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Trip Mate Insurance Reviews

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About Trip Mate Insurance

Trip Mate provides travel insurance services for individuals and travel companies. Specializing in trip cancellation, emergency assistance and medical services, the company offers customized policies. Trip Mate brings together comprehensive support and claims handling to make sure that travelers are protected during their journeys.

Visit www.tripmate.com
Pros
  • Quick claims processing
  • Clear communication during claims
Cons
  • Frequent claim denials
  • Poor customer service interactions
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Trip Mate Insurance Reviews

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    How do I know I can trust these reviews about Trip Mate Insurance?
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    Page 7 Reviews 680 - 830

    Reviewed Feb. 18, 2015

    Trip on winstar was interrupted but cruise line paid half but trip mate paid nothing. I would never recommend trip mate insurance.

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    Carol increased rating by 2 stars.
    After a positive interaction with Trip Mate Insurance, Carol increased their star rating on March 20, 2015.

    Updated review: March 20, 2015

    After numerous rounds of paperwork, Trip Mate issued a message saying they will reimburse me for the $25 fee charged by domestic airlines to take a later flight due to weather delays from Ecuador to L.A. I am satisfied enough with the final reimbursement; the best feedback I can give is that insurance providers should not be allowed to put us through so many hoops to get reimbursement in such a minor amount.

    I have had to copy and mail and to scan and to Email repeatedly numerous documents to obtain a total of $40, from a one-week premium of $104. What is our time worth? Apparently, to many insurance companies, nothing.

    Original Review: Feb. 15, 2015

    I purchased coverage for 10 days while I went to Galapagos. The flight back was delayed for several hours, due to weather we were informed. I missed ALL connections, and had to sleep overnight at the airport and check in for a flight at 4:30 a.m. My final leg was L.A. to Seattle/Bellingham. I missed this and had to pay for the reissue to the next flight out. After making me send a lot of paperwork in, Trip Mate denied the plane ticket fee of $25. They want YOUR money, but don't really want to pay the claims as they arise. My reimbursement was $15.01 for a few cups of coffee and some snacks in the 3 different airports.

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    Reviewed Feb. 5, 2015

    We are elderly travelers who assumed that ill health would be adequate reason to cancel a trip four months before scheduled departure. We submitted a 5 page claim form to TripMate requesting reimbursement of airfare deposit, including a doctor's signature indicating an ongoing health condition. TripMate refused to issue a refund.

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    Customer ServiceContract & TermsPunctuality & Speed

    Reviewed Feb. 2, 2015

    Booked flight for 5 people for a wedding. Purchased Cancel for Any Reason Insurance. Wedding cancelled less than 2 weeks later. Immediately filed completed paperwork and claim. Then began the phone calls, the delays, the phone calls, the delays...on and on. Finally threatened BBB and they got the check out about 2 weeks later. Paperwork on contract states 14 days, took 3 months with a threat. Paid 75%. NEVER AGAIN. I typically don't write reviews, no time, but this one had to be written to warn others.

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    Customer ServicePrice

    Reviewed Jan. 24, 2015

    Viking Cruise line sold us expensive insurance policy before trip to Europe. This company is the only one they use, so no choice. We missed a connecting flight in Paris due to NYC weather conditions and tight connection times. We were delayed 5 hours and I ended up making many international phone calls. I filed a claim right away even before we left Europe. All the documentation was sent out and received after Christmas. I have called 3 times to ask the status of the claim and feel as if I am getting the runaround by them. It was supposed to have been done and now they are telling me "next week." How long does it take to "review?"

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    PricePunctuality & SpeedStaff

    Reviewed Dec. 18, 2014

    On September 29, 2014 I was run down by a car that backed up into me in Savoca, Sicily and thrust me, face-forward, onto the pavement. My 2 left center teeth went through my bottom lip and were chipped and pushed inward. Other than that, my knee and right arm were badly bashed and bruised. The driver of the car that hit me took me and my tour director (and translator; no one spoke English) to the hospital in Taormina, but their x-ray machine was broken. So the driver, who could not have been more remorseful, drove us to the hospital in Messina. There we waited in the emergency room for more than 5 hours to be seen by a doctor. The very nice driver waited the entire time.

    When I was finally seen, x-rayed and CT scanned, the doctor asked me (through my tour director) what hurt. I said, "My teeth! " He replied in astonishment, "What do you care? They're not yours. No one 79 year of age still has their own teeth." "Yes," I replied, "they are definitely mine, and I hope to keep them." At which, he spent the next 10 minutes oohing and aahing looking at my teeth. Apparently no one in Sicily has their own teeth past the age of 50.

    Anyway, it took more than 3 weeks for my teeth to return to position, and I saw my own dentist the very next day I returned home. He patched the chipped teeth, for $405 and advised me that it would take time to learn whether the affected teeth would survive the accident. Well, one tooth died and I have had to have a root canal. Not fun and costly at $850. And Trip Mate has refused reimbursement, BECAUSE I DID NOT HAVE TREATMENT IN SICILY! Which would not only have been premature, but would you go to a dentist in Sicily?

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    CoverageStaff

    Reviewed Dec. 2, 2014

    People write bad reviews because there are so many bad companies out there who will try to walk on its customers and clients and generally give cooperate America an Ugly name. I am sharing my experience with TripMate because they are one of the most garbage filled manipulating companies I have ever done business with. This past May I planned a vacation to the Bahamas with a lady friend. When I booked the trip, the agent offered to place insurance on the trip. My travel friend turned out to be bipolar and off meds. I decided that this trip was not in my best interest and notified my agent who in turn notified TripMate. It is my closest experience with a third world company since serving in the military.

    Tripmate requested an avalanche of documents almost one at a time. TripMate strung this along for months. The most important document requested being proof of trip payment. When it was all said and done I supplied them with credit card statements and weeks later received a voucher for 1/2 the cost of the trip. The other half was issued to the non-paying bipolar psycho. WRONG. I did not insure the people, I insured the trip. TripMate is a bad choice to insure any trip. It is a third party insurance company that leeches off the backs of legitimate travel agents and travel companies. Their job is to string along clients and weasel out of paying as much as possible. There must be a better option than TripMate. We will certainly never use TripMate for any of my travel insurance needs. I truly regret ever having done business with this low class misleading company. They are at best a bad life experience and a hard lesson learned. STAY AWAY FROM TRIPMATE.

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    Customer Service

    Reviewed Dec. 1, 2014

    Booked a trip in April 2014 to Atlantis for 4 people. In September 2014 my son was told that he needed surgery probably in December 2014 when the the trip was scheduled. He got doctor's notes and we filed a claim in October but I had to call several times for it to be reviewed. It took about one month for a review after someone expedited the claim. He actually had surgery on November 26 and would be recuperating in December. I called on November 26 at about 10 am and was told that a supervisor would get back to me in 24-48 hours but that the office was closed for Thanksgiving on Thursday and Friday. It is now Monday and still no supervisor. And I was told that they did not have a doctor's note which they did explaining the need for surgery.

    No one wants to cancel a vacation because of the need for surgery. We paid $100 per person for this insurance. Who needs this aggravation on top of medical problems? Shame on this insurance company. The accreditation to act as an insurance company should be reviewed by the insurance board. Look at all of the complaints against Tripmate.

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    Sales & Marketing

    Reviewed Nov. 25, 2014

    TripMate is a scam. They just keep telling me that the check is in the mail. They never mailed it. They are just stalling the payment. "It has been mailed." They want me to wait now 30 days before rewriting a new check. I will never use this company in the future.

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    Customer ServiceStaff

    Reviewed Nov. 13, 2014

    I paid for a trip to Italy in July 2014 through Globus who uses Tripmate for their insurer. I had had two knee surgeries and was concerned that my knee was not going to be healed by the trip which was to depart in September. I went in to the Globus office in Littleton, CO and talked with the travel agent in person. I mentioned my concern and she suggested that I purchase travel insurance so that I could get a refund if necessary. I ended up having to cancel because my knee was not healing. I had to have another surgery, this time on my foot because I was walking crooked and thus the reason for my knee not healing.

    I had both my surgeon who performed both knee surgeries and the physician overseeing my physical therapy fill out the Attending Physicians Statement and was told that wasn't good enough and that my claim was being rejected and was given a travel voucher. Tomorrow, 11-13-14, I am having my surgeon who performed my foot surgery fill out the APS. I will be faxing this to Tripmate. They have sent me a travel voucher but I want my cash that I paid in good faith to this company. The travel voucher is only good at Globus or one of its affiliates. Makes me wonder if the two companies aren't in cahoots together. Hmmm, I say something smells. I am going to report this company to the Insurance Board in Missouri and I will be checking what other avenues I have to take if I do not get a cash refund.

    I feel that three surgeries in less than one year is more than enough reason to obtain a full refund for having to cancel my trip. I feel very deceived by the travel agent that signed me up for this trip as well as Tripmate. Very deceptive practices and very poor customer service. I paid by check the full amount for the trip at the time I went into the office of Globus on July 25, 2014. Sylvia was my travel agent and I felt she should have been more informed and let me know that by purchasing trip insurance I would not necessarily receive my cash, but that was not the case. I was told to purchase the insurance in case my knee wasn't healed by trip time so that I could get a refund. I will let you know how this turns out. I noticed that this has a square asking whether I want an attorney to contact me about my complaint. Only if Tripmate has to pay!

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    Punctuality & Speed

    Reviewed Nov. 11, 2014

    I always travel once a year to Europe and I purchase insurance. This year me, my son and my friend all had insurance through TripMate. We missed our connection in ZURICH because there was fog so our airline came in late. We had to stay in a hotel overnight, buy food and some toiletries. Pretty simple and closed case. But no, TripMate first they told me they need 15 days, after 15 days they still never looked at the claim. Now they say they are looking at it but they have to verify if my airplane came in late. I told I faxed them the proof from the airline. Meanwhile 6 weeks and nothing happening. If I don't get a response soon I will report them to the state insurance board. And will have to take them to small claims court.

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    Reviewed Nov. 5, 2014

    My mom had planned a trip to Israel with a friend. A month after paying her deposit, her speech was slurring, we thought she had a mini stroke. It took doctors time to figure out what was wrong - my mom was diagnosed with ALS. Mom wrote letters & Trip Mate denied her appeal. They told us they needed the money for research. We sent medical records as asked. Trip Mate also said she had pre existing condition - all lies. I wish they would do the right thing and also give her friends money back, which is also $800.00. I think I will get the ALS Association on this as well. Trip Mate needs to do the right thing. My mom could use this to pay her medical bills. Please any help would be appreciated!

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    Reviewed Oct. 24, 2014

    M.H. Ross Travel Insurance. I have had the WORST experience with this company. In all of my years cruising, we always purchase travel insurance. I have never had to file a claim - until now. I filed a claim for $1,500. That's it - just $1,500, and it has been a nightmare. It's been 10 weeks now, and this company still has not paid the claim. I am ready to file a complaint with the state insurance commissioner over this. Save yourself a headache, and do not use this company.

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    Customer Service

    Reviewed Oct. 24, 2014

    Terrible experience with Travmark insurance from **. I strongly recommend not using this company. I had purchased a "cancel for any reason" rider to the Travmark A+ program. I filed a claim on July 11, 2014 for a cancelled trip and did not hear about a decision until October 23, 2014, despite multiple calls and even expediting my concerns. After expediting, I was not notified of a decision until 6 days after being promised a decision within 48 hours. As if that was not bad enough, I was told that I was going to be reimbursed $4500 for trip cancellation. The next day they called me back and told me they made a mistake and I was going to get nothing. I am not sure what kind of operation this business is running, but it is unprofessional and I hope potential clients and tour operators, including camps, are aware of this.

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    Contract & TermsCoverage

    Reviewed Oct. 14, 2014

    I received a serious injury to my leg on the trip in which we had purchased this insurance as protection. However even though my accident happened during the trip and received stitches for a serious wound during the trip, my problem was that shortly after my leg became infected. Given the trip length by the time I returned home I had a very serious MRSA staph infection and needed for the wound to be opened and had to have weekly treatments, including 2 $6000 skin grafts. The doctors determined that the infection was due to poor medical conditions under which I was first treated. I started treatments the day we returned to the US because of the timing of returning home and the poor medical conditions that existed in South America.

    Even though my private insurance has covered almost 90% of my $20,000 + medical bills, TripMate refuses to pay my out of pocket expenses of $2000+. I have sent 4 appeal letters and now I am on my 5th claim appeal and have received 3 letters from the Exec Vice President saying that my coverage ended on the last day of the trip. I have had 2 specialized attorneys in the insurance field read their policy and both indicated the policy does state that the injury "had to occur during the trip" which it did. I am not done fighting this injustice and breach of contract. I would recommend highly that no one else purchases this insurance for any travel. To purchase the policy for me and my husband the cost was close to $1800.

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    Reviewed Oct. 5, 2014

    I bought Cancel For Any Reason coverage from Tripmate on the recommendation of Pleasant Holidays, whose Hawaiian travel package I bought. My young grandson's subsequent illness made it impossible for our family to take this trip, so I called Pleasant Holidays and Tripmate to cancel. Pleasant Holidays refunded their portion of the trip cost promptly and with no delays, but I am in month four of delays and excuses with Tripmate, even though their own website substantiate that they have all the paperwork they need to process the claim. I will be filing a bad faith lawsuit against Tripmate if this claim is not paid in full by the end of October. Anyone wishing to join in this suit as a class action should feel welcome to contact me at **.

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    Customer ServicePricePunctuality & SpeedOnline & App

    Reviewed Sept. 25, 2014

    I just got off the with phone the customer service supervisor for Tripmate. My companion and I went to Paris in August and of course the airline lost our luggage. I was fortunate enough, if you can say that, to receive my baggage 2 days later while my companion did not receive his until we returned home 7 days later. Of course during those days without luggage we purchased clothes (inexpensive). All of the documentation (i.e., receipts, credit card statements, airline claim paperwork) was submitted to Tripmate to substantiate our claim. After waiting for 30 days and not hearing from Tripmate I checked their website only to find my claim was still being processed.

    Eventually I called Tripmate to find out what was holding up my claim. I was told that I needed additional documentation "proving when my luggage was received." I was told and I quote, "We are working on your behalf to get this information from the airline but your claim will not be processed until we get this information." At this point I am angry because we are going into the 8 weeks of processing time and I feel like I'm getting the runaround. If they would've stated that they needed this documentation, I would've made sure to get this information when my baggage arrived. Tripmate is unprofessional, unresponsive and fail to meet the minimum standard of adequate customer service.

    After going back and forth with the supervisor, I requested to speak to her boss. I was told there was no one else and if I did find someone, they would state the same thing. That's why I got on the web to find out if there were other complaints regarding Tripmate and I see there are. I only wish I would have found out prior to purchasing the Tripmate insurance. If Tripmate thinks that I will be worn down and let this go they are sadly mistaken. I have no problem getting on a letter writing campaign and reporting them to the Better Business Bureau. I will make sure that travelers are well aware of the business practices of Tripmate so that they can be informed consumers. This was the first and last time that I will use TripMate.

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    Coverage

    Reviewed Sept. 12, 2014

    TripMate insurance was purchased for a trip to Greece and Turkey. My wife got sick and was treated in Greece with all medical bills documented in Greek. Tripmate will not cover the costs because it will not provide translation. Medicare will not cover out of the USA. Secondary coverage will not accept claim because it is in Greek. This company fraudulently sold me a policy for a foreign country and does not accept the claim in that country's language. It is nothing but a rip off by insurance industry who make petty rules to avoid claims payment.

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    Customer ServiceStaff

    Reviewed July 18, 2014

    I always take trip insurance and have never put in a claim but I recently had to do so. I have been waiting almost a month to hear from them other than an acknowledgement that they have all the paperwork and while the customer service reps are nice enough, no money - what are they waiting for? Do they need something else? On their website it says the file went to the claims dept 6/26 - they also told me it was 10 business days. Now it is 16 days and no word from them. Guess 10 days is meaningless.

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    Customer Service

    Reviewed June 27, 2014

    Purchased Travel Insurance for $274. Got to Mexico without our bags on Monday, the bags showed up Thursday. We spent $122 to get a few items to bridge the gap until we received our bags. After submitting originals of all paperwork received from airlines, completed Trip Mate claim forms, receipts for goods as well as receipt for Trip Mate policy and full itinerary our Claim was denied. Tripmate's response was that Aero Mexico (airline) would not respond to Tripmate's email verifying the delayed luggage. Multiple calls to Tripmate requesting a manager call me back were not followed up with until my third request. After the frustration and treatment I received from Tripmate I would strongly urge everyone to avoid them at all costs. They are only good if you do not have a claim, but then why do you need them?

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    Bob increased rating by 3 stars.
    Customer ServiceCoveragePunctuality & SpeedStaff
    After a positive interaction with Trip Mate Insurance, Bob increased their star rating on June 19, 2014.

    Updated review: June 19, 2014

    My client and I have resolved this problem with Tripmate.

    Original Review: May 13, 2014

    I'm a travel agent that was fortunate to book a $21,000 trip for my client family of four from Boston to Beaches Turks & Caicos. Unfortunately, the day prior to their scheduled departure, U.S. Airways notified them that their flight was cancelled due to weather. Every U.S. Airways flight through Charlotte N.C. was cancelled over a two or three day period as the most severe snowstorm/blizzard in 10 years swept from Georgia to Maine. U.S. Air answered phones with a message of (paraphrasing) "we're really busy due to the severe weather, please call back", HANGUP!!

    My client was fortunate to find alternate air from Boston to Toronto, and then direct to Turks and Caicos, totally avoiding the U.S. east coast. He did this knowing he had trip interruption insurance through TripMate, purchased via the Sandals website, and that Tripmate agents had verified by phone to me that "this should be covered". A day after they left, the Boston airport was also closed. Tripmate has denied his trip interruption coverage because he purchased the alternate tickets as soon as U.S. Airways notified him of the cancellation, claiming that he bought them the day before his trip started, and the day following his replacement purchase is when his insurance coverage began.

    Sandals (Beaches) did get U.S. Airways to issue a refund for the Boston to Turks & Caicos portion, but that was only $1036.80, and my client spent $3461.76 to get replacement air to get them uninterrupted to their VERY expensive vacation. Sandals (Beaches) has since failed to answer any inquiries/complaints regarding the additional $2424.96. My client is out. We are pursuing a complaint to the Massachusetts Division of Insurance regarding Tripmate, but I'm afraid that will only be added to the horrible customer service that TripMate customarily provides.

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    Customer ServiceCoveragePriceStaff

    Reviewed April 28, 2014

    I read a bunch of negative reviews here and on other sites (after we filed our claim) so I was expecting the worst. In fact, everything went very smoothly. I don't know if this is because we bought it through GCTravel, which sends thousands of dollars business to them, or not. The bottom line is: My wife and I had to cancel our trip because of an immediate family member (not one going on the trip) being admitted to the hospital 3 days before we were scheduled to leave on our trip to Europe.

    I called GCT and they gave me a claim number. They said it would take about 30 days to receive my money back. I called TripMate and gave them the claim number and plan number. They faxed me the claim form which I filled out, had the Dr. sign, and faxed back the same day. TripMate never called me for extra paperwork. They never called the doctor or hospital (to my knowledge) for verification. One nice thing is you never have to speak to anyone; you can check the claim process on line with your claim number. I watched the process go through, online, and we got 100% of our money back today, 28 days after I filed. The check arrived in time to pay the credit card charge for our re-booked trip that leaves 3 weeks from now so I'm a happy camper!

    I do have to say that there are many different plans that Trip Mate offers on their website and the ones that don't cover as much are less expensive. So read the fine print, before you sign up. We bought the only plan that GCT Travel offers which is probably the most expensive plan you can purchase at Trip Mate and covers the most contingencies, so keep this in mind.

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    Evelyn increased rating by 2 stars.
    Customer ServiceCoveragePrice
    After a positive interaction with Trip Mate Insurance, Evelyn increased their star rating on May 12, 2014.

    Updated review: May 12, 2014

    As a result of Consumer Affairs advocacy, the online agent at TripMate responded quickly and politely and did considerable research to clarify the confusion over several aspects of my trip. Thank you Consumer Affairs for facilitating the resolution of my problem.

    Original Review: April 28, 2014

    We were on a family trip in the mountains of Sedona, Arizona last June. Subsequent to the stay in Sedona, we were to continue our travel to Baltimore to see our grandson play baseball in his team league. My husband took ill in Arizona on a weekend, and both my son and daughter-in-law, physicians and full professors at prestigious medical schools, who were with us on the trip recommended that we return home to be seen by my husband's primary care physician. I called Tripmate Insurance, explained the situation, and was told I could submit the claim for our trip interruption after seeing the primary care physician. I then called the airline to cancel the rest of our trip and make new reservations for the return home, canceled our hotels in the East Coast, and canceled the car rental there.

    I filled out all the appropriate Insurance forms, and our primary care physician was able to give us an "emergency" appointment the following Tuesday (normally it can take weeks to get an appointment). She examined my husband and agreed that he could not continue to fly across country at this time. She completed and signed the Tripmate treating physician's form. My son, the physician, included a letter describing the medical situation and the need for my husband to return home to see his own physician as soon as possible. Since the incident occurred on a weekend, the hotel could only provide someone who was on call and we were not sure when they would be able to contact someone to come to the hotel. We had to make the decision to return home as soon as possible and make all the arrangements necessary for this change.

    I submitted all the documents within the week after our return home as advised by the Tripmate agent. After many weeks, the claim came back denied... their reason was that they would not accept the advice of our son, as the policy does not consider or allow family members to be the doctor of record. However, we only included my son's description to give Tripmate an accurate, on-site account of the incident... he was NOT the treating physician. After many letters and calls to clarify the situation, our primary physician was asked to provide more information. She wrote two more letters explaining the situation and her advice to cancel the remainder of the planned trip so as to stabilize my husband's condition. There were considerable back and forth calls and e-mails and many weeks of delayed response from Tripmate.

    They finally agreed to pay the change fees and airline penalties for my husband and myself, but gave us a very hard time regarding paying for the cost of the transport service from the airport to our home. Since my daughter and son-in-law and granddaughter were also in the van, which we paid for, but were not insured by Tripmate, they prorated the total cost of the van and gave us a small portion of the total van cost (divided by 5 people). It took months to receive this minuscule amount of our total trip costs to cancel the remainder of the trip. Working with Tripmate was a very frustrating, time-consuming and stressful experience, especially at a time of family concern and anxiety over my husband's condition. I certainly cannot recommend that anyone use this company for travel insurance!

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    Customer ServiceCoverageStaff

    Reviewed Jan. 23, 2014

    Our son traveled to South Korea and was taken to the hospital on an emergency. He was having seizures. Tripmate's immediate medical facilitator is OnCall. OnCall's primary interest at the outset was to find out who was the primary insurer, Tripmate's wish hopefully not Tripmate, and to find out if they could deny responsibility for the medical emergency hoping it was a pre-existing condition that wasn't covered under the insurance.

    After it was determined that neither of the above were the case and that Tripmate needed to take responsibility for the case, several problems began. Most of them had to do with billing and communication with our son's doctors in Korea.

    When our son recovered after 3 days of hospitalization and even before, the Korean Hospital started demanding payment. Several of the hospital's financial representatives began camping out in my son's ICU room demanding arrangements be made for payment. It took 2 days for Tripmate to arrange for payment and more than $1300 in calls. Those calls were directly related to their paying the hospital bill and our communicating with our son's doctor about his condition and fitness for travel. Tripmate said that it would not reimburse those expenses as part of our son's $250,000 medical coverage and $500,000 medical evacuation coverage.

    Our son was discharged to return home to the US. Per doctor orders a nurse was to accompany him home on the airplane. Tripmate provided no transportation to our son's hotel while waiting for arrangements to be made or transportation to the airport for the flight home. Further, our son went home by himself because his many medications were dwindling and Tripmate was taking its time to arrange for a medical transport. My son was worried how he would get his medications refilled so that he would not suffer from the lack of his necessary medications. The medications he is taking involve doctors in many medical specialties. Getting his medications refilled would have been a real challenge in Busan, South Korea.

    So don't get sick when you travel. If you unfortunately do, DON'T USE TRIPMATE INSURANCE BECAUSE YOU WILL FEEL STRESSED AND UPSET WORKING WITH THEM. Their claims department is very difficult. The $6,000 hospital bill was paid. We had to stay up all night for several nights to communicate with various hospital personnel and OnCall people in the US to make this happen. DEALING WITH TRIPMATE AND ITS INSURER MH ROSS CAN MAKE YOU SICK!!!!

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    Customer ServiceStaff

    Reviewed Dec. 16, 2013

    My wife and I flew from L.A. to Frankfort Germany via Lufthansa for a connecting flight to Prague. We had 1 hour and 15 minutes to make our connection. With no hesitation or stopping for any reason we began to make our way to the next gate. There were extremely long lines thru the passport check and again thru security which we did not expect to have to go thru again. In my carry-on bag I had a large handheld back massager, which cleared security in LA. However, we were taken to another location for further checking of the massager. Several times I expressed my concern to the agents about missing our connection, to no avail.

    After finally being cleared and leaving my wife behind, I literally ran to the gate, an extreme distance from security, hoping to hold it open until she got there. Upon finally reaching it, the plane was still at the gate with the passageway still attached but the Lufthansa agent refused to allow me to board. Unconcerned, he directed me to Lufthansa customer service for replacement tickets. At Lufthansa I was refused replacement tickets because I had purchased "special tickets" thru a travel agency which also went thru United Airlines. Lufthansa sent me to United agents to plead my case. They too were cold and actually rude.

    With no alternative, I had to purchase new tickets to Prague costing over $800.00. Though given the events as I described were totally out of my control, I was denied a claim for Missed Connection Coverage by Trip Mate because it did not fall under their limited provisions of natural disaster, terrorism, weather conditions, or strike. Their response to my initial filing of the claim was not timely, and I had to make several calls to track the progress of the claim, being unable to track online as they indicated. I believe they should be investigated.

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    Customer ServiceCoverage

    Reviewed Nov. 8, 2013

    Tripmate Claim Paid, but the fine details are tricky - My husband and went to the Caribbean through Sandals resort and for some reason they use Tripmate. However, Tripmate is now US Fire. Things have changed quite a bit with Tripmate and depending on when you went, your claim number etc, will depend on the company whom your claim is submitted to. As I mentioned, it is the fine details that you have to submit in order for your claim to be paid.

    As you said, I myself became ill on the last 2 days of our trip and needed to seek emergency treatment. Being a nurse, I kept records and because I had already read and researched Tripmate consumer reviews and complaints. For patients with pre-existing conditions, this is tough call as they will always try to say it was related to your prior health. There are way to get around this depending on the situation. However, sometimes it is related to pre-existing but sometimes accidents happen. Reading the policy word for word is the key. They make the policy so confusing and contradicting you sometimes do not really understand it.

    We love Sandals, but they will tell you "no worries" you are covered. This is not the case. The first thing you should do is keep your Sandals invoice or the invoice where you purchased the vacation. If you were making multiple payments, keep every single one. You also want to keep the invoice that shows the payment for the insurance paid in full for all those traveling. You then want to retain a copy of the credit card statement showing where the payment was made and the dates that would match. So there is no question that the insurance was paid in full. When an accident or a sickness occurs, you are to first let the resort manager know asap. This puts them on notice and also it makes them responsible for giving a statement later on your behalf for your claim.

    Before I left the resort, I had the resort type up a short letter explaining the situation so that I could attach this to my claim. I did attempt to call Tripmate with no success. I then proceeded to see the resort nurse, which she felt that I needed to see a doctor asap. They had a doctor on call and he came to the resort. I did have to pay upfront for all the fees and medications. But before the doctor left I made sure that billing was well documented and that he put it was not an illness, that it was an accident. Once you the leave the country there is no way to obtain his signature or anything else. The insurance knows this... They will hold this against you. On the bills, you will need diagnosis codes and CPT codes and well as the amounts charged for each and every service he or she provided. Example: emergency exam $200.00, medications - name of medication $88.00.

    Please make sure the doctor includes limit of activity from that point on. I could not get into the sun which was awful because I had to stay in my room while my husband and friends that we were with went snorkeling and so forth. But I made the best of it and went to the spa. When I returned home, I had to see my specialist here because of the severity of my injury. I did not file my claim right away. But I called them and spoke to them, received a case and file number and she emailed me a claim for packet. It also had a list of items that was to be included when I sent the claim back. I followed that listing with a fine tooth comb...

    When my claim was ready to send in, I made sure that I had everything listed on their requirement list. I also faxed my claim with a cover that indicated that all the items that they required were attached and what page. I gave them a 30 day grace period to process claim and a 15 day grace period to advise me if there was additional documents needed. They had a claims status online check system and I checked this weekly. My claim went through like a breeze and I was reimbursed for the entire amount.

    I believe documentation was the key to my claim being paid. I do not believe in luck. I will be happy to assist anyone who is experiencing problems with their claim. You may contact directly through my email **. I know it is very frustrating. Please take pictures of all your items once you arrive at your resort especially with a camera that shows a date. Things do happen and they disappear. Wishing happy travels.

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    Response from Trip Mate Insurance

    Kimberly,

    Thank you for sharing your experience. We're sorry to hear that you fell ill during your Caribbean vacation. We love Sandals, too, so we're glad you were able to make the best of your vacation by relaxing at the spa.

    Our plans are now underwritten by United States Fire Insurance Company.

    We appreciate your diligence with collecting the necessary documentation as that allows for a smooth and quick claims process. We are also glad you were able to make use of the online claims system to check the status of your claim.

    Can you please provide the phone number you called when attempting to reach us? Our plans include One Call 24-Hour Travel Solutions (http://tripmate.com/products_services). Again, please let us know which number you called, so we can be sure to check into that.

    Thank you again for the detailed claim documentation and advice to other travelers. Please let us know if we can do anything to help in the future.

    Best regards,

    Trip Mate Team

    Customer Service

    Reviewed March 27, 2013

    We booked a vacation through a travel agency to travel to Mexico for a week. We were convinced to purchase the travel ins. (from TripMate). We had a problem with our vacation plans to go in Nov. Of course, they kept our insurance money and we rebooked to take the trip in Jan. We got to Mexico without any problems. On the last day at the resort, I fell and broke my wrist. I called them as soon as I could and reported the issue. I turned in my claim and just found out that they denied my claim. We were still at the vacation site when the accident happened - technically still on vacation - right?

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    Response from Trip Mate Insurance

    Christy,

    Thank you for the question. According to our information, you received medical treatment after you flew back to the United States, and the policy states that medical expenses incurred after the trip are not covered. The medical coverage afforded under the travel policy provides coverage for covered medical expenses incurred during your trip, including coverage for items not always covered by a typical medical plan, so such things as special transportation arrangements home needed due to sickness or injury that occurred on the trip or out-of-network covered medical expenses incurred during the trip are eligible for benefits.

    If you have any further questions or would like to discuss your claim in further detail, please feel free to call us at 1-800-888-7292.

    Best Regards,

    Trip Mate team

    Staff

    Reviewed March 6, 2013

    I had been ill. After my doctor cleared me to go back to work on Jan. 14, 2013, I then booked a condo at Slopeside Okemo for the following week of Jan. 23-25, 2013. On Jan. 22, when I heard the temperatures in Vermont were single digits, I asked my doctor if it was okay for me to go. He said no, do not go. The weather is too extreme. Yet when I went through all the hoops they put me through, they only paid 75%. I appealed the decision and provided confirmation from my doctor that the above story was correct. I just found out they have refused my appeal. I am furious. Upon looking at the Consumer Affairs website, I found numerous complaints about TripMate. I just emailed the condo rental agency and lambasted them for using an insurance company with so many complaints against it.

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    Response from Trip Mate Insurance

    Kathy,

    We sorry to hear about the cancellation of your trip and your dissatisfaction with the claims process. Please note that the policy covers trip cancellation in case a sickness that prevents travel occurs after the insurance is purchased. In your case, however, your sickness did not develop after you purchased the insurance, but you determined that the predicted weather would make travel with your condition difficult. There is no provision in the policy to cover trip cancellation because of a weather forecast. While your claim was not covered on the basis of your condition, benefits were paid to you under the Cancel For Any Reason provisions.

    Please let us know if you have any further questions and we would be happy to answer them.

    Thank you,

    Trip Mate team

    Customer ServiceCoverage

    Reviewed March 2, 2013

    I purchased the trip insurance through Sandals. Unfortunately, we were in a car accident in St. Lucia. When I called Trip Mate, I had to leave a message, and they never called me back. Their reasoning for this was, "We do not call outside the US." Really?! Then why provide insurance to people traveling outside the US? I am currently waiting for an answer regarding my medical claim. By the way, I sustained an injury that required surgery. I have waited for over a month, and every time I call, I am told, "It is in final review." That is not helpful. Do not use this company if you expect any money back and/or any type of customer service! This was the most horrible experience ever!

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    Response from Trip Mate Insurance

    Kim,

    Thank you for taking the time to speak with us on the phone about your claim. We are sorry to hear both about the accident and that you are unhappy with the claims process afterward. We aim to provide peace of mind with our travel insurance policies and want to make sure your issues are addressed.

    As we discussed on the phone, our records indicate the first payment was made on your claim in March of 2012. We are not able to make payments without complete information, however, and itemized bills with matching Explanations of Benefits are needed for review of medical bills. We apologize if we caused any stress by requesting additional information, but it is necessary to ensure the correct amounts are paid to you and the medical suppliers.

    We would appreciate your telling us which phone number you used to call our office when you were in St. Lucia. Our toll-free phone number does not have an answering machine. Instead, our after-hours service provider answers all phone calls made after regular business hours, and they are able to make and receive international phone calls. Again, please let us know which phone number you called so that we can further investigate this situation.

    As we outlined in the correspondence sent with your benefit check, there are some charges for prescriptions for which we need additional information. If we can do anything else to assist you in obtaining these documents, we will be happy to do so. If you have any further questions, please let us know.

    Best regards,

    Trip Mate team

    Customer ServiceStaff

    Reviewed Feb. 20, 2013

    I tried to get travel insurance for an upcoming trip to Hawaii. The phone operators were unknowing of their product and if you called another day for clarification, they gave you another answer with misleading information. They have a strange relationship with Carefree Rental which they couldn't explain. I finally, out of desperation, cancelled the insurance when they put me on hold when I tried to cancel. I also contacted my credit card company which will decline their payment. Their contracts have a lot of exceptions in their fine print. So buyer beware. If you have to use them for a claim, good luck in getting your claim approved, based on their terrible customer relationship and their misleading info. These clerks seem to have a problem when you ask too many questions. Stay away from them and get a quote from a responsible travel insurance company or your credit card company.

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    Response from Trip Mate Insurance

    Tom,

    Thank you for providing this feedback. We are very sorry to hear that you had a negative experience when trying to gain information about travel insurance. If you give us another chance, we can ensure your questions will be answered correctly and in a timely manner. We would be happy to assist you even if you don't purchase travel insurance from us.

    Thank you again for taking the time to provide us with this feedback and we hope we can gain your trust back and provide travel insurance to you in the future.

    Best regards,

    Trip Mate team

    Coverage

    Reviewed Feb. 18, 2013

    Tripmate took three months then only gave me a partial refund, after they stated each person on my trip had to be listed in the policy regardless of who was paying for the trip. The policy clearly states if a trip is cancelled due to anyone in your party becoming ill, the trip is covered. Now, they say each person has to have a policy. After reading complaints from other policy holders, this is their way of doing business. Stay away from this company. They will not pay the policy holder what is due them no matter what information they say they need to complete the claim. Very disappointed. Hopefully, if one person does not use this insurance, my time writing is worthwhile. Do your homework and go somewhere else.

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    Response from Trip Mate Insurance

    Debora,

    We are sorry to hear about your dissatisfaction with the claims process. According to our records, your claim has been paid in full. However, we would be happy to discuss your claim with you in greater detail over the phone. Please send us a private message with your preferred phone number and time of day that you are available. We thank you for the chance to further discuss this issue and look forward to speaking with you.

    Best regards,

    Trip Mate team

    Reviewed Feb. 1, 2013

    Looking over the reviews of Trip Mate Travel Insurance, I can see that they haven't changed a bit; they don't want to pay legitimate claims. The only satisfaction that I and my 86-year-old travel companion mother got in 2000 was to get some reimbursement from the travel agent that we used for the trip who recommended Trip Mate. They gave us some travel vouchers.

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    Response from Trip Mate Insurance

    Dixie,

    We are sorry to hear about your dissatisfaction with the claims process. We would be happy to discuss your claim with you in greater detail over the phone. Please send us a private message with your preferred phone number and time of day that you are available. We thank you for the chance to further discuss this issue and look forward to speaking with you.

    Best regards,

    Trip Mate team

    PriceStaff

    Reviewed Jan. 29, 2013

    We purchased trip insurance through Tripmate for a cost of over $350. We are unable to make the trip due to our home being destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. We were denied reimbursement, because the event didn't happen within 10 days of departure. Even the airlines weren't that cold-hearted. Stay away from these people if you are smart. They are only out to take your money!

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    Reviewed July 17, 2012

    This firm did everything possible to deny, delay, and frustrate the execution of their contractual financial duties. Tripmate failed to provide an air ambulance even though it was medically essential and they so admitted. Tripmate would authorize but not send the air evacuation service Tripmate promotes, but could not provide when it was needed. Tripmate provided, instead, only obstacles. Tripmate was no help. I was on my own. I had to secure my own land ambulance to a clinic. Then, I had to secure my own flight home. I had to find my own air ambulance company. When Tripmate failed to locate an air ambulance "because of the weather," I found an Air Ambulance service in minutes via American Express. Tripmate then took nine months considering my claims. Finally, they paid. In fact, I was preparing a suit when, at long last, the check arrived. Tripmate "service" - in my experience - is a scandal and those who consider Tripmate would be well advised to check the web for the experience of others, including the legal costs of legitimate recovery.

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    Response from Trip Mate Insurance

    James,

    We are sorry to hear about your dissatisfaction with the claims process. We would be happy to discuss your claim with you in greater detail over the phone. Please send us a private message with your preferred phone number and time of day that you are available. We thank you for the chance to further discuss this issue and look forward to speaking with you.

    Best regards,

    Trip Mate team

    Contract & TermsCoverage

    Reviewed July 2, 2012

    I purchased travel insurance with these folks to protect 2 R/T flights to Hawaii. The day before the flight, Traveler 1 called Delta Vacations and cancelled the whole vacation, flight, hotel, rent a car, etc. - all done without us having a clue. Before you buy travel insurance, read the contract, find out what they will/will not pay for. We are stuck now with 2 travel vouchers that cannot be used because of health and age restrictions they made out, and so did Delta. The consumer lose. Do your homework first. They will find a way not to pay.

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    Reviewed April 17, 2012

    On October 4, 2011, we agreed to purchase the travel insurance recommended by our travel agent for Royal Caribbean Cruise: Aon/Berkley Travel. We did not see a copy of this policy at the time we purchased it. It turned out to have a "pre-existing condition" clause in it and does not want to pay our claim. I had severe bursitis at the time of the trip in February and a good doctor's excuse. Allianz which serves Delta Airlines paid without any trouble, but this company refuses to pay.

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    Customer Service

    Reviewed Nov. 30, 2011

    Trip Mate and Grand Circle Travel (GCT), in my experience, were complicit in my problems. GCT talked me into buying the insurance at the time I booked the trip saying that by doing this "pre-existing conditions would be accepted". As may be noted, my wife had a pacemaker implant prior to booking the trip. She thought she felt well enough to take the river cruise with minimum walking. Subsequently, she had a bad reaction to medication she was taking and we had to cancel the trip and incurred an $800 penalty from GCT.

    Putting in a claim form to Trip Mate incurs a 20-working day response time and was useless. They seem to have a large staff of claim examiners whose job is to deny claims and our claim was denied.

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    Customer ServiceCoverage

    Reviewed Nov. 10, 2011

    I took a trip to the Caribbean (Beaches Resort) this summer and I knew that it was a risky proposition because it was hurricane season. The bought insurance through TripMate since the policy stated that there was coverage for trip interruption. Hurricane Irene struck the island of Turks and Caicos and our resort was flooded. Our room was flooded. The entire place was shut down. The airport was closed for days. Naturally we were trapped until our departure. There was running water and some food, but we were stranded for days until our departure.

    Tripmate refused to pay us any benefit since they claim that we were unsatisfied with the amenities we received and stayed for the duration of our trip. What exactly was I supposed to do? Swim back to Florida? They claim that I did no incur any additional expenses to leave. How was I supposed to leave when the airport was closed? They claim that there is no benefit for amenities that were unavailable. I think that a hurricane ravaged island flooded by waters and airport closure qualifies as "trip interruption. " I filed a complaint with the BBB and all they did was forward my emails to TripMate. I got nowhere. Even when the policy states that there is coverage for "trip interruption" because of "flood" or "inclement weather, " they will not pay unless you find a way to incur additional expenses to escape your demise and then have to file a claim after the fact for the unused portion of your trip. Good luck trying to file any claim with them. They will find any excuse to misrepresent the facts and twist the language of the policy to deny the claim. I have yet to read any online posts praising them for paying a claim.

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    Reviewed Aug. 29, 2011

    Trip Mate refused to reimburse for lost items out of luggage on trip to Peru. The trip was cut short by riots at Lake Titicaca and a bomb in the Cusco airport. Trip Mate's reasoning was losses were not reported to authorities. Well, we did not sleep for two days. And the authorities were busy with riots and bombs. We did not have the time to inventory possessions, until we were safely back in Lima. I did tell the hotel in Lima, but they did not give me any documentation. Trip Mate took three months to decide that they would not pay up.

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    Reviewed July 29, 2011

    This unreliable and unethical company stalled for three months and finally refused to pay claim for a cruise I had to cancel prior to the sailing date because my husband died unexpectedly in May. Instead of honoring my June 2010 claim they waited until mid September when the cruise company went out of business and then said I had to try to recover my loss from the entities handling the Cruise West bankruptcy as if my trip had been cancelled by the Cruise West rather than me. Cruise West paid their share of my claim promptly in June and said TripMate would pay the remainder. No one from TripMate ever questioned my claim or contacted me after I filed the claim until Oct 2010 when they sent two checks for $60.....they owe me $13k.

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    Reviewed Aug. 27, 2010

    In March 2010, my wife and I traveled on their grand circle tour to Chile and Argentina led by your excellent trip director, Nick ** On an air descent into Argentina, my ear began to bleed. Nick wanted me to see a specialist and sent me in the hotel car to the british hospital. He filled out the insurance forms and said there would be no trouble with reimbursement.

    After months of correspondence and waiting we finally received $52.00 -- nothing for our travel expenses to and from the hotel or compensation for the two planned trip events that my wife and I missed. For this reason, I have decided that we will no longer travel with grand circle travel or oat. We have asked on at least three occasions to be removed from their mailing list but continued to receive anywhere from two to seven piece of mail from their company each day. Please remove us from your mailing list for all documents immediately.

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    Reviewed July 27, 2010

    I bought this travel insurance policy and when I needed to file a claim, they took more than 3 months to process a claim. They were rude and harassing me and my family, trying to make me tired. So I gave up on the claim. Until today, they haven't finished my claim and every time they ask for a document, I send it to them. Then they ask for more documents. Please help!

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    Trip Mate Insurance Company Information

    Company Name:
    Trip Mate Insurance
    Address:
    Trip Mate, Inc. 9225 Ward Parkway
    City:
    Kansas City
    State/Province:
    MO
    Postal Code:
    64114
    Country:
    United States
    Website:
    www.tripmate.com