When Jessica Kamzik’s father was diagnosed with stomach cancer last summer, there was no question about what she had to do. Dad’s prognosis was “grave” — the doctors said he probably wouldn’t make it to the holidays — and, “as any loving daughter would do, I immediately cancelled our vacation to stay closer to him,” she says.
ACCESS AMERICA
Beware of the pre-existing medical conditions clause in your travel insurance policy! Oh alright, maybe that’s a little dramatic. But could you at least pay attention to it? I mention this because of Ingrid Murray, whose claim against Access America recently crossed my desk and then made its way into the “dismissed” file.
Marcel Meth’s wife and daughter had plans to visit his recently widowed sister-in-law in Minnesota. As a precaution, they bought a travel insurance policy through Access America.
John Frow pays for his airline tickets with $601 in credit. But then he has a bike accident and cancels his trip. When he makes an insurance claim, Access America turns him down, believing he didn’t suffer any financial loss. Now what?
Catherine Markland was looking forward to her Ecuador trip with Friendly Planet this month. She had a litte extra peace of mind because she’d purchased an insurance policy for her flights through Access America.
When Cheryl Ellis’ mother dies unexpectedly before her vacation, she’s told by her insurance company to cancel her trip and that the claim will be taken care of. But it isn’t — instead, it’s denied because of a pre-existing condition. But her mother died of natural causes. What now?
Editor’s note: This the last in a series of posts about travel insurance sponsored by Access America. Here’s part one, part two, part three and part four. First, the good news: Nine out of ten travel insurance claims are honored according to the US Travel Insurance Association. So if you’re thinking of filing a claim [...]
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Do you need travel insurance?
Ken Smith isn’t the only person affected by the untimely demise of Cruise West. But he thought he wouldn’t be in the same boat as the other stranded passengers. After all, he had travel insurance.
If you think travel agents are about as worthless as travel insurance — and I’ve seen your comments on this site, so I know you’re out there — then you’ll like this story.
Behind the scenes, employees often grumble that their customers would do anything to get a deal. They justify their own misrepresentations by saying consumers lie, too.
Here’s a truly strange case, brought to you by the H1N1 virus and our friends at Access America. You might say Marian Levin’s claim was denied on a technicality. An important technicality that I’ll get to in a moment. But it’s how her problem was resolved that’s even more interesting: Her travel insurance company turned [...]
Elliott is consumer advocate 
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