Help! Cruise Insurance Question

[LaLaLa123]

Hello,

 

I've never cruised before and am going to the Southern Caribbean via Carnival in August 2010. I booked February 3rd and desperately am looking for travel insurance advice as there are SO many crooks and unreliable companies out there! We would like our flights, cruise, and land to be covered and we would really like to have the "cancel for any reason"/"cancel anytime" options, just in case! I have medical insurance so that is not of importance to me.

 

So far, TravelSafe and Travelex appear to have the best deals. Does anyone know if these companies are reputable? I heard AccessAmerica and Travel Guard are good, but they do not offer the cancel anytime plan for New York residents, unfortunately...

 

Please let me know if you have any good advice!

 

Many thanks!! :)

[uppitycats]

Hello,

 

I've never cruised before and am going to the Southern Caribbean via Carnival in August 2010. I booked February 3rd and desperately am looking for travel insurance advice as there are SO many crooks and unreliable companies out there! We would like our flights, cruise, and land to be covered and we would really like to have the "cancel for any reason"/"cancel anytime" options, just in case! I have medical insurance so that is not of importance to me.

 

So far, TravelSafe and Travelex appear to have the best deals. Does anyone know if these companies are reputable? I heard AccessAmerica and Travel Guard are good, but they do not offer the cancel anytime plan for New York residents, unfortunately...

 

Please let me know if you have any good advice!

 

Many thanks!! :)

 

I've used Travelex in the past and find them reliable. I'm sorry TravelGuard doesn't offer the cancel anytime for New York (why is that, I wonder?) as they're my first choice.

[ShipsandDipper]

Are you SURE you have medical coverage? Many companies don't cover outside the USA. And is the coverage sufficient? Check the Princess board and look for the thread "This wasn't the way I planned on ending the cruise" for a graphic example of why you want to be sure you have enough medical coverage.

[texkan]

This is a good site to compare insurance:

 

http://www.insuremytrip.com

[LaLaLa123]

uppitycats - Thanks SO much for your feedback. I think Travelex is going to be our choice. It is a shame NYS residents are not offered TravelGuard's cancel anytime because I would absolutely go with them...

 

ShipsandDipper - Thanks for the information! I did call my health insurance company and they said I am absolutely covered overseas for a fairly large maximum. However, medical insurance is something that will be covered on all of the plans I am looking at so I am absolutely covering all of my bases!

 

Thanks again, all! If anyone has had good or bad experiences with Travelex's Select plan (including Cancel for Any Reason), please do let me know!

 

In addition to being new to cruises, I usually use a travel agent, so I am also new to booking my own trip and insurance...

[kitty9]

uppitycats - Thanks SO much for your feedback. I think Travelex is going to be our choice. It is a shame NYS residents are not offered TravelGuard's cancel anytime because I would absolutely go with them...

 

ShipsandDipper - Thanks for the information! I did call my health insurance company and they said I am absolutely covered overseas for a fairly large maximum. However, medical insurance is something that will be covered on all of the plans I am looking at so I am absolutely covering all of my bases!

 

Thanks again, all! If anyone has had good or bad experiences with Travelex's Select plan (including Cancel for Any Reason), please do let me know!

 

I am very new to cruises and usually use a travel agent, so I am very new to booking my own trip and insurance...

 

Make sure emergency medical evacuation is covered also. If you have a medical emergency on board the ship, the cost to get you off the ship and to a hospital can be more than $30,000. Also, if you or anyone in your travel party has pre-existing conditions, then you need to purchase your insurance from 10 to 14 days of booking the trip. If you buy it later, pre-existing won't be covered, unless you purchase a much more expensive policy.

[LaLaLa123]

InsuranceAgent: Would you recommend one over the other (TravelSafe vs. Travelex)?

 

You all are SO helpful! Thank you! :)

[cherylandtk]

I'm not InsuranceAgent, but I can say both companies are reliable, but do offer multiple policies. You need to assess your own needs and look at the actual policy's fine print. Being from New York City, you need to look at the policy specific to NY, which is slightly different from most states.

 

1. Because you want "any reason" coverage, you probably are looking at Travelex Travel select and TravelSafe Vacation plans. If you are looking at a differently named plan, be sure to read the coverages available.

 

2. Do you have any specific needs you want covered? Both policies cover non-travelling family members, you are early enough to waive pre-existing conditions. What are the "any reasons" you are worried about...work, weather, pets, other?

 

3. TravelSafe costs a bit more, but has higher coverage amounts although a longer trip delay kick-in and the any reason coverage is 5% lower (80% vs. 75%). Look at a side by side comparison chart using your ages and trip costs to determine what is best for you.

Here is a good site for that: http://tripinsurancestore.com/get-a-quote.php

 

If you still have questions, CALL an agent and ask, they know enough about the policy differences to ask the questions that can steer you to the right policy for your situation.

[cruiseco]

With either Travelex or TravelSafe there are a number of things you need to do to be eligible for th eCancel For Any Reason benefit -- buy in a certain time frame, cover all of your pre-paid, non-refundable trip arrangements, can't use it in a certain time frame, etc.

 

They are very strict about all of these requirements and allow NO lee way. If you come up short $5 on the trip cost to be insured they will deny your claim. So be very careful about following the rules. If you have any questions about what is to be insured and what does not have to be insured be sure to contact them. I prefer emailing them as then you get a written answer to your question that you can refer to should there be a later dispute. No "he said, she said" situation -- it's all documented.

[jeffjenn]

The general recommendation in discussions on this site has been for an insurer other than the one associated with one's crise line. But a special situation exists in my case, leading to this request for thoughts or advice. First, the cost of the trip in question is high: $25,000 - for 25 days. The company associated with the cruise line (Stonebridge) offers rather full coverage for 10% of the cost of the cruise, regardless of age. On the other hand, the companies presented on the various Web sites covering travel insurance uniformly show sustantially higher rates, based on the fact that I am above the age of 80. The Stonebridge offering does only provide coverage on a secondary basis (as do many of the Web-based companies), but I can live with that because my primary policy covers 80% for out-of-country medical expenses. Is it reasonable to go with Stonebridge, or are there factors which I have not considered; like, perhaps, the quality of Stonebridge vs. such alternatives as Travelex or TravelGuard.

[cruiseco]

The general recommendation in discussions on this site has been for an insurer other than the one associated with one's crise line. But a special situation exists in my case, leading to this request for thoughts or advice. First, the cost of the trip in question is high: $25,000 - for 25 days. The company associated with the cruise line (Stonebridge) offers rather full coverage for 10% of the cost of the cruise, regardless of age. On the other hand, the companies presented on the various Web sites covering travel insurance uniformly show sustantially higher rates, based on the fact that I am above the age of 80. The Stonebridge offering does only provide coverage on a secondary basis (as do many of the Web-based companies), but I can live with that because my primary policy covers 80% for out-of-country medical expenses. Is it reasonable to go with Stonebridge, or are there factors which I have not considered; like, perhaps, the quality of Stonebridge vs. such alternatives as Travelex or TravelGuard.

 

Stonebridge is an underwriter, not a plan administrator so comparing them to Travelex or TravelSafe isn't really a valid comparison. Stonebridge also underwrites several of the third-party plans out there including several of the CSA offerings.

 

The same things apply to evaluating a cruise line-branded plan as it does to the various third-party plans. For example, a 25-day sailing can get you to some exotic, out-of-the-way places so I'd want to be very sure that it has a high emergency evacuation benefit. But if there's a big savings in the premium I'd be less concerned if the trip delay or baggage delay benefits are a little lacking. The three things that can really ruin your retirement are trip cancellation/interruption, medical, and emergency evacuation. The rest is nice to have but peanuts compared to the others.

 

It would perhaps help if you could post the name of the cruise line and/or plan.

[jeffjenn]

Cruisco: I no little of the dynamics of the travel insurance industry, but Regent SSC refers to its insurer as Stonebridge Casualty and the description of the policy in question looks very much like the ones posted on the typical travel insurance Web sites, such as those of Travelex. Illustration of the amounts specified in my case are: Trip Cancellation $50,000; Emergency Medical Evacuation $50,000; Sickness Medical Expenses: $10,000. What are your thoughts about the choice?

[cruiseco]

Cruisco: I no little of the dynamics of the travel insurance industry, but Regent SSC refers to its insurer as Stonebridge Casualty and the description of the policy in question looks very much like the ones posted on the typical travel insurance Web sites, such as those of Travelex. Illustration of the amounts specified in my case are: Trip Cancellation $50,000; Emergency Medical Evacuation $50,000; Sickness Medical Expenses: $10,000. What are your thoughts about the choice?

 

What's your itinerary? $50k for the emergency evac might be about the minimum I'd want for some itineraries, and I'd want a whole lot more for other destinations.

 

You said you're OK on the medical -- your regular insurance covers you. Will the $10k cover your co-pay / deductible? Or at least enough that any left over isn't terrible?

[jeffjenn]

Cruiseco:

Thank you for the information. However, I will almost certainly drop consideration of the Regent policy because I found, contrary to what I was told by the agent to whom I spoke, that there is no allowance for waiver of pre-existing condition.Thus, the other limitations of the policy are of little concern.

[Kellie Poodle]

Hello,

 

I've never cruised before and am going to the Southern Caribbean via Carnival in August 2010. I booked February 3rd and desperately am looking for travel insurance advice as there are SO many crooks and unreliable companies out there! We would like our flights, cruise, and land to be covered and we would really like to have the "cancel for any reason"/"cancel anytime" options, just in case! I have medical insurance so that is not of importance to me.

 

So far, TravelSafe and Travelex appear to have the best deals. Does anyone know if these companies are reputable? I heard AccessAmerica and Travel Guard are good, but they do not offer the cancel anytime plan for New York residents, unfortunately....

 

Please let me know if you have any good advice!

 

Many thanks!! :)

 

I, personally, have had bad experiences with both Travel Guard, a little over a year ago, and AccessAmerica, in my humble opinion, is a nest of crooks. Travel Guard refused to honor our 1 million in medical evacuation coverage, forcing my DH to stay in a wholly inadequate hospital in Sicily. They even admitted to our Port Agent and the customer service person from the cruise line that the hospital was not capable of giving my DH the proper care.

 

AccessAmerica has just weaseled out of a claim for a damaged computer even before the primary responsible party has completed their investigation. According to AccessAmerica, one has to report damaged personal property within 24 hours of what they assume the point of damage was. (not when you discovered the damage) They don't care that your flight was longer than 24 hours, you discovered the damage in a foreign country on Thanksgiving Day when government offices are closed and that by Monday you are on a cruise ship.

 

I don't know what recourse one has when it is humanly impossible to meet the requirements of an insurance policy, but I've learned my lesson and now I call the companies and go through any provisions I don't understand or think are worded strangely.

 

I just did that with a TravelEX policy I purchased for another (land) trip. They were very nice about explaining how their coverage worked.

[dredemp]

From my research I found that CSA and Travelex Max are the best or at least have the best coverages, however with CSA if you want the anytime option you have to purchase within 24 hours of initial trip payment. But now I know for next time.;)

[LALAFRANCE]

looking at the insurance offered by Carnival it seems to cover quite a bit. Does any one have experience with it good or bad? The price seems comparable too.

 

thanks:)