Travel insurance reviews: Luke Spiezia’s story

When a family trip went from Hollywood magic to a $2.7 million AUD medical nightmare in LA, our Cover-More team came to the rescue.   

Source: Getty Images

Elvis (yes, that Elvis), a trip to a Los Angeles ER, a repatriation flight to Australia, and a staggering $2.7 million AUD travel insurance claim. It sounds like something straight out of a Hollywood blockbuster, right?

For Melbourne local Luke Spiezia, this was the reality of a US family holiday gone sideways. Thankfully, he and his family packed our Cover-More travel insurance before they set off – and we were able to help them through it all.  

That’s the thing about travelling. Most of the time, your plans will go off without a hitch and you’ll come back with bucketloads of good memories. Sometimes, though, things can take an unexpected turn. And this can be stressful – and costly – if you don’t have travel insurance.  

When you pack our cover, you can lean on us if things go pear-shaped. It’s our job to help you feel less alone when something goes wrong – and give you more care when you need it most.

But don’t just take our word for it. Keep reading this travel insurance review about a family’s dream holiday that turned into an expensive medical situation – and how we helped in more ways than one. 

Discover Luke Spiezia’s travel insurance review

• Who was travelling? Luke Spiezia, along with his parents Marisa Perrella and Tony Spiezia
• Where do they live? Melbourne, Australia
• Where were they travelling to? USA
• Total claim cost paid by Cover-More: over $2.7 million. 

A party in the USA

Only-child Luke planned the ultimate American adventure – but not for himself. It was a belated 60th birthday celebration for his mum, Marisa Perrella, and his dad Tony Spiezia also got to join in on the fun.  

‘We really love it there, so we decided to visit some old favourites and also try some new places,’ he shared.  

Among the trip highlights? A visit to the home of the King of Rock and Roll.  

‘Mum’s a huge Elvis fan, so she wanted to see Graceland,’ Luke recounts. ‘Even my dad and me, who like Elvis but not to the same degree, thought, ‘wow, this is incredible.’’  

The trio spent three and a half weeks making memories in iconic spots like Dollywood and Dallas. But just four days before their scheduled flight back to Melbourne, their dream holiday took a sharp and unexpected turn.

What happened while they were travelling?

‘We had gone to Universal Studios that day and had a great time,’ Luke recalls.  

But their joy quickly disappeared just after midnight, when mum Marisa experienced a stroke.  

‘We all went to sleep, but about 12.15-12.30 am, my dad and I heard this thud. Mum had fallen out of bed, and she wasn’t making any sense. She was upset and crying, and her right arm couldn’t move,’ Luke explains.  

An ambulance arrived in just 10 minutes, whisking Marisa to nearby Cedars-Sinai hospital. By 3 am, she was in emergency surgery for a blood clot on the left hemisphere of her brain.  

For Luke, those initial hours were a rush to action. But he came to terms with the horror of the situation, too.  

‘In the hotel room, I had overheard one of the medical people say ‘possible stroke,’ he said. ‘And I was like, ‘yeah.’ I knew straightaway. I just had a feeling.’

How did our Cover-More team support Luke and his parents from the get-go?

Thankfully, the family was travelling with our Cover-More travel insurance.  

So, while doctors worked to stabilise Marisa, Luke turned to us for help. With a quick tap on our award-winning app, Luke contacted our 24/7 emergency assistance team.  

Good to know: Our app is free for all our Cover-More travellers. Plus, our app’s got a tap-to-call feature. It means our travellers can easily make an emergency call straight through to one of our 24-hour command centers.

Luke felt our app’s smart features made an overwhelming situation a little easier. (We’re so glad to hear this – helping people during tricky times is what we do. And our app helps make it all the more easier.)

Thanks to our app’s geo-location technology, our Cover-More emergency assistance team had immediate access to Luke’s location and policy details. This meant we could start helping him straight away.  

Our team quickly sprang into action, managing the early logistical issues around the US healthcare system. We then took over all liaison with medical staff and the logistical tasks, so the family could focus on what matters most – helping Marisa recover.  

There’s more to this travel insurance claims story, though. Sadly, it gets worse for the family before it gets better. 

Did Marisa experience any other ups and downs during her recovery?

Unfortunately, yes. While Marisa recovered from surgery, unexpected complications – including pneumonia – extended her hospital stay in Los Angeles.  

‘We slept at the hospital,’ Luke remembers.  

‘We were there all the time. We’d only go back to the hotel to shower and get changed and maybe step out for a walk to clear our minds. But the rest of the time, we were at the hospital.’

Marisa’s stroke and post-op recovery turned their month-long dream holiday into a stressful two-month hospital stay. The family was never handling it alone, though. Our compassionate Cover-More team was by their side through it all. We continued to help Marisa get the care she needed, leaving Luke with just one responsibility: keeping us updated on his mum’s condition.  

Looking back, Luke’s so thankful for everyone’s kindness – from other families on the ward to the incredible doctors. He also feels our Cover-More team went well beyond operational basics, and that we did it with genuine compassion. You are so welcome, Luke! Helping people in their time of need is what we do best.

Did Marisa need to be repatriated back home?

Yes, she did. When Marisa was finally well enough to leave the LA hospital and travel back home to Australia, we arranged her repatriation through LifeFlight. No one wants to spend time organising travel with a loved one who’s ill. And Luke and his family were so thankful for our support.  

‘Once I heard the Aussie guys (from LifeFlight) come into the hospital room to take Mum, just hearing that Aussie accent, I felt incredibly relieved,’ Luke says.  

There were only a few key people on board the air ambulance: the two pilots, Marisa’s family, and a dedicated medical team of a doctor and nurse. When they landed in Australia, Marisa was transferred straight to Monash Medical Centre, where a local care team was waiting to help.  

What happened after Marisa got back to Australia?

Marisa’s road to recovery wasn’t exactly simple. Soon after leaving the ICU in Australia, Marisa was diagnosed with pneumonia again. Then, she battled COVID-19.  

There’s good news now, though: her health has improved and she’s focusing on rehabilitation.  

‘Mum can’t move her right arm at the moment, and her right side is weak because the stroke happened with a blood clot on the left side of her brain,’ Luke says.  

‘Her right leg is moving a little bit, but nowhere near as much as the left. And her right arm is not moving at all.’

Despite the challenges, Luke describes his mum as a fighter. Her speech is improving, and her memory is getting better.  

‘Everyone we've spoken to says time is critical with a stroke,’ Luke says. ‘And because of how quickly she got to hospital, and had her surgery, her chances of recovery are high.  

‘But because she’s had to get treated for a lot of other things, she’s been in hospital a lot longer than the average stroke victim, so I think her recovery is going to be a lot longer.  

‘But she’s alive. That’s the main thing. That’s what I’m grateful for. We’re just taking it day by day.’ 

How did travel insurance help the family during this rather scary time?

Throughout all the ups and downs they faced, one thing was clear to Luke: travel insurance really helped his family through this tough situation.  

‘Get the best possible insurance available when you travel because you don’t know what’s going to happen,’ he urges.  

‘Look at what happened to us. During the day, we’re at Universal Studios, having a great time. Then four hours later, our lives are changed forever.’

The travel insurance claim amount we paid totalled over $2.7 million. Yes, the price of Marisa’s emergency surgery, three weeks in the ICU, expenses from her extended hospitalisation and eventual repatriation to Australia didn’t come cheap. But that’s what we’re here for – to help our travellers when they need our care most.  

If they hadn’t packed our travel insurance? Well, that’s not something anyone wants to think about. Because without the right cover, this family holiday wouldn’t have just be emotionally hard; it would’ve been financially devastating, too.  

Has this travel insurance review inspired you to travel with our cover?

With us, you can roam more and worry less. We’ll be here to help if the unthinkable happens.