Las Vegas shooting example of need for travel insurance: BCAA
Posted October 7, 2017 11:32 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – If you travel outside of BC for a short time, you may not think you need to invest in travel insurance. But given the recent events in Las Vegas, one industry expert says you should do so, no matter how long you’re leaving for.
“You don’t think about these things happening, and travel insurance does provide coverage for that type of an incident,” says Brooke Moss, Director of Member Engagement at BCAA. “It’s an unexpected thing, and so that’s really the type of thing that travel insurance is there to protect you against.”
That means even if you’re heading across the border for an hour or two, for example to shop or fill up your gas tank.
“An accident can happen at any time and just the cost of medical treatment in the US is so high and just so different than here in BC that we do recommend getting it for any type of trip.”
And no, that doesn’t mean you need to call and purchase the insurance every time you leave. There are annual options and you can also always check with your work or credit card company to see if they have any options.
Moss says it’s not just for the US that you’d need to think about additional coverage. Bills could add up if you travel within Canada outside BC too.
“I mean there is some coverage as a British Columbian traveling to other provinces but there still are some expenses that you would have to pay if you were hospitalized or needed medical treatment.”
She says every policy has some exclusion so it’s always best to talk to your provider if you have any specific concerns.
