Airlines have initiated a new way to gouge gullible customers. What sounds like a good idea, charging you an extra fee to retain the value of your nonrefundable ticket should you have to cancel, has morphed into something less than desirable because the airlines will charge you a fee to change your ticket and you still don’t get your money back. You simply get to use whatever value is left, after their fees, toward another ticket you can use in the future.

Rather than accept these airline ‘deals’ that really have little value, consider trip cancellation or ‘cancel for any reason’ coverage instead.

Let’s run some quick numbers through our travel insurance comparison tool, and see what this would cost.

We’ll imagine two travelers are taking a short anniversary trip, here are the pertinent trip details:

• Denver to San Francisco
• Three night stay
• Travelers are 32 and 37 years old
• Cost per traveler is $1,095

Using those trip details, we got about 40 potential policies. We’ll choose the two lowest-priced plans from the results and compare.

Notice that with travel insurance, these travelers can get 100% of their trip costs back if they have to cancel for a wide number of reasons (the reason for cancellation must be a covered reason), but they also get:

• Emergency medical if they get sick or injured or crack a tooth on their trip
• Trip interruption if they have to return home early for an emergency
• Medical evacuation if they have to be transported back home for medical reasons
• Travel delay if their flight is delayed for weather, mechanical failure, etc.
• Baggage protection if their luggage doesn’t arrive intact or is delayed
• Life insurance if they die on their trip
• 24/7 Travel assistance services if they need any kind of travel assistance

So, for a lot less than what the airline will give you, you really can have your entire pre-paid costs refunded to you. The key, of course, is to carefully read your trip insurance policy and cancel your trip for a covered reason.

Having travel insurance really is the only SURE way to get a refund on your nonrefundable airline tickets, but you’ll also get a refund for your pre-paid hotel costs and a number of other benefits in case something goes wrong on your trip too.

Recently, there seems to be a rash of strange items found in passenger luggage by the TSA, some of which are causing temporary airport evacuations and potentially disrupting traveler’s plans.

Read about the hand grenade found in one passenger’s carry-on in Kentucky and the live cannonball found in one passenger’s checked luggage in Florida.

In both cases, the passengers had no intent to harm, in the case of the cannonball it had been collected as a souvenir on a diving trip, but of course these events have the potential to cause serious harm. Cannonballs found at the bottom of the ocean can still retain their explosive elements and have been known to detonate.

Other recent reports of dangerous items collected by TSA screeners include a cattle prod, loaded guns, and even a lipstick knife.

Attempting to board a plane with these items can have some unfortunate side effects. The less serious side effect is the potential for delaying flights, which can have a ripple effect throughout the airline flight plans for that day. Another side effect is that passengers who attempt to board with these items are often denied boarding. In all cases, these items are confiscated by the TSA, and in the case of loaded guns, the passenger is in serious trouble.

So, should you find a hand grenade or other interesting artifacts on your trip, consider leave them where you found them and settling for a photograph instead.

As unexpected snowfall and sub-zero temperatures recently plagued folks in England and Wales and travelers into and out of Heathrow were warned to check their flight status and leave extra travel time, we thought it a good time to review the benefits of having travel delay coverage.

It’s important to remember that airlines don’t guarantee their departure schedules and events like severe weather can make it impossible for flights to leave on time. In the U.S., airlines are not legally obligated to provide any compensation to passengers when a delay occurs due to weather.

Travel delay coverage, on the other hand, reimburses travelers for reasonable expenses (up to the policy limits) when their travel is delayed a certain number of hours. So, if your plane can’t take off because the airport is shut down due to heavy snow,  and you have to get a hotel for the night, feed the kids, and find transportation, etc., those expenses will be reimbursed.

Remember to keep all your receipts and documentation issued by the airline regarding the flight cancellation – those are very important bits of data when you make a claim.

Read all about travel delay coverage and for a fun photo treat, check out the photos of the UK snow.

As news of two European birdwatchers and their abduction from the Philippines recently hit the news and last week two American women and their Egyptian guide were abducted at gunpoint in Egypt,  travelers have again been forced to think about what they should do if they are kidnapped while traveling.

Kidnapping has, unfortunately, become almost a designer industry.

One form of kidnapping is implemented solely for the purpose of gaining access to cash. There are a few terms for this form of kidnapping: tiger grabbing or express kidnapping. These are more scam than actual kidnapping, but that doesn’t mean the victim absolutely will not be harmed. This type of kidnapping involves taking a hostage and using the situation to get a ransom or taking the hostage to their own bank and having them empty their accounts, handing the cash over to the kidnappers. Often, the hostage is released after but the risk remains that the kidnappers could do violence.

Lately, virtual kidnappings have been taking place as well. Again, these are more scam than truly dangerous situations. The perpetrators wait until the target is unreachable, traveling in an area with no cell phone coverage is one example. Then, they contact the family or the individual’s business demanding a ransom.

What are the best recommendations for avoiding a kidnapping?

1. As always, stick to safer areas and stay alert. Looking confidently around you and making eye contact with otehrs, can deter thieves from choosing you.
2. Avoid looking like you have a lot of money – leave your jewelry and baubles at home, keep your wallet close to you, and dress to fit in with the locals.
3. Keep others informed about your whereabouts. If your family or business partners know that you are going off grid for an expected amount of time, they won’t be as easily fooled or worried.
4. Vary your routes and daily routines – kidnappers tend to watch their targets for a little time before they strike so they can more easily manage the situation.
5. Never leave your drink unattended and limit your alcohol consumption in public areas.

So, what do you do if you are kidnapped?

1. Unfortunately the key, according to experts, is to comply with the kidnappers requests. It’s important to do what you’re instructed since the kidnappers are more likely to quickly get you out of their lives to avoid further risk to themselves if you simply do what they want.

In most countries, paying a ransom is illegal. That’s because it perpetuates the problem by encouraging other desperate people to try it. Members of law enforcement typically advise families not to pay the ransom.

As the news of a TSA agent stealing iPads from checked luggage erupted last week, many travelers – business and leisure alike – are re-examining how to prevent theft of their electronics, including laptops, MP3 players, e-readers, and more. (See our FAQ does travel insurance cover theft for an overview.)

Why electronics get stolen

Way back when, it was cameras, then it was camcorders, then it was laptops, and now it’s the latest hot electronic device – the iPad. Why? There’s a relatively good return on the investment of the theft. Criminals understand that there’s a risk to stealing and so they go for the items they can sell at a good price.

What happens to the stolen goods

In the past, you could unload stolen goods at a pawn shop or on a street corner, but it’s even easier now. As easy as it is for you to get rid of that leather jacket you never wore, the Internet is making it easy for thieves to quickly cash in on stolen goods – one at at time in many cases. Stolen goods are nearly always sold over the Internet these days.

Will the airline or cruise line reimburse me for the loss?

It’s important to realize that travel suppliers like the airlines and cruise lines have clauses that automatically exclude them from any responsibility for the theft or destruction of electronics. So, you won’t be able to make a claim and be reimbursed (you’ll get a little, but not what the product was worth). It’s also important to note that most travel insurance plans cover electronics only to a limit (often as little at $150 if anything at all). You can purchase extra baggage coverage that may cover the worth of your electronics in some cases.

What do you do to protect your gear?

There are several things you can do to protect your electronics when you travel, but the first and foremost is to keep them with you, at your side, in your carry-on and close by, guarded at all times. A thief can’t steal what they can’t get their hands on.

Here are some other tips:

1. Lock it down – physically and electronically. When you leave your hotel room, you wouldn’t leave an envelope with hundreds of dollars in cash lying on the table, would you? Treat your electronics the same way. Lock them in the safe, use a physical locking cable, and apply a password so your data can’t be stolen.
2. If you must leave it in the car, keep it out of sight – under the seat works to a degree, as well as putting it under the floormat.
3. Engrave it so that it is (slightly) harder to sell

For added protection, contact your home insurance provider and ask about adding a rider for your electronics onto your policy. In most cases, this will cost only a few dollars and you can cover all the expensive electronics in your life at replacement cost.