AON insurance medical coverage
I apologize in advance for this convoluted question. I cannot get a straight answer from Tauck or AON regarding international medical coverage. There are two scenarios:
1. You purchase pre- and/or post tour days from Tauck. You have a medical issue that comes up during that portion of your trip (ie not during the tour dates) . Does AON insurance cover it?
2. You do your own hotel arrangements before and / or after your tour days with Tauck, ie. outside of the Tauck tour. However, your arrival and return flights are still part of the "Tauck tour." You have a medical issue that comes up during that portion of your trip. Does AON insurance cover it?
We have realized that we usually do pre and post days on all of our international trips (most booked through Tauck , but some not), and we have no idea if international medical care is covered during this portion of our travel. Looking beyond cancellation policy, this question really pertains to medical coverage. Any insights or experience with this will be much appreciated.
Thank you in advance.
Comments
Two different Tauck agents told me that yes, the insurance is covered on pre and post tour days. I specifically asked about the medical. I am going on the Normandy, Brittany & Paris trip ( First Tauck tour) and am staying 5 extra nights in Paris. There is a limit on how many days would be covered, but 5 fell within the limit. I booked my own flights and after tour hotel stay. Do I feel 100% confident with the answer? Nope, but I’m going with it.
MotherOfPoodles, I have never been able to get a straight answer to your questions either. I can see how your scenario #1 would be fine. I was told that Tauck expects that guests will arrive a bit early or stay a bit later in their hotels. But it is scenario #2 where we have in the past purchased our own extra insurance. In fact in 2022 we added a non-Tauck tour right after a Tauck tour but had to cancel it due to Covid. We did buy separate insurance for that which was not cheap but I don't think Aon would have paid that. I can't recall if Tauck did the airfare for that trip but probably not.
This must be a common question for Tauck and as jpfly said, I believe the agents have been updated, but if you are concerned I would email guest relations and ask for it in writing.
But in the end it all comes down to Aon and they will never tell you exactly what they will cover until you submit a claim and wait for an answer. Tauck can intervene in some cases, in case of a denial, but you just never know. In 2023, we had two Italy tours back to back using our own flights, and had to return home on day 2 of the first one due to a family emergency. Aon paid for everything (and Tauck covered the canceled second tour) EXCEPT weirdly not the connecting flight between the two tours. We appealed and got denied a second time, but Tauck covered the cost. (Thank you Tauck!)
When this topic has been discussed before, people have gotten different answers from Tauck. I recall that three day max before and after the tour was included but anything beyond that was not. I would be more confident making sure I was staying at the Tauck hotel for this just in case. Another time, there were discussions staring that they had been told that extra excursions were not covered. It’s all very murky territory. We have annual insulation for evacuation but that does not cover anything else.
We too have asked this question a few times and had our TA ask it - and we get different answers EVERY SINGLE TIME.
We have started getting our own separate insurance because we are always gone many days PRE & POST Tauck tour.
We are still in our 50s, so our own insurance is always cheaper than what Tauck offers and with better coverage - but I know the day is coming that we will need to figure this out again.
I always buy an inexpensive "medial insurance policy" with my carrier which is USAA. Even though I have a Medicare Plan G which will reimburse up to $50K lifetime in medical expenses outside of the US, the additional coverage with USAA gives me nice peace of mind. Cost is usually about $50! I do still bring my Medicare and supplement cards just in case and I have a Medjet annual policy if I need to be flown from a hospital outside the US back home