TRAVEL INSURANCE
First of all, please consult the Government of Canada advisories for your intended destination by visiting their site at
https://travel.gc.ca/travelling/advisories
and strictly follow their instructions. You will find there information about: Entry/Exit Requirements Health Laws & Culture Natural Disasters & Climate Risk Levels, and Safety & Security. Once you decide to travel, please do not forget to register!
Sign up for the Registration of Canadians Abroad service at
https://travel.gc.ca/travelling/registration
so that Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada can contact and assist you in case of an emergency.
Very important! No traditional travel insurance - from your employer's Group Benefits Plan, from your credit card, from your association, and even no traditional individual Travel Insurance will cover your medical and associated expenses in the following two circumstances: If you test positive for COVID-19 during your trip, and if you intend to practice Contact, Adventure or Extreme Sports during the trip. To cover your medical expenses in these two cases you need to purchase specific coverage on top of the traditional Emergency Medical Insurance! Please call for a quote.
The Emergency Medical Insurance known as Travel Insurance is an extremely important financial planning tool for managing the risk of incurring huge amounts of medical expenses while you, a Canadian resident covered by your provincial health plan, travels abroad on vacation or for business. If you have Group Benefits Plan from your employer you probably already have some basic coverage through your Group Insurance for travels abroad. Check carefully what is covered and for how many days, or if you are not sure, call your Group Insurance Administrator. Please bear in mind that no Group Insurance provides you with coverage for possible losses like Trip Cancellation, Trip Interruption, Baggage Loss or Delay, and for Travel Accidents. Even if you have Travel Insurance through your Employee Group Benefits Plan you should call me to buy these additional coverages.
I can offer you Travel Insurance coverage from the following companies I work with for many years and I trust:
- Manulife Financial
- 21st Century Travel Insurance LTD
- Allianz Global Assistance
- TuGo Travel Insurance
Each of these companies offer Emergency Medical Travel Insurance as well as the non-medical types of insurance for Trip Cancellation, Trip Interruption, Baggage Loss or Damage, Baggage Delay, Flight Accident and Travel Accident.
I always offer competing quotes to my potential clients so they could compare the premiums and at the same time I always explain what eventual advantages or disadvantages the different insurances present. If you are not calling at the last minute before the flight from the airport (which often happens) I will always send you the entire text of the policies. In this way you can compare as well the Exclusions and Limitations of the different policies, which is extremely important. In that regard, please make sure to call me a few days before you travel!
