Allianz Global Assistance Reviews

My 12 year-old son had actually come down with the same virus prior to me, on October 27th, to be exact. We had taken him to the doctor at that time, and we were told that he had a virus, and that he just needed to rest and heal, the typical treatment for a cold. I had booked our hotel room with Hotwire the day after, on October 28th. After our trip was cancelled, I submitted my claim to Access America for reimbursement for the hotel (on Hotwire you must prepay, and there are no refunds, unless you buy travel insurance). Access America sent me a letter, stating that they needed additional information about my illness, before they could process my claim. My wife called their office (800-334-7525), and spoke with someone directly about what they needed from us.

My wife explained that I had come down with a virus, and did not need to see a physician, but that my son had seen the doctor, and we were able to discern that we had the same illness. The representative at Access America told my wife that if we submit a Physician Statement Form for my son's doctor's visit, that this would be adequate. So we did this. In a letter dated, January 30th, 2012, Access America claims examiner, Bobby states: "according to the information in the claim file, the condition(s) which led to the change in travel plans, was exhibiting symptoms and/or being treated prior to the purchase of the insurance program. For that reason, we regret we will be unable to honor your claim". Since my son was ill on October 27th, and I booked my hotel room on October 28th therefore my condition was preexisting, and therefore they cannot honor my claim.

Many others who have had dealings with this "insurance company" relate similar stories. I paid $145.63 for the hotel room that I never used. At this stage, I am not worried about the money, but I am simply very angry that I have been scammed by Access America. Hopefully, something can be done to protect the people of Illinois, and other states, from this fraudulent company.

First question I asked Access America was, my accident happened before I bought insurance, I was told that it should not be a problem with the claim. They sent me the forms to have filled out by my doctor, having the doctor fill out forms and fax back took a few tries, then wait, wait, wait, finally, 3 months later... was denied because my accident happened before I bought the insurance. All the while, I was feeling so good after talking with the associates on the phone, I even maxed them out on their little follow up survey, boy do I feel used. Will be sure to tell all, do not bother to buy the insurance, just suck up the loss. Not worth the time at all. Getting ready to email Jet Blue to tell them what happened, not that it will do anything. They probably get a kick back from Allianz (changed there name to fool people into thinking this is a new company?).

For all you out there that have problems with Access America, please contact **@gmail.com. He is a great consumer advocate. Please tell him Percy ** sent you! Here's his number as well ***-***-****. I have contacted my lawyer regarding this as well because Access America needs to be stopped. Join me and let's start a class action suit! Pass the word that this company is a scam.

We contacted Access America, filed a claim and had it rejected because it didn't meet the fine print they had of the definition of uninhabitable home, in that our home was not the victim of a fire, burglary or natural disaster. Just like all the other complaints I read on this website, this outfit is a scam. Their rules are so restrictive that you can almost never collect. Whatever disaster you have that makes you cancel a trip, they are almost sure to find a way to show that it does not meet the criteria they have written down as the only conditions they pay for. I will never buy travel insurance from this company again.

It was not until the week before that the cancer had spread to her liver and that was when she became terminal. We provided them with all doctors reports to no avail. I agree with the many other complainants that this is a scam, and I will not be using them again.

The action of Access America is still pending. I have been in the doctor's office when they faxed twice the dates they requested. I gave them 7 business days and then our travel agent through AAA ask if we would give them until Dec 28. Next steps will be complaints with the Better Business Bureau, AAA of America and our lawyer to file a claim against Access America, which is becoming Allianz. Interesting!

Access America is denying her claim because she went to the doctor in July. So basically they are saying anyone who does a yearly check up is doomed! My mother had no idea she had cancer! She didn't suspect a thing and yet they are claiming it was pre-existing. My mom has turned in all the forms that they continually send her to fill out and Access America has even "lost" forms she has turned in. It's a scam. She has filled out form after form going back several times to re-fill out basically the exact same information in a different paper form. It's the run around.

Upon notice that the flight was cancelled, and given the magnitude of travel disruptions across the country, Continental rescheduled me for the return flight on November 2nd, 2011. This was the soonest available return flight Continental could provide (including stop-over routes) to Newark. It is noted I spent 20 minutes with the agent as we explored every possible alternative to gain a sooner return flight.

On October 30th, I contacted Access America to understand exactly what my travel insurance policies covered so as to determine the most cost effective approach I would pursue (given a 4-day wait for travel return). At that time, I explained my situation to the claim representative indicating all the aforementioned facts. It was important for me to understand my reimbursement allowances as I had (Sunday afternoon, October 30th) the opportunity to leave Las Vegas (for San Diego) with my cousins who were also in Las Vegas (with us on vacation) and had driven there via their personal car.

The claim representative stated my event qualified for daily allowances up to $200 per day (lodging, meals, transportation and misc. items) each for myself and Mary **. I asked 2 times, that would mean if we stayed in Las Vegas, our allowance would be a total (for both of us) of $400/day for the 4-day stay-over for a total allowance of up to $1,600. She did confirm this at the end of our call. I therefore elected to stay in Las Vegas until my scheduled flight on November 2nd.

Upon my arrival home, I contacted Access America (November 3rd) to start the formal claim process. It was at that point that I was informed that the daily allowance of $400 (for both of us) only applies for 1 day. Needless to say, I was quite taken back given that if I had been previously told this on October 30th, I would have not stayed and taken the course of action noted above.

Since then, I have spoken to various 2 representatives (Thomas ID** and Dona **) about my situation. They both informed me the voice recording of 15 minutes was pulled and reviewed by their manager Wade **. Despite my efforts to speak to Wade, or arrange for a call where I can listen to the call he reviewed, each request was denied. I am told this tape cannot be released to me for security purposes. This confuses me as I understand Access America's goal to provide the best in class customer service to its clients and I cannot imagine what security risk it would be as it is myself on the recorded call and an Access America representative.

I have therefore been directed to formally appeal the current reimbursement decision. As I took specific notes from my hotel on October 30th and made my decision to stay based upon what I was told, I am concerned that the call Wade reviewed was not in its entirety. Again, at the end of this call, I specifically asked (which was confirmed) my maximum reimbursement would be up to $1,600 for Qualified expenses. I therefore request another individual review the call with me listening (I have no issues being muted if that is a requirement).

I am sure Access America recognizes Las Vegas is an expensive place vacation (hotels and lodging) plus that weekend there was a very large conference plus the Halloween weekend. There would be absolutely no advantage for me to have stayed (after an already 6-day visit) there for 4 additional days (as I had a free alternative to travel to San Diego and stay with my cousins until other air arrangements could be made) if I had been told the correct information on October 30th.

This "insurance" is a scam. They look for any reason not to pay you. When he called me back, he claimed that his managers listened to my recorded phone calls and never heard I was told that all I had to do was have the form filled out by my doctor. Even on the form, it asks if the person was seen by a doctor and, if so, on what date? If it is mandatory, the form should have said simply what date was the insurer seen. Having both an illness where I got the form filled out by a doctor and we had a hurricane came to the East Coast where I was traveling, they were never going to cover the trip no matter what happened.

I cancelled the flight, and informed Access America of the problem. I filed a claim and was denied because of a pre-existing condition. I filed an appeal and was denied again. The doctor wrote to them and explained why I had to cancel the flight, and they still denied the claim. I know that the insurance industry is as trustworthy as car salesmen and lawyers but this was ridiculous. They truly are crooks. Do not buy their crappy product, find a reputable company.

If you are reading these letters from people please do not use Access America. They are nothing but crooks! All they do is deny people, and keep your money.

Access America denied coverage saying that pregnancy was not covered in the policy. I called Access America to complain that no where did I read that pregnancy was excluded. At first, I was told that an employee had made a mistake pregnancy was covered, but that because I didn't make a claim there was nothing Access America could do for me. I insisted that at a minimum I be reimbursed for the cost of a policy that I was not allowed to use for a legitimate claim. After several "no" responses, a supervisor took my call and agreed to reimburse me the cost of the policy, but not for the use of the policy as the fine print states normal pregnancy is excluded!

In September, it came apparent that her injuries had worsened and she would not be able to travel. I emailed Access America and was sent a claim form. Now we have been informed it was not covered and the claim denied.

I was scheduled to fly on November 3 to Brooke Army Hospital in San Antonio, Texas, when unexpectedly his condition worsened, and was transferred from Brooke Army Medical Center to Madigan Medical Center, in Fort Lewis, Washington, for specialty care.

I called Access America, explained what happened, and they refused to refund amount of the airline ticket. Also, I faxed a letter explaining the situation from Brett **, the battalion surgeon, to Access America and they refused to refund the $339.33 I paid.

As I was trying to calm everyone down which at this time were hysterical, crying and not knowing what had just happened. Within all this confusion, my grandson's mom didn't hear me asking her to get a pen & paper so that we could get the woman's information. I was hurting myself but trying to keep a level head, this woman saw all of this and got back into her car, stating she was getting her insurance forms, but to my surprise she actually closed her door, backed up and took off as fast as possible. I was stunned because I didn't get any information from her at all. I only knew the color of the car, and that I had smelled liquor on her breath. After calming everyone down, I then called the police and my son. After completing the police report, the police officer agreed that she, no doubt, did not have any insurance and also knew if she had waited for the police she would have definitely been arrested for drinking and driving.

I called Access America the next morning since this happened late and they were closed. I told them what had happened, filed a report, turned the car in and I then left to return home that day to California. I told my husband what had happened when he picked me up at the airport, and he as well was very grateful that we had all come through this uninjured, just shaken up a bit. It's been one year to this day and I was contacted by Access America's Claim's Department. I was told the check was to be made out to me and for me to expect it in 7-10 business days. I'm very happy my claim was granted to me & that all of the family is back to normal even though this could have all turned out much worse.

I feel pretty stupid for making such a rookie mistake (first time I ever bought flight insurance), but based on everything else I've read here, AA (the airline that foisted this waste of time and money on me) should dump them from their website ASAP, and this company should be out of business!

The info at purchase indicated that a date change would be covered. We never received any terms and conditions to review after the purchase. Now his orders are likely to change and we find out that the insurance will not cover the resulting schedule changes as advertised.

Way to support your servicemen, Access America and Delta. He's already spent almost a month’s pay and now has to cough up another $450 to reschedule their flights.

My sister is getting married in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic in October 2011. Of course, this is a very exciting time and approximately 30+ people booked their flights on Orbitz.Com which included my husband and I. Although we didn't anticipate any issues that would conflict with my sister's destination wedding, we decided to book Access America to insure our trip. Big mistake! It's not about the fine print. It's about the fact that they make excuses for every little thing that is not clearly stated in the coverage!

Doctors told my husband and I that we couldn't get pregnant. On January 15th 2011, we booked our flights to Punta Cana. On February 2nd 2011, we found out we were pregnant. Our expected due date is 10/7/11 - the same day we are scheduled to leave for Punta Cana! What an exciting time - we should be celebrating! But instead we are so angry and frustrated that AA will not reimburse us for our flight. AA advised us to file a claim. So we did. We completed paperwork, our doctor completed paperwork and we provided information from our bank as proof of payment. We spoke with customer service reps over the phone, communicated via email, and faxed or mailed every bit of information that was requested from us. Thank you for putting us through all the hurdles Access America - it was a waste of time! Why drag the situation on for months? You could have told us the first time we called that you were a fraud and you wouldn't cover our trip - even if I was in the hospital delivering my first child. Thank you! (Sarcasm)

Access America, here are your exact words, "pregnancy is not an excuse not to fly" Hello! I will be in the hospital! Their response: "you need an unexpected emergency related to the pregnancy to get reimbursed". When I spoke with a customer service rep and asked for an example of an unexpected emergency related to the pregnancy, she could not give me an example of coverage. Even if I had an emergency (God forbid, I am praying for a healthy labor and delivery), I'm sure AA would find an excuse to not cover the $1,200 we paid for our tickets. Would an emergency C-section be covered? The customer service rep responded, "um, that's a good question!". Really? We'll see what happens.

In the meantime, my advice to everyone out there, don't book through Orbitz. And whatever you do, do not even think about using Access America to insure you and your loved ones.

I will look for another travel insurance company. This is a very poor insurance company.

So, I gathered all the paperwork. I had the physician fill out the form at the next scheduled follow up appointment on 08-10-11. I then mailed in the claim. Now it is the 29th of August and I haven't heard anything from Access America. I called today to check the claim status. I was told that my claim was denied, because I did not take my daughter to a physician within 72 hours from contacting Access America. My daughter saw a physician for her broken leg on 07-05-11, 07-20-11, 08-10-11 and 08-29-11. However, none of these were within this 72 hour time frame that the claims representative neglected to tell me, when I asked her what I needed to do to file a claim.

I called the claims representative on July 27th. I asked her what I needed to do to file a claim. Why did she not tell me that I needed to take my daughter to a physician within 72 hours? Why did she leave that part out about what I had to do? The claims representative should have been upfront and honest with me when I asked her what I needed to do to file a claim.

I had visited the doctor twice during the time span between purchase of the policy and the departure date of my trip. However, I saw the doctor the first time for a routine checkup, not a "preexisting" condition. I DID read the fine print and still do not agree with how this company defines "pre-existing" medical condition. I can now see why so many reviews are so negative. I feel I have been treated unfairly and the company is a scam; just taking people's hard earned money. My family is furious. I have told friends never to bother purchasing this as it seems near impossible to get your money back.

Please read through the other reviews. I feel this company is NOT based on honest practices. I am calling back and writing a manager when the claims department is open again. I'm more upset about the principle of the matter more than the loss of money. I'm so disheartened. The customer service representatives on the phone were very cordial and friendly, but this does not make up for everything else. Please think carefully before buying a policy from this company!

Four days before my wife and daughter were to leave for Minnesota, my sister-in-law called us and told us that her son was hospitalized and that he would be remaining in the hospital for a week or more. In response to this, my wife needed to cancel the vacation. We obtained all the necessary documentation and filed it with Access America. They immediately denied the claim, saying that the reason for hospitalization was not covered by the policy. Furthermore, even if it was, the insurance would only cover my wife, but not my daughter, since the relative was my daughter's cousin. Cousins are not covered on the policy, according to the insurance agent.

When I called up and complained to the agent, they said that I could appeal the decision. I asked the agent to email me the information on how to proceed. She promised to do it within the day.

A day passed and there was no email from Access America. I called again. Again, the agent promised to send me the information before the end of the day. Again no email. Finally I got on the web site, and emailed my request. Again no response.

I feel that the insurance is useless and would discourage anyone from purchasing insurance from Access America.

My husband had a death in the family so he purchased flight tickets together with a travel insurance from Access America. He added the insurance because there was a possibility of changing the ticket since the funeral information wasn't made yet. Eventually, he had to change his return flight and Access America used the excuse of family member already being deceased so they could not help him with the exchanged-ticket fee. On top of it all, they wouldn't even return the $20 my husband had given them for the coverage.

As I searched online, there have been numerous complaints against them for non-payment. I wonder if anyone has been reimbursed since it seems there have been so many complaints.

Each conversation with the company led to a request for a new piece of information which had not been requested in a prior communication and which was now the crucial information for the claim to proceed. After believing I had sent in all the information, I waited months expecting to hear something. When I finally contacted them, the claim was closed because they had not heard from me. I had received no contact from the time I believed I had submitted all relevant information. Now that I have contacted them, they are requesting, yet again, another new piece of information needed to move the claim forward.

When I asked to be compensated for my loss, my claim was denied on the grounds that I was insured for February 5th and not February 4th. In other words, they counted the delay as being on the 4th and not on the 5th. In other words, a plane is declared to be late on departure and not on arrival!

On July 9, my 89-year-old father was admitted to Kaiser Hospital of Santa Clara, California, by relatives who he visited that day, who became concerned that he might be having a stroke or heart attack based on his physical being that day. He ended up staying in the hospital for three days, not being released until July 12. I had to cancel my trip, as I am the surviving sibling in my family, and was not going to leave it up to a first cousin to return my father home just so I could go on my trip to France.

I was denied coverage by Access America because on the doctor's report part of the claim, the ER doctor noted 'dementia' as a reason for my dad being in the hospital. Dementia alone was the reason for denial of the claim. Within a few days of my father being released from the hospital, he was back to normal, and even driving a car again. Tests at the hospital showed he didn't have a stroke nor heart attack, but his heartbeat was above normal, and he was showing some signs of being dehydrated, and also some medication that he'd been taking had to be modified. I am in the middle of trying to get my money back: $2400 plus. My father's personal physician has emailed a claims supervisor, informing her of the reasons for my dad's hospital stay, and that the reasons had to do with physical, not mental, reasons!

I rate my experience with Access America to be horrible, as I view them as being part of the problem with this country: ruled by corporatist fascists who are only concerned with making billions of dollars and screwing ordinary people like myself in the process.

They told me they needed the ENT doctor to fill out the paperwork, not the surgeons. I thought that was odd. I received a phone call today stating my "first" visit with the ENT was beyond the 120 days, and it voided my claim. They stated my first visit for a clogged ear was a preexisting condition of the brain tumor. I'm sure I'm out the $874.00 dollars, but this is 2011. How can we let a company scam thousands of people? Let us at least put this company under investigation, or at least warn everyone. I know I will do my share on Facebook, Google, and word of mouth.

We just got our final denial notice of the trip interruption claim for the remainder of the trip (Delta reimbursed for the canceled flights). Access America interprets their policy to pay a claim ONLY in the event the airline stops ALL SERVICES for AT LEAST 24 hours from "where you're departing, arriving, or making a connection for specific reasons".

They denied her claim because "Unfortunately, we have verified that there was no stoppage of services for at least 24 hours."

In telephone follow-up, I learned that it simply doesn't matter that my wife and her son weren't offered replacement itineraries anytime during the rest of the week, forcing a cancellation of the rest of the trip and other flights. The other flights' claims were denied because those flights were flying as scheduled, never mind that my wife and her son couldn't be on them.

Essentially, even though my wife's trip was canceled due to severe weather, and a replacement itinerary wasn't offered within 24 hours, because some flights were able to fly out of or in to Boston within 24 hours of the initial shut-down, her claim is denied.

This basically means that their policy is worthless, given their vague policy language, unless the airline shuts down completely for more than 24 hours on either end of your trip, or at a connecting location, preventing you from getting a replacement itinerary... NOT because the airline shuts down for severe weather and won't offer you a replacement itinerary for more than 24 hours.

Bottom line, when was the last time you heard of an airline shutting down for more than 24 hours??

And based on what I've read below, it seems any health condition would be considered a pre-existing condition, unless you got shot by someone on the plane, on the tarmac. Class-action lawsuit might be nice, but more likely the best course of action is to simply OPT-OUT OF ACCESS AMERICA.

I tried to report this scam to the Richmond, Virginia, Better Business Bureau, where Access America is based, but it took me some time to file a complaint, because their Access America is registered under the name "Mondial Assistance." It's unfortunate that the online reservation systems of some airlines urge you to buy trip cancellation insurance when concluding a reservation. And if one is urged to buy insurance from Mondial Assistance, it's the same old scamming Access America.

No way to receive a rational and precise reply. With the last email, I informed Access America about my intention to publish the event and their bad behavior. My money after more than 2 months has not been reimbursed yet.

I believe that Access America’s way to make business is not what a good and honest citizen would like to observe. My advice: do not pay any tickets or book any rental where Access America is entitled to produce insurance coverage. There are many other companies that do not give so many problems to their clients.

Hotwire used a format not valid for the client company National. I wasted 3 hours and I did not receive the car that I needed for my visit to Key West. The rental cost was reimbursed. Until now Access America is keeping my money without any valid reason.

We filed a claim and were given what apparently is the standard run-around before denial of a claim. I blame Hotwire for pimping for Access America and setting me up for this scam, Delta Air for lying and incompetence, and myself for not being bright enough to plan around this disaster.

Yes, we could have rebooked and return home, but the cost would have been greater than staying in Florida for one week. Total cost is $3,000 (including the cost of the cruise for four people, lodging, car rental and meals for one week). I would probably have settled for half, but now it looks like zero.

Our claim was turned down due to "pre-existing condition". There was no pre-existing condition for cancer prior to purchase of insurance. There was no indication that there was cancer prior to the purchase of tickets. A review of complaints against this company indicates that this is the main reason for denial for claims. Denied claim and airline allowed travel for one year on purchased tickets, but a charge of $150.00 cancellation fee was charged for each of the 5 family tickets.

This is a disgusting company. My claim was for around $170. They first addressed this sensitive document to my boyfriend, who had been traveling with me and then made up their own rules as to why my claim could and should be denied and attached information for arbitration with fees that are higher than the sum I was asking for to begin with. How does my father's death not count as death of an immediate family member? They should be shut down and forced to give people their $72 back. .

Delta paid us back immediately when there was a state alert and the U.S. Government would not let them fly there. We explained that to Access America and were told that they do not pay for CIVIL unrest. If they refuse to pay for our expenses, I think they should have to at least pay back the 500 dollars that we paid them.The trip does not start for another month.

"I was disturbed, in fact angered, to receive an umpteenth request for one more doctor's certificate (I have already sent two doctor's certificates), an obvious ploy in an attempt to deny this claim, because as you and everybody knows very well, a Primary Care Physician does not have most of the information required in your unnecessarily long and complicated doctor's certificate when dealing with a cancer case.

The doctor's certificate was completed in great detail by the competent doctor, the Oncologist Dr. ******, who made it abundantly clear that the first symptoms of the disease, that as stated in the enclosed certificate made her advise my wife to cancel the insured trip, did not appear until after the insurance was purchased. Any judge would find that the oncologists certificate indisputably validates this claim that your people have dragged out for four months by bombarding me with numerous form letters in an attempt to wear me down and give up.

Additional proof of your company's policy to deny claims is the fact that two of your people (one of them named Bobbie) assured me on the phone not to worry and that they would phone the doctor for clarification, which they never did.

I trust that as a distinguished personality and Wharton graduate, you will see the harm that these practices do to your reputation and will direct your staff to honor this claim. If I do not receive a check by February 11, I will have no other recourse but to report your company's unbusiness like practices to your BBB, Insurance Commissioner, consumeraffairs.com (that already bristles with your customers complaints), travel agents associations and any other competent entity."

I was hoping that as a distinguished personality Mr. ****** would order his staff to shape up and pay this legitimate claim. Instead, he forwarded my letter to one of his underlings who bombarded me once again with the same two-page medical form in full knowledge of the fact that the Primary Care Physician does not have the information required to fill it out, thus perpetuating Access America's policy of delaying tactics- asking for impossible documents and even lying and saying "don't worry, we'll call the doctor". They never did. It is a determined effort to deny legitimate claims. It is sad that this policy obviously has the blessing of the CEO.

The first time, my daughter got sick and we were not able to make the flight to our friend's wedding. On the phone that morning, the agent told me that my husband re-booked the flight for a day later, and once my daughter could be seen by the doctor, the change fees and difference in fare would be covered. We went ahead and did that for his ticket only and the additional cost was over $1,000 which we would only have done under the guidance of the agent. Of course the ticket is bought, and now, the next agent we speak with says we were told wrong and would only be reimbursed for the $350 cost of his ticket. We lost $650 due to misinformation by agents.

Second incident was when we (stupidly), again, bought insurance for our trip to Quebec. Our flight home to Newark was canceled and re-booked 4 times by Continental (a whole other complaint I should file). At first, we were told by their agents that we qualified for "travel delay" coverage which would be up to $200 pp. After the first day, when I called back, they said that because the cancellations went over 24 hours (it ended up being over 2 days), the coverage would now fall under "trip interruption" since there were no flights being offered out of Quebec to Newark on Continental. This would cover up to $412.16 pp for meals/transport and accommodations related to the delay.

We get 2 checks for $200, claiming that when they looked up the airline information, there was 1 flight that left Quebec to Newark on Continental - a flight that we were not on nor offered by the airline, and due to this, we did not actually qualify for interruption coverage. Access America again misinformed me and again weaseled out of paying the money that their agents led us to believe would be coming. Loss number 2 was for $320. Pitiful!

Access America is a company that is not honest and reliable. I will not recommend using this company and I will not be using Orbitz again until they decide to give the customers a choice of insurance companies to choose from.

On November 10, 2010, I contacted American Airlines and Access America to cancel my revised travel date of November 12, 2010 because of a seriously ill family member who later passed away on November 12, 2010. I started a claim with Access America on November 10 and retained a physician certification form from my family member's doctor who clearly stated: "He will need his family support at this time." After contacting Access America, they said my claim will be denied because I changed the travel dates from my original travel dates in October 2010.

I challenged their decision because there is no reference in the contract stating I am required to contact Access America to notify them of the change. They still denied the claim although there is not a written clause stating the insured is required to contact Access America in the event travel dates change. Obviously, this is emotionally challenging because I had purchased an insurance policy for protection and when needed, the insurance carrier is not honoring the claim. I think it is only fair for Access America to honor the trip cancellation protection of $391.40 for which it was issued.

Access America denied the claim with the reason that it was a "pre existing" condition. Also, because the illness was on the day we purchase the plan. I presume his death that day would have been a pre-existing condition!

I found extremely dishonest that these conditions are not explained before you purchase the insurance. Furthermore, developing an illness on the day the plan is purchased is totally out of our control. This company is a fraud and I would like some kind of awarness available to future customers when this company advertise on airlines sites. Thank you.

Needless to say, I was not happy about our trips being cancelled on either occasion! To give you a bit more information, on the first trip that we had to cancel, Access America stated they would not reimburse us because their policy specifically says that if you have to cancel due to business reasons they will not reimburse or cover your loss. Well, excuse me but if it is due to an emergency meeting being called at the last minute and one of the travelers is "told" he must be there, you as an employee are not going to tell the president of the company, "I'm sorry, but I have travel plans, so I can't be at your meeting." Because of my husband's position in his company, when meetings of this nature are called, he must clear his calender and be at these meetings. There was no way that my husband was to know beforehand that this meeting was going to be called, nor that his presents was going to be mandated, so because of Access America, we were out over $600.

As to the second trip that we had to cancel (claim number 0001361247), I was informed by my neurologist three days before we were due to leave that I could not travel because I had hurt/aggravated the condition of my neck. First, I was told by Access America that they needed a statement from my doctor, which I did provided and it was dated 5/10/10 and our trip was to start on 5/13/10. Then Access America sent me another letter saying they needed me to refill my claim, which I did. The company then wrote me and told me my claim was denied due to lack of medical information. So I asked my doctor to rewrite his letter with more of and explanation of why I could not travel. Access America received this letter, along with another claim form. After I made two phone calls to Access America's company, I finally got another letter telling me that they would not cover our claim because I have a preexisting condition that kept me from traveling.

Here's the cause of the matter. I had this same condition since 1987. It flares up periodically and is extremely painful, however it has never kept me after traveling on a plan before. I simple take my pain medications and go to sleep throughout the fight. This was the first time any of my doctors had told me I could not travel, even though I've again, had this condition since 1987. However, because my neurologist put in his second letter that it was a preexisting condition, now Access America will not cover my claim. Had my doctor not put in his follow-up letter that it was a preexisting condition, I was told by one of the agents at Access America, I would have been due for Access America to cover my claim. Needless to say, I am extremely angry and upset that Access America refuses to pay out and cover my cancelled claim price.

They kept having me send them information until they had a reason to deny my claim. Also they first tried to say that due to the date on my neurologist's second letter it makes my claim invalid because it was dated on the current date on which it was sent out and did not include the date that he had told me I could not travel, although this information was on the first letter he wrote for me and it did not say anything about me having a preexisting condition.

The only thing I can figure is that Access America Travel Insurance & Assistance will continue questioning and asking for information until they find a way to deny coverage on a claim. I was very careful to read all their small print before I purchased their insurance for our May trip since they had ripped us off the last time we had used them and had to cancel so I wanted to make sure that there would be no problems with this trip just in case something came up. I again want to state for the record that I've had this condition with my neck since 1987 and have never had a doctor tell me I could travel. I have been cautioned to be very careful, but not that I could not go on a planned trip.

When I asked Ms. *** if this meant that Access America would never cover me when I traveled because I have this problem with my neck, she told me "No, not necessarily," but she would not go into any further detail. I have to admit that when I called Access America this time, which is the fifth time I have called them, that I was not cordial, nor polite, as I had been on the four previous calls.

As a matter of fact, I was downright angry and unfriendly. I had tried being polite and friendly and doing everything Access America's agents had indicated to me that I needed to do up to this point, but I had finally reached my point of them finding all the excuses they could find to deny my claim and carry this process out as long as they could so that, I'm supposing, I would just give up. I will not give up this time. Access America owes me $896 and I want my money reimbursed asap. No more **** around. The company owes me my reimbursement and they need to pay up according to their contract. I will say this, I will never purchase travel insurance through Access America again and I am advising all my friends, family, the BBB and anyone who tunes into Facebook and Twitter not to use Access America's travel insurance because they are a rip off!

So we were not denied coverage, as some who've told their stories here, because of a "pre-existing condition." We were denied coverage because buried somewhere in the fine print (but no where on the Alaska website where this insurance is described in such glowing terms) is a clause that denies coverage for "mental or nervous health disorders or any related physical complications." I would like Alaska Airlines to publish the complete list of the illnesses and circumstances that are not covered by this "insurance" policy. I would hope that if most of their customers read that long list, they would not waste their money as I did. Result: $150 of change fees for Alaska Airlines plus the cost of the "insurance."

Another week of waiting and we contacted Access America again by phone. They said that they now needed documentation from a doctor that she was too ill to travel. We provided our doctor's name and office numbers and were informed that they would fax him the necessary form to complete. A few more weeks of waiting and we contacted them again (by phone since the web site link they provided still does not work). We were informed that since her condition is a chronic condition, they consider it to be a pre-existing condition and they could not honor the policy. This company thrives on misdirection, overloading you with paperwork and contact issues. They continually "don't receive" things you send and ask for more and more documentation until you either give up or they find a loophole to avoid paying.

They are completely denying the claim and I am out $5000. Their own information says cancellation is covered but now that I look at it, the policy does not. What a fraud this is and I would feel responsible if they had done this to any of my clients. Please file this so others do not fall into this trap.

I felt cheated because it's not mentioned anywhere in the insurance document. Even the fine print does not specify clearly. I would warn others not to take Access America Trip interruption/delay insurance unless they are fully aware of this fact.

They finally sent me a letter saying they want another physician statement from a different doctor! It was just another stall tactic because they clearly had no intention of paying and they have carefully trained their staff to avoid giving out the information consumers need. They told me that since he had been to the doctor less than 120 days prior to travel, they won't cover the condition. I tried explaining that chronically ill people generally go to the doctor at least every 30 days. And since when aren't chronically ill people supposed to travel?? Who needs a break more than them? Clearly they are discriminating against sick people or are using that as another excuse not to pay. Do not buy Access America Travel Insurance. It's a waste of your money! I also contacted Hot Wire since I made the reservations through them and thought they would be appreciative of me letting them know. Not a chance! They are in cahoots with Access America so I wouldn't recommend making reservations through Hot Wire either.

How else is Orbitz or the airline going to issue a ticket number, a seat and an itinerary if you don't pay. Is a big scam, designed to wear the costumer down to just give up. Well, I will never buy insurance from them and I'm telling everyone I know about this problem.

Access America has paid me $150 so far (for a trip delay of 1 day). My grandson was delayed too! And the soonest we could have continued on the cruise was 3 days. What a rip off.

I had to re-book her flights. I called Access America to get a refund on her original ticket. They gave me some stupid reason why their policy did not cover such events. I asked the rational for such an exemption and the agent gave no answer. Needless to say, I told her I had wasted my money. She actually agreed with me! I told her I would never use Access America again. Beware of Access America. They are a scam.

The 12-hour IV drip made us miss our flight by 6 hours. I contacted the travel insurance company immediately explaining the situation. The customer service person was very nice and explained to me that this should all be covered and not to worry but that she would download all necessary forms to complete my claim process.

I received the emailed forms and was quite surprised by all the information they required from the doctor. It took the doctor's office an hour to complete the form.The forms were sent back to Access America. For weeks, l had to call them to find out the status. They informed me I'd have to resend them; their email system had been down for a while so I should fax them.

Two weeks later I was sent a letter explaining my claim was denied because it was all related to a "pre-existing" condition.

I called them to re-explain the situation but it fell on deaf ears. I was told anything to do with my daughter's kidney transplant would be considered a pre-existing condition. I then asked why wouldn't you state it on your website home page that you will not cover any one who is traveling for medical reason? I was told it was listed in the multi-page, fine print terms and conditions and that is all we are required to show.

But Access America say it does not matter. It is a pre-existing condition and that is that and there will be no refund. I have filed the proper paper work from the doctor that put the tubes in and he says they did not know about the tubes until 3 days after buying the tickets. What do they get by with calling this pre-existing? The tickets cost my parents $1012.89 and over $50 for the insurance. My Mother is under enough stress with Dad having this cancer and now this lousy company will give her a stroke due to the stress.

I will advice you not to purchase these insurance because all they do is to pocket your money. Why waste money when nothing is covered. They are complete rip off. My son could not go for his 6 month doctor’s appointment. My wife missed 4 classes in school. My daughter could not come back to resume school on time. Beware of Access America, fraudulent insurance and assistance company.

I guess I learned my lesson on this and will never purchase my flights through Orbitz or any of the other clearinghouse vendors. The only reason I did it this time was my client’s schedule and I had to use two different airlines to make things happen. Here is how Orbitz has it advertised:

Travel delay coverage up to $200. 24/7 award-winning assistance (Global Call Center of the Year, ICMI).”

The monetary amount isn't my biggest concern with this. I lost around $350.00 because of this. The insurance itself was only $17.00. This company’s obscured policy has to be ousted. The policy that I got was 20 pages of legalisms that they hope you do not read. And the fact that it took me over 5 clicks to get to this policy online also discourages someone from reading it.

Their policy small print required "complete cessation of service by the airline" defined as no flights leaving the airport for 24 hours. If there was complete cessation of service for 23 hours, then one flight on the airline left for Mexico City, her claim would be denied; making this insurance worth much less than she thought. We will never buy from this company again. Access America (AA) is offered in default by Orbitz, you just need to tick an option box.

The Romans knew it, and this blog entry is a testament: Caveat Emptor, buyer beware. $500 loss, loss of baggage for several days. Not as severe as some here, but another data point.

I could not re-schedule the flight either as it was used. As such, forfeit is based on hotwire rules. However, these rules did not apply to Access America and they should have refunded part if not all of the lost ticket (it was over 600 dollars). Instead they claimed legal reasons weren't covered even though I could not have known at the time I booked the hearing would be cancelled within a day or two the flight.

I went back and forth with them multiple times and they wouldn't give me back even the cost of the insurance. But I am contacting the insurance commissioner in Illinois where they are. In my life I would say they are the most ugly and non-customer service -oriented company.

When we called Access America, they sent us forms to fill out, we did, and then were told weeks later we needed a doctor's note for the parent. The flue does not always require someone to go to the doctor and in this case there is no doctor's note that we know of. Access America refuses to pay the claim which we only require the $300 in the change fee for the airline tickets, we are not requesting the entire amount. This insurance is virtually worthless and I will be sending a copy of this letter to the insurance commissioner of the state of Virgina.

As a consequence,we have had to pay for a change fee in the amount of $300 which brings our discounted tickets to more than $800 round trip which had we known, we could of just purchased changeable tickets that would allow us to make changes without the hassle and expense of the insurance. I would like to file a formal complaint against Access America to warn of travelers that the insurance company seems to be of no help unless you have very specific issues that they determine. Sincerely, Patricia **.

One week passed, and I called and talked to "Roy", who informed me that I needed to provide them with a physicians statement, and the coroners/medical examiners report! I was quite upset obviously. I did not feel like that was relevant, but I did as they directed me to do. I faxed the information to them 3 days later, and called them yesterday, 3/18/2010. They informed me that my claim was being denied, due to a pre-existing condition. This company is unscrupulous, unethical, and morally corrupt. However, unlike many here that may give up in frustration, I am not one of those people. If it takes an act of congress, or a class action lawsuit, I'm there. I am asking anyone out there who is interested in dedicating a webpage designed to bring attention to this ridiculous excuse of a company to post.

If this is not solved by Access America immediately, I will be re-posting next week, with my email address and information, to get a grassroots process started against this company. I will step up to the plate in my mom's memory, and make this company sorry for the additional pain and suffering they have caused me, and thousands of others for only one reason, greed. In addition to Access America, I have also located the CEO's name and phone number of Orbitz, and forwarded a letter to them as well. His name is Barney Harford in Chicago, Illinois. Any company of that size, that chooses to align themselves with a company, such as Access America, should have to answer to its loyal customer base, and step in and help resolve these issues. As far as I am concerned, this starts with Access America, but does not necessarily stop there.

The economic damage is $951.96. The physical/psychological damage is that I am already having a lot of issues finding my mom dead, and for this company to put me through this, make me get a coroner's report (which was very hard for me to read) etc, caused me additional mental stress. Someone needs to regulate this company. This is very unethical. I worked in the medical field as an operating scrub nurse, and office assistant for my husband for years (he is a physician/surgeon), so I dealt with insurance companies on a daily basis, and I am familiar with how they work, but this is the most unscrupulous company I have ever had an experience with.

When I spoke to an agent she informed me that we needed a doctor's statement and that because our family members had "pre-existing" conditions, we were really not entitled to refunds. I did not trouble the various Doctors with the paperwork as it is apparent to me that this company has no intention of accepting the claim. Coincidentally, my deceased brother's wife had the same experience with Access America. The insurance and airfare cost over $1,000. Thankfully the hotel gave us credit towards a future stay.There was absolutely no point in buying insurance from Access America. They will not honor a claim for death unless it is totally accidental. But I am not certain of that.

I filed a claim for the taxi ride since my trip was interrupted and this was an expense I had not expected. Not only did AccessAmerica not reimburse me for this cost, they didn't even bother to tell me they were denying my claim. Finally I called them and the rep said my insurance didn't kick in until my trip commenced. But I had to cancel the trip because of the above circumstances, so what in the world is the trip insurance for? From others' comments I can see that nothing can be done, but this company does not deserve to be in this business and I am stating my complaint wherever possible so that hopefully others can see it before they are cheated, as I feel I was. Not only did I lose the $300 they charged me for the trip insurance but it cost me $100 to get home in the taxi, so I'm actually out $400.

Our family had planned a trip to Hawaii during my son's spring vacation in April of this year. We purchased what we thought was appropriate travel insurance from Access America in the event of an occurrence requiring cancellation. At the time of purchase, my father, diagnosed with lung cancer, was undergoing treatment and in fact doing quite well. He had planned to visit us in March just prior to our leaving for Hawaii. However, his cancer took a turn for the worse and the cancer ceased to respond to chemotherapy. He was recommended to initiate daily radiation therapy over several weeks, thus not allowing him to visit us. Because of his worsening condition, we canceled our trip and are instead spending spring recess with him at his home.

We supplied Access America with the reason for cancellation and the appropriate documentation from his Oncology physician that my father is dying. I am still astounded at your refusal to honor this policy. The reason given was that my father had a pre-existing condition. Just as millions of Americans have a history of hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, dyslipidemia, asthma, the list could go on, hopefully I have made the point. Any one of these conditions could result in a complication requiring a change in their health therapy. Thus, those cases should be honored, as should ours.

I am certain, and believe you will agree, if this unfortunate case of a eldest son and grandson wishing to change their travel plans to spend their vacation time visiting family is reviewed by a non-biased arbitrator. Well, the outcome is obvious.

5. I was confused on what kicked in, if we needed medical care. We have insurance, so was our company, which was primary insurer in the AA policy that's supposed to come through, or would AA?

I had so many notes that I was getting annoyed, so I stopped reading and googled AA to look for complaints. I immediately found this excellent site. So due to you, I cancelled my AA policy immediately. If I don't get refunded properly, at least I know now exactly where to complain. That's for sure!

But anyway, I still think that--at least with foreign travel--maybe, it's a good idea to get medical emergency insurance, medical evacuation insurance, if you're not in a first-world country, and if the trip is expensive. Also, trip interruption/cancellation insurance. So I picked out a new company, checked it on the internet to see if it had many complaints, which it didn't, and bought that.

Now I just need to read it thoroughly, so that if I don't like it, I can cancel that one too. I do want to say I am certainly not writing this to be condescending, so I hope no one is offended at my suggestions. I'm writing it, because I'm amazed I followed through and found a bad product. That was not like me to actually read anything!

I cannot say how sorry I was at some of your stories. I hope there is a stronger method by which to regulate Access America's practices. Or at least to make them totally rewrite their language. Good luck with your issues, and I hope you get a just and speedy resolution!

"I think it is time for you to stop and think of the lives you are playing with. My wife and I were booked on a Holland America Cruise to Hawaii. We planned to celebrate our 62nd wedding anniversary and our 82nd and 84th birthdays. We had saved for this trip for an entire year. We are on very limited income, only that of our Social Security. We have minimal savings thus necessitating the need for one year to save.

"And so, we left for the airport on that fateful morning when, within minutes of our arrival, we discovered all flights out of Fort Lauderdale to come into Las Vegas and connect to San Diego were cancelled for the entire day. And, to further complicate matters, all flights from Ontario,CA; Phoenix, AZ were cancelled for the entire day. Southwest Airlines were able to book us onto a flight into Los Angeles, but that flight was delayed and did not go out until 10 p.m., which of course would never have been able to connect us with our cruise.

"Naively, although my wife was suffering from severe stress-related discomfort, I was sure we would be all right because we had purchased travel insurance from you. Our travel agent called us while we were still at the gate hoping to depart to Los Angeles to tell us there was no way we would be able to make the cruise but assured us we did have insurance.

"It was not until today that we learned that you have a safety net so as not to be responsible for too much. All that you have to pay us is $500 each for trip interruption claim. Your safety net, in rather small letters? Airport must be closed for 24 hours before any payment! Really! When is an airport ever closed for 24 hours? Ridiculous!

"How you could have denied this claim is unbelievable. The weather storms were violent to say the least. What did you expect us to do? We could not rent a car and drive in the 405 Freeway leading into the San Diego airport was closed due to flooding. All freeways and roads in southern California were flooded. There was no way to get to the San Diego airport before the ship left. "Only one additional comment. I hope travel agents will discontinue writing travel insurance from Access America."

By November, the H1N1 flu was virulent, and we were unable to receive the H1N1 vaccine, as it was not available yet, due to shortages. My mother's oncologist forbade her to travel out of the country, and we all canceled our trips. I filed a claim with Access America, and my mother's oncologist filled out the required Physician Statement Form. After 2 months of waiting, they denied my claim, stating that my mother's condition was pre-existing. Yes, she has had leukemia for 14 years, but she was in remission. Are people with cancer not supposed to travel? Access America is a fraud.

Every time I would e-mail them, it would take 2-3 weeks just to receive a brief response that never even addressed the questions I was asking. The funny part of this story is, that my extended family did not purchase travel insurance. They appealed their situation to Delta Airline, and all received a full refunds on their non-refundable tickets within 2 weeks of canceling their flights. I think this says a lot about Delta, and I have now appealed our case to them, hoping we too will be reimbursed. Access America knew about this, and still denied our claim. Access America should be put out of business and should be ashamed of their fraudulent practices!

I did not bother to read the entire 26-page policy explanation of the policy that preexisting conditions were not covered. Granted it was in bold and under disclaimers, but that disclaimer did not come with the statement that death or illness would be covered. It came at another place. Frankly, I usually do not take the time to read 26 page policy explanations; I trusted that I would have been told in the initial policy explanation.

This is a lesson to be learned that there is the possibility that companies can be misleading in order to get more people to buy their insurance. It would not have made sense to me to buy this insurance if this were not the case. Secondly, I would have looked into buying a refundable ticket if possible. It so happened that about a month or so after purchasing my ticket, my mother's health declined from cooking and getting around to her cancer growing and us calling hospice and the hospice doctor stating that she had 2 weeks to a month to live.

My flight was just one month away, so I called Access America right away telling them the situation. I asked them if it would be better for me to call the airline and cancel my ticket instead of waiting it out and they suggested I cancel my ticket which I did (ticket was non-refundable). They sent me the forms to have her doctors fill out and gave me the impression it would be an easy operation and gave their sympathy. I gave the forms to hospice and sent them to Access America.

It took them a while to get back and they told me that the doctor did not fill out one of the forms. At that point, my mother died December 10th, on the day before my flight. I emailed them the obituary and asked if this would do since it would be a hassle for me to get back to two doctors and also told them it was the hospice doctor that did the forms and he just did an evaluation based on symptoms and probably from what her other doctor said. Furthermore, it would have been hard for me to contact the oncologists being that they are very busy and I thought it was unnecessary seeing that she died.

I got no response from my email, so I ended up calling them a week later. The initial person at Access America was kind and told me to hold on so I could speak to the person that handles claims. When I talked to her, it was like talking to a stone wall and here is when I first heard about preexisting conditions. My dad called after that and they told him that I should have the doctor fill out the form. I was starting to smell fish here, so I googled them and found many complaints that sounded a lot like mine plus more. After reading these complaints, I could see that getting the doctor to fill out the form would be just a waste of energy and Access America stating that "the disease was a preexisting condition."

Surprisingly, they had a clean bill of health from the BBB. When a person's loved one dies, many times like in my case, we do not have the energy to fight things like this. I wanted to put this in writing in hopes of the following: a. that Access America would possibly reimburse me and also consider that I called and canceled my plane a month ahead with their blessing (I could have gave the ticket to a friend or tried to sell it.) Additionally, I would like Access America to make their policy clear from the start, to have them change the wording on their policy to be clearer, when they state they cover illness and death of relations to put that they do not cover preexisting conditions in that same place not later, b. I will send this letter and attachments of other complaints and of policy to the BBB in hopes that people who call will be more cautioned.

I will send this with attachments to Michelle B. Chief, Fraud Division, Ohio Department of Insurance, Stella Court, Columbus OH 43215-1067. Lt. Verlan H., Jr. Coordinator, Insurance Fraud Program, Virginia State Police, P.O. Box Richmond VA 23261-7472. I will email Howard A's channel 12 trouble shooters with letter and attachments. I will also send this to Delta. I am a student with very little money. It cost over $300.00

Now that it's time to take the trip, our daughter's passport will not make it here in time and we needed to cancel or change the dates. Easy enough, right? After all, we purchased convenience insurance from Delta with this ticket (so we thought). Seven frustrating phone calls later, we find out that the insurance policy is held by Access America who, of course, emailed us a list of "Special Conditions" which basically makes our "worry free convenience insurance" a piece of garbage. They will not reimburse us the cost of the tickets, nor will they change our dates (unless someone dies basically) and Delta wants to charge us $588 to change our flights.I am so incredibly disappointed and frustrated with this. This has ruined our vacation and I will lose $661.

Access America uses false advertising to sell their garbage insurance policies which they later on make impossible to use. I am disgusted that they would do this to us. They probably get away with this on a daily basis and make millions of dollars scamming Americans. We are basically out $661 and our family vacation is ruined and will have to wait till next year for us to be able to save up money to buy plane tickets again.

After numerous telephone conversations and completed forms, including a physician's letter, we were denied any coverage for delay or cancellation of our flights to Greece ($5500). We were not asking for reimbursement of airfare because we knew we would reschedule our cruise. We did not request refund for cruise or hotel deposits. After four appeals, we gave up and agreed to never purchase travel insurance with Access America again. We contacted the travel agencies that had recommended this agency before (American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons, AARP). We are working with US Air at this time to help us reschedule our flights to Greece in June with as little financial penalty as possible.

The trip protection insurance is misleading in its wording (and location of the wording) and to file arbitration costs more than the ticket prices, with the consumer stuck with the tab if you lose the arbitration. Stay far, far away from this company until they amend their policies and show more active concern for consumers that put their trust in them when purchasing a policy. Moreover, I will not be using Orbitz again until they provide more than one company option for travel insurance.

They looked for my policy but couldn't find it for some reason, kept me on the line for half an hour while they looked, and gave me no advice as to what to do. Then my cell phone died! We flew to ATL to try to catch a flight from there to FLL so we could still catch the cruise. We got to ATL, but due to fog, weather again, the flight that would have gotten us to FLL for the cruise (just barely) was delayed and would not arrive in time to get to the ship.

I called Access America again and told them what had happened. Of course, I got another rep who also looked for my policy but couldn't find it! She gave me no advice of what we should do either. We finally got on a Delta flight and few back to MSP, where we had started. Delta was great. We have no complaints with them. Then I filed a claim the next day, they still couldn't find my policy, and I faxed in all the info they wanted. I called the next day to see if they received everything, they had but said they were denying the claim because our flight had not been delayed over 3 hours, which is in their policy!

I don't know what difference that makes. If you miss your flight and can't get to your cruise, you can't do the cruise! What airline (domestic) anymore has a 3-hour layover before your next flight? I had originally booked a direct flight from MSP to FLL but because of all the schedule changes from Delta since they joined with NWA, they cancelled that direct flight and put us on a flight with a connection! Just keep in mind, first of all, never purchase this insurance. They find every way that they can to not pay anyone! Secondly, if you have already purchased it for a trip, read all the fine print! The Better Business Bureau should put them out of business.

However, unlike many here that that have given up in frustration, we will win this war of attrition if it takes an act of congress or a class action lawsuit! We are even considering creating a stand-alone web page designed to bring to the attention of insurance regulators the unscrupulous practices utilized by this company. This should have been a cut and dry case, but instead, it has now turned into quest for justice. I'm really mad and getting angrier by the day!

If this claim is not resolved quickly by Access America, we are going to repost an e-mail address here and on other sites to rally the troops, collect interested parties info, and set into motion a class action lawsuit that will make Access America wished it had never insulted the memory of our loving grandmother by insisting we provide them with more than adequate proof of her “natural” and untimely death. We are out more than $2,500 for the tickets we purchased to attend the Chicago wedding and could not use. Furthermore, we had to buy tickets for the entire family to attend our grandmother's funeral!

Fax # 4 states that I have indeed worked for the company that owns several buildings and that I have worked for said company for 4+ years but only at my last position for 1 year.

I'm still awaiting a response. Whose business is it how long I have worked for what company? The point is that I paid for the ticket and paid for the insurance. It should not matter where and for how long I have worked. What if this would have been a gift from someone, would their employment record have been in question? I will never utilize this again. It is a scam, plain and simple. Continental Airlines has apologized to me and now is looking into assisting me, not that I think it will go anywhere, but it was the least they could do.

First, they denied coverage due to the fact that our travel agent had not insured the full amount of the cruise. However, the travel agent argued that he had insured us for everything that may have been non-refundable, but didn't insure us for what was refundable. Access America did agree with that, but then denied coverage since this was an "existing condition". The reason they are denying coverage is that they are saying that when we took out the insurance, her eventual dying could have been reasonably foreseen or expected when I purchased the plan. They are stating this due to the fact that she was diagnosed one day before we took out coverage.

At that time, however, she was a very thriving person and she/we had no expectation that she wouldn't lick the cancer. The doctor that signed the physician's statement, which was supplied by Access America as part of the claim, dated his statement 40 days after she was diagnosed and at that time, yes, she was terminal. There was no way that we could have "reasonably foreseen or expected" her condition to be so grave and severe at the time we purchased the policy. Any prudent person, given our circumstances, would have also taken out the insurance relying on the fact that if anything did get worse with her condition, the insurance would protect us.

How is this any different than a person who has a heart condition, takes out the insurance just to be safe, and then has a heart attack before they cruise? Is that any more "foreseeable or expected" than my situation? I feel that Access America is finding any excuse not to pay since they have been denying for various bogus reasons. They now want me to supply medical records, and although I am doing my best to get that for them, I have my doubts that that will make any difference to them.

I will register a complaint with the attorney general's office and Better Business Bureau. If my husband got sick the morning of the flight, they would have called it a pre-existing condition. I'd like to get an attorney in on this. These people are not honest.

They declined my reimbursement. They proceeded to tell me that my wife should have flown because a recommendation by her doctor is not good enough to go through with the claim. I argued with them until I was blue in the face. I feel that they do not expect people to follow through with all of the paperwork that is given to the insured. When somebody does fill out everything, they find a hole where they can rip you off.

I am very upset. Times are rough right now and for me to pay for a plane ticket that nobody used really bothers me. They seemed very apathetic about the whole situation. Their final conclusion was that my wife was still having a normal pregnancy even though the doctor recommended her not to fly. I feel their insurance plan is extremely inaccurate, deceiving and unjustified.

This form looks completely unrelated to a third-party death. Surely, death is a cause in itself and how can anyone say with certainty what the exact cause of death is for an 80-year-old man? I know he contracted one of those hospital superbugs in the last weeks. At a difficult time and being so far away with travel bills now to pay, this response is completely unacceptable and heartless. Even the fine print is talking about illness and hospitalization and does not link the claim for sudden death clause to any exclusion. I am deeply unhappy.

Well, I received notice from the ship that the 3 ships that were hauling the Marines my son was with, had been quarantined with flu-like symptoms, that they had to cancel the "Tiger Cruise" due to the quarantine of the ships. I have a letter from the ship's commander stating such. I let the airline know and the insurance company, Access America, know and filed a claim - they denied the claim for the following reason: "As your insuring agreement indicated, this is a named perils travel insurance program, which means it covers only the specific situations, events and losses included in this document, and only under the conditions we describe. Unfortunately, the cancellation of your cruise on board the USS Boxer due to an outbreak of flu on board the ship is not included among those reasons."

In the policy which I have a copy of that I printed off, it covers illness of traveling companion - every member of the military that was on the USS Boxer was going to be my traveling companion and it also covers quarantine. I have a letter from the commander of the ship being quarantined! So, why wasn't this covered? What about supporting the Military? Why am I seeing so many complaints about this company and nothing is being done about it? Why is this company still in business? Has a class action suit been filed? If not, how do I do it? With money being so hard to come by, people can't afford to be scammed this way by companies like this. What about all the other families of the Military that lost out on their airlines tickets being refunded by this company because of the ship being quarantined?

I called Access America Travel to inform them of the change. Then they informed me that the change was not covered due to the reason I was not the military member. None of this was explained at the time of purchase. It would appear we fell for the bait and switch. They gave me an option to refund my purchase of the insurance of $65. This insurance isn't worth the paper it's written on.

Since my mother's cause of death was listed as Alzheimer's, Access America contends that this falls outside the coverage of the policy. I talked with two Access America employees who said that while death is covered, some causes of death are excluded. Why should travel protection insurance exclude certain causes of death? Of what use is travel protection insurance if certain causes of death can be excluded? It is clear that they exist solely to deny claims and make money. Someone ought to file a class action lawsuit against Access America on behalf of all who have been misled by this company.

It made it sound so good. I don't know about you, but these terms and conditions use so much garbage that you can't understand. We thought we were covered under "cancellation". It turns out that neither Oribitz.com or Access America cared about our health, safety or our lives because of the H1N1 (Swine flu). Granted our trip was not until August 2, 2009 but who knows what will happen then? And then there were all of these advisories to not travel to Mexico because of the drug war and now the flu. Neither Orbitz nor Access America cared. Access America kept reading the script that unless it was a medical emergency (with doctor's note) and death in the family, fear of flying was not covered.

Hello?! I'm not afraid to fly. I'm afraid of dying from the flu! Orbitz said they could cancel our flight and refund the hotel b/c that has not been charged yet. We would get back a total for the 2 of us $309.96 minus the $25 cancellation fee from the hotel. We paid $978.68. So we each would lose $346.86 or a total of $693.72 down the drain. I am so upset beyond words. We even offered to reschedule at a much later date. We, of course, would pay the current air fare, plus $50 agency rebooking fee. In other words, we'd be out more money. Never use Orbitz or Access America Travel Insurance.

Well, I got my daughter to call Access America to double check (I couldn't call because Access America doesn't accept collect calls from Belize) and they told her "no problem". I booked the flights & got my daughter to cancel the rebooking. I also went to Access America's website & initiated a travel claim. The net cost to us for the flight changes totaled US$536 but Access America is refusing to pay. In the fine print of their insurance policy under cancellations due to weather, it states "Your airline, cruise line, or tour operator or travel supplier stops offering all services for at least 24 consecutive hours where you're departing, arriving or making a connection..."

So it does not matter that Air Canada couldn't fly between Victoria & Vancouver for 2 days or they couldn't get us replacement flights until 5 days later, as long as they could make one flight to Timbuktu, we aren't getting reimbursed.

Access America rejected the claim because they said she had been diagnosed before the cruise had been paid for in full. Not true! Anyway, AAA refunded half the cost and Disney gave us a voucher toward a future cruise which made up the other half. My point is, do not insure anything with Access America. You'll get run around to death as they search for some kind of loophole to deny your claim.

With all the abuse in our nation of the consumer, you would think there would be protection from those who falsely advertise and continually take advantage of consumers. All those who steal your money are not under arrest in this country. Many are allowed to continue to operate businesses even though many complaints have been filed. Why would that be, I wonder? Where are our legislators regarding this? Who really protects the consumer?

My girlfriend and I purchased a vacation trip to New Orleans scheduled for September 2-6, 2008. We bought the trip from Book It.com. The package included round-trip air and 4 nights in a hotel. Also, we purchased travel insurance from Book It with their insurance partner Access America.

Hurricane Gustav hit New Orleans during the time we were to be on vacation. We wisely canceled our trip through Book It and filed a claim with Access America since weather related emergencies are covered.

Now comes the scam: Access America is denying our claim. I contacted the claims agent thinking this was some sort of mistake. However; since our specific flight was not canceled they are still refusing the claim. Even though they acknowledge that the city was under evacuation, and that it was wise for us not to go into danger they won't pay our claim because our specific flight was not canceled.

I pointed out that evacuation orders were in effect for tourist on September 2 and we would have flown into New Orleans and had to immediately get on an evacuation bus to Memphis or Houston. Their response was pretty much tough.

The amount is not that much ($311 each) it is a matter of principal that I'm bringing this to your attention. It is obvious that the travel agency and the insurance company are in cahoots on this scam. They are bundling the insurance into the travel packages with no intent on ever paying a claim.

The policy covers weather emergencies, but they are using fine print to avoid meeting their common-sense responsibilities

My wife called the insurance company, and was told this was a covered loss. She cancelled the travel and went to spend his last days with her father. He died. We submitted the claims to the insurance company, and they rejected the claim because of pre-existing condition, stating that my wife's father had the illness he died from before (he died of complications from cancer, specifically from lungs failure). But he never had end of life issues before (i.e., he never died before), so this condition of end of life never existed before.

Furthermore, death of an immediate family member is a covered loss, and even though we provided a death certificate, and documented the death with a physician's statement, the insurance company does not even respond to our inquiry as to why they are not paying on death of immediate family member. I am a qualified actuary, and have worked for a long time with the insurance industry. Fraudulent operations such as this one, pretending to be legitimate insurance companies, should not be allowed to exist.

Loss of $7200.

The advertising on US Airways makes it appear that this service is very flexible for a traveler. In fact, it is valueless. I asked US Airways to get involved and they refused. Access America actually sent me a letter that refused my claim because Your insuring agreement provides coverage if Your Family or friends (outside the United States) cant accommodate you as planned because someone in the household has (died) or (been diagnosed with a serious illness or injury?. What a ridiculous statement. I booked this trip to Kentucky on US Airways, why would my family or friends outside of the US need to accommodate me?

I am out $342.50.

The week before, my mother and I spoke to his doctor who said he expected my Dad to come home over the holidays. My father could have lived another 3 months for all we knew. We had no way of knowing he was going to pass that particular night. Only God knew how long he had. The denial of my claim was based on the the fact that my father had been sick before he died. The insurance company said it was a pre-existing condition. Every single person who is hospitalized has some sort of pre-existing condition to death. They may die that particular day or week, or they may not. Who exactly decides within the insurance companies what is and what is not a pre-existing condition.

It seems to me this is just a very general term they can use to deny claims on a regular basis. This is a very unfair practice by Access America and other insurance companies.

The whole insurance industry is a scam. It runs like a legalized gambling ring. You pay them and when it's time for them to pay you, it's a crap shoot. Actually the odds of getting anything out of them are a lot less. The appeal process is a joke. The consumer is at the mercy of someone employed by the very insurance company that is denying your claim. This has got to stop. Our government has got to start looking into the insurance companies much like they are at the credit card companies. The practices are unfair and misleading.

I've read about Access America and was forwarned not to do business with them. But, being the trusting consumer I am, I went ahead and paid my premium anyway. Here I am with a dad who died sooner than expected and a $360 claim that the insurance company will not pay based on an illness preexisting death. That actually sounds kind of funny when you read it back.... an illness preexiting death. Yes, a pre-existing condition usually does precede death unless, of course, a person gets run down by a truck, or falls out a window.