Among the meme-worthy disappointments linked to 2020: Thousands of travelers learned the hard way what their travel insurance does and does not cover after being forced to cancel plans when borders and businesses shut down to stem the spread of COVID-19. While many insureds were surprised to find that travel insurance policies generally don't cover cancellations due to virus risk, the year has produced a shift in the types of travel people are now likely to undertake. Although the pandemic caused nearly half of all Americans to cancel their summer travel plans, Starr Insurance Companies found that purchasing travel insurance for domestic trips grew 528% year-over-year. It follows that overall, insured travel expenses are down 22% year-over-year, as domestic trips tend to be less pricy than international jaunts. If there's one grand message for sojourning insureds to come out of 2020, it's this: Reading your travel insurance policy can be an enlightening experience. It's also worth noting that options vary from one travel insurance policy to the next. The more educated the consumer is about those options, the less likely an insured will be disappointed when the time comes to file a claim. "It's always a good idea to read through your plan document to get familiar with all the great benefits available to you," Sherry Sutton, vice president of marketing at Travel Insured International, tells Forbes magazine in a recent article that outlines "surprising things" travel insurance does cover. The slideshow above illuminates some of the travel insurance coverages that Forbes determined insureds might be surprised by. While it may not cover losses caused by a pandemic — insurers underscore that a pandemic is simply not an insurable event — travel insurance can still help travelers who find themselves having to manage unforeseen circumstances. Keep reading...

• Will travel insurance cover coronavirus?
• Top 5 mistakes travelers make when filing a travel insurance claim
• The most bizarre travel insurance claims in 2019
• Top 10 travel insurance carriers in the U.S. in 2019