Aon insurance cancelled our policy rather than paying the cost of our trip

crembold112100 11 months ago

We were signed up for a Road Scholar trip, “Alpine Hiking in Austria and Italy,” which was to begin on June 7th. We bought the cancel-for-any-reason trip insurance also.

Unfortunately, on May 9th, I fell while hiking in the Blue Ridge and broke my wrist in such a way that it required surgery. Later that week, we called Road Scholar to see if they could move the trip rather than cancel it, but it was too close to the trip to do so. Ok, we said, we have trip cancellation insurance. The Road Scholar representative said they would have to speak with a supervisor about what to do and they would call us back within a week with an answer.
A week later, we hadn’t been called back, so we called Road Scholar again through their elaborate call-back system. The person who called back seemed more knowledgeable and sure-footed than the person we spoke to on our first call. He said that we would have to cancel the trip and then apply to the insurer through their online claims system. So that is what we did. On May 20th, my husband filed our claim, including a copy of a note from my doctor (although strictly speaking that shouldn’t have been necessary). On May 24th, he received a communication from Aon that they could not pay our claim because our policy had been cancelled that day, May 24th, and the case would be closed. (We said, you can’t just cancel the policy because we made a claim; that’s not how insurance works!). Oh, and Aon refunded the cost of our premium to us. We never asked to cancel and we never signed anything.

We called back Road Scholar, who said they hadn’t cancelled it and we’d have to take it up with the insurers (not the answer we were hoping for). Ever since, we’ve been bounced back and forth every time we’ve called, with no one taking responsibility, and both parties being unresponsive. In the meantime, we are out $7895 for the trip plus the airline rebooking fee. And other unsuspecting customers may be signing up for this insurance. Chris and Kristen Rembold

TravelHound 11 months ago

If it can't be resolved file a complaint with the WhatEver State Department of Insurance. Not sure which state; think New Jersey.

Keep all correspondence via email point forward to have a record. If you get a check from AON don't cash it. Sounds like someone hit a wrong button somewhere. Good Luck.
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Maureen T C 11 months ago

Yikes, what a horrible and expensive situation. How disappointing that RS recommends this insurer. TravelHound’s suggestion is good. Also consider:

-filling in Small Claims Court, the rules and maximum amount varies by state.
-submitting a claim through your credit card company through which you purchased the RS trip, flights, etc…

-send a certified letter to AO; addressed to the CEO or a higher up. In other words, go to the top of the food chain.

Best wishes.
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