Why use a travel agent?

You make a pretty convincing case in favor of trip insurance and you appear to have a good source, I would appreciate that agents name if you want to pass it on.

The agent that I have used for several years is Steve Dasseos who is the owner of the Tripinsurancestore.com . 888-407-3854. He has a very interesting website but I always have many questions and he has spent hours educating me, helping me pick out the right policy for whatever issues I might have at the time, etc. I even sent a policy to him that was offered to me when I bought a "one off" cruise through a bundler. My TA was using a third party and I thought the deal on insurance was too good to be true. The price was astonishing to him and to me and he told me to grab it. We do that in our agency when someone has a policy that we think is better than what we can offer but I think it's unheard of in the travel business! All of the people in his office are nice and extremely responsive but Steve is really an expert in his field and has never pressured me to buy anything. The reverse is probably true; he'll always tell me when I have time instead of rushing into something. Most importantly, he has relationships with the carriers he represents and is willing to go bat for his clients in any type of claim dispute.

The first time I purchased trip insurance was for a trip we bought for my then 80 year old Father-in-law and his girlfriend as a gift his 80th birthday. The TA suggested it due to their ages. A month before their cruise, his girlfriend slipped on a wet floor and broke her leg. The cruise insurance was great and covered the delay fully. They re-booked months later when she was fully healed.

Another story - earlier this year, a friend of mine was booked on a Crystal cruise with private A & K excursions and hotel stays before and after. The trip was 28 days total in Asia. 3 weeks before the cruise, she slipped getting out of the shower and broke her wrist in 2 places and ended up with surgery, cast, physical therapy, pins and plates. God knows how much that trip cost, but she fully reimbursed due to trip insurance.

I forgot all about trip insurance for a week stay at a condo last month that I rented in Hawaii, non-refundable - just didn't occur to me! But in general, with a cruise or pre-paid tour like a safari, I get trip insurance. Recently I have used insuremytrip which was recommended to me by my safari planner. So .... as I plan my next cruise, one of my expenses is trip insurance!

Forgot 2 things. Steve has a blog http://tripinsurancestore.com/blog/ which is always really interesting. The other thing we did last year is get a Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa. The best thing about it is if you use it to purchase your travel, it's all insured for pretty much the same things as the "normal" policies that we purchase. I like it as backup. My friends just had to cancel a trip to Israel that they purchased on the Chase card for health reasons and they had a check in hand in very short order. I was amazed! We had to cancel two years ago when my mother became terminally ill and found out lots of things about travel insurance that I never knew. The main thing is, make sure you have all of your documentation, even the credit card bill that you used to pay for the insurance itself. Document dates of deposits, payments, etc. I now keep a spreadsheet of everything to do with each trip. OCD! :)

I use a TA for the extra perks. Like MTJTraveller, I book to get air miles, plus extra perks for myself, that come from the TA.

In the past I used a small TA, who sent gifts to the room. The TA will give more or the same you can get from booking from Windstar direct.

The only reason not to do a TA is if they are bad, and it is harder to book using them (for example they are clueless and picking a room takes longer than it should). If you use a local independent TA, after the first time, it will be easy. They will know you and help you.

Yes I can do it myself - but I want perks OR to help someone in my local economy and none of that cost me a single penny more.

Re trip insurance- I have a colleague who recently was on an NCL transatlantic and got pneumonia. She spent one night in the ships hospital facility for a bill of $15,000! And even though she has three medical insurance policies (Medicare, Medigap and Amex) they required her to pay the $15,000 before leaving the ship and put another $30,000 "on hold" on her credit cards. No way would I travel without insurance! And I second Trip Insurance Store and Steve Dasseos- and his staff. Very knowledgeable, helpful and customer service oriented.

Forgot 2 things. Steve has a blog http://tripinsurancestore.com/blog/ which is always really interesting. The other thing we did last year is get a Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa. The best thing about it is if you use it to purchase your travel, it's all insured for pretty much the same things as the "normal" policies that we purchase. I like it as backup. My friends just had to cancel a trip to Israel that they purchased on the Chase card for health reasons and they had a check in hand in very short order. I was amazed! We had to cancel two years ago when my mother became terminally ill and found out lots of things about travel insurance that I never knew. The main thing is, make sure you have all of your documentation, even the credit card bill that you used to pay for the insurance itself. Document dates of deposits, payments, etc. I now keep a spreadsheet of everything to do with each trip. OCD! :)

I do the same. High end credit card and travel cards do work for travel insurance. You need to read the fine print and understand what you really are getting. Same goes for any travel insurance policy. If you have never made a claim with a travel insurance company, you will soon find out the meaning of getting blood from a stone means. None of them are cooperative. The credit card company has a vested interest. My top card (I travel for work) see 50-60K per year in charges. They want me to use their card. They will take care of me.

I am one of those people with a horror story. My whole family (12) were all set, with our luggage at the door, to leave the following morning for a cruise celebrating my husband and my 50th anniversary. At about 11:00 o'clock that night I got a call that my sister (65) had a stroke in California. We are in NY. To make matters worse a heavy storm was on the way and no new flights were being scheduled. Luckily, we had tkts to Florida, where the cruise was leaving from. We took that trip to Florida on the last flight to leave NY from JFK and went from Florida to California. We were able to make it to the hospital where we saw my sister for the last time. Luckily, we had insurance. Everything was covered. That was a lot of money! I would never take a chance to travel without insurance. Sure, insurance is like betting against yourself, but one never knows......

I ALWAYS use a travel agent. First, they have a computer fare tracking system that alerts them to price reductions up until the time of final payment. It isn't unusual for them to call me several times to let me know that the cruise has become less expensive. Caviat - You must have a trust worthy agent as they lose a small percentage of their commissions every time the price goes down.

Second, imagine being in Istanbul (or any other city affected by current event issues)? Having a travel agent available to provide assistance is invaluable. Fortunately I haven't had such an event but I feel better that I have the agency's number on my reservations.

Third, it almost never costs me anything to use them. Although I can look things up on WebMD I would never substitute a doctor if the need arises. I believe that I am internet savvy, but I don't believe that I have as much information at my fingertips as a travel agent who works 40 hours per week in the industry.

I ALWAYS use a travel agent. First, they have a computer fare tracking system that alerts them to price reductions up until the time of final payment. It isn't unusual for them to call me several times to let me know that the cruise has become less expensive. Caviat - You must have a trust worthy agent as they lose a small percentage of their commissions every time the price goes down.

Your statement about TA's commissions enlightened me. I usually work online to get the best on board credits, cruise cost, etc. However, in all my years of cruising, no one has ever contacted me regarding a price decrease even though I book about 9 mos prior to cruise. I usually search these out myself and contact my agent who then usually will lower my cost before final payment.

Thanks

Your statement about TA's commissions enlightened me. I usually work online to get the best on board credits, cruise cost, etc. However, in all my years of cruising, no one has ever contacted me regarding a price decrease even though I book about 9 mos prior to cruise. I usually search these out myself and contact my agent who then usually will lower my cost before final payment.

 

Thanks

During a normal conversation with my TA today I inquired about the price reductions he has notified me about in the past. His agency is part of the Signature Travel Network - a consortium of TA's nationwide. The computer system they use has a price watch feature that automatically notifies them of price decreases. It is then up to the rep to contact the customer.

My rep gave me the following example that he forewarned me was overly simplistic but would give me the general idea. He explained that a standard commission is roughly 10 - 12% of the base cruise fare (not including taxes, airfare, etc.). So if the base fare is $800 the commission is $80. A commissioned agent splits the commission 50/50 with the agency so his commission is $40. If the fare drops $100 to $700 he loses $5. In his mind, it is better to lose the $5 than to lose the customer if they found out there has been a price reduction that he knew about, but chose not to say anything.

Again, it goes back to whether the TA is regularly checking on your reservation (either manually or with a computer system) and whether they have decided to notify you if there are any changes.

I am TA. I book a lot of cruises - mainstream cruises, luxury cruises, expedition cruises and river cruises. (Do I know everything about all of them? Obviously not, but I know a lot. And am always learning more.) So find yourself a travel agent that is actually good at their job. There are quite a few of us.

As for insurance, I ALWAYS buy it when I book my own travel. 100% of the time. Why? You never know. You never know when you may break a leg and need emergency surgery a month or two before a major vacation, or get an unfortunate diagnosis requiring emergency surgery, or have flight troubles - even though you were booked to fly the day before your cruise and the airline refuses to pay for anything, or you were approved for vacation time but your job needs change and your boss rescinded the time off approval, or... the ist goes on. These are all examples of things that have happened that have happened to clients of mine in the last couple of months. They all had insurance. They have or will be compensated.

One last thing and I will get off my soapbox - a good travel agent will also handle the insurance claim for you, acting as a liaison between you and the insurance company, making sure they have everything they need (and making sure you don't screw up by saying something that you shouldn't).

You just never know.

I'm the original poster and responses have been very informative. We have almost...except for New Zealand, a disaster...used a TA and for us, see no reason to change. It makes sense for a lot of travelers and I'm sure the good ones provide a valuable service, especially for infrequent travelers.

Insurance. Again, never bought, luckily never needed it, but a relative did have a need in Mexico and they were happy they made the investment. It is however wise to check the coverage you get with the credit card you used to buy the trip. Often trip cancellation is covered along with some non financial assistance if injured during the trip. This is where insurance comes in handy

I love your thinking! My sentiments exactly! You can always 'represent' yourself in court, but it may not be your best option.

I ALWAYS use a travel agent. First, they have a computer fare tracking system that alerts them to price reductions up until the time of final payment. It isn't unusual for them to call me several times to let me know that the cruise has become less expensive. Caviat - You must have a trust worthy agent as they lose a small percentage of their commissions every time the price goes down.

 

Second, imagine being in Istanbul (or any other city affected by current event issues)? Having a travel agent available to provide assistance is invaluable. Fortunately I haven't had such an event but I feel better that I have the agency's number on my reservations.

 

Third, it almost never costs me anything to use them. Although I can look things up on WebMD I would never substitute a doctor if the need arises. I believe that I am internet savvy, but I don't believe that I have as much information at my fingertips as a travel agent who works 40 hours per week in the industry.