Sometimes, even the best vacation plans can go sideways, and that’s where travel insurance comes in—it helps protect your clients’ trip investments and offers a range of benefits. While some insurance options through suppliers or credit cards might cover trip cancellations or interruptions, it’s always a good idea to review all the options with your clients.
If you are new to the industry, learning about travel insurance is a critical component of your foundation. For an insider’s view of the importance of travel insurance, along with the most common insurance misconceptions, don’t miss Helping Your Clients Navigate the “What Ifs” of Travel, presented TODAY at 3:00 pm (ET) by Bonnie Raschka, CTA Head of Leisure Travel, Accident & Health for Chubb North America.
And for a true foundation in industry knowledge, be sure to explore our award-winning TRIPKITSM program, designed to get your travel career off on the right track.
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For those of you who are looking to refresh and improve your expertise on offering travel insurance and overcoming objections, be sure to enroll in our Certified Travel Associate (CTA®) program. This certification course contains in-depth education in 15 practical and professional skill areas—including a standalone Travel Insurance module.
Here are a few tips from the CTA’s Travel Insurance module to boost your confidence in offering your clients this service:
Agents should never present themselves as insurance experts. Before you quote pricing to your U.S. clients, it’s important to understand that clients must have the option to OPT IN to insurance, and it can never be part of the total trip cost. As you plan your strategy for offering travel insurance, consider the following approaches from some of our industry colleagues:
- Suggest insurance with every vacation you plan.
- Based on the conversation with your client and communication with your preferred insurance company, calculate the cost of the desired insurance policy your client would need.
- Include the opt-in insurance price as you discuss the total cost of the trip. (For example: “Mr. Jones, the cost of your trip is $xxx. If you’d like to opt in, the travel insurance price per person is an additional $xxx.”)
- Stress the value of an insurance purchase, such as high levels of protection, low cost, and the peace of mind knowing that the consumer has protected his or her vacation investment.
- If the insurance is declined, have the client sign a travel insurance waiver form. By doing this, you are offering the insurance for a second time and requiring them to sign off on their decision. You also are protecting yourself from possible liability issues.
- Use your travel insurance partner’s website as a resource. Let your clients call the insurer directly to ask questions. The insurer’s representatives can help close the sale.
- Be sure to email quotes directly from the travel insurance provider’s website. This will help guarantee that product and pricing information is accurate.
- Consistent training on offering insurance is key.
- Focus on this ancillary service and see your sales and revenue grow!
Travel insurance certainly is a product all travel agents—whether new to the industry or seasoned—should consider adding to their product lines. It is the right thing to do to protect your client and your agency.
