FAQ: Does travel insurance cover bookings with frequent flyer points?
If you paid for air transportation with frequent flyer miles and cancel your trip, you may be reimbursed for the cost to reinstate the frequent flyer miles to your account. This is only available for Trip Cancellation coverage, not Trip Interruption or other coverages. If frequent flyer miles were used to arrange anything other than air transportation, such as lodging accommodations, our plans do not provide coverage for those situations.
More About Travel Insurance Coverage for Frequent Flyer Miles
Before booking travel expenses with points, knowing what is and isn't covered is important. These loyalty program rewards can help reduce the overall expenses associated with traveling. However, some don't come with the same level of coverage as cash bookings. That's why you should always strive to know what is and isn't included in an insurance plan for a stress-free and financially safe trip.
Loyalty Program Terms and Conditions
In many cases, you may need extra coverage offered by a travel protection plan to help protect your investment. Always read the fine print concerning cancellations with any loyalty program rewards.
Travel Insurance Benefits
Not all travel insurance plans offer coverage for frequent flyer points. Carefully review your plan to know what's covered, when the coverage starts and ends, what's excluded and whether they offer benefits when using frequent flyer miles. With Generali Global Assistance, we offer frequent flyer benefits for flights only.
Types of Frequent Flyer Points
There are many flyer programs, each with a unique set of rules and regulations. Some airlines constantly update their programs, but knowing the different models available can help travelers know what they're getting for their money.
Region-Based Programs
Most domestic airlines use region-based programs. Unlike other frequent flyer programs, region-based models don't rely on the distance an airplane will cover or the flight ticket cost. Instead, it relies on the location from where the flight is coming to where it's heading.
Distance-Based Programs
As the name implies, distance-based programs rely on the actual distance a flight covers during a specific period. While this is an easy-to-use and understandable program, it comes with many other rules and regulations that one should consider, including class of travel and type of fare purchased.
Revenue-Based Programs
Frequent flyer miles in revenue-based programs help travelers earn rewards based on ticket cost. Most domestic U.S. airlines currently use this program.
Hybrid Frequent Flyer Programs
As the name suggests, hybrid frequent flyer programs mix elements from other models, creating a hybrid program that suits various users and needs.
When Are Frequent Flyer Points Not Covered?
Frequent flyer points are separate from overall traveling costs and are viewed as loyalty rewards instead of normal traveling expenses under travel insurance plans.
These points aren't eligible for coverage in the following scenarios:
Cancel for Any Reason Coverage
Our travel insurance plans include CFAR coverage as an optional upgrade to allow you to cancel your trip without restrictions and receive a certain percentage of the overall non-refundable trip expenses back. If you cancel your trip using this benefit, however, you are not eligible for any financial reimbursement for frequent flyer points.
Voluntary Cancellations
If you voluntarily cancel your trip due to personal reasons, including a change in travel plans or scheduling conflict, you won’t be compensated for your lost points. This is because the cancellation wasn't prompted by a covered reason.
Trip Interruptions
While Trip Cancellation coverage can help if you have to cancel your trip altogether, Trip Interruption coverage can help if you’re still taking your trip but aren’t able to use all of your pre-paid arrangements. Frequent flyer points cannot be reimbursed under this coverage.
What Can Your Travel Insurance Cover?
With your travel protection plan, you’re eligible for benefits when you use points to book flights. If you use loyalty points for things like hotels, rental cars, or other expenses, we do not offer reimbursement.
Here is what can be covered: If you book your airline tickets using your frequent flyer points, and you need to cancel your trip for a covered reason, you can be reimbursed any fees you might incur to redeposit your points back into your account.
In addition, if you only partially paid for your flight using points and paid the remaining balance out of pocket, then you may also be reimbursed for the portion you paid for yourself, so long as the reason you canceled is covered under your plan.
A9012002
