Relaxed Cuba Travel Restrictions Increase Travel Insurance Demand, Says Squaremouth

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., March 17, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- With relaxed restrictions for independent travel to Cuba, and U.S. airlines preparing to begin direct commercial flights to the country, more Americans are expected to travel to Cuba. Squaremouth, America's fastest growing travel insurance comparison site, has seen significant growth in demand for travel insurance for Cuba, which many Americans need to purchase to meet Cuba's entry requirements.

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Visitors to Cuba Must Have Medical Insurance
Travelers to Cuba are required by the Cuban government to have medical insurance that provides coverage within the country. Many U.S. health insurance companies will not offer coverage in Cuba, but many travel insurance companies do. More than half of the providers available on Squaremouth.com offer travel insurance policies with medical coverage in Cuba.

Legal Purpose of Travel Required for Coverage
Because tourism is still banned, many travel insurance providers will only cover an American traveler if they are visiting Cuba for an authorized reason, such as humanitarian projects or educational "people-to-people" travel. Travelers may be asked to provide documentation to show they are traveling for such a purpose.

"When we see a policy come in for travel to Cuba, we reach out to the client to acquire some form of proof that they are traveling for an officially recognized purpose," said APRIL Travel Protection CEO Jason Schreier. "If they cannot supply proof within a reasonable period of time prior to their departure, then we inform them that we must cancel their policy and refund their premium."

Americans Insuring Travel to Cuba: By the Numbers

• Squaremouth has seen a 142% increase in Americans planning to travel to Cuba in the first half of 2016 over the same six-month period last year.
• As of March 2016, Squaremouth has already sold 10% more travel insurance policies for Americans traveling to Cuba this year than in all of 2015.
• 73% of Americans traveling to Cuba in 2016 have purchased travel insurance policies that include cancellation coverage, compared to 67% in 2015.
• The average trip cost for Americans traveling to Cuba in 2016 is $4,997, a 23% increase over the average trip cost in 2015.

"We have seen a significant increase in the number of Americans buying travel insurance for visits to Cuba, as well as the number of providers covering travel to Cuba," said Squaremouth CEO Chris Harvey. "With an average trip cost of nearly $5,000, many travelers to Cuba are opting to purchase travel insurance that includes trip cancellation benefits in addition to the required medical coverage."

The following providers on Squaremouth.com offer medical coverage for Cuba as of March 17, 2016: APRIL, AXA Assistance, GeoBlue, HTH Worldwide, John Hancock, Protect Your Bubble, RoamRight, Seven Corners, Tin Leg, Travel Insured, Trawick International, USA-ASSIST.

ABOUT SQUAREMOUTH
Squaremouth is an online company that compares travel insurance products from virtually every major travel insurance provider in the United States. Using Squaremouth's comparison engine and third party customer reviews, travelers can research and compare insurance products side-by-side. More information can be found at www.squaremouth.com.

AVAILABLE TOPIC EXPERT
Rachael Taft
rtaft@squaremouth.com
(727) 264-5174

SOURCE Squaremouth