SkyAuction for Dummies

Some of you may still be concerned about the insurance policy that you bought or are thinking of buying.

I’d like to share parts of a letter that I received from our Account Manager at Travel Guard:

Dear Valued Industry Partner,
I want to take this opportunity to let you know that AIG Travel Guard is
alive and well. With all the recent news reports about our holding
company AIG Inc., I’m sure you and many of your clients have had
questions and concerns about policies you’ve already sold, whether to
purchase policies going forward, and even about the very viability of
Travel Guard. I am happy to tell you that Travel Guard is still here and
will be for many years to come. Your clients were never at any risk of
not having their trip investments covered and you were never at risk of
not receiving commission on each and every sale. And that’s not just
“sales talk” but the opinion of NY Governor David Patterson, the New
York Insurance Commissioner, and other insurance regulators nationwide.
Over the years Travel Guard has helped the industry through challenging
marketing situations, catastrophic events and periods of uncertainly.  I
am proud to work for a company that has been there for thousands of
agents and hundreds of thousands of your insured customers.  We will
continue to be a strong, dependable partner.
I’d like to hear from you if you have any questions or concerns. I value
my relationship with you, thank you for your business and look forward
to our mutual success in the years ahead.

You can’t help hearing about the current state of the financial markets. It’s in the papers, on-line, TV, radio - everywhere you turn.

I’d like to share the email that we received today from AIG Travel Guard, our insurance provider, and hope that it answers any questions that you may have.

September 16, 2008

As you know, our parent company (AIG, Inc.) is facing challenges related to the extraordinary developments in the financial markets in the past few days. AIG, Inc. is actively developing alternatives to improve liquidity to weather this difficult time for financial markets.

AIG Travel Guard’s policies are underwritten by American Home Assurance Company and National Union Fire Insurance Company.  Both are member companies of AIG Commercial Insurance (AIGCI), whose substantial capital position is independent of its parent.
 
AIGCI companies, which include the Lexington Insurance Company, National Union and American Home Assurance Company, remain well-capitalized with statutory surplus of $26.7 billion and invested assets exceeding $70 billion.

Even if the parent company files for bankruptcy, AIGCI’s capital position will remain intact and available to underwrite policies. 

Here are a few more facts we think are important for you to know:

* AIGCI companies, which include the Lexington Insurance Company, National Union and American Home Assurance Company, remain well-capitalized with statutory surplus of $26.7 billion and invested assets exceeding $70 billion.

* AIGCI’s capital is protected by regulators, ensuring that policyholders’ interests are paramount.

* AIG Commercial Insurance continues to exhibit strong financial performance with 2008 second quarter operating income of nearly $1 billion, net written premiums of $5.99 billion and a profitable combined ratio of 93.7%. 
 
* According David Neustadt, the deputy superintendent for public information for the New York state insurance department, “If you have a policy with AIG insurance company, they are financially strong and solvent. They have the capability to pay on any claims, and our job is to insure that they continue to have the ability to pay.”

AIG Travel Guard will continue to communicate developments to you as they occur.  We want to assure you that despite the current uncertainties, AIG Travel Guard will continue to exceed your expectation with comprehensive protection and unparalleled customer service.
 
AIG Commercial Insurance companies include: AIG Casualty Company, American Home Assurance Company, American International South Insurance Company, Commerce and Industry Insurance Company, Granite State Insurance Company, Illinois National Insurance Co., National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh, Pa., New Hampshire Insurance Company, The Insurance Company of the State of Pennsylvania, AIG Excess Liability Insurance Company Ltd., American International Specialty Lines Insurance Company, Landmark Insurance Company, Lexington Insurance Company, AIG Commercial Insurance Company of Canada, National Union Fire Insurance Company of Vermont, AIG Excess Liability Insurance International Limited.

“There are worse things in life than death. Have you ever spent an evening with an insurance salesman?    Woody Allen

Travel insurance isn’t something that we like to think about. It’s not fun. Reading an insurance policy is slightly more interesting than reading a phone book and if a vacation goes off smashingly well, it’s something that wasn’t needed at all. You could have spent that money on a final cocktail at the pool bar.

But, unfortunate things happen all of the time and that’s why SkyAuction offers, and strongly recommends, the purchase of travel insurance.

All of our members should be well aware that our auctions are non-refundable. We’d like to be able to make exceptions in emergency situations but we can’t. We’re not being mean; it’s just that way it is.

The decision to buy travel insurance or give it a pass could depend on where and when you’re going and how much you’re spending. If I paid $53.00 for a one night hotel stay in Atlantic City for next weekend, I might take the gamble but if I was spending $800.00 on a ticket to Dublin next Spring, travel insurance is something that I would more than seriously consider.

The policy that we offer on our site is offered by AIG Travel Guard, one of the world’s premier insurance providers. Take some time to read through the brochure, which you can view on our site (it’s really not that boring), and decide if it’s right for you. Should you find that you require more extensive coverage, it can be purchased directly from Travel Guard by calling their SkyAuction help desk at 866-255-3806. Premiums will be higher than for the standard policy that we offer but it may be worth it in certain circumstances.

One last thought. Travel insurance is designed to cover emergency situations which are specifically outlined in the AIG Travel Guard brochure. If you change your job, breakup with your boyfriend or just decide that you want to stay at home, don’t expect that refund check in the mail.

We’d love to hear of some of your experiences with travel insurance and welcome your comments.

Wishing everyone a safe and healthy journey.

This will be a short, but I hope useful, posting.

I’ve spent part of the morning answering emails that were sent in with questions about travel insurance, a topic that I plan to talk about at length in the near future.

At least 25% of the emails didn’t give any trip reference, so a lot of my time was spent searching for the member’s account number and trip number that they were asking about, rather than answering even more emails.

Help us speed up the turnaround! Always give us a trip number (even if you’re sending a followup email) and our replies will fly back to you.

“Certainty? In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes.” Benjamin Franklin

“Should five percent appear too small, be thankful I don’t take it all.”  The Beatles - Taxman

My mother continues to say that everything was simpler in her day and after taking a look at the cost of a ticket from New York to London, I’m starting to agree.

I don’t remember the cost of my first air ticket to London, but I do remember that the only tax I paid was a $3.00 departure tax on international flights. Today, I would pay $371.61!

Here’s a condensed (and by no means complete) history of how we got there:

The Air Commerce Act of 1926 charged the federal government with the operation and maintenance of the airway system. Special taxes on users of the transportation system have been in place since WWII, when a passenger tax was imposed as a means of discouraging use of scarce resources such as oil and rubber.

This tax persisted throughout the Korean War and in 1962 President Kennedy called for a repeal of the 10% tax that applied to all commercial modes of transport and proposed a 5% tax on airline tickets and airfreight waybills.

With the coming of the jet age in the 1960’s, it was clear that the existing funding was insufficient and legislation was introduced to establish an airport and airways trust fund. 1970 legislation raised the existing 5% tax on domestic tickets to 8% and added a new $3.00 per person departure tax on international flights. At the time, it was assumed that growth in revenue would keep pace with growth in use of the system.

The 1978 deregulation of the airline industry changed everything. Prices for consumers were dramatically lower but this also meant that the ticket tax no longer correlated to the use of the system.

The 1980’s saw debates and special studies on how restructure the system so that all costs associated with operating and maintaining the system would be covered. From then on, it was a slow creep.

In 1990 the ticket tax was increased from 8% to 10% and the international departure fee from $3.00 to $6.00.

Customs, Immigration, Agriculture, Security – a dollar here, a dollar there. It all adds up.

That $361.71 added to the cost of a ticket to London? Here’s what it for:

$2.50  Civil Aviation Security Service Fee

$30.80 International Transportation Tax

$5.00 US Animal & Plant Health Inspection

$4.50 Passenger Facility Charge

$7.00 Immigration Use Fee$5.50 Customs User Fee

$79.38 UK Air Passenger Duty

$34.93 UK Passenger Service Charge

$202.00 Fuel Surcharge

When you bid on an air ticket or purchase one through our booking engine - remember - we’re not the taxmen - we just pass it along.

SkyCash, the very name strikes fear into the hearts of our accounting department.  Why, you ask?  Because we are giving away money, that’s why!  We don’t even make it hard to earn, all you need to do is to refer a few friends (they don’t even really have to be friends just people who like a good deal on travel).

When we started SkyAuction.com we worried about how we would get new customers but we quickly found out that word of mouth or customer “referrals” were our largest and best source.  In our recent customer survey over 94% of those asked told us they had referred or would refer those they know to use SkyAuction.com.  Now it is time for us to put our money where your mouth is (or something like that). We will reward you with $5 in Skycash for each qualified friend that you send our way.  The SkyCash will be deposited to your account after your friends register for site membership.  They will thank you for introducing them to a fun way to buy travel and you will thank them for the $$$$. (Or maybe not)