If you need to cancel your trip 

Cancelling your travel plans is always disappointing, but can be more so if you find out you can’t re-coup any of the costs you paid for in advance of your trip. If you have coverage with Trip Cancellation benefits and need to cancel due to a covered reason, then, good news:  you’ll be able to claim for the covered benefit.

Here are a few tips to filing a Trip Cancellation claim with Allianz Global Assistance.

• If you have a plan with benefits for Trip Cancellation, there are a variety of Covered Reasons for last-minute trip cancellations. One common reason is a medical emergency: if you, your travel companion or a family member suffers a serious injury or unexpected illness that results in you having to cancel your trip. In these instances, a doctor must examine the sick or injured person and advise that the trip be cancelled.
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• Other Covered Reasons include personal calamities out of your control, such as losing your employment after one or more years on the job or suffering a burglary, fire or other disaster that leaves your home uninhabitable. There may even be other legal covered reasons such as being called to jury duty, or being subpoenaed as a witness, or on a more positive note, your legal adoption of a child during the period of the trip, which necessitates cancellation. 
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• Official government-issued travel advisories warning against travel to a particular country or region (due to political instability, terrorism or adverse weather and natural disasters) may also trigger trip cancellation benefits, provided the advisory wasn’t already in effect when you purchased the trip cancellation insurance.
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• And from time to time, tour operators and travel suppliers cancel tours and airlines cancel flights. These may also be covered if you have Trip Cancellation insurance and all conditions are met.

If you’ve already left on your trip and experience a glitch in your travel plans that delays you or requires you to return home a little early, that's considered a trip interruption. Refer to the Policy of Insurance for a list of the Covered Reasons that will allow you to file a claim under Trip Interruption benefits.

If you miss a flight or are otherwise delayed, you need to make reasonable efforts to continue your trip. Find the nearest customer service desk to reschedule your flight as quickly as you can. You can also try calling the airline on your mobile phone or going online to reschedule your flight. If you have a travel insurance plan through Allianz Global Assistance, notify our 24/7 emergency assistance team by phone so we can open up a claim for you.

• If you purchased trip cancellation insurance, you'll need to submit documentation that shows why your trip was cancelled and the total amount of your pre-paid, non-refundable trip expenses which you need to be reimbursed. Save every email and piece of paper related to your trip, including: 
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• Receipts and itemized bills for all pre-paid expenses.
• Originals of any refunds or expense allowances received from your tour operator, travel agency, Common Carrier, resort, property management company or other entity.
• Copy of your resort invoice/vacation rental contract or confirmation.
• Any appropriate documentation that officially explains the cause of your trip cancellation or interruption.
• Any explanation of medical diagnosis along with your original itemized bills, receipts, and proof of other insurance payments.
• Original unused tickets, copies of invoices, proof of payments and other documents that substantiate the cost or occurrence of the trip cancellation or interruption.
• Copy of the supplier's literature that describes penalties.
• A letter from the tour operator or an itemized bill from the travel agent stating the non-refundable amounts of the trip costs.