First, it’s important to understand exactly what Trip Cancellation and Trip Interruption Insurance is and what it covers:

• Trip Cancellation Insurance reimburses you for non-refundable eligible expenses if you need to cancel a trip due to an eligible “cause” prior to a scheduled departure.
• Trip Interruption Insurance reimburses you for the unused portion of non-refundable eligible expenses and the cost to return you to your original point of departure if you need to interrupt your trip due to an eligible “cause” after you have already departed on your trip.

Some examples of eligible expenses include airline tickets, cruises, tours, hotels, vacation packages and vacation rentals.

Some common examples of eligible “causes” include injuries, sickness, death, a disaster at your residence in Canada, job loss and depending on the circumstances, a delayed or missed flight connection.

When it comes to COVID, Trip Cancellation and Interruption Insurance generally does NOT cover you if you need to cancel or interrupt your trip for a COVID-related reason (but it will still cover if you need to cancel or interrupt your trip for a different eligible cause).

However, some but not all insurance companies are currently providing coverage for COVID under their Trip Cancellation coverage in the following limited circumstances:

• If you contract COVID-19 while still in your home province within a specified period prior to your departure and need to cancel your trip prior to your departure.

Snowbird Advisor Insurance’s position

At Snowbird Advisor Insurance, we are pleased to advise our clients that our Manulife Trip Cancellation and Interruption insurance policies will cover eligible expenses if you contract COVID-19 while still in your home province within 72 hours prior to your scheduled departure and need to cancel your trip prior to your departure.

However, our Blue Cross Trip Cancellation and Interruption policies do NOT provide coverage if you contract COVID-19 while still in your home province and need to cancel your trip prior to your departure.

If you are obtaining your Trip Cancellation and Interruption insurance coverage from another provider, we strongly suggest you inquire about their coverage policies with respect to cancelling or interrupting your trip due to COVID-related reasons.