ATLANTA — The COVID-19 omicron variant has put a kink into holiday travel plans as an increasing number of people look at buying travel insurance.
A survey by AAA reveals that one-third of all travelers are more likely to consider travel insurance than they were before the pandemic.
Travel expert Laurie Garrow of Georgia Tech said some airlines have partnered with insurance companies, allowing travelers to buy insurance along with their tickets.
“The advantage of that is that it's simple and it covers you for the major things,” Garrow said. “For instance, if I've traveled internationally, and heaven forbid, but I get a positive COVID test and I'm not allowed to fly back home and I have to quarantine, the insurance basically covers your added hotel expenses, meals, incidentals up to a certain threshold.”
Travelers can go directly to the insurance company of their choice for expanded coverage.
Some policies will allow customers to cancel a trip for any reason and get back a portion of non-refundable deposits.
“Those types of insurance policies are an add-on, and while they would cost more money, they might give you a peace of mind,” Garrow said. “I'm allowed to cancel. You know within a few days of the trip if I wanted for any reason and then I'm eligible for refund of everything is paid out between 50% and 75% typically.”
The cost of travel insurance varies depending on where you’re going.
Garrow says it’s important that people read the fine print on any travel insurance policy. A policy may not apply to a particular destination.