Report: Terrorism threat not stopping U.S. travelers
by June 30, 2016 5:50 pm 92 views
The threat of terrorism has not stopped U.S. travelers, but it is prompting them to take greater precautions, according to a new report from travel insurance comparison site Squaremouth.
The report found that more Americans are deciding to purchase travel insurance in the wake of attacks, such as those in Paris and Brussels. Specifically, Squaremouth saw more travelers purchasing trip cancellation policies and searching for Terrorism coverage.
In the month following each of the attacks mentioned above, trip cancellation sales were 19% higher than in the same period the previous year, and the number of customers searching specifically for Terrorism coverage increased by an average of 167%.
Furthermore, the number of customers buying travel insurance for the most popular European destinations — particularly Italy and the United Kingdom — rose significantly compared to the same period in the previous year. Buying patterns in Italy, the U.K., France, Spain and Germany all followed a similar course, surging in the month after and easing back to lower increases year-to-year three months after the Paris and Brussels attacks.
Examples: Italy saw a 47% surge in the 30 days following Paris and a 22% increase after 90 days; the U.K. saw a 57% surge after 30 and 19% after 90.
Overall, U.S. travelers showed an interest in insuring their trips rather than canceling them after the France and Belgium attacks.