Travel Insurance
Terri introduced Barry Gagnon who has been a member of Reliable Life's senior management team since 2002 and who had 30 years with Sun Life before that. Barry introduced Lynn Pinder as the one with the brains.
Barry proposed to take us through a little Truth vs. Fiction. It is true, he said, that you need to be familiar with the terms of the contracts you sign. You may not need to read all the fine print but you need to know what is covered and what is not, especially if it's a policy where you don't have to die to collect.
No insurance covers everything but all insurance covers some investment you have made, whether it's belongings or your families security. Your trip is an investment and trip insurance covers that whether it turns out you can't go or if something happens while you're away. A heart attack in Floriday can cost as much as $250,000.00 and a $100.00 policy can protect you. One client suffered a cerebral hemorhage and a fractured skull when he fell, which ended up costing $430,000.00. No insurance covers a pre-existing condition and it is important to check your coverages and inclusions.
But, insurance companies do pay what's covered. They have to. They're government regulated and must comply. Barry says insurance is a socialist program - a group of people get together and provide resources to protect those of the group who need help. If one of the group makes a claim that is fraudulent, it depletes the resource pool and leaves the rest at risk. And people do try to cheat, Lynn said. They have had people call from the hospital, not to make a claim but to take out insurance for what they've just suffered. By pooling resources, the cost is kept low. If everybody made a claim the cost would rise until it met the cost of the entire claim, plus commission. Ensuring claims are justified does require diligence.
Just because you're healthy now doesn't mean you shouldn't take it out. What if your father gets ill and you can't take your trip? What if you have an accident? Insurance covers not just you but others who might have an effect on your plans.
For an ordinary trip insurance is easy to get and cheap to buy. Arnie asked about the difference between short and long term trips. Snowbirds have to answer a more thorough exam but frequent, short term flyers get the same coverage as others short term travelers. Fred asked about the fee - is it related to the value of the trip? Barry said yes - it is related to age and value. Dave Mink wondered about covering the adventure traveler. Barry said there are exclusions or, at least, higher premiums, but they do include common activities like scuba and parasailing. Keith asked about an age limit and was told there is none.
Dave Mink thanked Barry and Lynn for making the trip to bring us up to date on the issue and reminded the Club that even travel inside the country should be insured as circumstances vary between Provinces.