More than six million people are projected to take to the skies this year for Thanksgiving, according to AAA.
But don’t worry, travel insurance might still be an option even if you depart in just a few days, Jesse Neugarten, CEO of air travel site Dollar Flight Club, told The Independent.
“Even this close to Thanksgiving, it can absolutely be worth buying travel insurance,” Neugarten wrote in an email. “This is one of the most chaotic travel weeks of the year, and we consistently see a jump in last-minute disruptions and rebookings…Full flights, winter weather, and tight connections mean a single delay can turn into an overnight stay, missed connection, or lost bag.”
Before you buy, though, there are a few things to consider, including what your policy will and won’t cover:
What does it cover?
In most cases, comprehensive travel insurance policies are available for purchase up until the day of your trip, Chrissy Valdez, senior director of operations at travel insurance marketplace Squaremouth, told The Independent by email.
“While it depends on the type of policy you’re looking for, benefits like travel delay coverage or emergency medical are not time-sensitive and can be purchased up until the day of your trip,” Valdez said.
The coverages she mentioned – travel delay coverage and emergency medical – are part of a wide range of benefits that standard travel insurance provides, according to Squaremouth, including:
| Coverage | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Lost or delayed baggage | Provides limited reimbursement for lost baggage or baggage that’s delayed for more than a certain number of hours, provided the claim meets the coverage requirements. |
| Emergency medical | Provides reimbursement for medical care you receive abroad if you’re injured during your trip and, in some cases, is paired with medical evacuation insurance that helps cover the cost of being transported to a medical facility. |
| Trip cancellation | Offers reimbursement of prepaid, nonrefundable travel purchases if you have to cancel your trip due to covered reasons such as hurricanes and other weather events, medical reasons, terrorism, employment layoff, the financial default of the airline carrier. |
| Trip interruption | Offers reimbursement of prepaid, nonrefundable travel purchases you don’t use if you have to miss part of or cancel your trip after it starts for covered reasons such as illness, natural disasters and terrorism. |
| Trip delay | Typically provides a daily reimbursement amount for expenses if your trip is delayed for more than a certain number of hours (six is common) due to certain unforeseen reasons. |
Trip delay, interruption, cancellation and lost or delayed baggage coverage are valuable benefits that can help compensate you financially if you find yourself in a jam that your policy covers.
Additionally, emergency medical coverage can provide considerable financial protection if you’re injured for a covered reason during travel, with many policies offering maximum coverage of $250,000 or more.
Policies available for purchase this week may also include coverage for lost, stolen, or damaged personal items and missed flight connections, too.
Cutting it close may be costly
If you’re considering buying travel insurance before you fly this week, there are certain coverages you may not get, Neugarten said.
“What it doesn’t cover are ‘I just don’t feel like going anymore’ scenarios, voluntary changes because you found a cheaper flight, or issues that were already known at the time you bought the policy, like a named storm already disrupting travel,” he said. “Pre-existing medical conditions are often excluded unless you purchased early enough and met the waiver criteria.”
One travel coverage you’re likely ineligible for is cancel-for-any-reason. This coverage is typically an add-on to your policy that allows you to cancel for any reason not already covered by your policy.
“If you want to get a cancel-for-any-reason policy right before your trip, that might be hard to do, mainly because some people may have already decided to cancel and are hoping to buy insurance to recoup the losses they’ve already incurred,” Clearsurance.com Insurance Expert Melanie Musson told The Independent by email.
It not always expensive
One of the wallet-friendly perks of travel insurance is that it typically doesn’t go up in price if you wait until the last second to buy your policy. Rather, other factors impact the cost, Bree Spearman, founder of travel firm Carpe Diem Getaways, told The Independent by email.
“Pricing is based on trip cost, traveler age, trip length and coverage level,” Spearman said. “Buying insurance last minute doesn’t raise the price – it just limits eligibility for enhanced benefits like [cancel-for-any-reason] or pre-existing condition waivers.”
So, while you may have waited to buy travel insurance, you won’t pay more for your coverage and, generally speaking, you’ll only miss out on enhanced trip cancellation or interruption coverage and, in some cases, coverage for pre-existing medical conditions.
If you’re in good health and haven’t needed to cancel your trip until now, Musson said buying insurance is a wise choice.
“The need for travel insurance doesn’t lessen as you get closer to a trip,” she said. “The most significant risks of things going wrong and disrupting your trip occur after your trip has begun. So, whether it’s close to your trip or six months in advance, the argument in favor of buying travel insurance is very similar.”