Travel Insurance Claims Soar as International Travel Bounces Back

International travel is on the rise as countries around the world, including the U.S., continue to ease COVID-19 entry restrictions. However, the increase in demand for travel is coinciding with staffing shortages and widespread operational disruptions at many airports and other sectors of the industry.

Travel insurance aggregator Squaremouth reports that international travel has returned to pre-COVID levels, with 90 percent of trips insured on Squaremouth so far this year being for international destinations, compared to 76 percent for the same time period last year.

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While people have resumed travel both domestically and abroad, the uncertain environment as a result of the pandemic is motivating many to protect their trips as Squaremouth reports a 235 percent increase in travel insurance claims year-to-date, compared to the same period in 2019. What's more, policy sales are also up 180 percent in that same time period.

More than two years into the coronavirus crisis, most travelers still consider the virus to be the biggest risk to their travel plans. Since the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) decision to rescind the requirement that all travelers provide a negative COVID-19 test result or documentation of recovery from COVID-19 before boarding a flight to the U.S. earlier this month, more than one-third (34 percent) of searches on Squaremouth has been for a policy that covers contracting COVID-19. Nonetheless, that figure is down from 44 percent in the preceding week.

Interest in coverage for a potential COVID-related quarantine also dropped from 17 percent of searches to just 10 percent.

Last month, a survey of Allianz Partners USA customers found that 90 percent were likely to purchase travel insurance for their next trip.