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Bin Laden’s Death Does Not Change Terror Threat Level

The news of Osama bin Laden’s death has many vacationers comparing  travel insurance to protect the excursions they planned.  Some people feel the military action taken by the U.S. will inevitably lead to some form of retaliation, increasing some people’s fear of travel.  Even after the announcement of his death, the terror thread level has not changed.  The following excerpt from an MSNBC article provides more detail.

“The death of Osama bin Laden is an important success not only for the United States, but the entire world,” said Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano in statement. “Our efforts to combat terrorism, however, do not fixate on one individual, and we remain completely focused on protecting our nation against violent extremism of all kinds.”

Napolitano says elevated terror alerts will only be issued when the government has “specific or credible information to convey to the American public.”

Some law enforcement agencies around the U.S. added security measures on Monday following Osama bin Laden’s death out of an abundance of caution.

In Los Angeles, police were stepping up intelligence monitoring, while New York was sending extra police to its subways, airports, bridges and the World Trade Center site itself.

NBC News reports that John F. Kennedy International Airport this morning was business as usual.

Even if the terror threat level was escalated, travel insurance would not cover trip cancellation or trip interruption.  This is because the terrorism coverage only applies if there is an act of terrorism.  Heightened threat levels, specific threats and government travel warnings do not trigger the coverage, only a terrorist attack would.

The only travel insurance benefit that would reimburse for a trip that is cancelled because someone fears a terrorist attack is cancel for any reason coverage.  This allows travelers to cancel the trip without having to explain the reasons why.  Shop early to find a policy with this coverage because it is only available for several weeks after making the first trip payment.  Also, the trip has to be cancelled at least two days before departure and the reimbursement is less than 100% of the trip cost.  Always refer to the certificate of insurance for details.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 3rd, 2011 and is filed under Insurance Articles. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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