Trip Interruption Insurance: Questions and Answers

What is trip interruption insurance?

Trip interruption insurance – often called assistance insurance in Switzerland – is a type of travel insurance that covers additional expenses that result from medical emergencies and other unexpected incidents during a trip.

What is the difference between trip cancellation insurance and trip interruption insurance?

Swiss travel insurance offers normally include both trip cancellation insurance and trip interruption insurance.

Trip cancellation insurance covers losses related to your trip before your trip. That could be the case if, for example, you are forced to cancel a booked trip because of illness or another unexpected hazard.

Trip interruption insurance, on the other hand, covers costs resulting from incidents that occur during your trip. That could be the case if, for example, you are forced to end your trip early due to an emergency.

Which incidents are covered by trip interruption insurance?

• Accidents, illness, and death: All Swiss trip interruption insurance offers cover interruptions caused by accidents, illness, or death during your trip. Some insurers also cover your additional costs when you have to end a trip early due to your travel companion, a person back home who is close to you (a family member, for example), or a work colleague representing you at work having an accident, becoming ill, or dying. Some insurers also let you claim benefits if your pet has an accident, becomes ill, or dies. The maximum benefit in connection with pets ranges between 5000 and 10,000 francs, depending on the trip interruption insurance offer.
• Public transportation failures: Trip interruptions resulting from unexpected public transportation failures during your trip are generally included in trip interruption insurance. Important: The insurance does not normally cover costs that the transportation company is liable for. That could be the case, for example, when an airline is liable to rebook or refund your flight in keeping with airline passenger rights.
• War, strikes, and civil unrest: Many insurers – but not all – cover trip interruptions resulting from war, strikes, and civil unrest.
• Natural hazards: Trip interruptions due to natural hazards at your destination as well as natural catastrophes are normally insured. However, many insurers exclude volcanic eruptions and earthquakes from coverage.
• Travel company bankruptcies: Interruptions caused by a travel company going bankrupt are covered by many – but not all – Swiss trip interruption insurance offers.
• Contagious illnesses (including pandemics): Some insurance companies cover additional costs resulting from your being placed in quarantine. Important: Mass quarantines (a whole city or country, for example) are generally excluded.
• Damage to your home: If you have to terminate a trip because your owned home in Switzerland is damaged while you are traveling (by a burglary, for example), the insurance will cover the added expenses of returning home early. Some insurers extend this coverage to other real estate you own as well.
• Theft of important travel documents: Most insurers cover the extra expenses of returning home early if you have to end your trip because your important travel documents (your passport, for example) get stolen. Some insurers also let you claim this benefit if your payment solutions (credit cards, for example) or your personalized travel tickets are stolen.
• Damaged travel accommodations: Some insurers reimburse your additional expenses, up to a certain limit, when you cannot stay at your booked hotel or other travel accommodations due to their being damaged by fire, water, or natural hazards.

You can filter the results in the interactive moneyland.ch travel insurance comparison based on the specific hazards you want to insure against.

Which expenses are covered by trip interruption insurance?

In order to claim trip interruption insurance benefits, you normally need to contact the insurance company’s customer support hotline and have them organize the necessary measures on your behalf.

Costs that are typically covered by trip interruption insurance include the following:

• Food and accommodations: If you incur additional expenses for accommodations or meals due to a covered hazard, you can claim reimbursement from the insurance company. The maximum amount you can claim for these costs ranges between 700 and 3000 francs per person, depending on the insurance offer.
• The unused part of your bookings: If you have to end your trip early because of an insured incident, you can claim insurance benefits for the lost portion of your bookings. The maximum amount you can claim for this loss ranges between 10,000 and 120,000 francs per person, depending on the insurance offer.
• Repatriation: The costs of a medically-organized repatriation to a hospital in Switzerland are covered if a covered accident or illness makes it impossible for you to continue your trip. The maximum amount you can claim for these costs ranges between 50,000 francs and an unlimited amount, depending on the insurance offer.
• Replacement trips: Some trip interruption insurance providers cover the costs or new travel bookings when you are unable to use the original bookings due to a covered hazard. The maximum amount you can claim towards replacement bookings ranges between 5000 and 30,000 francs, depending on the insurance offer.
• Entry tickets and events: Some insurers reimburse the costs of tickets for concerts, amusement parks, excursions, and other activities that you are not able to use due to a covered hazard. The maximum reimbursement you can claim ranges between 100 and 1000 francs per person, depending on the insurance offer.
• Search and rescue: Trip interruption insurance covers the cost of search and rescue operations, up to a certain limit. The maximum benefit you can claim towards these expenses ranges between 10,000 and 100,000 francs, depending on the travel insurance offer.
• Other benefits: Depending on the insurance offer, a number of other benefits may be included in trip interruption insurance. These include motorist assistance, legal insurance, and coverage for medical expenses. You can learn more about these coverages in the guide to supplemental travel insurance options.

You can use the filters provided in the interactive travel insurance comparison on moneyland.ch to limit results to offers that include the coverages you want. Detailed information about what is covered and which limits apply can be found on the information pages of individual travel insurance offers.

What does trip interruption insurance cost?

The cost of trip interruption insurance ranges between around 50 and 63 francs per year for a single adult, and between around 84 and 113 francs per year for a family. However, almost no insurance providers offer trip interruption insurance as a stand-alone insurance. Most insurers only offer travel insurance bundles that combine trip cancellation insurance and trip interruption insurance.

The interactive travel insurance comparison on moneyland.ch makes it easy to find the right offer and compare prices.

More on this topic:
Compare Swiss travel insurance offers now
Trip cancellation insurance explained
Credit card insurance benefits explained
Airline passenger rights explained
Swiss insurance for search, rescue, and emergency medical transportation explained