Edit - I thought you meant travel insurance associated with races ... not quite the same thing. Add me to the list of those who never buy race insurance. In the long run, it does not make financial sense.

I did for the first time ever for IM Chattanooga. I'm coming off knee surgery in January and could not run until March. I was confident enough I would not suffer a relapse to sign up, but the insurance in my specific instance seemed to make sense. It's very out of the norm for me--I don't buy extended warranties, travel insurance, extra insurance on my car rentals, etc.

I did for Ohio 70.3 and I'm about to find out how to use it. Knees are still not able to run. If I hadn't bought it I would go swim and bike but because I can file a claim I will.

I do for races that sell out quick and we need to sign up a year in advance. Who the hell knows where I'll be a year from now. Insurance is $90 for full or $40 for half. Drop in the bucket compared to the total cost of racing.

I purchased it once for an Ironman two years ago and it definitely was worth it. Had to have emergency colon resection surgery, that included a longish hospital stay, about four months prior to race day. Had my surgeon fill out a form and filed a claim. I was paid back everything I was due. I do have to say that they are not happy about paying claims and it took a threat of legal action based on bad faith claims handling in order to get paid. So, just don't count on receiving your refund in the time frame specified.

I do for the races I have to register a year out from. Otherwise i wait as long as possible to sign up.

Bought the race insurance for the Honu 70.3 2 years ago and had to use it due to an ankle surgery about 2 months before the race. Surgeon filled out the forms, got all my race fee back within about 4 weeks of the paperwork showing up. No fuss, no muss.

Does Ironman give full refunds to military members who receive unexpected orders that conflict with a registered race date?

I buy it for $7 for a local sprint, early reg price still has me ahead vs late registration. Allianz issues an insurance certificate, underwritten through Jefferson Ins Co.

for the reply re military duty, here's what i found:
9. You or Your Companion, who are on Active Military Duty having personal leave revoked,
except for disciplinary reasons.

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http://www.PatGriskusTri.com USAT Certified Race Director
2024 Races: USAT State of CT Age Group Championship/State of CT HS Champs/ CT Club Championship - Sat June 15th (Oly/Du/Sprint) Hopkins Vineyard Tri at Lake Waramaug Saturday July 13th http://www.HopkinsVineyardTri.com

Two years ago the coverage was with a different company. Ironman switched Race Registration Insurance providers in 2017 to Allianz (on Jefferson paper). Every company has different philosophies regarding claims handling but having worked there as an Underwriter before I moved I found it to be a company with an emphasis on customer experience in their corporate culture. Some have that & others to a lesser extent. I do not have any experience with the other company to compare but a poor claims handling experience a few years ago would have been with a different organization.