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ALLIANZ TRAVEL INSURANCE PROBLEMS
I called Allianz BEFORE making any claims to ensure that I did exactly what they directed - they agreed that I would be covered, and they still rejected my claim. DO NOT USE ALLIANZ. Read on for full details.
I believe that Allianz's claims department acted in bad faith and that their behavior was unfair and bordering on being unethical coming at such a delicate time for me and my family following my mother's passing.
In early June, I learned that my mother (who lives in London, UK) had Leukemia. The good news was that she was responding well to treatment and her doctors told us that with regular treatment she could expect many months with good quality of life.
On June 20th, 2012, I booked flights via Orbitz for my wife and two children to fly from Boston to London to visit my parents. The trip was booked for July 2nd returning on 17th July. I purchased travel insurance from Allianz. The total price of the travel plus insurance was $2711.61.
Unfortunately, on June 26th, my mother fell down at home and needed to be hospitalized. BEFORE changing my family’s travel arrangements, I called Allianz (this would have been either on the evening of June 26th or the morning of June 27th) to confirm that my insurance covered us to change the tickets from 2 weeks to one week (returning on 10th July instead of the 17th) as my mother was now unable to spend two active weeks with her grandchildren.
I was told that I was covered. Specifically the Allianz representative (who was helpful and sympathetic) directed me to page 5 of the Allianz insurance terms (Trip Cancellation or Trip Interruption):
A family member who isn’t traveling with you is seriously ill or injured.
Specific requirement: The injury, illness or medical condition must be considered life threatening, require hospitalization, or he or she must require your care.
I was advised to purchase the new tickets, then cancel the old ones, which I did.
I filed the insurance claim on 29th June 2012.
The following occurred AFTER my claim was submitted but is relevant as it demonstrates how Allianz's claims department treated me.
While my family was in London, they reported that my mother was back home and doing well. I then booked return flights to London from July 11th to August 8th to coincide with my family’s return to Boston. I planned on visiting my parents for an extended period (so I could also enjoy the Olympics).
Two days after I arrived in London, on July 14th, my mother had a serious setback and she decided she no longer wished to continue with her treatment. Her doctor told us that the consequence of her decision was that she would now only have a maximum of a few weeks to live, rather than months. My mother’s decline was unfortunately quite rapid and on 17th July she passed away.
I called Allianz on 19th July to inquire about the progress of my claim (I had not received a reply to my email or online claim of 29th June). I was told that my claim had been rejected due to “existing medical conditions”. I was shocked and asked to speak to a senior claims supervisor and was connected to one. I explained my situation in detail and the supervisor sounded sympathetic and promised to follow up within 24 hours, which he did.
When the supervisor called me back, he started by stating that he had listened to the recordings of my phone calls to Allianz and that consequently, he had an apology to make. The supervisor apologized that Allianz had incorrectly declined my claim on the basis of "existing medical conditions". HOWEVER, he then went on to say that he was REJECTING MY CLAIM FOR A DIFFERENT REASON! I was literally speechless - I thought that I had misheard him. He said he was rejecting my claim under the clause “any problem or event that could have reasonably been foreseen or expected when you purchased your plan”
To be clear, there was no way that I or my family could have reasonably known more than my mother’s doctors. Furthermore, as I was speaking to the supervisor AFTER my mother passed away, his assumption that mother’s decline was foreseeable was obviously tainted. My mother was NOT declining when we purchased the travel and the insurance, nor was it reasonable or foreseeable that she would decline during that period.
I was (and still am) deeply upset and insulted that the supervisor assumed I had more insight into my mother's condition than her doctor. When I reminded him that the recordings he had of my calls to Allianz support that my cover was confirmed and that I was advised to cancel the tickets, he said I’d have to subpoena Allianz if I wanted to prove that point. His attitude (especially considering that I was grieving the loss of my mother) was in my opinion, smug and unfair.
If this is how Allianz treats a serious claim, is it a company you could trust?
I believe that Allianz's claims department acted in bad faith and that their behavior was unfair and bordering on being unethical coming at such a delicate time for me and my family following my mother's passing.
In early June, I learned that my mother (who lives in London, UK) had Leukemia. The good news was that she was responding well to treatment and her doctors told us that with regular treatment she could expect many months with good quality of life.
On June 20th, 2012, I booked flights via Orbitz for my wife and two children to fly from Boston to London to visit my parents. The trip was booked for July 2nd returning on 17th July. I purchased travel insurance from Allianz. The total price of the travel plus insurance was $2711.61.
Unfortunately, on June 26th, my mother fell down at home and needed to be hospitalized. BEFORE changing my family’s travel arrangements, I called Allianz (this would have been either on the evening of June 26th or the morning of June 27th) to confirm that my insurance covered us to change the tickets from 2 weeks to one week (returning on 10th July instead of the 17th) as my mother was now unable to spend two active weeks with her grandchildren.
I was told that I was covered. Specifically the Allianz representative (who was helpful and sympathetic) directed me to page 5 of the Allianz insurance terms (Trip Cancellation or Trip Interruption):
A family member who isn’t traveling with you is seriously ill or injured.
Specific requirement: The injury, illness or medical condition must be considered life threatening, require hospitalization, or he or she must require your care.
I was advised to purchase the new tickets, then cancel the old ones, which I did.
I filed the insurance claim on 29th June 2012.
The following occurred AFTER my claim was submitted but is relevant as it demonstrates how Allianz's claims department treated me.
While my family was in London, they reported that my mother was back home and doing well. I then booked return flights to London from July 11th to August 8th to coincide with my family’s return to Boston. I planned on visiting my parents for an extended period (so I could also enjoy the Olympics).
Two days after I arrived in London, on July 14th, my mother had a serious setback and she decided she no longer wished to continue with her treatment. Her doctor told us that the consequence of her decision was that she would now only have a maximum of a few weeks to live, rather than months. My mother’s decline was unfortunately quite rapid and on 17th July she passed away.
I called Allianz on 19th July to inquire about the progress of my claim (I had not received a reply to my email or online claim of 29th June). I was told that my claim had been rejected due to “existing medical conditions”. I was shocked and asked to speak to a senior claims supervisor and was connected to one. I explained my situation in detail and the supervisor sounded sympathetic and promised to follow up within 24 hours, which he did.
When the supervisor called me back, he started by stating that he had listened to the recordings of my phone calls to Allianz and that consequently, he had an apology to make. The supervisor apologized that Allianz had incorrectly declined my claim on the basis of "existing medical conditions". HOWEVER, he then went on to say that he was REJECTING MY CLAIM FOR A DIFFERENT REASON! I was literally speechless - I thought that I had misheard him. He said he was rejecting my claim under the clause “any problem or event that could have reasonably been foreseen or expected when you purchased your plan”
To be clear, there was no way that I or my family could have reasonably known more than my mother’s doctors. Furthermore, as I was speaking to the supervisor AFTER my mother passed away, his assumption that mother’s decline was foreseeable was obviously tainted. My mother was NOT declining when we purchased the travel and the insurance, nor was it reasonable or foreseeable that she would decline during that period.
I was (and still am) deeply upset and insulted that the supervisor assumed I had more insight into my mother's condition than her doctor. When I reminded him that the recordings he had of my calls to Allianz support that my cover was confirmed and that I was advised to cancel the tickets, he said I’d have to subpoena Allianz if I wanted to prove that point. His attitude (especially considering that I was grieving the loss of my mother) was in my opinion, smug and unfair.
If this is how Allianz treats a serious claim, is it a company you could trust?
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