It’s no wonder vacation rental homes are so popular—they’re the perfect way to get away from it all while still enjoying all the comforts of home. But what you may not have considered is how much travel insurance can come in handy when you rent a vacation home. Here are five ways travel insurance can help you save time and money when you’re kicking back in your home-away-from-home.

1. Keep your non-refundable rental deposit safe.

This one is truly a no-brainer. If you’ve put down a non-refundable rental deposit for your vacation home, travel insurance can help keep it secure if you have to cancel your trip for a covered reason (like illness or injury, a natural disaster, jury duty, and more). And that can give you far more peace of mind about plunking down your hard-earned cash.

For instance, let’s say a few days before you’re due to head to the rental home, you suddenly have a horrendous pain in your abdomen. You head to the doctor and find out you have appendicitis, and you’ll need to be operated on immediately. Your doctor also advises you that you’ll need time to recuperate, so traveling in the next few days is out of the question. Okay, not the news you wanted to hear, but at least you were smart enough to buy travel insurance—so while your vacation isn’t happening, at least you can get your rental deposit back. You get a note from your doctor confirming your diagnosis and your doctor’s recommendation against traveling, which you can submit as part of your travel insurance claim. And now that recovering your funds is taken care of, you can focus on your own recovery.

2. Protect against trip interruptions.

You know that travel insurance can protect you before you go on your trip, but did you know it can also save the day if you have to cut your rental home vacation short for a covered reason?

Let’s say you arrived at your rental home and have just started to unwind, but then your brother calls with some terrible news: your mother is in the hospital after suffering a serious heart attack, and even if it means cutting your trip short, you’ll want to get there right away. Travel insurance can help reimburse you for the unused portion of your trip, so you can focus on your family medical emergency without worrying about losing money on top of it.

3. Get in touch with 24-hour assistance for all kinds of medical- and travel-related issues.

Let’s face it: life is unpredictable, and sometimes you don’t know what you’ll need until you need it. Which is exactly why our 24-hour assistance is one of the best benefits of travel insurance. You can call us anytime to get help with all kinds of medical- and travel-related needs, big and small.

For instance, let’s say you enjoy a day in the sun at your beach rental, only to find that you didn’t use quite enough sunscreen. In fact, your whole body is red, and you’re worried you might even have sun poisoning. You need to see a doctor ASAP—but you’re three hours from home and you’re not sure of the best place to go. So you call our 24-hour assistance, and one of our friendly professionals helps you find a prescreened medical facility nearby, where you can get the care you need. They even keep your family updated on your condition, and let them know when you’ll be discharged.

4. Make your life easier with concierge services.

You decided to get a rental home because you wanted all the comforts of home—emphasis on comforts. Because the last thing you want to do is treat this vacation like anything close to actual home, where you’re stressed about planning everything from meals to activities.

In addition to medical- and travel-related help, our 24-hour assistance can also provide concierge services for all sorts of things to make your vacation a little simpler. Maybe you want to see what nearby restaurants can cater your family dinners each night of your trip (the fully-stocked kitchen in your rental is nice, but so is letting someone else cook for a change). Our concierge specialists can do the legwork for you, and provide a list of restaurant options to choose from. Or maybe you want to explore the surrounding sites by bicycle; our concierge specialists can help you set up bike reservations with a local vendor (just be aware that you’re responsible for any costs associated with reservations and other activities).

5. Have a safer, simpler vacation with our free Allyz® TravelSmart app.

Every Allianz Travel Insurance plan comes with Allyz TravelSmart, our free app that helps you take your plan with you on the go. In addition to giving you a convenient way to see your plan benefits all in one place, Allyz TravelSmart has some seriously handy safety features you won’t want to miss.

First up is the Alerts feature, which gives you timely location-based updates about developing events around you—things like weather, security, transportation, culture, and more. For instance, let’s say you’re considering a full day of kayaking at your lakefront rental. You check Allyz TravelSmart and see an alert about a possible severe weather approaching; possible tornadic activity that would definitely make your kayaking expedition out of the question. Now you can adjust your plans to something fun indoors, and save the kayaking trip for another day.

Then there’s the Around Me feature, which helps you find nearby medical facilities, pharmacies, and police stations. So let’s say you dozed off by the water and woke up covered in mosquito bites. You can use Around Me to find a nearby pharmacy for itch relief.

And that 24-hour assistance we talked about? With Allyz TravelSmart, you can access it in just a few clicks, so it’s always easy to get in touch with us for whatever you need, anytime.

If you’re headed to a vacation rental home for your next trip, travel insurance is a smart investment that can help you breathe easier—so now all that’s left to do is find a plan that’s right for you.

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