Insurance

[poet123]

Lesley,
The reason RS offer this policy is probably because their rentals are all on either Sanibel or Captiva which, as barrier Islands are most at risk. The risk inland is as you say minimal, mind you I would guess the premiums just shot up!!!!!!!!!!!!
I didnt know Americans dont normally take out ins, but I suppose its like us inthe UK taking a break in say Bournemouth and booking direct and not thinking about insurance as its not a package deal.
It would be interesting to find out the limitations of the policy,as you say it is most likely to be if you have to evacuate that payment would be made to cover alternative accom, assuming there is some available!!!!loss of power and enjoyment will probably not be covered.
The bottom line is these things happen and someone is not always liable, sometimes you just have to get on with it and bite the bullet!!!!but I suppose not everyone thinks like this, and if as a villa owner you give people the option to pay for even limited cover then you can do no more and have covered every eventuality!!!Whether they choose to take it is up to them

[poet123]

Lesley,
The reason RS offer this policy is probably because their rentals are all on either Sanibel or Captiva which, as barrier Islands are most at risk. The risk inland is as you say minimal, mind you I would guess the premiums just shot up!!!!!!!!!!!!
I didnt know Americans dont normally take out ins, but I suppose its like us inthe UK taking a break in say Bournemouth and booking direct and not thinking about insurance as its not a package deal.
It would be interesting to find out the limitations of the policy,as you say it is most likely to be if you have to evacuate that payment would be made to cover alternative accom, assuming there is some available!!!!loss of power and enjoyment will probably not be covered.
The bottom line is these things happen and someone is not always liable, sometimes you just have to get on with it and bite the bullet!!!!but I suppose not everyone thinks like this, and if as a villa owner you give people the option to pay for even limited cover then you can do no more and have covered every eventuality!!!Whether they choose to take it is up to them

[blott]

I've just done some research and both esure and insureandgo both offer travel insurance policies that cover hurricanes for UK residents.

[josephinekelly]

Thank you for the research and I will certainly find a policy next time, whether offered by the owner or by UK travel insurance, which covers a villa becoming uninhabitable for any reason, as it is a shock to find out that you could lose all the money paid and get no accommodation which is a double loss.

I think airlines are different in that they will always get you on another flight as soon as possible if grounded due to strikes or damage. They would not of course pay if the decision not to fly was mine, ie if I decided not to go because there was no villa at the destination. If they couldn't offer a flight, then they do pay compensation and none of this involves the travel insurance policy. The car people offer alternative days if you have paid and cannot get there at the stated time, ie you can substitute two weeks hire at another time.

I think it would be an excellent idea if owners were to offer an optional insurance for the villa becoming uninhabitable for any reason as it would at least alert people into deciding whether they want this. Others could decide to build the fee into the rental and put the cover in the contract.

PS I live in Bournemouth and I doubt whether any of the happy holidaymakers on our rainy beaches this Bank Holiday weekend will have wondered whether their accommodation had any refund policy if the place flooded or burnt down!

[blott]

<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:PS I live in Bournemouth and I doubt whether any of the happy holidaymakers on our rainy beaches this Bank Holiday weekend will have wondered whether their accommodation had any refund policy if the place flooded or burnt down![/quote]That's a good point! We're discussing Florida here and the situation is just the same all over the world, including the UK. And it's not just limited to villas either, this could just as easily happen at a hotel or any other type of accommodation.

All the more reason for every guest to make sure that they have adequate travel insurance, which is something we strongly advise them to do, so that they can decide individually what cover is important to them and what price they want to pay for that cover.