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Cancellation / Cancel for Any Reason (CFAR)
Q - Does the Cancellation benefit cover any situation which causes me to cancel my trip?
​A - No. Only specific reasons for canceling a trip are covered under the Cancellation benefit. The most common reasons are medically related, a death in the family, weather-related and natural disasters. The list of covered reasons for each plan is listed in the policy wording, most often under the Cancellation benefit description.
Q - Does the Cancel for Any Reason (CFAR) benefit cover "any" situation, as the name seems to indicate?
​A - Pretty much. Every company has certain rules in order for a person to be eligible for the CFAR benefit (see next question). If a person purchases CFAR as required, most often, the only situation not covered is what is called a "known event". An example of this would be a formed hurricane. If a person purchased CFAR after a hurricane was named and said to possibly be headed in the direction of that person's place of departure, if the person then canceled the trip and used the CFAR benefit, the claim will likely be declined due to the hurricane being a known event at the time of purchasing the policy.
Q - What are the requirements for purchasing the CFAR benefit?
​A - They vary by plan and it's important you read the plan wording to be certain of the rules for your specific plan, however, most plans have the following three requirements:
1) The plan with CFAR must be purchased within a certain period of time, most often 14-21 days, depending on the plan, of the first payment a person makes towards the trip. That payment can be towards anything, a deposit, airline tickets, a hotel reservation or any other prepaid trip payment. It doesn't matter towards what the payment is made, only the date the payment is made.
2) The full trip cost, of everything prepaid and non-refundable must be insured. This means, you could not insure only part of the trip cost, for example, only the tour cost and not the airline tickets. All prepaid and non-refundable trip costs must be insured by the policy.
3) You must be medically fit for travel at the time of purchasing the plan.
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Q - Does the CFAR benefit reimburse 100% of the trip cost insured?
​A - No. Most plans reimburse 75% while some reimburse 50%.
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Q - Does the CFAR plan reimburse 75% or 50% for all reasons, including the reasons listed in the policy as being covered?
​A - No. The reasons listed as covered in the policy, under the Cancellation benefit, are always covered 100% . Any reason not listed in the policy is covered at 75% or 50% (depending on which CFAR benefit a person has) with the CFAR benefit.
Here is how it works. Let's say a person has a CFAR benefit which reimburses 75% and let's say that person needs to cancel their trip for an unexpected illness (a covered reason). The reimbursement will be 100% since the reason for canceling is a covered reason listed in the policy. Now, let's say that same person has a different situation and decides to cancel because they wish to attend the Super Bowl instead of going on their trip (not a covered reason). In that case, they would use the CFAR benefit and receive 75% reimbursement.
Interruption / Interruption for Any Reason (IFAR)
Q - Does the Interruption benefit cover any situation which causes me to interrupt my trip?
​A - No. Only specific reasons for interrupting a trip are covered under the Interruption benefit. The most common reasons are medically related, a death in the family, weather-related and natural disasters. The list of covered reasons for each plan is listed in the policy wording, most often under the Interruption benefit description. They are normally the same or similar to the reasons for canceling a trip.
Q - Does the Interruption for Any Reason (IFAR) benefit cover "any" situation, as the name seems to indicate?
​A - Pretty much. Every company has certain rules in order for a person to be eligible for the IFAR benefit (see next question). If a person purchases IFAR as required, most often, the only situation not covered is what is called a "known event". An example of this would be a formed hurricane. If a person purchased IFAR after a hurricane was named and said to possibly be headed in the direction of that person's destination, if the person then interrupted the trip and used the IFAR benefit, the claim will likely be declined due to the hurricane being a known event at the time of purchasing the policy.
Q - What are the requirements for purchasing the IFAR benefit?
​A - They vary by plan and it's important you read the plan wording to be certain of the rules for your specific plan, however, most plans have the following three requirements:
1) The plan with IFAR must be purchased within a certain period of time, most often 14-21 days, depending on the plan, of the first payment a person makes towards the trip. That payment can be towards anything, a deposit, airline tickets, a hotel reservation or any other prepaid trip payment. It doesn't matter towards what the payment is made, only the date the payment is made.
2) The full trip cost, of everything prepaid and non-refundable must be insured. This means, you could not insure only part of the trip cost, for example, only the tour cost and not the airline tickets. All prepaid and non-refundable trip costs must be insured by the policy.
3) You must be medically fit for travel at the time of purchasing the plan.
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Q - Does the IFAR benefit reimburse 100% of the trip cost insured?
​A - No. Most plans reimburse 75% while some reimburse 50%.
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Q - Does the IFAR plan reimburse 75% or 50% for all reasons, including the reasons listed in the policy as being covered?
​A - No. The reasons listed as covered in the policy, under the Interruption benefit, are normally covered up to 150% of the trip amount insured. Some policies cover up to 100%. Any reason not listed in the policy is covered at 75% or 50% (depending on which IFAR benefit a person has) of the amount covered in the policy, with the IFAR benefit.
Here is how it works. Let's say a person has an IFAR benefit which reimburses 75% and let's say that person needs to interrupt their trip for an unexpected illness (a covered reason). The reimbursement will be up to 150% (100% with some policies) since the reason for interrupting is a covered reason listed in the policy. Now, let's say that same person has a different situation and decides to interrupt their trip because they wish to attend the Super Bowl instead of continuing on their trip (not a covered reason). In that case, they would use the IFAR benefit and receive 75% reimbursement.
Preexisting Conditions
Q - Are preexisting conditions covered under Cancellation plans?
​A - It varies per plan and it is very important you read the policy details. In general, most plans will cover preexisting conditions as long as the policy is purchased using the same rules required for purchasing the CFAR benefit. Those rules are:
1) The plan must be purchased within a certain period of time, most often 14-21 days, depending on the plan, of the first payment a person makes towards the trip. That payment can be towards anything, a deposit, airline tickets, a hotel reservation or any other prepaid trip payment. It doesn't matter towards what the payment is made, only the date the payment is made.
2) The full trip cost, of everything prepaid and non-refundable must be insured. This means, you could not insure only part of the trip cost, for example, only the tour cost and not the airline tickets. All prepaid and non-refundable trip costs must be insured by the policy.
3) You must be medically fit for travel at the time of purchasing the plan.
Q - Are preexisting conditions covered under the Medical-Only plans?
​A - Again, it is important you read the policy details for any plan you are considering purchasing. In general, preexisting conditions are either not covered at all or the coverage is limited by benefit amount, age or both. Some plans will cover an unexpected, acute onset of a preexisting condition.
Q - I see the type of plans are broken down into categories of Economy, Mid-Level & Premium. How are those categories defined?
​A - The Economy plans have lower rates compared to the other two and also have lower benefits. Lower benefits is normally a combination of lower benefit limits, less overall benefits and sometimes either no window or a small window to purchase the plan and have preexisting conditions covered.
The Mid-Level plans have a relative balance between benefit limits and price. There may be some plans with equal "middle of the road" benefits and others with some high benefit limits and some low benefit limits. It's always a good idea to know which coverage is most important to you and to make sure those limits are high enough to where you are comfortable.
The Premium plan is the opposite of the Economy in that they tend to have higher prices but the benefit amounts and the overall number of benefits are some of the highest available. Some have optional benefits which can be added to the base plan which makes it into a Premium plan.
The Recommended plan is our choice for the best balance between price and benefits.