I want a medical evacuation insurance policy for my upcoming trip. I researched it on-line but only came away completely confused & exhausted! How do I know which companies are reputable? Has anyone on this forum purchased a similiar policy & if so, can you recommend the company? Is there anything to watch out for in selecting a policy? Thanks for your input.
If you have an American Express card you can get medical/evac insurance through them. However, let them confirm you have the kind of card that enables you to buy that insurance from them. They have numerous cards with different kinds of benefits. I used a gold card; two years ago, the insurance was under $13/month. You can buy it on a monthly basis and cancel it when you get home. Just be sure you get it several weeks in advance to cover existing conditions. The coverage was excellent; I didn't have to use it, so have no experience with that end of it. I took the policy on my trip and put the insurance card in my money belt.
This is Rick's advice on thathttp://www.ricksteves.com/plan/tips/insurance.htm
We bought a policy form CSA travel insurance last September. We had to file a claim and they paid it in full. Our claim wasn't for medical evacuation (although when I googled this company, I did find some people who recommended them after having medical problems and using the medical part of the policy.) The policy is an umbrella policy that covers multiple things (lost luggage, trip cancellation, and medical stuff). The cost is based partly on how much you have invested into the trip. Since all we buy ahead is plane tickets and pay for a couple of guesthouses before we leave, we just put in $2,000 each. I do recommend you carry a copy of the policy and know what you need to do if you have expenses you want to re reimbursed for. We had a copy and tried to follow it to the letter as far as getting documentation, etc. We had one thing that it was impossible to get, but they still paid up on our claim. I think they are a reputable company. (I have also used Travel guard and they are reputable as well. However, I have never filed a claim with them so can't speak first hand on that)
Check out this website: http://www.insuremytrip.com
You can price out various policies and decide on exactly what type of coverage you want.
CSA is definitely reputable - we use it ourselves
I was just at my local AAA office today, getting my international driver's license. I noticed, on a list of member benefits, that the "plus" level includes $25,000 worth of medical evacuation. Too bad we already bought some elsewhere. Maybe that's not enough; but, if you're a member, it's certainly worth looking into. Before our next trip, I'll certainly investigate, for example, if we can add additional $$ of insurance above the $25,000.