Are you unsure whether to take out cancellation insurance when booking a vacation? NU.nl investigated in which cases travel insurance is useful and what to look out for.
Whether you can cancel free of charge with cancellation insurance depends not only on the type of vacation you have booked. It also has to do with the insurance you have taken out, says Frank Radstake of industry organization ANVR.
According to Radstake, with a package tour you have the greatest chance of getting your money back if the vacation cannot go ahead. Then you will get your money back in any case, unless you have made the choice yourself to cancel the trip. In the latter case, it pays to take out insurance. You may still be reimbursed for the costs that you do not get back from a travel organization.
People who book a package tour with a travel company affiliated with the ANVR are also covered by the calamity fund. That is there to protect you against all kinds of unforeseen situations: from a terrorist attack to a forest fire. Radstake: “In that case, it will be ensured that you get home safely. Or if that is possible, even let the vacation go ahead, but for example in another place.”
When you book a flight and accommodation separately, cancellation is also possible. But if your flight is suddenly canceled, you will not automatically get the costs of your hotel or apartment back. If you take out insurance, you have several options. You can insure yourself for the costs of:
The ANWB advises taking out cancellation insurance when you book the vacation, and not just when you actually leave. After all, anything can happen before then: you suddenly have to move, become pregnant, or someone gets sick.
Sometimes a move or new job also counts
A number of conditions apply if you want to cancel. It must be an accident, illness, or medically necessary treatment of yourself, a family member in the first or second degree, a housemate, or the person you would be staying with during your vacation. Different conditions apply to the death of a family member.
In principle, cancellation insurance is therefore intended for serious situations. However, if you have opted for extensive coverage, your new job or move may also count. “Suppose your flight is going as normal, but you break up with your partner and they don’t want to go anymore, then there are cancellation costs involved,” says Radstake. If you have to cancel through no fault of your own, you do not have to pay those costs.
According to Radstake, cancellation insurance is not always beneficial. With a cheaper trip, the costs of the insurance can quickly be higher than the trip itself. “If you book a vacation for 200 euros, you can ask yourself whether that makes sense. But for a large trip with the whole family to a distant destination, I would always recommend doing that.”