaid costs once you qualify during the claims process.

Do credit cards have trip cancellation insurance? ›

A number of credit cards provide various types of travel insurance (including trip cancellation, trip interruption and car rental loss and damage insurance) when you use your card to pay for flights, rental cars and other travel expenses.

Does trip cancellation cover cancelled flights? ›

The benefit is designed to protect prepaid, nonrefundable reservations, including flights, hotel reservations and other bookings if the trip is canceled due to an extraordinary circumstance. Each policy will state exactly which events are considered valid reasons for cancellations.

What are the disadvantages of travel insurance? ›

Cost: Travel insurance will add to the overall cost of your trip. Some may choose to forgo it to save money, especially on shorter or less expensive trips. Exclusions and Limitations: Policies may have various exclusions and limitations, so it's essential to read the fine print.

What is the average cost of trip cancellation insurance? ›

The average cost of travel insurance is about 3% to 5% of a trip's total value, according to quotes gathered by our research team across different travel insurance providers for various traveler profiles.

What does travel insurance not cover? ›

Most travel insurance policies won't pay out if you're negligent while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and have an accident or have property stolen.

How to claim trip cancellation travel insurance? ›

How to File a Claim for Trip Cancellation
  1. Before you cancel, check your plan documents. Please note that trip protection plans sold on our website are not “cancel for any reason” travel insurance. ...
  2. Notify your travel providers as soon as possible. ...
  3. Round up all your documentation. ...
  4. File your trip cancellation claim.
Oct 29, 2019

Is there travel insurance that you can cancel for any reason? ›

The optional cancel for any reason travel insurance benefit may be purchased as an add-on to certain comprehensive travel insurance policies. Usually, this benefit is an additional charge on the plan, but it comes with extended coverage that you may find worthwhile. Learn more about how travel insurance works.

What is the difference between trip cancellation and trip insurance? ›

In short, trip cancellation coverage provides coverage for the money you would lose, while trip interruption coverage provides payment for the additional money for covered reasons you would have to spend to return home or resume your trip.

Can I just buy trip cancellation insurance? ›

As the name suggests, CFAR policies allow you to claim a reimbursement no matter why you need to cancel. Depending on the insurance company, CFAR coverage might be a stand-alone policy or may be sold as an add-on to your travel insurance benefits for an additional cost.

What is covered under trip insurance? ›

So, what does travel insurance cover? Here's the very short answer: Cancellations, medical expenses, evacuations, loss or delays, and 24/7 assistance. These are the 5 basic types of coverage provided with vacation insurance.

What is cancellation of travel insurance policy? ›

Usually, a request for cancellation is considered within 14 days after the commencement of the policy, as given in the schedule. Moreover, a nominal fee is charged inclusive of the service tax for cancellation of travel insurance policy, which varies from insurer to insurer.

Does free cancellation mean refund trip? ›

Non-refundable means that there won't be any refund for any cancelled booking. Free cancellation means that you will be given a refund if the cancellation is done within the stipulated time.

What are valid reasons to cancel a flight and get a refund? ›

Top Reasons Most People Cancel Trips
  • Injury or Illness. Sickness and injury are the top reasons for cancelling a trip. ...
  • Death. ...
  • Natural Disaster. ...
  • Acts of Terrorism/Evacuation. ...
  • Financial Default of the Travel Company.
  • Death or Hospitalization of Host.
  • Residence Damage. ...
  • Jury Duty or Military Deployment.

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