The preexisting-condition waiver

When I purchase travel insurance, I always get a policy that includes a “preexisting-condition waiver,” as my principal purpose in purchasing the policy is to have coverage if I need to cancel or interrupt a trip due to an accident or illness. At 77 years old, I do not want to be denied a claim based on some (perceived) preexisting medical condition or to deal with the hassle of proving that there was no preexisting condition. 

Without a waiver of any “preexisting condition” provision, the insurance company can investigate your medical condition at the time of coverage and look back for a certain period of time — maybe 90 to 180 days — to determine if you had a preexisting medical condition that led to your canceling or interrupting your trip. With a preexisting-condition-clause waiver, there is no look-back.

Besides needing to pay an additional premium for such coverage, a traveler needs to meet other conditions. 

The policy must be purchased within a certain period of time following the initial payment made for the trip. This time period is usually 10 to 14 days. This is critical, yet some tour companies are not clear about this when they are referring the traveler to an insurance company or selling their own insurance through a related company. They often say things such as, “Wait until you receive our package in about two weeks.” If you do wait, you may not qualify for the preexisting-condition waiver.

There may be other conditions to meet in order to qualify for the waiver, such as the insurance you purchase must be the only trip insurance you purchase, and you must be physically capable of taking the trip at the time of purchase.

I recently bumped into a new one. I often will not fully insure a trip, but, apparently, some policies require that you insure 100% of all of the cancellation costs of the trip.

So be sure to check out all of the conditions when paying for a preexisting-condition waiver.

The “travel insurance comparison site” InsureMyTrip (phone, in US, 800/487-4722 or 401/773-9300, www.insuremytrip.com) allows you to compare the insurance policies of multiple insurance companies. They also have live agents who I have found to be very knowledgeable and helpful.

If you have purchased your insurance through InsureMyTrip and there is a problem with a claim, they have a special department that will intercede on your behalf. In the context of potential denied claims, it is useful to know that InsureMyTrip provides this assistance as an added benefit, and, clearly, the insurance company will have extra motivation in that it will not want to be removed from the website. For me, it provides a sense of extra support.

I hope the above advice will help a traveler avoid having a claim denied.

EDNA R.S. ALVAREZ

Los Angeles, CA