Travel Insurance vs. Foreign Voluntary Compensation: What’s Best for Your Mission Trips?

What is the difference between Travel Insurance and Foreign Voluntary Compensation, and which one does your ministry need?

Travel Insurance: Designed for the Traveler

Travel insurance is a broad category of coverage designed primarily for the individual traveler. It’s often purchased for short-term trips and focuses on a range of personal travel-related risks. It covers unexpected illnesses and injuries, often including doctor visits, hospital stays, and prescription medications. It can also cover medical evacuation, trip interruption and cancellation, lost baggage, and Accidental Death & Dismemberment (AD&D), a benefit paid in the event of accidental death or severe injury during the trip.

When is Travel Insurance typically best?

Travel insurance is generally the most appropriate choice for short-term mission trips, volunteers who are not considered employees of the organization, and donors or general visitors with the purpose of observing without employment.

For these groups, travel insurance offers comprehensive protection against common travel mishaps and personal health emergencies, ensuring that individuals are cared for and the organization isn’t left to shoulder unexpected personal costs.

Foreign Voluntary Workers’ Compensation (FVWC): Focus on the Employment Relationship

Foreign Voluntary Workers’ Compensation (FVWC) is distinctly different. While it includes medical and evacuation benefits, its core purpose is to provide workers’ compensation-like coverage for individuals in an employment relationship with the organization who are working overseas. Unlike travel insurance, which covers personal travel risks, FVWC also focuses on occupational risks.

Key aspects of FVWC include:

• Occupational Injury/Illness: Coverage for medical expenses, lost wages, and disability benefits resulting from injuries or illnesses sustained while performing job duties abroad.
• Medical Evacuation & Repatriation: Crucial for employees, ensuring they can be transported for specialized medical care or returned to their home country if unable to continue working.
• Employer Protection: FVWC helps protect the organization from potential legal claims or financial burdens if an employee is injured or becomes ill due to their work overseas. It provides a structured benefit system similar to domestic workers’ compensation.
• 24/7 Coverage: Many FVWC policies extend coverage beyond strict work hours, acknowledging that an employee’s environment abroad is often intertwined with their work.

When is FVWC typically best?

FVWC is the optimal choice for US expats, employees of the organization who are based overseas for extended periods, third-country nationals, and long-term missionaries.

Choosing the Right Coverage: It’s Not Always Either/Or

For many mission-sending organizations, it’s not a matter of choosing between travel insurance and FVWC but rather understanding who needs what. In order to determine this, identify employment status, assess trip duration and purpose, and consider the “overlapping shingles” method, where you can overlap coverages to deliberately eliminate gaps.

By thoughtfully evaluating the roles and responsibilities of all individuals participating in international activities, organizations can build a layered and comprehensive insurance program. This strategic approach ensures that everyone is appropriately protected, allowing the ministry to carry out its vital work with greater security and peace of mind.

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