What is it about Paris, France, during Christmastime that is so magical?
Is it the whimsical Christmas markets scattered throughout the streets like snow? Perhaps it’s strolling under the Arc de Triomphe, its powerful arch temporarily swallowing the chilly Winter wind as you drive around it? Or maybe it’s something as simple as sipping hot chocolate with your loved ones in the midst of the City of Love.
Spending the first few days of 2018 in France may sound like a dream come true, but it wasn’t part of the travel itinerary for Yvonne, a CAA Niagara Member.
Sure, seeing the Eiffel Tower dressed in lights in the Paris moonlight is a romantic way to start off a New Year, but not necessarily when it’s done four days after your expected departure date to return home from vacation.
Coming back home from Paris, Yvonne and her family found themselves to be victims of the Bomb Cyclone, a powerful Winter storm with hurricane-like winds that disrupted travel for thousands of individuals shortly into the New Year.
Yvonne and her family had been vacationing in the South of France. They checked into an Airport Hotel in Paris in the evening of January 4, planning to depart the next day, though learned that their flight to New York City for their layover had been cancelled due to the force of the Bomb Cyclone Winter storm affecting North America. She contacted her CAA Travel Agent, Pedro, from the Niagara Falls Branch to book an alternate flight home, and was surprised to hear the earliest flight she and her family could get was four days away.
It was going to cost Yvonne and her family an additional $945 to cover their extended three-night stay in Paris, but Pedro explained to her that because she chose to purchase CAA’s Trip Interruption Insurance, she would be reimbursed for many of the additional costs.
Rather than fretting, Yvonne decided that spending an additional four days in Paris with her family wasn’t the worst way to start off the New Year, especially because she had CAA Travel Insurance. Besides, is it even possible to grow tired of the Christmas lights adorning the streets of Paris, hearing hymns reverberate through the walls at La Sainte Chapelle?
Before she even left Paris, Yvonne contacted CAA Travel Insurance to get started on her claim. She forwarded her contact information, and a company representative returned her inquiry shortly after. Said representative informed Yvonne that her coverage under the CAA Trip Interruption Insurance would provide her, her two children, and her husband each with $350 for each extra day she and her family remained in Paris. This coverage could be used towards their hotel stay, meals, laundry services, Wifi, phone calls, and transportation (including a rental car).
“It was really beneficial to have this coverage,” she explained. “Whatever we needed while we were in the situation was covered.”
With her mind at ease, Yvonne and her family were able to stroll through the streets of Place Vendôme, visit the Louvre and Notre Dame, and watch street performers mime, play piano, roller skate and dance while snacking on crepes and the world’s best cheeses.
Yvonne emphasized the simplicity of the claim process, and further the flexibility of CAA’s Travel Insurance policy. She was asked to forward receipts of the expenses incurred while she and her family remained in Paris, and was even contacted when one of the expenses she was claiming did not have a receipt included in her claim package.
“Rather than automatically rejecting the claim like other insurance companies, they reached out to me and asked if I still had the receipt. The extra step shown in their customer service was very pleasant.”
Yvonne received a detailed package explaining her benefit coverage for herself, her two children and her husband. She and her family had zero out-of-pocket expenses during this interruption in their travel plans.
“The cost of the CAA Trip Interruption Insurance paid for itself three times over,” she stated. “It was absolutely worth it.”
Learn more about CAA Travel Insurance by visiting caaniagara.ca/travelinsurance
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