Information provided by: Trip Insurance, an AMAC Benefit Partner
Popular travel destinations such as Florida, the Caribbean, and Mexico are vulnerable to hurricane weather patterns that can disrupt your planned vacation. Hurricane season can be devastating to locals in the affected area but also disastrous to tourists traveling through the Atlantic Coastline. If Jim Cantore from The Weather Channel shows up at your hotel, it’s too late for travel insurance coverage!
Are you planning to travel between June 1st and November 30th?
The Atlantic Hurricane Season runs from June 1st to November 30th each year. If you are traveling at all during this time, we highly recommend you purchase a travel insurance plan. Typically, fall is when the most hurricanes will occur; however, hurricanes can also occur before or after this given timeline. Travel insurance can help with things like reimbursement for additional expenses, up to the policy limit, for an extended stay due to grounded flights, or offer compensation for an interrupted trip due to damage of your primary residence.
Are you traveling to, through, or from any destination on the East Coast of the United States, or along the Atlantic Coastline?
The East Coast, the Caribbean, and the Gulf of Mexico are the prime areas for hurricanes. The most impactful hurricanes in the last decade have hit the mid-Atlantic region of the U.S., and the Texas, Florida, Alabama, and Louisiana coastlines. Any destination on the East Coast of Central America (like Cancun, Mexico, or Costa Rica) or on the southern coast of the U.S. is vulnerable to hurricane-level weather patterns. Not only are these popular travel destinations, but these coasts are hubs for domestic and international airline connections. Even if your final destination is not at risk for a hurricane, the city you are stopping at for a connecting flight may be at risk for severe weather.
Do you live anywhere on the East Coast of the U.S. or in the Atlantic Hurricane Zone?
If you live in a hurricane zone, travel insurance can help you out — even if you are leaving the area entirely. If you are on a trip away from home when a hurricane hits and your primary residence is made uninhabitable, your plan may provide trip interruption coverage which may help to defray the cost of returning home and provide reimbursement for unused pre-paid, non-refundable trip costs.
What should I look for to protect my travel investment if a hurricane does affect my trip?
If you’re traveling to a hurricane zone during storm season, you’ll want to make sure your travel insurance policy covers you for:
- delayed flights, missed connections, and travel general delays
- trip interruptions due to severe weather
- trip cancellations due to a hurricane threatening or destroying your destination (CFAR – cancel for any reason)
When should you purchase travel insurance?
Purchasing your plan prior to a storm being named should provide you coverage for travel concerns that arise due to that storm. It may seem like a small detail, but it will make or break the coverage available to you. If you wait to purchase a travel insurance plan until The Weather Channel is already warning the world about the latest hurricane on its way to the Caribbean Islands, you’re too late. However, if you purchased your travel insurance plan in a timely manner, you should expect a full suite of coverage as listed on your plan.
