BEWARE: Travel Insured International Claim

On May 6, 2018, we were scheduled to return home from Ft. Lauderdale after our cruise on the Conquest. Once at the airport we were told that our flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Charlotte, NC was delayed. We boarded a flight 4 hours later then expected to Charlotte which in turn caused us to miss our connection to Jacksonville, NC. Once in Charlotte we were told that we couldn't fly out to Jacksonville that night so we could spend the night in a hotel and hope for a flight the next day or hop on a flight from Charlotte to New Bern, NC which was about 40 minutes from home. We opted to fly out that

afternoon to New Bern even though our car was in Jacksonville. Knowing that I had insurance we opted to fly to New Bern.

Long story short, our daughter drove 40 miles to pick us up at the airport and brought us 45 miles home. The next day we drove our other vehicle to Jacksonville to pick up our car. I then filed a claim showing the changes with original reservations and our boarding passes indicating we were re-routed to New Bern instead of Jacksonville, NC. due to the cancellation of our first flight. I submitted a claim requesting mileage for my daughters travel to pick us up and take us home, mileage for our travel to pick up our car, an extra nights parking fee and 1 meal.

My claim was DENIED because I did not have receipts for my car nor my daughters travel expenses.

I was further told by the claims adjuster that had we stayed in a hotel in Charlotte, and or used a taxi or an uber for transportation we would have been reimbursed. I requested milage fee based on the government's reimbursement schedule of $0.52 cents a mile.

So.....since I didn't incur the expenses of a hotel, meals, and public transportation and used my personal resources to get home we were not entitled to reimbursement. This is entirely unfair. We actually saved the company money doing it the way we did and instead were penalized. Our insurance was supposed to cover missed or delayed flights. Documents clearly showed our flight was changed and we went to a different airport. The transportation FAIRY didn't get us home from the airport or back to the original airport to pick up our vehicle. It was clearly documented.

With this said, my advise to you is to be sure to use a hotel, public transportation, or anything else where you can get receipts otherwise you will not be reimbursed.

It's really the principle of the matter. I paid for insurance, a insured issue occurred. We utilized the most ineffective means of expenses incurred and still got the shaft.

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Sorry you had that experience. I don't know of any travel insurance that pays out when there have been no actual losses though. Yes, you were incredibly inconvenienced by the cancellation and re-routing of your flights. Thank goodness you were able to make alternate arrangements that got you home once again.

Check your policy again, and maybe try calling and speaking to a "higher up". You may get a different response. Good luck!

Who was the insurance through and what does this have to do with Carnival? Was it their insurance?

THIS is why you always have to read, re-read and triple read all of the fine print and conditions. My travel insurance policy only covers airfare related costs, there is no mention of any driving mileage

I understand your complaint.

However, I also understand where the insurance company is coming from. The Terms and Conditions based on your claim was/is NOT a covered event in their determination.

A cruiser last year had the same complaint except they rented a car to drive home. Filed a claim for reimbursement for the rental car expenses.

Always, always, always,,, call the insurance company to determine what you next step is before you just assume you're covered.

I understand your complaint.

 

However, I also understand where the insurance company is coming from. The Terms and Conditions based on your claim was/is NOT a covered event in their determination.

 

A cruiser last year had the same complaint except they rented a car to drive home. Filed a claim for reimbursement for the rental car expenses.

 

 

 

Always, always, always,,, call the insurance company to determine what you next step is before you just assume you're covered.

Your last sentence is the winner. Carry the policy with you (electronically) and call the insurance company to see what is covered and as importantly what is not.

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Who was the insurance through and what does this have to do with Carnival? Was it their insurance?

The name of the insurance company is mentioned in the title of this thread. How it relates to Carnival is mostly incidental since the OP's cruise was on Conquest.

On May 6, 2018, we were scheduled to return home from Ft. Lauderdale after our cruise on the Conquest. Once at the airport we were told that our flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Charlotte, NC was delayed. We boarded a flight 4 hours later then expected to Charlotte which in turn caused us to miss our connection to Jacksonville, NC. Once in Charlotte we were told that we couldn't fly out to Jacksonville that night so we could spend the night in a hotel and hope for a flight the next day or hop on a flight from Charlotte to New Bern, NC which was about 40 minutes from home. We opted to fly out that

afternoon to New Bern even though our car was in Jacksonville. Knowing that I had insurance we opted to fly to New Bern.

Long story short, our daughter drove 40 miles to pick us up at the airport and brought us 45 miles home. The next day we drove our other vehicle to Jacksonville to pick up our car. I then filed a claim showing the changes with original reservations and our boarding passes indicating we were re-routed to New Bern instead of Jacksonville, NC. due to the cancellation of our first flight. I submitted a claim requesting mileage for my daughters travel to pick us up and take us home, mileage for our travel to pick up our car, an extra nights parking fee and 1 meal.

My claim was DENIED because I did not have receipts for my car nor my daughters travel expenses.

I was further told by the claims adjuster that had we stayed in a hotel in Charlotte, and or used a taxi or an uber for transportation we would have been reimbursed. I requested milage fee based on the government's reimbursement schedule of $0.52 cents a mile.

So.....since I didn't incur the expenses of a hotel, meals, and public transportation and used my personal resources to get home we were not entitled to reimbursement. This is entirely unfair. We actually saved the company money doing it the way we did and instead were penalized. Our insurance was supposed to cover missed or delayed flights. Documents clearly showed our flight was changed and we went to a different airport. The transportation FAIRY didn't get us home from the airport or back to the original airport to pick up our vehicle. It was clearly documented.

With this said, my advise to you is to be sure to use a hotel, public transportation, or anything else where you can get receipts otherwise you will not be reimbursed.

It's really the principle of the matter. I paid for insurance, a insured issue occurred. We utilized the most ineffective means of expenses incurred and still got the shaft.

 

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You answered your own statement. Insurance is to reimburse you for covered expenses and you had none.

You answered your own statement. Insurance is to reimburse you for covered expenses and you had none.

Yes, and it appears the OP's post was (in addition to a bit of a rant) to warn others to get those receipts for reimbursable expenses otherwise risk being left with the cost out of pocket. :confused:

As others have mentioned: read, read, and read some more the policy’s fine print before you do anything so that you know what’s covered and what’s required to file a claim successfully. And save every little receipt that shows what your out of pocket expenses are.

In all of my years of cruising, I’ve had to file two claims (one for lost luggage and one for a canceled cruise due to work reasons). In both instances, the insurance company asked for everything imaginable. Thankfully, I had documented everything and had every proof that they asked for. It was almost comical because I’d submit the items requested, then they would ask for something additional in order to process the claim. I had the feeling that they kept digging deeper in order to deny the claim. But every time, I was able to produce what they requested.

Both times, the claims were approved, but I can see how something minor would’ve given the insurance company a reason to throw out the claim.

I had familiarized myself in advance with what type of documentation the insurance company would require, but I can see how my claims would’ve ended in denials had I not carefully read the fine print in advance and understood what I was and wasn’t entitled to.

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Since you chose to go to the other city and did not get authorization from the insurance you are out of luck.

I had to cancel airfare to Florida in July for a medical issue, I did buy the insurance and had to send in lots of documents to prove the reason to cancel (I did get paid this week), but one thing to remember is to copy all documents in case they want more papers or maybe they didn't receive the originals.

The one time we came close to having to use our insurance I called the company to see if we could just rent a car and drive home. Was told that since the airline had a reroute that put us home less than four hours behind schedule (original was LaGuardia to BWI. Reroute was LaGuardia to Richmond to Detroit to BWI) we would not be able to claim the rental car. If the reroute had been two hours later we would have been fine. Our policy was for a 6 hour or more delay :( . We rented the car on our own dime just to get home cause we were ready to be off vacay:eek:

I had to cancel airfare to Florida in July for a medical issue, I did buy the insurance and had to send in lots of documents to prove the reason to cancel (I did get paid this week), but one thing to remember is to copy all documents in case they want more papers or maybe they didn't receive the originals.

We've had several claims with Travel Insured, and we've been reimbursed promptly. Two of the claims were "large", and the others were more modest.

But YES, ALWAYS KEEP COPIES of any/all documentation you send.

We scanned *everything* (including small taxi receipts, which were then a small section of an otherwise empty page, etc.).

We submitted it all via email.

So we automatically had a copy, both on our computers but also as attachments to our copy of the email. (Yes, *always* Cc yourself on those emails, too!)

For the OP, I wonder if you had written a check to reimburse your daughter for the travel/mileage expenses (or at least for gas receipts), if that might have worked.

I also think that someone else at Travel Insured might have been able to help, if you had asked for a supervisor. It might not be too late.

But the suggestion to call TI at the time, to ask what they recommended/authorized, is a good one.

We've found them very easy to deal with, and will continue to get our travel insurance with them.

The "trick" is... *receipts*!

Another suggestion is to use an Insurance Broker, such as

www.TripInsuranceStore.com

Steve, the owner there, can "run interference" with the insurer if help is needed.

We emailed him from overseas once, when I was ill, after I was back in the hotel from the hospital (where DH had to spend several extra days, and then a few more for me before I was fit to continue our travels... and we *almost* called MedJetAssist to "take us home", but fortunately we were able to "recover" the final week of our trip).

We weren't sure whether or how some of the expenses would be covered, so he contacted TI on our behalf, and emailed back just which portion of our policy would cover it, AND there was a reminder about... yes... RECEIPTS.

It's understandable that any insurer would want "proof of actual financial loss", or people would quickly start taking advantage of the situation.

GC

The first time we had a travel insurance claim, it was due to flight issues. Thank goodness we had receipts for everything because they were required as proof of our expenses in the claim.

The advice here by CCers to read the fine print, especially before buying a policy, is golden and I revently took their advice. For an upcoming trip, I decided to shop around and I read all the policies of the other companies. There was a crucial difference regarding 'cancellation due to work' in one company's policy whose premium was in the price range, so I stayed with the company we always use.

The frustration of the OP is understandable. We've all had those bitter lessons learned the hard way, including myself. From the business standpoint of the insurance company, I would want receipts as proof of claim, just like any other type insurance (home, health, auto). Otherwise, I would go broke and out of business quickly paying claims to undeserving opportunists and scammers.

I appreciate everyone's comments; well almost, lol. I agree we should have contacted the insurance company prior to making our decision. I thought for sure we're having to fly into an airport different from booked airport so the expenses would have been covered since they would have been more had we spent the night in Charlotte; obviously I was incorrect.

For those who said that I didn't incur additional expenses, I beg to differ. There were travel costs for my daughter, travel costs for me to drive another car and back to the original airport to get my car, and additional parking expenses.

I did speak with a supervisor and she said if we purchased gas in any of the vehicles within 24 hours of the incident, we could submit those receipts. Unfortunately that wasn't the case.

I'm a little bit miffed at myself and at TI because I was acting in good faith. As a retired Federal Agent I should have known that good faith means very little in the corporate business world.

This thread was meant as a learning tool for others.......and let me vent a bit too!

As a retired Federal Agent I should have known that good faith means very little in the corporate business world.

And definitely as a former government employee (Coming from a former government employee)

 

This thread was meant as a learning tool for others.......and let me vent a bit too!

I think you accomplished this very well.

Maxydu, I'm really glad that you created this post. I've learned on cruise critic the importance of calling the insurance co before making decisions, and choosing options that provide receipts. I also learned here the benefits of purchasing insurance thru a broker who will advocate. If people like you didn't post, we wouldn't be armed with knowledge.

Receipts are everything!

I always use Travel Insured through USAA and when I needed to submit a claim for an ER visit. I was pleased. They even covered the rental car that I got in Fort Lauderdale to take us from the ship to the ER and the ER to the Airport so that we had a place to store our luggage. I had a receipt, and explained that I rented the car using my smart phone for transport since the ship Dr wanted my husband to be cleared before flying,

That said, they didn’t cover a hotel after a cruise about 5 years ago when we flew into our home airport just before it closed due to weather. We got the last room available at an airport hotel property and spent the night because the interstate on the way home was closed. I didn’t think to call them before booking the room, I just knew we didn’t want to drive in that. I then had no way to prove the interstate had been closed. I learned something, call right away so that they can help you get the proof you need in anticipation.

A similar thing happened to me a few years ago when a trip (not a cruise) was cut short due to a medical emergency back home. The insurers were called beforehand and everything was paid for - but I took the passengers on a 2 hour trip to the airport. If they had gone in a taxi they would have been reimbursed. I wasn't.

It was not a bank-breaking expense, but to me it felt unfair at the time. In comparison to the medical emergency, it was nothing. I keep buying trip insurance but I do sometimes wonder why.

Thank you everyone for comments re: TI. I have purchased said plans many times -- although each one was issued by TI -- the form #s were always different from the prior form -- most likely fine print changes.

I had to use the ins. 2 times -- 1st for shipboard medical -- but for medical -- it is secondary -- so had to submit to our home regular plan -- receive denial -- then submit all docs to TI. (The onboard Dr. wrote a very comprehensive report/letter to aid us for ins. purpose -- they charged for the letter ! ) They paid every penny !

2nd time -- was a flight cxl due to weather -- airline would not cover hotel for weather related -- they booked us on next flight ( no interlining since air was purchased from cruise line ) -- which was 24 hours later -- would not work for us -- had to be back at work next day -- so we took Uber. claim was paid -- but they did not cover the tip -- I guess because I gave him cash. Luggage arrived at airport on that next day's flight. Had to pick it up -- and get a doc from airline stating date and time of luggage arrival. Another doc required was an official letter from airline stating reason for cxl. That was easy to request from airline website.

This was all clearly written in email from TI after reporting incident -- about what docs are needed for claim submission. However, they did not cover parking (very minor) at airport to retrieve luggage -- even with submitted receipt.

Again, thank you to everyone -- moral of story -- read policy before purchasing AND call TI or ins co. when problem arises. I did not do either of these. Now I will do this.

P.S. just yesterday I received email from our large cruise agency saying they are now switching to another preferred travel ins. co. They did not say why.

Thank you everyone for comments re: TI. I have purchased said plans many times -- although each one was issued by TI -- the form #s were always different from the prior form -- most likely fine print changes.

 

I had to use the ins. 2 times -- 1st for shipboard medical -- but for medical -- it is secondary -- so had to submit to our home regular plan -- receive denial -- then submit all docs to TI. (The onboard Dr. wrote a very comprehensive report/letter to aid us for ins. purpose -- they charged for the letter ! ) They paid every penny !

 

2nd time -- was a flight cxl due to weather -- airline would not cover hotel for weather related -- they booked us on next flight ( no interlining since air was purchased from cruise line ) -- which was 24 hours later -- would not work for us -- had to be back at work next day -- so we took Uber. claim was paid -- but they did not cover the tip -- I guess because I gave him cash. Luggage arrived at airport on that next day's flight. Had to pick it up -- and get a doc from airline stating date and time of luggage arrival. Another doc required was an official letter from airline stating reason for cxl. That was easy to request from airline website.

 

This was all clearly written in email from TI after reporting incident -- about what docs are needed for claim submission. However, they did not cover parking (very minor) at airport to retrieve luggage -- even with submitted receipt.

 

Again, thank you to everyone -- moral of story -- read policy before purchasing AND call TI or ins co. when problem arises. I did not do either of these. Now I will do this.

 

P.S. just yesterday I received email from our large cruise agency saying they are now switching to another preferred travel ins. co. They did not say why.

Did you get the Travel Insured policies through your travel agent?

If you are happy with them (we certainly are!), you could just get the same/similar coverage directly from them, or from a broker like

www.TripInsuranceStore.com

We use TIS, and occasionally, they recommend something else (and once, reminded us why we didn't really need a policy for that particular trip!).

And we also learned to get a taxi receipt that *includes* the tip next time!

GC

Yes, purchased from agency. Will check with TIS next time. Thank you for advise on tipping. Does it cost same regardless of from where purchased -- broker -- TA -- or direct ?

Yes, purchased from agency. Will check with TIS next time. Thank you for advise on tipping. Does it cost same regardless of from where purchased -- broker -- TA -- or direct ?

No, it shouldn't.

As with many things, the insurer pays the commission to the agency; the traveler doesn't pay.

And the broker, especially TIS, is *very* helpful.

We've learned so much from them, but in part that's because early on we kept asking, "But what if...?" and "What if...", etc. (They were incredibly patient. And those answers helped us avoid some "mistakes".)

Mostly, we can't thank some others here on CC for emphasizing travel insurance, and recommending TIS, very early as we started planning our "serious travel", and DH's first cruise.

Alas, that was cancelled less than two weeks before we were supposed to depart from home, and it was, for us at the time, a very expensive trip. (Ha! We've since been having such fun, that we upped our budget for travel and still have so many places to go... ;))

And TI paid promptly, once we got all the receipts and medical documentation to them.

After that experience, "We'll never leave home without it!"

GC

Thanks, GC