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Travel insurance 101

Case studies

  Cost to the insured person
  Policy premium Claim Provincial health plan (RAMQ) reimbursement Without insurance With Blue Cross
Terry, age 3: Sunstroke

West Yarmouth, MA, USA

Emergency Care

 $25 $615 $71 $544 $90
Terry and his family were enjoying a week’s vacation at the beach. Terry’s mother noticed his skin turning bright red. He had been in the sun for only 30 minutes, and his mother had applied sunscreen before leaving for the beach. A mild case of sunstroke was diagnosed at the hospital.
Claudia, age 34: Ankle Sprain

Mount Worcester, VT, USA

Emergency Care

 $25 $509 $41 $468 $25
During a two-day hike, Claudia suffered a bad sprain after slipping between two rocks. Her descent was difficult. Once she reached the emergency room, a bandage was applied, and she was provided with crutches.
Madeleine, age 71: Wrist fracture

Victoria, BC, Canada

Emergency care and medical accessories

 $38.85 $462 $136 $326 $214
Madeleine slipped and fell on a wet floor while visiting her sister for a week in British Columbia. At the hospital, a cast was quickly applied, and Madeleine was released with a waterproof sheath for protection.
Paul, age 40: Food poisoning

Toronto, ON, Canada

Ambulance and emergency care

 $25.98 $475 $73 $402 $174
Paul visited a new sushi restaurant with a supplier while on a five-day business trip to Toronto. He became ill during the night, and a hotel clerk had to call an ambulance as he was unable to drive and unsure of where the nearest hospital was. Once admitted into the emergency ward, Paul was diagnosed with food poisoning.
Julien, age 30: Accident resulting in compressed vertebrae

Ciudad Vallés, Mexico

Emergency care and air ambulance

 $123.38 $38,883 $500 $38,383 $132
Julien nearly lost the use of his legs while on a one-week kayaking trip to Mexico. A wrong move compressed his lumbar vertebrae and the motor nerves of his legs. He was immediately airlifted to Québec to a hospital with a trauma unit. Thanks to the prompt treatment of our medical team, Julien was able to leave the hospital on his own two feet.
Isabelle, age 42: Traveller's diarrhea

Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

Hospitalization and return air flight

 $138.87 $10,608 $800 $9,808 $207
Isabelle consulted a hotel doctor for a rash and diarrhea while on a week-long trip to Punta Cana. She had expected to be treated with medication, but was rushed to the emergency room at the nearest hospital. Her symptoms were due to overexposure to the sun, and the diarrhea had caused dehydration. Her husband was taken to the hospital the next day with the same condition. They were hospitalized for four days and were unable to depart on their scheduled flight. Thanks to the Trip Cancellation and Interruption coverage in their Travel Insurance policy, they traveled home on a commercial flight two days later.

Glossary

Accident
Refers to an unintentional, sudden, fortuitous and unforeseeable event due exclusively to an external cause of a violent nature and inflicting, directly or independently of all other causes, bodily injuries during the period of coverage.
Accidental loss of sight in one eye
Refers to the total and irrecoverable loss of sight therein.
Accidental loss of use of one limb
Refers to the accidental loss of use of a hand or foot (i.e. the total and irrecoverable loss of use thereof).
Act of terrorism
Refers to an act, including but not limited to, the use of force or violence and/or the threat thereof, including hijacking or kidnapping, of an individual or group to intimidate or terrorize any government, group, association or the general public for religious, political or ideological reasons or ends.
Act of terrorism under no circumstance refers to any act of war (whether declared or not), act of foreign enemies or rebellion.
Age
Refers to the age of the covered person at the time a policy is purchased.
Aircraft
Refers to any multi-engine, transport-type aircraft with a maximum authorized takeoff weight greater than 10,000 lbs. (4,540 kg), operated between licensed airports by a scheduled or charter airline of Canadian or foreign registry holding a valid Canadian Transportation Agency scheduled air carrier licence, or a valid Canadian Transportation Agency regular specific point carrier licence, or charter air carrier licence or its foreign equivalent, provided that such aircraft is being used at the time to provide transportation authorized under the airline’s scheduled, charter or regular specific point licence.
Business meeting
Refers to a pre-arranged, private meeting between unaffiliated companies pertaining to the full-time occupation or profession of the covered person and which is the sole purpose of the trip (documentary evidence of meeting arrangements required). In no event shall business meetings include legal proceedings.
CanAssistance
Refers to the company authorized by the insurer to provide assistance services to covered persons.
Contract holder
Refers to the person designated as such on the insurance certificate.
Covered person
Refers to the contract holder and the persons listed on the insurance certificate, depending on the coverage selected. A child born during the first 32 weeks of pregnancy over the course of a trip is automatically covered by the insurance, if the medical costs of delivery and medical care to the mother are not excluded.
Dependent child

Refers to a child of the contract holder, the contract holder’s spouse, or both, over 30 days old before departure, who is dependent on the contract holder, who is not married and who is under 21 years of age or under 25 years of age and attending an educational institution full time as a duly registered student or who is physically or mentally handicapped.

A child who is not a Canadian resident, who is at least 31 days old and is in the process of being adopted by a Canadian resident is considered a dependent child upon completion of all required documents and once the appropriate authorities in the adoptee’s country of origin definitively and irrevocably release the child into the physical, visual and exclusive care of the adoptive parents or the person who will accompany the child until arrival in Canada. A child who is in the process of being adopted does not have to be covered by a government health and hospitalization program of a Canadian province or territory.

In a single-parent or family plan, any child of the contract holder or the contract holder’s spouse who is born after the effective date of the contract is automatically insured as soon as the child meets the criteria of the definition of a dependent child, subject to the payment of a supplementary premium, as the case may be.

Effective date
Is the date indicated on the insurance certificate.
Expiry date
Is the date indicated on the insurance certificate.
Hospital
Refers to a place licensed as an accredited hospital and offering care and treatment to residents as in-patients or out-patients, having a registered graduate nurse (RN) always on duty, a laboratory and an operating room where surgical operations are performed by a legally qualified surgeon. In no event shall the term “hospital” mean any hospital or institution, or part of such licensed hospital or institution, that is used primarily as a clinic, continued or extended care facility, convalescent home, rest home, health spa or treatment centre for drug addicts or alcoholics.
Hospitalization
Refers to admission to a hospital to receive short-term care as a bedridden patient for a minimum of 18 hours. Covered short-term care comprises preventative care, medical diagnosis and medical treatment (including surgery) for an acute illness and does not include convalescent care or physical or mental rehabilitation. In the case of a day surgery, the hospital stay is equivalent to 18 hours of hospitalization.
Illness
Refers to a deterioration in health or an organism disorder certified by a physician. However, in the case of trip cancellation, this deterioration or disorder must be serious enough to prevent the covered person from continuing the trip as planned. Pregnancy is not considered to be an illness, except in the case of pathological complications arising within the first 32 weeks.
Insurer
Refers to:
  1. In Quebec and Ontario:
    • Canassurance Hospital Service Association (non-profit mutual benefit association) for the emergency medical care benefit and the medical follow-up in Canada benefit;
    • Canassurance Insurance Company for all other benefits.
    2. 2. Elsewhere in Canada:
    • Canassurance Insurance Company.
Member of the family of the covered person
Refers to the spouse, father, mother, grandparent, grandchild, step-parent, child or stepchild (not necessarily dependent) of the covered person and/or the person’s spouse, brother, sister, stepbrother, stepsister, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, daughter-in-law, son-in-law, aunt, uncle, niece or nephew.
Member of the immediate family of the covered person
Refers to the spouse, father, mother and child(ren) (not necessarily dependent) of the covered person, the person’s spouse, or both.
Minor ailment
Refers to an illness, injury or condition related to a medical condition which ends at least 30 days before the effective date of coverage and does not require the use of medication for a period longer than 15 days; or more than one follow-up visit to a physician; a hospitalization; a surgical intervention; or a consultation with a medical specialist. A chronic medical condition or the complication of a chronic medical condition is not a minor ailment.
Period of coverage
Refers to the time between the effective date of the contract and the expiry date indicated on the insurance certificate.
Physician
Refers to a person who is not related in any way to the covered person and who is legally authorized to practise medicine on the premises where the medical services are provided.
Prepayment
Refers to the deposit of a sum of money which is non-refundable.
Public transportation
Refers to any common carrier (on land or sea, or in air) that is operated by a carrier holding a licence issued by the public authorities competent to do so and providing transportation for fare-paying passengers.
Spouse
Refers to the person united to the contract holder by marriage or a person who has been living permanently with the contract holder for over one year. Following a separation of more than three months or the dissolution of the marriage by divorce or annulment, this person will lose the status as spouse.
Sudden illness
Refers to a quick and unforeseen illness for which the initial symptoms (certified or not by a physician) appear during the trip.
Terminal stage
Refers to the period when a cure for an illness is no longer possible or when the illness resists any curative treatment, and death is bound to happen within a more or less short delay.
Travelling
Refers to an occasional absence from the covered person's residence for the purpose of a vacation, leisure or business. The covered person must travel outside the province of residence or have at least a one-night stay in a commercial accommodation establishment. An annual insurance plan covers only trips made outside the province of residence.
Travelling companion
Refers to the person who plans, leaves and returns with the covered person on the same trip, to a maximum of six persons. A member of the immediate family of the covered person who plans and leaves with the covered person is considered a travelling companion, but is not included in the six-person maximum.
Travel supplier
Refers to any tour operator, wholesale group transportation, airline, cruise company or accommodation facility. If two or more travel suppliers are wholly owned subsidiaries of one person or corporation, they are deemed for the purpose of this clause to be one travel supplier.

Important: Each insured person shall consult their insurance contract for definitions that are specific to it.

Sample Insurance policies

Blue Cross travel insurance policy

This contractual document includes details, terms and conditions of our travel insurance plans for Canadians who are going on a trip:

  • Individual
  • Package
  • Annual
  • Summertime Blue®
Top-up travel insurance policy
This contractual document includes details, terms and conditions of our top-up travel insurance plan for Canadians who wish to extend a travel insurance policy that they have with another company.

Laurentian Bank Visa group travel insurance policy
This contractual document includes details, terms and conditions of the travel insurance included with any one of the following credit cards:
  • Laurentian Bank Visa Infinite
  • Visa EXPLORE
  • Visa Business
  • Visa Business Performance
Visitors to Canada insurance policy

this contractual document includes details, terms and conditions of our insurance plan for:

    • Tourists visiting from another country
    • Individuals applying for a super visa
    • Foreign students and international workers
    • Canadians who are returning to the country and newcomers who are waiting admissibility to provincial health coverage