Generali Global Assistance Travel Insurance Review — Is It Worth It?

It’s not fun to think about, but part of trip planning includes considering the “what ifs.”

These include questions like: What if you have to go to the hospital during your trip? What if your flight home is canceled and you have unforeseen expenses as a result? What if you wreck the fancy convertible you rented to drive around the island or contract an illness that causes you to miss your flight home?

Generali Global Assistance is a U.S.-based travel insurance provider that offers 3 different plan levels (Standard, Preferred, and Premium) for trips of differing lengths and travel groups of various sizes. Its plans are available for both domestic and international travel and come as packages, rather than needing to purchase coverage elements independently.

Is Generali Global Assistance travel insurance right for you? Here’s what you should know.

Who Can Get Generali Global Assistance Travel Insurance?

Generali Global Assistance plans are available only to U.S. residents. And while plans are available for both domestic and international travel, not all destinations are covered.

Exclusions include Afghanistan, Belarus, Crimea and the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s regions, Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, Russia, Syria, and Venezuela. Additionally, the Generali Global Assistance website says it has limited ability to help you if you’re visiting Ukraine.

What Does Generali Global Assistance Travel Insurance Include?

Before diving into the coverage terms and benefit types, let’s consider what’s included for all customers, regardless of which plan is chosen.

All customers get a “free look period” of up to 30 days, depending on their state of residence. This period allows you to get a full refund if you decide your Generali Global Assistance plan isn’t the right travel insurance plan for you. However, you can’t receive a refund if you’ve started your trip or if you’ve submitted a claim.

You’re also covered for financial insolvency of your common carrier as part of your trip cancellation and trip interruption benefits. Finally, you’ll have access to telemedicine consultations with any plan type, helping you access a doctor in non-emergency cases.

COVID-19 Coverage

COVID-19 coverage applies under multiple policy benefits. If you meet the requirements, you can be reimbursed for 100% of your expenses and even have your policy extended until your quarantine period ends and you’re able to travel home.

This coverage applies to you, your traveling companions, and family members as long as you purchase your travel insurance plan before getting sick or visiting a doctor. Coverage applies also when you test positive, including at-home tests if they include video supervision.

Optional Add-ons

There are 2 optional add-ons that merit discussion, as well. Cancel for Any Reason (CFAR) coverage isn’t included with any Generali Global Assistance travel insurance plans. However, you can add it to your Premium plan as long as you do so within 24 hours of making the first payment or deposit toward your trip.

Another add-on with Premium plans is coverage for pre-existing medical conditions. To get this coverage, you must add it to your plan before or within 24 hours of your final trip payment. Pre-existing conditions coverage applies if you’re medically able to travel at the time you buy the plan and if all prepaid trip costs with cancellation fees are insured.

Hot Tip:

Ensure you add Cancel for Any Reason or pre-existing conditions coverage to your plan within 24 hours. Otherwise, you’ll lose these options.

Generali Global Assistance Coverage Types and Benefits

When considering a travel insurance plan, you’re probably assuming that you get more coverage when you pay more. That’s largely true. Benefit coverage amounts will be higher on premium plans from the same provider. But that’s not necessarily true when comparing providers to each other.

In order to know what you’re looking for in a travel insurance policy, you should first understand what the types of coverage are:

• Cancel for Any Reason (CFAR) Coverage: This add-on policy covers up to 60% of your losses if you cancel for reasons not covered in other sections of your policy.
• Pre-existing Medical Conditions: Available only with the Premium plan, your current medical conditions may be covered if you buy a plan before or within 24 hours of making your final trip payment and are medically able to travel at the time of purchase.
• Trip Cancellation Insurance: You’ll receive reimbursement for prepaid, non-refundable costs if you cancel a trip for one of the covered reasons listed in your policy.
• Trip Interruption: Once you start your trip, this coverage goes into effect and can reimburse non-refundable costs from lost portions of your travel plan. It also can cover costs to catch up with your trip if there are delays for covered reasons.
• Trip Delay: You can be reimbursed for meals, parking, transportation, and other expenses incurred because of delays. This coverage goes into effect after a delay of 10 hours with the Standard plan, 8 hours with the Preferred plan, or 6 hours with the Premium plan.
• Baggage Loss or Damage: This coverage is secondary to homeowner’s or renter’s insurance and covers lost, damaged, or stolen baggage — including the items inside, with some exceptions. This coverage may even reimburse the cost of replacing a passport during your trip.
• Baggage Delay: If your luggage is delayed, you can be reimbursed for reasonable costs incurred while waiting for it to arrive, such as clothes and toiletries. Reimbursement only applies after delays of 24 hours with the Standard plan, 18 hours with Preferred, or 12 hours with a Premium plan.
• Sporting Equipment Loss or Damage: Similar to baggage coverage, this section specifically applies to sporting equipment you take on your trip.
• Sporting Equipment Delay: You’ll be reimbursed for costs incurred while waiting for delayed sporting equipment, such as needing to rent skis until yours arrive. Required delays are 18 hours with Preferred plans and 12 hours with Premium plans.
• Missed Connection: This coverage applies only to cruises and tours and covers your extra costs to catch up with your travel plans and/or lodging and meals during your delays. Coverage applies to flights that are canceled or delayed for at least 3 hours because of inclement weather.
• Medical and Dental: This protection covers illnesses and injuries during your trip and the resulting expenses. It also can cover deductibles or unpaid expenses from your health insurance provider.
• Emergency Assistance and Transportation: If you encounter an emergency or medical situation where adequate healthcare isn’t available nearby, you can be evacuated to an appropriate facility. This policy also covers returning your remains to the U.S. or local burial costs in the event of death.
• Accidental Death and Dismemberment — Air Flight Accident: This coverage provides payments if you lose life, limb, or sight during a flight. In case of death, the payout goes to your designated beneficiary.
• Accidental Death and Dismemberment — Travel Accident: Similar to the coverage above, this covers loss of life, limb, or sight during other types of travel (not flights).
• Rental Car Damage: You’re covered for collision damage, theft, vandalism, natural disasters, or damages for reasons beyond your control. Some types of vehicles are excluded, but coverage applies to all drivers listed on your rental agreement. Coverage is up to the cash value of the car or the cost of repairs and related costs — whichever is less. This coverage isn’t available to residents of Texas.

It’s also important to note that each section has rules and restrictions about which costs are covered, when coverage applies, and other terms you must follow.

Coverage Exclusions

Sometimes, understanding what’s not included may be more important than comparing prices between Generali Global Assistance plans and other companies selling travel insurance.

Why is that? Well, exclusions are built into every insurance benefit, and it’s important to know if your particular trip, destination, or activity is excluded from coverage. Having robust travel insurance won’t help if it doesn’t cover your specific situation.

For example, you aren’t covered if you sustain injuries while intoxicated or for medical emergencies related to pregnancy. You also aren’t covered when you’re the one flying a plane or you’re participating in extreme sports.

Coverage excludes war zones and certain destinations, as well. These include Belarus, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, Syria, and disputed regions of Ukraine.

Comparison of Generali Global Assistance Plans

Generali Global Travel Assistance Standard Plan

The Standard plan provides the most common coverage elements, reimbursing you for canceled, delayed, or interrupted trips if the reasons meet those outlined in your policy.

While you won’t be covered for sporting equipment problems or death/dismemberment anywhere outside a plane, you can be covered for medical problems and even missed connections. And if you use a credit card with rental car insurance, you may not be concerned about not having this coverage in your policy.

Generali Global Travel Assistance Preferred Plan

The Preferred plan includes everything in the Standard plan but with greater coverage amounts in nearly every category. Rental car coverage is still missing, but you’ll gain coverage for sporting equipment delays and damages/losses and coverage for death or dismemberment throughout your trip.

Generali Global Travel Assistance Premium Plan

This is the only plan that includes car rental damage and is the only plan allowing for add-on coverage related to pre-existing medical conditions or canceling for any reason. It has the greatest coverage limits of any plan. It even includes $1,000,000 in emergency assistance and transportation coverage.

Hot Tip:

If you want coverage for pre-existing medical conditions or Cancel for Any Reason coverage, those are only available as add-ons to a Premium plan.

If you want coverage for pre-existing medical conditions, you must add this option before or within 24 hours of your final trip payment and must be well enough to travel at the time you purchase the policy. Cancel for Any Reason coverage is an optional add-on here, as well, and it must be added within 24 hours of your first payment toward the trip.

How Much Does Generali Global Assistance Travel Insurance Cost?

Let’s look at some sample plans to see how much a policy costs. This will give you a better idea of whether these plans fit your budget.

How Generali Global Assistance Travel Insurance Compares To Other Options

Generali Global Assistance Travel Insurance vs. Competitors

Before buying a travel insurance policy from Generali, it’s worth understanding how its plans compare to popular competitors like Seven Corners and WorldTrips. We priced a 5-day trip to Mexico in November 2023 for a family of 4 (ages 40, 39, 10, and 8) with a trip cost of $3,000 using Squaremouth. The first trip deposit was made in the past 24 hours in this estimate.

WorldTrips’ plan is significantly cheaper, despite all 3 offering similar trip cancellation, COVID-19, and terrorism-related coverage. Generali has the highest trip interruption amount — a full 25% higher than the other 2 options.

All 3 plans have the same coverage for medical-related cancellations, CFAR, and trip interruptions. Only WorldTrips has coverage for work-related cancellations.

While all 3 have the same coverage for medical evacuation, the emergency medical benefits are vastly different. Seven Corners offers $500,000, Generali has $250,000, and WorldTrips has just $150,000.

Bottom Line:

Generali Global Assistance charges more than some competitors without providing higher benefit thresholds across the board. The real differentiator is in trip interruption and emergency medical benefits. If you don’t need higher coverage in these areas, other companies may have better price-per-benefit options for you.

Generali Global Assistance Travel Insurance vs. Credit Card Insurance

Before deciding to buy an insurance policy for an upcoming trip, understand that your credit card may provide some of the same coverage.

However, how you trigger that coverage can vary — such as whether you need to pay the full amount of the trip or just part of it with your card (or whether using points to pay qualifies). Here’s a look at how Generali’s Premium Travel Insurance Plan compares to coverage with The Platinum Card^® from American Express, Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card, and the Chase Sapphire Reserve^®.

Bottom Line:

Always review and compare your options, whether that’s with another travel insurance company or travel insurance with a credit card.

Tips for Ensuring a Smooth Claim Process

You hope you never have to use your travel insurance. If you do, however, there are certain things you can do to improve the claims process.

First, save all receipts, especially if you buy new equipment or clothing for your trip. Insurance claims will use depreciation when evaluating how much lost/damaged items are worth. If your items are brand new, you’ll want to prove that they haven’t depreciated in value. You also want to save all receipts for your reimbursement claims. These include hospital visits, medications, meals during flight delays, etc.

Additionally, ensure you read the terms of your policy and that you understand them. This way, you’ll know what is and isn’t covered. This will help you avoid submitting claims for items that aren’t covered or purchasing items for which you won’t be reimbursed.

Finally, ensure you cover all costs associated with your trip. This is especially true for any parts of your trip with change or cancellation policies. When you must purchase your policy in relation to first payments and final payments changes depending on what coverage you want. Make sure you know this and get the right coverage at the right time to cover everything you need.

If you need to file a claim, you can do so in the online claims portal. You’ll start by putting in your policy number, which is included in your original confirmation email. From here, the site will guide you through the claims process. If you’ve lost the confirmation email and don’t know your policy number, you can call 800-541-3522 or email claims@generalitravelinsurance.com.

Final Thoughts

Travel insurance is something you hope you never need. In an ideal world, your flights would all arrive on time and you’d never get hurt.

Unfortunately, however, things can and do go wrong. Generali Global Assistance offers 3 travel insurance plans with various coverage types and optional add-ons. Refer to this guide often to fully understand their similarities and differences to help you choose the right one for your next holiday.

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For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the benefits may be provided by Visa^® or Mastercard^® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.

For the baggage insurance plan benefit of the Amex Platinum card, baggage insurance plan coverage can be in effect for covered persons for eligible lost, damaged, or stolen baggage during their travel on a common carrier vehicle (e.g. plane, train, ship, or bus) when the Entire Fare for a ticket for the trip (one-way or round-trip) is charged to an eligible card. Coverage can be provided for up to $2,000 for checked baggage and up to a combined maximum of $3,000 for checked and carry-on baggage, in excess of coverage provided by the common carrier. The coverage is also subject to a $3,000 aggregate limit per covered trip. For New York State residents, there is a $2,000 per bag/suitcase limit for each covered person with a $10,000 aggregate maximum for all covered persons per covered trip. Eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.

For the car rental loss and damage insurance benefit of the Amex Platinum card, car rental loss and damage insurance can provide coverage up to $75,000 for theft of or damage to most rental vehicles when you use your eligible card to reserve and pay for the entire eligible vehicle rental and decline the collision damage waiver or similar option offered by the commercial car rental company. This product provides secondary coverage and does not include liability coverage. Not all vehicle types or rentals are covered. geographic restrictions apply. Eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. Car Rental Loss or Damage Coverage is offered through American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc.

For the premium global assist hotline benefit of the Amex Platinum card, eligibility and benefit level varies by Card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. If approved and coordinated by premium global assist hotline, emergency medical transportation assistance may be provided at no cost. In any other circumstance, card members may be responsible for the costs charged by third-party service providers.

For the trip delay insurance benefit of the Amex Platinum card, up to $500 per covered trip that is delayed for more than 6 hours; and 2 claims per eligible card per 12 consecutive month period. Eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by New Hampshire Insurance Company, an AIG Company.

For the trip cancellation and interruption insurance benefit of the Amex Platinum card, the maximum benefit amount for trip cancellation and interruption insurance is $10,000 per covered trip and $20,000 per eligible card per 12 consecutive month period. Eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by New Hampshire Insurance Company, an AIG Company.