Hotwire, the discount travel site, has announced a partnership with Access America to provide Hotwire customers with an option to purchase trip protection on all air, hotel and car purchases on the Hotwire Web site.

Hotwire`s

new “Trip Protection” option, provided by Access America, offers cancellation and interruption protection for all Hotwire travel purchases up to $3,000. Trip Protection can be purchased during the Hotwire checkout process and costs just four percent of the total travel purchase, with a minimum of $12.

“Travelers have come to know Hotwire for our great discount deals on airfare, hotel rooms and car rentals,” said John Hommeyer, Hotwire chief marketing officer. “Now, we’re able to offer an even better value with the option to purchase Trip Protection through Access America. This gives our customers more choices to design the right trip to fit their needs.”

“We’re excited about partnering with a leading online travel supplier such as Hotwire,” said Jacques F. vonBechmann III, Senior Vice President of Sales for World Access, Access America’s parent corporation. “Access America has been successful in the e-commerce market by developing products that meet the needs of online travel purchasers, and this new partnership brings together two industry leaders in what I’m sure will be a successful long-term partnership.”

p>Access America pioneered electronic booking and sales of travel protection products with the introduction in 1996 of Access Interactive, the industry’s first interactive travel insurance selling system in the United States. While Access Interactive continues to be a popular booking system with travel agents using CRS systems such as SABRE and Apollo, the introduction of www.accessamerica.com has brought new levels of sophistication and efficiency to the travel protection electronic booking process.

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