Victims of unlicensed travel insurance strike back in class action suit

Looks as if the unlicensed insurance scandal — that’s right, the one that got me sued for defamation earlier this year — isn’t over yet.

As I reported earlier this week, Florida appeared to conclude its investigation with a surprise consent order against Revelex, an online booking company.

But now Revelex, as well as several individuals and travel agencies who are alleged to have been involved in the sale of these unlicensed insurance products are on the receiving end of a class action lawsuit (PDF) filed yesterday in Los Angeles Superior Court (case number BC447277).

The list of defendants is long, but it includes some names that will be familiar to readers of this site, including Prime Travel Protection, Smart Travel Group and Vacation Superstore Network, as well as their principals.

The case, which has been filed by Edwin Stewart Trebbe and seeks class action status, alleges certain companies named in his suit knowingly sold a “phony travel insurance policy”. Trebbe, a California resident, bought a Prime Travel Protection policy and claims that he suffered a loss covered under the terms of the plan “and has made a claim for benefits thereunder which has not been paid in full,” according to the complaint. Others are alleged to have been negligent in selling what they should have known was a phony product, the suit also says.

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Revelex pays $12,500 after Florida accuses it of “aiding and abetting” Prime Travel Protection

Remember Revelex, the Boca Raton, Fla.-based online booking company whose name came up a time or two during the Palm Coast Travel episode earlier this year?

Palm Coast Travel, you’ll recall, was fined $2,500 for selling unlicensed travel insurance through a company called Prime Travel Protection. Some observers alleged a connection between Revelex, Palm Coast Travel and Prime Travel Protection, although a link was never proven.

Well, this afternoon, a source with the state of Florida sent me a settlement agreement (PDF) that suggests there may have been a link between Revelex and Prime Travel Protection.

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