iamtrustworthy

On 5/15/2024 at 12:18 PM, klfrodo said:

Please share a link to this reliable source that port fees and taxes are no longer refundable.

I was of the same opinion as you.

Hi klfrodo,

I've had more than a few customers on world cruises who have had trip interruptions and neither Royal Caribbean and Holland America are refunding port fees and taxes to my customers who returned home early.

So far, no one has let me know if the cruise lines did anything different and all the claims are still being settled.

Steve Dasseos

On 5/13/2024 at 7:39 AM, Jersey42 said:

 

. @iamtrustworthy from TripInsuranceStore has explained why in previous posts.

Hi Jersey42,

Here's the link to where I talked about why I haven't found an Annual Trip Cancellation plan that is good enough for me to sell due to their plan limitations, loopholes and with what's needed to cover the changes in travel since Covid started.

Look at this this thread on my CruiseCritic.com TripInsuranceStore.com - Summer 2023 Q&A:

Steve Dasseos

On 5/7/2024 at 5:44 PM, newcruzer2 said:

My question is sooooo very specific, I am hoping you might know the answer. 

I MUST purchase celebrity (aon) insurance (must have cfar, put deposit jan 2023, cruise nov 2024, Not medicare age yet, so 25k medical should be enough)

I would normally wait until til the day before final payment to add the insurance. But as we age and I read about preexisting conditions (we have none NOW) and the look back time-frame is 60 days. I am considering adding insurance Now; 4 months before final payment just in case some medial thing arises.

 

My question is this.... usually travel insurance is nonrefundable (hence the usual, buy the day before final payment) if I add celebrity's travel insurance and decide to cancel the cruise before final payment.....would the insurance be deducted from my deposit refund???

I know others will say.... ask celebrity or aon BUT they have reason to tell me what I want to hear

Thank you for your time.

Hi newcruzer2,

> I MUST purchase celebrity (aon) insurance (must have cfar, put deposit jan 2023, cruise nov 2024, Not medicare age yet, so 25k medical should be enough).

Is there some reason you want the CFAR?

Steve Dasseos

46 minutes ago, coldweather said:

Hello.

I always have travel insurance.  My need for travel insurance has changed so I need to understand the new policy choices/process.

 

I booked a cruise for summer 2025 (well over a year from now).  I understand to purchase insurance that includes Cancel for Any Reason (CFAR) and pre-existing condition coverage, I need to purchase the policy soon after deposit is made.

 

Let's say I did that.  I booked a cruise for over 1 year before sailing and I purchased an insurance policy with CFAR and pre-existing coverage.

 

If the cruise price DROPS prior to final payment I have always been able to have my travel agent provide me the current/lower price.  Sometimes this is technically a cancel and rebook as I receive a new/updated booking number.

 

Questions:

If I reprice my cruise to get a lower price does this invalidate my insurance I purchased at the time to booking?

If I cancel my cruise prior to final payment and get a full refund of my cruise price, can I also cancel my insurance policy?  Technically I didn't use it.

 

Thanks for your input. 

 

 

Hi coldweather,

Do you live in the USA?

Steve Dasseos

4 hours ago, RobC1116 said:

We canceled a Viking cruise in late 2022 we had fully paid for, and received a "future cruise credit" voucher for the amount originally paid. We had two years to book something else, and an additional two years during which we could travel (so needed to book by July 2024 and travel by July 2026). We just booked a Viking cruise for December 2024. We never purchased an insurance policy for the original trip. I would now like to find a policy to cover the new trip, but I am getting confusing and conflicting information on whether or not there is any company/policy that will cover the cost of the voucher were we to have to cancel for a "covered" reason. Both squaremouth and insuremytrip agents said NO companies cover vouchers. But is this right? Does anyone know? Thank you.

Hi RobC1116,

If you live in the USA, there are a few companies plans that will cover the value of your Future Travel or Cruise Credits that you received instead of a cash refund on a trip that was cancelled.

And, not unsurprisingly, there are other potential traps that could affect your travel insurance coverage that come with using travel or cruise credits.

Steve Dasseos

8 hours ago, happy cruzer said:

Planning on using the same combination of Chase Sapphire and GeoBlue Trekker,  when should we buy the GeoBlue Trekker policy?  We already have a deposit on the cruise and will buy airfare soon but the trip starts in Aug of this year. 

 

Also if your US medical insurance provider changes during the travel period does it affect the GeoBlue Trekker policy in anyway.  One of us may go from a private policy to Medicare during the time. 

 

Thanks to Steve and all the other great poster for being a great resource.

Hi happy cruzer,

Geo Blue only covers you outside the USA, so the time to get it is when you are closer to your departure date. You would make the effective date the day before you leave home.

Steve Dasseos

1 hour ago, MommaK2D2 said:

Hello. So- purchased an Alaska cruise for June with insurance thru Generali. (Purchased In January). 
   Early this month my elderly dad (not going on the cruise) was hospitalized and diagnosed with lymphoma. He will need chemotherapy ongoing for at least 6 monthts.  He got out of the hospital this week, and is requiring 24hour assistance from us for safety and health, as well as frequent blood transfusions which could require him to be readmitted frequently. 
     Because the cancer is new (occurred after buying insurance, not pre-existing), I assume trip cancellation will be covered?  But because he is not in the hospital at this time I don’t know if things will be complicated?

    Does anyone have experience with this?  Is there particular wording I need from his oncologist to make a claim go smoothly?  When is the best time to cancel? (He goes for his first non-hospital chemo next week so can get physician documentation at that time, to add to his diagnosis dates etc?)
   

Hi MommaK2D2,

I'm sorry to hear about your Dad. I hope his treatment cures him.

If you haven't already done it, call whoever you bought your Generali plan from and make sure they help you with your claim. They would have received a commission for your sale and, in my opinion, they are ethically obligated to help you with your claim.

Steve Dasseos

1 hour ago, mcrcruiser said:

Who is Steve ?

Hi mcrcruiser,

1 hour ago, Mary229 said:

I hope he can help you.  One thing about his organization is they pick up the phone!  He has a special relationship with cruise critic and you can find him as a lead on the insurance forum.   

Hi Mary229,

Thank you for your kind words.

All the annual trip cancellation plans all have limitations in their wording. In the Summer 2023 Q & A I did here on Cruise Critic, there is a thread called "Annual policy or singletrip?". Here's the link to the thread. Look at the last post where a CruiseCritic member wrote what he discovered about the Allianz plan:

Steve Dasseos

12 hours ago, chloe77 said:

Thanks so much. He has not seen his allergist since June 2023 for a routine annual check up. No medication changes were made. He hasn't had an allergic reaction requiring medical attention since 2022. So are you saying that even though his allergy was diagnosed many years ago, since he hasn't had any of the listed issues during the lookback period, it wouldn't be considered a preexisting condition?

 

That's where I'm confused. It's preexisting, but nothing happened during the lookback period. 

 

Thanks so much.

Hi chloe77,

> So are you saying that even though his allergy was diagnosed many years ago, since he hasn't had any of the listed issues during the lookback period, it wouldn't be considered a preexisting condition?

That's correct, his allergy doesn't meet the definition of pre-existing medical condition when nothing has occured as defined by the plan's lookback period.

> That's where I'm confused. It's preexisting, but nothing happened during the lookback period.

His allergy would be considered preexisting for a medical, life or disablility insurance plan, but not necessarily for a Trip Cancellation plan.

Steve Dasseos

5 hours ago, chloe77 said:

Is it important to use each person's exact cruise fare rather than the trip total cost when buying cruise insurance? We have a 3rd and 4th person deal where my kids are around $500 each but my husband and I are thousands each. Some of the broker websites just ask me for total cost. But when I go to the insurance company's direct site, some (IMG LX for example) want fare per person. If I put exact fare per person, the total cost of insurance is higher than if I put the total fare divided by four people in. Does it matter whether I use exact cost per person or total cost? Thanks!

Hi chloe77,

I only know of a few plans that will pay your full Trip Cancellation or Trip Interruption claim for a covered reason if you average the trip cost between all of you.

I wrote this on Feb 27, 2008 and it's still correct:

How To Correctly Quote a Travel Insurance Plan

https://tripinsurancestore.com/blog/how-to-correctly-quote-a-travel-insurance-plan/

I hope this helps you,

Steve Dasseos

56 minutes ago, chloe77 said:

I didn't buy travel insurance at my initial payment but I can buy it within 24 hours of final payment, and I'm wondering if I need the preexisting medical coverage for food allergies? We have a family member with anaphylactic nut allergies. He hasn't seen a doctor or received treatment in the past 8 months for a reaction, but he's been under the yearly care of an allergist since he was a baby to have his epipens prescribed, etc. Are nut allergies a preexisting condition? That's the only reason (aside from a freak accident) that I could see us needing medical coverage, and I don't want to choose a policy that doesn't have a preexisting condition waiver and then have them deny a claim. But the coverage seems to be better/cheaper if I don't need the waiver. Any advice? Thank you!

Hi chloe77,

Food allergies and any other medical condition will be defined as a pre-existing medical conition if they existed as defined by the Lookback Period of the policy you buy.

This page explains the Pre-Existing Medical Condition Lookback Period in a Trip Cancellation plan:

https://tripinsurancestore.com/travel-insurance-pre-existing-medical-condition-lookback-period/

I hope this makes sense,

Steve Dasseos

On 4/14/2024 at 12:17 PM, ohmandi said:

Hello.  We've booked a European cruise for September 2025.  We will probably do some pre-cruise and post-cruise land travel as well.  We have not yet booked flights or the pre/post travel.  I spoke with a trip insurance company to purchase a policy for just the cruise.  She said we should estimate the total cost of the trip and buy insurance at that amount.  Not knowing where or what we will be doing makes that difficult.  I know we can increase the value of the insurance as we add costs but the agent said that purchasing it in parts would probably cost us more money.   I wondered that if we estimate at a higher amount and then the trip is less, will they adjust the cost of the insurance?  Does anyone have any experience with this?  What is your opinion on estimating the costs of the trip?  Thank you.

Hi ohmandi,

I'm surprised to hear that this is the advice you received from TripInsuranceStore, since this advice was the opposite of what we tell people.

Will you help me track down your phone call? My email is steve@tripinsurancestore.com and this is the information I will need from you (email it because this is private information):

Your name, the phone number you called us from and the approximate date and time of your phone call. And, did you speak with Deanna or Kim?

Thank you in advance,

Steve Dasseos

3 hours ago, cruisegirlppp said:

I hope that didn't come across wrong. All the information that you provide is important but can seem overwhelming the first time you encounter it...that is why I recommend a phone call. You and your staff are very knowledgeable and can help a traveler choose the appropriate coverage for their trip. 

Hi cruisegirlppp,

It didn't come across wrong. I appreciate your kind words and the honest feedback.

We have over 530 pages including our 374 blog posts and I don't know how to simplify it.

Steve Dasseos

3 minutes ago, bdever said:

The BH WaveCare quote came in at $243 which isn’t bad while TG AIG Deluxe came to $173. 
Which one as far as coverage is ideal?

Hi bdever,

I can't say without knowing the exact details of your trip and what you need. It's best if you call each if the companies and ask.

Steve Dasseos

45 minutes ago, SoloFullTime said:

Thanks for the feedback

 

Thanks for the feedback.  I did realize credit cards aren't for medical, I was asking if between GeoBlue and Sapphire combined it would cover the range of most travel incidents to medical.

 

On GeoBlue Trekker, I"m seeing many sources and their site showing pre-existing is covered.  Did I misunderstand your comment or are there many restrictions?

Hi SoloFullTime,

> On GeoBlue Trekker, I"m seeing many sources and their site showing pre-existing is covered. Did I misunderstand your comment or are there many restrictions?

The reason I said that about credit cards not covering pre-existing medical conditions is that there are far more trip cancellation and interruption claims due to a pre-existing medical condition that there are medical claims due to a pre-existing medical condition.

I wanted you to be aware of this because nearly everyone we talk with wants Geo Blue because it covers pre-existing medical conditions, yet they are surprised to hear that their credit card won't cover them if they have a trip cancellation or interruption claim due to the same pre-existing medical conditions.

I hope this makes better sense.

Steve Dasseos

10 hours ago, crystalspin said:

^^^THIS^^^

My biggest worries currently are for "non-traveling family members". We have Chase Sapphire Reserve card, but I was unsure of coverage of family where the medical problem might or might not be considered pre-existing. I bought HAL's standard CFAR protection and did in fact use it. At 80% refund plus the cost of the policy, it cost us ~$5000 to cancel 24hrs before sailing. Which is far better than forfeiting the entire cruise (or being in the middle of the Pacific when needed at home), BUT always keep in mind that insurance is not without cost itself.

Hi crystalspin,

For both of HAL's Standard and Platinum plans, I've found it's less expensive to get one of our Trip Cancellation plans that reimburses 100% for a covered reason than it is to pay for the HAL plan but only get back 80% or 90%.

That's because the 20% or 10% that is lost plus the cost of the HAL plan is more than the cost of the policy and its better benefits.

I hope this makes sense.

Steve Dasseos

10 hours ago, bdever said:

Hi Steve,

I see Travel Guard / AIG and Berkshire Hathaway both offer missed port coverage. I heard Nationwide does too but I haven’t confirmed Nationwide yet. Of these 3 carriers which one would you recommend and why?

Hi bdever,

I offer Travel Guard / AIG and Berkshire Hathaway. Berkshire Hathaway's good but sometimes their prices are too high.

The Travel Guard Preferred Plan for many States reimburses a maximum of $250 per person for missing a port. It's a good plan, but, in some States, this is more expensive than the other choices.

You may see the Travel Guard Preferred plan details here:

https://tripinsurancestore.com/travel-guard-preferred/

I hope this helps you.

Steve Dasseos

On 3/28/2024 at 12:39 AM, beshears said:

Geesercouple,  I apologize as I was thinking it was Travel Insurance Store, but when I looked, you are correct and it is Trip Insurance Store. I'm thinking way back when (I could be wrong that it was Travel, but I could be wrong on that part of the name. As far as I know Steve still is over it, and seems to be a very nice person when talking with him.

Hi beshears,

I own the domain "travelinsurancestore.com" which goes to https://tripinsurancestore.com

And, I just bought the domain "travelinsuredstore.com" which also now goes to https://tripinsurancestore.com

Thanks for the idea.

Steve Dasseos

On 3/25/2024 at 6:49 AM, cruisegirlppp said:

Don't be put off by their website, which contains a lot of information. If you call and speak with one of them they will help you get the coverage you want/need.

Hi cruisegirlppp,

Sorry about that. I've been trying to clean it up and better organize it, so if you or anyone else have any idea, please email me at steve@tripinsurancestore.com . I welcome any feedback.

Steve Dasseos

8 hours ago, bdever said:

Just a heads up, Allianz Travel Insurance DOES NOT cover missed ports of call. I am livid. I have them for an upcoming sailing and I am outside of the cancellation window for the policy. Had I known this coverage was not included I would have never purchased the coverage. Can anyone recommend an insurance company that offers this coverage for my other upcoming sailings?

Hi bdever,

I don't offer Allianz for various reasons, and not many other plans will pay you if a ship misses a port of call.

There can still be Trip Interruption coverage, so what exact financial loss would you have if your upcoming cruise missed a port?

Steve Dasseos

3 hours ago, Mary229 said:

The annual medical policy can be bought with large evacuation limits. I use the one Steve Dasseos @iamtrustworthy recommended.  It is a geoblue annual health policy. 

Hi Mary229,

Here's my page with all the multi-trip annual Geo Blue Trekker plan details:
https://tripinsurancestore.com/geo-blue-trekker-travel-medical-plans/

Steve Dasseos

10 hours ago, Unclefester6132 said:

Searched but couldn't find what I am looking for, 

 

Does anyone have a credit card they got just for the good travel insurance? 

Have you had to use it and are you happy with the choice?

 

Thank you

Hi Unclefester6132,

None of the credit card plans cover anything related to pre-existing medical conditions of you, traveling companions or non-traveling family members that could worsen and, in turn, cause you to cancel or interrupt your trip or for medical treatment while you are on your trip. And, their Covid coverage may not be adequate.

If you don't need the pre-existing medical conditions coverage, then having a credit card plan's trip cancellation coverage is a good way to save money.

I hope this helps you.

Steve Dasseos

On 3/31/2024 at 7:31 PM, SoloFullTime said:

I'm planning near full time global travels starting this summer for potentially a couple years.  Much cruising involved and staying in port towns for potentially a few weeks in between cruises around world then back in US every couple months or so for 2-3 weeks at a time, rinse repeat.  Will be maintaining primary medical insurance (early retired) in US. 

 

Will adding annual multitrip GeoBlue and using Chase Sapphire Preferred cover all travel/med insurance needs?  Anything else to consider?  Any additional travel insurance recommended?

Hi SoloFullTime,

Chase, nor any of the other credit card plans cover anything related to pre-existing medical conditions of you, traveling companions or non-traveling family members that could worsen and, in turn, cause you to cancel or interrupt your trip.

If you don't need the pre-existing medical conditions coverage, then using the GeoBlue Trekker plan is a good choice. We've sold a lot of GeoBlue Trekker plans in combination with credit card plans for this same situation.

I hope this helps you.

Steve Dasseos

On 3/16/2024 at 2:00 PM, let's go cruising said:

Hi! We just got a Chase Sapphire and I've very interested in the Travel Insurance it comes with. In 2023, we had a claim with our travel insurance because our flights were delayed (not by weather) so that we missed our cruise. Everything worked out in the end, but reading the coverage on Chase Sapphire, this would NOT have been covered. Is it possible to buy supplemental coverage for just the things our Chase Sapphire doesn't cover?

 

I've been careful to have insurance and don't want to have a VERY expensive mistake.

 

Thank you!

Hi let's go cruising,

Yes, it's possible to buy supplemental coverage for the things our Chase Sapphire doesn't cover.

I don't know if you need pre-existing medical conditions coverage for yourselves or non-traveling family members, but Chase nor any other credit card plan doesn't cover pre-existing medical conditions.

Steve Dasseos