How do you organize your receipts while traveling? If you’re like me, you crumple them up and shove them haphazardly into your backpack or handbag. This is not a great strategy! If something goes wrong during your trip and you have to file a travel insurance claim, you may need those receipts.

Here’s a better method. Get in the habit of snapping a quick photo of every receipt, immediately after a purchase. Then, designate an envelope or a special compartment to collect them. If you need to file a claim, you can then upload an image of each receipt in seconds, using the Allyz® TravelSmart app. Keep the paper copies as backup.

Don’t have travel insurance yet? Now’s the time to protect your next trip. See all your plan options from Allianz Global Assistance.

Do you always need receipts to file a travel insurance claim?

Allianz Global Assistance offers no-receipts claims for covered travel delays and baggage delays with the OneTrip Premier plan. As part of the SmartBenefits offered with this plan, you can opt to receive a fast, fixed-amount inconvenience payment (typically $100 per insured person per day). No receipts are required — just proof of a covered delay. 

But don’t toss those receipts yet! If your covered expenses exceed $100 per day, you may opt to file a claim instead. Here are 7 types of receipts you need to keep when you’re traveling, just in case.

1. Receipts for anything you bought specifically for your trip.

Part of the pleasurable anticipation of vacation is buying a few new things: a swimsuit, sunglasses, the perfect pair of travel shoes. Make sure you save the receipts, in case your baggage is lost, stolen or damaged while you’re on your trip. Take pictures of your suitcase as you pack, too, so you have a visual record in case you need to file a lost baggage claim.

For items without an original receipt, your baggage loss/damage benefits can cover up to 75 percent of the actual cash value of your possessions. “Actual cash value” is defined as the amount an item is reasonably worth based on its fair market value, age, usage, and condition immediately prior to the loss. So even if your well-worn Tecovas boots cost $300 when you bought them last year, their actual cash value would be a lot less.

2. Receipts for all pre-paid trip costs.

One of the most valuable benefits in your travel insurance plan is trip cancellation, which can reimburse your prepaid, non-refundable expenses if you must cancel your trip due to a covered reason. To file a trip cancellation (or trip interruption) claim, you’ll need to provide proof of those prepaid expenses, such as receipts from hotels, airlines, cruise lines, tour operators etc.

What if they didn’t issue receipts? You may be able to submit other proof, such as original unused tickets, a letter from the tour operator or an itemized bill from the travel agent that states the non-refundable amounts of your trip costs.

3. Receipts for essential items you bought because of a covered baggage delay.

If your baggage is delayed by a travel supplier during your trip, travel insurance can reimburse you for the purchase of essential items you need until your baggage arrives, up to the maximum benefit amount shown in your plan. Make sure you keep all the receipts for those purchases, because you’ll need them when you file your travel insurance claim.

What are “essential items”? That depends on your exact situation and the length of your delay. A toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant and a change of clothes when your suitcase goes missing for 24 hours? That makes sense. But does a single traveler need three new shirts and two pairs of jeans for a six-hour baggage delay? Probably not.

4. Receipts for essential items you bought because of a covered travel delay.

Travel delay benefits can reimburse you for the additional expenses you incur during a covered delay for things like meals, accommodation, communication, and transportation (up to the stated maximum). So if a surprise spring snowstorm strands you in Chicago overnight, you could file a travel delay claim to be reimbursed for the extra hotel night, the meals you ate during your delay, and the Lyft fares you paid to get around.

5. Receipts for souvenirs you bought on your trip.

On a trip to Florence, Italy, I purchased a heavy, hand-painted ceramic tile. The merchant bubble-wrapped it to the max, but when we arrived home, I discovered that the tile (which had been tucked into my checked suitcase) had broken in two. If I’d had travel insurance with baggage damage benefits — and the receipt! — I could have filed a claim. As it was, all I could do was superglue the pieces together.   

When you buy items while traveling, whether gifts or souvenirs, save the receipts. That way, if they’re lost or damaged by your travel carrier, hotel, or tour operator, you can file a baggage loss/damage claim. (If my tile broke because I dropped it, however, I would not be eligible to file a claim.) To be eligible for reimbursement, you must have taken reasonable steps to keep your baggage safe and intact and to recover it; and you must file a report giving a description of the property and its value with the appropriate local authorities, travel carrier, hotel, or tour operator within 24 hours of discovery of the loss.

6. Receipts for any treatment you receive for medical emergencies.

In many countries, hospitals and doctors’ offices require patients to pay for services up front and out of pocket. Travel insurance with emergency medical and dental benefits can reimburse you for covered emergency medical expenses, but to file a claim you’re going to need the receipts.

Remember that if you’re facing a medical emergency overseas, you should call the 24-Hour Assistance Hotline as soon as you’re able. Our Assistance team can help connect you with high-quality care providers and may even be able to arrange payment for covered medical expenses.

7. Receipts for your rental car.

If you purchased the OneTrip Rental Car Protector, either separately or as part of an AllTrips plan, save all the paperwork from the rental-car company. To file a claim for covered rental car loss or damage, you’ll need the invoice/receipt for the rental car reservation, showing the dates of the rental period and the amount you paid.

Whatever happens during your trip, we try to make filing a claim as painless as possible so you can be reimbursed quickly. Download the free Allyz® TravelSmart app for mobile claims filing, or file a claim on our website. If you’re not sure which receipts and other documents you’ll need, take a look at the required documentation checklist and view details on our claims process. Contact us if you have questions! Our claims experts are happy to help.