Rachel Covello says she knows her way around at Tampa International Airport because she heads there and back two to three times a month.
“So I have the right clothes on me," she said. "And I make sure I have my tickets pre-check in. I will do that first."
What You Need To Know
- Thousands of flights were canceled ahead of the Fourth of July holiday weekend
- As cancellations become more common, some regular passengers say they have started to purchase flight insurance
- Rachel Covello says she's had to cancel trips recently due to COVID and started purchasing insurance for piece of mind
- More information on travel insurance
Lately, though, she's been carrying an extra item on her flight: insurance.
“I didn't used to, but recently I've had COVID twice now and unfortunately I've had to cancel trips because of COVID,” she said.
According to AAA, airlines don't have to compensate you for delayed flights, but federal law does entitle you to a full refund on canceled flights.
One travel expert says that if you've never thought about buying flight insurance before, now is a good time to think again.
“If you’re going to do it, pay the extra money for the clauses that will cover you for cancel ability for no matter what,” said Wes Springer, owner of Paths Less Traveled travel agency.
Springer books a lot of international travel and he’s advising, for big expensive trips abroad, to insure them.
“Usually it’s about 15-20% of whatever your flight ticket is," he said. “The one thing we always tell people: If you're traveling right now you have to be patient, not to be rude. The people there at the desk are under pressure too.”
The list of flight insurance companies is long and they offer a wide variety of coverage depending on how much you want to spend. West doesn't recommend insurance for direct domestic flights, but Covello said her peace of mind is worth it.
“I wanna get there, but I wanna be safe and I don’t want to lose my money if I don’t make it,” she said.