Covid related travel insurance denials

[Timberridge]

Have you done some of this before?

Brit sued Her Majesty The Queen of England once. It's why he had to leave. So yeah.

[liv2ski]

And before ultimate thread drift occurs--last call for someone else who had a travel insurance denial? Bueller?

I did, but ultimately ended up out maybe $4k, so not the end of the world, more like a learning lesson.

[PNWbrit]

Have you done some of this before?

Yes I have.

I guess NYC firms aren't into this kind of stuff

This guess would be incorrect.

[Timberridge]

Dexter, maybe you should have hired Brit? He's a bit crusty, but you need someone like that to bring this insurance company to their knees. Though Big Steve would have been my first choice, I think Brit could definitely handle this.

[BmillsSkier]

BigSteve knows bird law.

[PNWbrit]

BigSteve knows bird law.

Big Steve would probably know that Dex probably signed an R&R agreement where he agreed not to post about the case to social media.

And if his lawyer didn't have him do that it would be another warning sign that they don't know what they're doing in this field of law.

[Timberridge]

BigSteve knows bird law.

Dude is like a Harpy eagle in a forest full of monkeys.

Brit, you're not bad either.

[RootSkier]

Big Steve would probably know that Dex probably signed an R&R agreement where he agreed not to post about the case to social media.

This is why I always find lead plaintiffs who don't even use email.

[Timberridge]

This is why I always find lead plaintiffs who don't even use email.

You're a lawyer too? I thought all you guys were dentists? I know where I'm coming for legal advice next time I'm in trouble.

[liv2ski]

You're a lawyer too? I thought all you guys were dentists? I know where I'm coming for legal advice next time I'm in trouble.

Well duh, just call Saul.

[comish]

So where did this end up? Which Travel Insurance company should I not use in the future?

[liv2ski]

I will never buy that stuff again. I had never filed a claim prior to 2020, so they won and then in 2020 I did file a claim and John Hancock told me not covered, but there was no mention of anything like Covid in the paperwork being excluded from coverage.
So fuck those companies. Never again.

[old goat]

I used Travelguard to insure a heli ski trip. The operator says you get I think 3 days of heli time included, pay extra for more, and if you get less you can collect on your travel insurance because the heli time is something you paid for and didn't get. Seemed sketchy to me but we got 1 1/2 days and the insurance paid as a couple thou each for the unused time.

Re Covid--read the fine print. I think a lot of initial denials were because people opted not to go on trips, not because they were sick or the trip was canceled. My wife had paid for a tour March 2020--the flights were canceled due to covid. I don't know if the tour officially canceled but the airline refunded the airfare for the canceled flights and the insurance paid the other costs of the tour because she couldn't get there.

For me the biggest advantage of travel insurance is not reimbursement of things you already paid for--that's sunk costs--but if you get stuck overseas and for example the airline goes on strike and you have to spend 3 nights in a hotel and then pay an exorbitant fare to a different airline to get home the insurance will cover that. The striking airline's only obligation is to refund your initial fare, not to get you home.

[comish]

I, just for the record, have been paid by my CC company twice under the trip cancelation and trip interruption coverage. Now for sure, I had to jump though a shit ton of hoops, in one case send in paperwork a year later that I hadn't used any credit, etc. but I did get paid in the many thousands realm. They are obviously incentivized to not pay you so I don't love the policies, but they have worked out for me in the past.

1 trip was interrupted due to me breaking my collarbone. They covered a prepaid hotel for the whole family.

2nd was a cancellation of a trip to college reunion due to mother in law passing away.

3rd time: Only time I actually bought single use trip insurance. Dislocated my knee cap prior to a heli trip in BC. Whole prepaid Heli trip was refunded to me.