Southern Cross Travel Insurance and missed connections

[moa999]

Anyone heard of Southern Cross Travel Insurance??

Saw an ad on tv and had a look.
Pricing was very good (although no annual policies)

More importantly it seems to cover "missed connections" well with no exclusions for carrier performance (this is a topic on which there have been three previous threads with no solutions)
http://www.scti.com.au/legal/policy-wording

If, during Your Journey, You miss Your Scheduled Transport connection due to an Unexpected Event, We will reimburse You for Your actual and reasonable additional travel, telephone calls, accommodation and meals which are not recoverable from any other source pending the next available Scheduled Transport connection to allow You to continue Your Planned Journey. The maximum amount We will pay is $10,000 per policy.
---
‘Unexpected’ Sudden, unforeseeable and unintended, which was outside of Your control and which could not reasonably have been anticipated or avoided.
---
‘Unexpected Event’
(a) Your Unexpected death, serious Injury or Illness; or
(b) the Unexpected death, serious Injury or Illness of any member of Your Immediate Family in Australia only (family located in other countries are not covered), or Your travelling companion; or
(c) any other Unexpected cause beyond Your control, that is not otherwise excluded in this policy wording.

Important for me as have a short 10-day trip with a 3-hr flyscoot-airasia connection and a 6-hr jetstarasia-flyscoot connection (both at SIN)
and obviously flyscoot doesnt take Amex so my watered down Platinum insurance cannot be used at all.


Actually found one reference to this mob which appears positive
http://www.australianfrequentflyer....urance/backpacker-travel-insurance-31524.html

 

[RB]

Haven't seen anything about them before. Looking around I see there is a thread on whirlpool Southern Cross Travel Insurance? - Travel - Lifestyle (not sure about some of the stuff on there). Also I see they are a travel partner of 28 degrees Optional travel insurance with 28 Degrees MasterCard

 

[moa999]

bump for the insurance experts logging in this evening.

Have been around for a while and won a few Choice awards.

 

[DeKa]

No annual policy, so no go for me.

 

[moa999]

Also the sponsors on tonight's Amazing Race 1st place prize. Given the winners might be an automatic avoid!!

 

[richie9x]

They are an offshoot of Southern Cross Health Insurance which is one of the biggest health insurance companies in NZ. They have been doing travel insurance in NZ for quite a while.

 

[shellthom]

Hey guys, don't want to burst the bubbly but working in insurance it sounds like a "false" benefit. I think you will find the wording will only be covered where it is a connection. Not 2 flights booked independently as they are not considered connections by airlines. So in the case of scoot-air asia, because they were purchased as individual segments I think your still out in the cold. From my understanding of insurance companies and claims processing (claims since 2008, insurance since 2005, current international emergency assistance - like travel insurance but a customer advocate to the insurance companies..) you cannot interpret the wording. COnnection means an actual connecting flight booked as a connecting flights. The reason I can see this is in the policy is because the airline should be covering this anyway, it makes them seem to have a point of difference but they are actually not offering any benefit to you - because most airlines will transport you give you meals or meal vouchers and get you a room when they are causing you to miss the onward flight. It may be of benefit with through tickets on air asia and the lcc's because they dont have the reserve funds to be paying for those things so while they will rebook you on the next available flight they wont give you a room.

Also, having taken insurance with them for a trip to the cook islands, I can tell you their company ethic is to find any wording possible in the policy to avoid paying a claim. Winning awards just means it is profitable, not that they pay claims in a fair manner. Many home/motor insurers in AU have a decline claim policy and will only pay where they cannot possibly find a way to get out of it, and have won many awards. Where the companies that look for ways to pay you something, if not all of the claim - going to different sections to see if it can be covered there etc, also usually win awards. But if everyone has the same award how do you as an average Joe know which is the customer focussed company. The good thing is most people never need to make a claim so don't find out... but when you need to claim and the cover you thought you had isn't actually there ....

I would rather a company insure me who pays claims where possible than one who looks to decline. Please let me know if I have not explained myself well and I can try again (probably with examples)

 

[SAM77]

Hi guys, I do not mean to hijack this thread but I had a situation where I missed a connecting flight, here is the scenario:
1. flew from Frankfurt to Paris CGD then took a connecting flight to Africa with Air France (both flights were with Air France)
2. I had to re-check my luggage in CDG, lost a lot of time as only two check in counters were open
3. The immigration line was very very long
4. Got to the gate just as the plane was leaving but I was not let on the flight, the plane was just being pushed back.
5. Got rebooked for the next day flight but needed to pay for the hotel accom

TID could not help me claim the hotel accom for this night nor the costs of food at the airport or the calls to my travel agent.

Is this how it normally works?

 

[straitman]

SAM77,

It is not clear from your post why you needed to recheck your baggage. Where you on separate PNRs?


Sent from my legal, non technology stealing, iPhone using AustFreqFly App

 

[SAM77]

I had two tickets:
1. Lufthansa ticket for SIN - FRA
2. Air France ticket from FRA via CDG to ABV

The luggage was check in from Singapore to Paris, I was told I had to collect it in Paris and then check it for the last leg to Abuja (ABV) in Paris.

 

[moa999]

shellthom,

Thanks for the advice on the wording and your personal experience with SCTI.

 

[shellthom]

Sam77,

Travel insurance is generally speaking an insured event policy ie one of the defined situations needs to happen to trigger policy coverage.
In your case I believe it would have been the airlines responsibility to make sure you were on the flight by giving you an express pass etc etc as it was a through ticket.
As they were unable to do that the accommodation, meal expenses etc should then fall on to them.

In the scenario there is no trigger for a standard insurance policy (people insured through their work can get better ones) so it would be the airline or no one but def not the insurance.

(Im on my lunch break so Im off to get some sleep before I give out more policy advice at work)

 

[trooper]

Sam77 said it was separate tickets.

That being the case it seems fortunate that Air France simply rebooked for the next day... presumably they had no obligation to do that.

If TID has refused any related claim that would sem to confirm that a "connection" has to be on one PNR for "missed connection" claim purposes.... which to be honest makes sense to me.... I can't see insurers covering the multiplicity of problems that can arise by separate bookings... (LCC>LCC etc)

 

[shellthom]

I had two tickets:
1. Lufthansa ticket for SIN - FRA
2. Air France ticket from FRA via CDG to ABV

To me that read 1 ticket was Lufthansa and the other ticket a through ticket with air france - with a via CDG.
If they are all different tickets yes nothing no provision from any airline
If it is a FRA-ABV (via CDG) as I understood it to be Air France has some responsibility.

 

[jetset]

Hey guys, don't want to burst the bubbly but working in insurance it sounds like a "false" benefit. I think you will find the wording will only be covered where it is a connection. Not 2 flights booked independently as they are not considered connections by airlines. So in the case of scoot-air asia, because they were purchased as individual segments I think your still out in the cold. From my understanding of insurance companies and claims processing (claims since 2008, insurance since 2005, current international emergency assistance - like travel insurance but a customer advocate to the insurance companies..) you cannot interpret the wording. COnnection means an actual connecting flight booked as a connecting flights.

But if this was to be the case, wouldn't Southern Cross Travel Insurance have had to define it that way in the policy wording? Otherwise a connection is just that - an act of joining.
I've emailed them to ask because I'm also interested in their insurance for this reason.

 

[travelislife]

Looking forward to hearing the response. There are more and more LCCs and often the people flying them are the ones most in need for insurance to cover them in the case of a missed connection through no fault of their own.

 

[shellthom]

If the policy wording says connection - then it would have to be a connection. Airlines with an interline agreement or a flight booked with the same airline as a connection. Connection isn't a loosely based term, it is defined within the travel/airline industry. Even if it weren't widely understood that meaning would be applied (to your loss).

Booking two flights where one leaves from the same airport that the other flight arrived into are not connecting flights by any stretch of the imagination.
So it is written into the policy wording if the wording says your connecting flight. It is also written into the T&C's of the low cost carrier. My flights with Scoot for example (and Jetstar, and 3k).. all of them say where 2 flights are booked as a through fare each flight is an individual flight and not a connection. Even when you are booking just 1 segment they also have that wording. So there is no mistaking that they are booking you on individuals flights and not on connecting flights.

It's not always in the insurance PDS, its other T&C's that you have to read as well. If you want to claim you need to be able to substantiate that the claim falls within the policy. If your on an LCC and one is late and you miss the next flight all I can say is good luck.

 

[jetset]

Ok I had an email exchange with Southern Cross. They are very responsive.

They advised me that they will reimburse you for additional travel costs due to a missed connection (up to $10k). However first you need to submit a claim with the responsible service provider(s) (which presumably has to be rejected). The costs must be unrecoverable elsewhere.

As to the definition of connection, they advise that your flights do not have to be on the same ticket or airline. However claims are assessed individually with supporting documentation, so you must have left sufficient time for the connection.

They also advised (surprisingly) that this event hasn't happened yet.

So overall, sounds like good news. But they'll probably go through your documentation with a fine tooth comb.

 

[shellthom]

That sounds like good news, but it also sounds generic, I wouldn't get my hopes up just yet. It will come down to the person who processes the claim, as they said they are assessed individually. So one person may say its within the policy (as the person you've spoken to is seemingly implying) but then another may decide it is outside the policy. And from experience, Customer Service will say its covered when its actually not and it will be declined by the claims team. But having worked in phone based areas all of the advice our customer service guys gave out was verbal, and unless they noted it down on the policy in claims we would follow the policy (if it was noted in the claim as given and we incorrect we would discuss weather to tell them it was wrong and follow the policy or follow the incorrect advice and let them know it is a once off... and that usually came down to if it was sold wrong, or if a hypothetical was answered wrong). In your case you have written correspondence so it is easier to prove what you were told.
I can also say, working in claims for a few different companies, not one of them had a structured training process, which means there are no hard and fast rules, no set processes in place. There are guides and red flags (fraud) to keep an eye out for... but apart from that its each claims officer to their own.
If you don't like a result you can always appeal, as I said earlier or in another thread, some companies decline to save money and only pay on appeal even when they know it fits within the policy, but they will exclude it where they can.
So the best way to find out if anything is covered is to claim.

 

[jetset]

I can also say, working in claims for a few different companies, not one of them had a structured training process, which means there are no hard and fast rules, no set processes in place. There are guides and red flags (fraud) to keep an eye out for... but apart from that its each claims officer to their own.
If you don't like a result you can always appeal, as I said earlier or in another thread, some companies decline to save money and only pay on appeal even when they know it fits within the policy, but they will exclude it where they can.

Interesting. This is concerning and undermines the whole point of insurance but I guess its just the way it is. As you say, at least I have written correspondence.
If one did feel their claim was unjustly assessed, what avenues would one seek redress by?

For what its worth, another insurance provider which I *think* offers missed connection travel insurance (up to $1k) is insure4less.com (can't post links ???)