We always purchase travel insurance when we cruise,

[Kellie Poodle]

In regard to travel insurance, may I share a few things I have learned:

 

Look for a company that is "primary" If the medical insurance is secondary, you will have to pay up front and tehn submit to your personal insurance company before the travel insurance company will pay. With a "primary" policy, if the situation is significant (like a hospitalization) many times the insurer will pay the bill for you and then submit to your insurance company. Most people's health insurance does not cover them in foreign countries. Medicare definitely does not.

 

A short-term policy with MedJet Assist or another company like it will be very helpful if you need evacuation. With the regular travel insurers, they make the decision as to whether or not to evacuate you. With MedJet, as long as the treating doctor says you are stable and your own physician at home says you need to go directly into your home hospital, they will transport you. In other words, the doctors make the calls not the pseudo-medical "experts" hired by the travel insurance company.

 

A pre-existing condition is anything you are being treated for. If you are taking drugs for high cholesterol, the insurance company can claim you have a pre-existing heart condition if you have a heart attack. Same thing if you are taking meds for high blood pressure or any other maintenence drugs. If you are, purchase your insurance within the two to three weeks required to cover pre-existing conditions.

 

Read the policy before you buy it. Most of the companies will give you a trial period. If the policy has a time limit in which you MUST report a loss, don't get that policy. Access America has a "weasel" clause that they can invoke if you have something that was damaged on your trip and didn't report it within 24 hours. In other words, if you check your luggage for a trip to Australia and when you get there find that your suitcase was damaged, you are out of luck, because it was longer than 24 hours from when you checked your stuff. They do not take time zone changes into account either. Make sure that the comnpany you are going with has a clause with a "reasonable amount of time" provision. (I did report this situation to my state insurance commission and unexpectedly got a check from Access after they had given me written and verbal notice that my claim was not timely filed.)

 

If you are using one of the web sites like insuremytrip.com, look at the comparisons of the policies and choose the company with the best ratings, who will give you primary coverage and a reasonable amount of time to file claims.

 

Hopefully, I will not need to submit any further claims to travel insurance companies. I just thought I'd pass along what I have learned through experience.

[Richiebaseball]

A pre-existing condition is anything you are being treated for. If you are taking drugs for high cholesterol, the insurance company can claim you have a pre-existing heart condition if you have a heart attack. Same thing if you are taking meds for high blood pressure or any other maintenence drugs. If you are, purchase your insurance within the two to three weeks required to cover pre-existing conditions.

 

That's not the case. Insurance companies specifically state in their policy what is considered a pre-existing condition. They typically have a "look back" period, 180 days for example. If you have high cholesterol and are on medication for that, if that medication or condition hasn't changed within that look back period, then it probably will not be considered a pre-existing condition.

 

With pretty much anything but specifically with regard to insurance, I recommend taking any advice from an anonymous message board with a grain of salt. Read the policies yourself and contact the insurance company with any specific questions.

[wolv4life]

My GF and I just booked our first cruise last month. We are cruising on the Liberty out of Miami on Sept. 19. We pad $138 total for travel insurance for the two of us. We're both in our 20's (since age was mentioned as a cost factor)...

 

Hope this helps!

::Tommy

 

That does help. Thanks. My fiancee and I are in our late 20's as well. I still have a hard time justifying that kind of an expense though. It's bad enough that I have to pay thousands a year for health insurance that I've never had to use. I guess I tend to view insurance as wasted money cause outside of a car accident I've never had to file a claim.

[aurelius180]

That does help. Thanks. My fiancee and I are in our late 20's as well. I still have a hard time justifying that kind of an expense though. It's bad enough that I have to pay thousands a year for health insurance that I've never had to use. I guess I tend to view insurance as wasted money cause outside of a car accident I've never had to file a claim.

 

 

I had the same feelings as you. We were both 29 when we first purchased trip insurance last December for our January cruise. I always figured we would be fine health-wise and only purchased it this time because it was December and we would be flying out of Boston. We ended up canceling the trip due to health reasons and were extremely glad we had it. I will think twice going forward about travelling without...

[CRUZBUDS]

We can afford to be self-insured for the cost of the cruise -- we buy it for evacuation coverage. We are healthy mid-50's - but you never know.

 

We had balcony neighbors that had an accident in Zihuatanejo. One needed to be airlifted to San Antonio and other more seriously hurt went to San Diego. When I'm stable I don't want any hesitation about sending me back to the U.S. for treatment.

 

They don't fly you home if you don't have the money

 

Politics aside -- there are very few places in the world (especially where we cruise) with health care as good as the U.S. -- paying for it is another matter :rolleyes:

[rocketmom09]

I'm glad I found this thread! Right now I'm looking at Travelex, thru Nationwide. My husband and I (58 and 55), can get Travelex Select for $118 for our cruise in September (if you get the insurance within 21 days of booking your trip), pre-existing conditions are waived.

[cruiseco]

re: pricing. Here's a link to the premium chart for the Travelex Select plan

 

http://www.travelinsurancecenter.com/eng/information/cm_cost.cfm?line=tx_select

 

As you can see, the pricing is determined by two factors only -- age and trip cost. The CSA Custom plan is about the only major plan that doesn't figure their premiums this way. So if last time you bought this policy you were 60 and are now 61 and there's no change in the trip cost you're getting hit with about a 30% increase. It's not that the insurer has raised the premiums, you're just in a more expensive age bracket.

 

Look for a company that is "primary" If the medical insurance is secondary, you will have to pay up front and then submit to your personal insurance company before the travel insurance company will pay. With a "primary" policy, if the situation is significant (like a hospitalization) many times the insurer will pay the bill for you and then submit to your insurance company.

 

#1 Whether the insurance is primary or secondary you will have to pay the bill up front and submit the bill for reimbursement when you get home. The primary/secondary thing only determines to what insurance company you will first submit the claim.

 

#2 When it comes to having an insurer guarantee payment directly to a hospital there is no difference between primary and secondary insurers -- they either will or they won't, it's completely unrelated to being primary or secondary, and it's spelled out in the policy details. Many, many secondary insurers provide this same benefit, for example this is from TravelSafe (a secondary insurer).

 

"Advance payment will be made to a Hospital, up to the Maximum Benefit Amount, if needed, to secure Your admission to a Hospital, because of a covered Sickness or Injury. The Program Medical Advisor will coordinate advance payment to the Hospital." [note: the Maximum Benefit Amount for this plan is $100K]

[SA Traveler]

In response to the OP's quesion about experiences - we have filed claims with Travelguard, Access America and RCI's Cruise Care through Berkely Insurance. No problems with any of them. Cruise Care actually paid the quickest - we had their payment before we received the refund from RCI for the prepaid gratuities, port charges, etc. We normally take the cruisline coverage because it is based on the price of the cruise and at our ages it is usually much cheaper.

[Jfultz81]

I noticed a slight increase in price this year as well. Normally we only do non-refundable as trip cost (air, cruise, hotel if its not cancellable) and we are young so we get good rates, but we had a hard time finding anything decent under $150 for a $2500 trip cost.

 

Here's our breakdown:

2006 $168 for 4 ppl (ages 25, 44, & 63) $3500 trip cost

2007 $131 for 2 ppl (age 26) for $4000 trip cost

2009 $189 for 4 ppl (age 27, 65, 70) for $4000 trip cost

2010 $108 for 2 ppl (age 28) for $2500 trip cost

 

So far we've never had to use it.. knock on wood!! We always make sure to have minimum $100k medical and $1M evacuation.

[Kellie Poodle]

That's not the case. Insurance companies specifically state in their policy what is considered a pre-existing condition. They typically have a "look back" period, 180 days for example. If you have high cholesterol and are on medication for that, if that medication or condition hasn't changed within that look back period, then it probably will not be considered a pre-existing condition.

 

With pretty much anything but specifically with regard to insurance, I recommend taking any advice from an anonymous message board with a grain of salt. Read the policies yourself and contact the insurance company with any specific questions.

 

I have called several companies and have asked for qualification on the "look back" provisions. All of them include taking a prescribed medication as "treatment" by a physician. If you have found a company that doesn't consider taking maintenance drugs as "treatment" please be so kind as to let me know their name.

 

I have contacted the companies and what they say is what I posted. I also strongly suggested that people should read the policies during the trial period.

 

I'm sorry that you feel that people sharing their experiences with travel insurance on a board that people go to to find answers about such things is worthless. I, for one, have learned a good deal of important information from Cruise Critic boards.

[MIcruiser99]

Travel insurance is not based on your age. It's a set price based on the number of days and type of coverage. In fact, on Carnival's website in particular, it states how much for a certain length cruise.

 

I bought travel insurance for a cruise with me, my mom, and my grandmother. The cost for my grandmother who is almost 90 was ALOT higher than my cost (in my 40's). The cruise price was the same for all three of us but NOT the travel insurance price.

[cruiseco]

I have called several companies and have asked for qualification on the "look back" provisions. All of them include taking a prescribed medication as "treatment" by a physician. If you have found a company that doesn't consider taking maintenance drugs as "treatment" please be so kind as to let me know their name.

 

 

Here's one -- TravelSafe:

 

""Pre-Existing Condition" means any injury, sickness or condition (including any condition from which death ensues) of You, or Your Traveling Companion, or Your and/or Your Traveling Companion's Family Member traveling with You which within the 60 day period prior to the effective date of Your Trip Cancellation coverage under the Policy: (a) manifested itself, became acute or exhibited symptoms which would have caused one to seek diagnosis, care or treatment; (b) required taking prescribed drugs or medicine, unless the condition for which the prescribed drug or medicine is taken remains controlled without any change in the required prescription; or © required medical treatment or treatment was recommended by a Legally Qualified Physician."

 

Here's another -- Travelex

 

"Pre-Existing Condition: means any injury, sickness or condition of You, or Your Traveling Companion for which within the sixty (60) day period prior to the Effective Date of Trip Cancellation coverage under the Policy (a) first manifested itself or exhibited symptoms which would have caused one to seek diagnosis, care or treatment;

(b) required taking prescribed drugs or medicine, unless the condition for which the prescribed drug or medicine is taken remains controlled without any change in the required prescription; or © required medical treatment or treatment was recommended by a Physician.

 

Here's from a Travel Guard policy:

 

"PRE-EXISTING MEDICAL condition exclusion:

The Insurer will not pay for any Loss or expense incurred as the result of an Injury, Sickness or other condition of an Insured, Traveling Companion, Business Partner, or Family Member which, within the 180 day period immediately preceding and including the Insured's coverage effective date: (a) first manifested itself, worsened or became acute or had symptoms which would have prompted a reasonable person to seek diagnosis, care or treatment; (b) for which care or treatment was given or recommended by a Physician; © required taking prescription drugs or medicines, unless the condition for which the drugs or medicines are taken remains controlled without any change in the required prescription drugs or medicines."

 

I could go on (all the plans I'm familiar with have this exception) but I think you get the point. If the condition is treated with prescription meds and remains stable with no changes in that "look back" period of 60 - 180 days prior to the purchase of the policy (depends on insurer) it is NOT considered to be a pre-existing condition.

[cruiseco]

I have called several companies and have asked for qualification on the "look back" provisions. All of them include taking a prescribed medication as "treatment" by a physician. If you have found a company that doesn't consider taking maintenance drugs as "treatment" please be so kind as to let me know their name.

 

 

Here's one -- TravelSafe:

 

"Pre-Existing Condition" means any injury, sickness or condition (including any condition from which death ensues) of You, or Your Traveling Companion, or Your and/or Your Traveling Companion's Family Member traveling with You which within the 60 day period prior to the effective date of Your Trip Cancellation coverage under the Policy: (a) manifested itself, became acute or exhibited symptoms which would have caused one to seek diagnosis, care or treatment; (b) required taking prescribed drugs or medicine, unless the condition for which the prescribed drug or medicine is taken remains controlled without any change in the required prescription; or © required medical treatment or treatment was recommended by a Legally Qualified Physician."

 

Here's another -- Travelex

 

"Pre-Existing Condition: means any injury, sickness or condition of You, or Your Traveling Companion for which within the sixty (60) day period prior to the Effective Date of Trip Cancellation coverage under the Policy (a) first manifested itself or exhibited symptoms which would have caused one to seek diagnosis, care or treatment;

(b) required taking prescribed drugs or medicine, unless the condition for which the prescribed drug or medicine is taken remains controlled without any change in the required prescription; or © required medical treatment or treatment was recommended by a Physician.

 

Here's from a Travel Guard policy:

 

"PRE-EXISTING MEDICAL condition exclusion:

The Insurer will not pay for any Loss or expense incurred as the result of an Injury, Sickness or other condition of an Insured, Traveling Companion, Business Partner, or Family Member which, within the 180 day period immediately preceding and including the Insured's coverage effective date: (a) first manifested itself, worsened or became acute or had symptoms which would have prompted a reasonable person to seek diagnosis, care or treatment; (b) for which care or treatment was given or recommended by a Physician; © required taking prescription drugs or medicines, unless the condition for which the drugs or medicines are taken remains controlled without any change in the required prescription drugs or medicines."

 

I could go on (all the plans I'm familiar with have this exception) but I think you get the point. If the condition is treated with prescription meds and remains stable with no changes in that "look back" period of 60 - 180 days prior to the purchase of the policy (depends on insurer) it is NOT considered to be a pre-existing condition.

[crzgrl66]

We are shopping for insurance policies now. What is the appropriate amount of medical coverage? We are in our 30's with no medical issues. Policies seem to vary widely.

 

Call your medical insurance company first. I was surprised that our Anthem policy covers 80% no matter where we are. That really helped me in choosing a policy that was less expensive.

[Havingfun2010]

Take the money you would pay for insurance, put into a separate account, and draw out of it when needed. 1 trip a year, for 2 people, times 10 years will net you $1,300.00 plus interest. If you don't need it, than you have a nice savings.

 

The profit margin on this type of insurance is huge, and companies love to sell it based on fear. This is why you can buy speciality insurance for almost anything today.

[SA Traveler]

I have called several companies and have asked for qualification on the "look back" provisions. All of them include taking a prescribed medication as "treatment" by a physician. If you have found a company that doesn't consider taking maintenance drugs as "treatment" please be so kind as to let me know their name.

 

I have contacted the companies and what they say is what I posted. I also strongly suggested that people should read the policies during the trial period.

 

I'm sorry that you feel that people sharing their experiences with travel insurance on a board that people go to to find answers about such things is worthless. I, for one, have learned a good deal of important information from Cruise Critic boards.

 

RCI's Cruise Care is one that while they do consider taking maintenance drugs as a pre-existing condition they will provide coverage if nothing has changed in the 60 days prior to the effective date of the coverage. IF medications haven't changed in the 60 days prior to the purchase date and you are receiving no other treatment, the pre-existing condition will be covered. From the website:

 

“Pre-Existing Condition” means an illness, disease, or other condition during the 60-day period

immediately prior to your effective date for which you or your Traveling Companion, Business Partner or

Immediate Family Member who is scheduled or booked to travel with you:

1) received or received a recommendation for a diagnostic test, examination, or medical treatment; or

2) took or received a prescription for drugs or medicine.

Item 2) of this definition does not apply to a condition which is treated or controlled solely through the

taking of prescription drugs or medicine and remains treated or controlled without any adjustment or

change in the required prescription throughout the 60-day period before coverage is effective under this policy

 

Another thing about this policy - I don't know about the others - is that medical evacuation and repatriation are never considered pre-existing. That is explained in the same section of the policy.

[cruiseco]

 

Another thing about this policy - I don't know about the others - is that medical evacuation and repatriation are never considered pre-existing. That is explained in the same section of the policy.

 

Many, but not all, third-party plans do not apply the pre-ex condition exclusion to the emergency evacuation coverage. For example, TravelSafe has this tucked away in the General Exclusions section of the policy wording:

 

"14. due to a Pre-Existing Condition, as defined in the Policy. The Pre-Existing Condition Limitation does not apply to the Emergency Medical Evacuation or Return of Remains coverage; or . . ."

 

But unless you see something similar to that wording in there somewhere you have to assume that the exclusion does apply.

[pcur]

Maybe I'm stating the obvious, but before I bought travel insurance for the first time I checked our health insurance policy, and the credit card I used to pay for the cruise. Our HMO covers medivac anywhere in the world, and reimburses for emergency medical expenses anywhere, also. Our credit card cover trip interruption and luggage delay/loss.

 

We only buy cancellationn travel insurance, and only buy it based on high dollar amounts we're spending on a trip. If you don't have to have medical included, it's a lot cheaper.

[01Sweetpea]

In 2009, we used CSA insurance for our cruise. My youngest son got very sick and had to been seen by the ship's doctor. Total bill $1000! :eek:

 

After my insurance paid their part, CSA paid 100% of the rest, INCLUDING my deductible! I think I had the check in 4 weeks.

[24butterfly]

insuremytrip.com

 

Gives you a list of lots of companies where you can compare companies and prices.

[stargate fan]

Wow! I have been given lots of great information.

 

The main reason we want the trip insurance is because we both have elderly parents. I'd hate to lose a significant (to us) amount because we were not prepared in case something bad happens.

 

We cruised Carnival Miracle last October. I had purchased CSA and I remember it was less than it is now. We are 50 and 49, so I don't know if my husband reaching that milestone changed anything.

 

My in-laws had purchased Access America for a cruise they were to take in Feb. 2008. My f-I-L passed away suddenly so we helped m-i-l file a claim for the cruise. AA made us jump through all kinds of hoops and would not take the paperwork supplied by the doctors. I am therefore hesitant to use that company again.

 

CSA is only a few dollars more than Access America.

 

Thanks again for all the info.

[stargate fan]

RCI's Cruise Care is one that while they do consider taking maintenance drugs as a pre-existing condition they will provide coverage if nothing has changed in the 60 days prior to the effective date of the coverage. IF medications haven't changed in the 60 days prior to the purchase date and you are receiving no other treatment, the pre-existing condition will be covered. From the website:

 

“Pre-Existing Condition” means an illness, disease, or other condition during the 60-day period

immediately prior to your effective date for which you or your Traveling Companion, Business Partner or

Immediate Family Member who is scheduled or booked to travel with you:

1) received or received a recommendation for a diagnostic test, examination, or medical treatment; or

2) took or received a prescription for drugs or medicine.

Item 2) of this definition does not apply to a condition which is treated or controlled solely through the

taking of prescription drugs or medicine and remains treated or controlled without any adjustment or

change in the required prescription throughout the 60-day period before coverage is effective under this policy

 

Another thing about this policy - I don't know about the others - is that medical evacuation and repatriation are never considered pre-existing. That is explained in the same section of the policy.

 

OK, help me. You got some 'splaining to do, Lucy...(It's Friday afternoon and I've spent the week teaching 7th and 8th graders so my mind is mush.)

 

Let's say I am on arthritis meds. This means that if my dosage and/or condition do not change within 60 days before the cruise, then I am good. But if CSA's policy says 180 days, that means that there is much greater time period for something to change, and that is not a good thing.

 

Am I understanding this correctly?

[critterchick]

I suppose that may be true if you buy direct from the cruise line. But, they are more costly than an independent insurance policy will be. The policy we have for our next 7 night cruise was around $75, what the cruise line would have charged us was $118.

 

Does the policy you purchased contain "cancel for any reason" insurance? We seldom purchase travel insurance because we have insurance that covers us worldwide, so we're more concerned about what happens if we have to cancel the trip altogether. Whenever I've priced an independent policy with that added feature, it's considerably more than what the cruiseline will charge.

 

When we do buy trip insurance (for longer cruises to farther away places), we purchase through the cruise lines because they will apply 75% (Princess gives its Platinum & higher passengers 100%) of the cruise fare to another cruise if we cancel for an uncovered reason. We're more likely to have work- or pet-related issues than anything else.

 

That does help. Thanks. My fiancee and I are in our late 20's as well. I still have a hard time justifying that kind of an expense though. It's bad enough that I have to pay thousands a year for health insurance that I've never had to use. I guess I tend to view insurance as wasted money cause outside of a car accident I've never had to file a claim.

 

I wasn't expecting the cats to get into a fight and rip out the pump hose under our aquarium while we weren't home (we think that's what happened). 60 gallons of water later, I'm glad we have homeowners' insurance!

 

You buy insurance to cover risks that you cannot or do not wish to cover on your own. In our case, we can afford to lose the fare on a short cruise and to pay any deductible that our existing insurance doesn't cover (and at this point in our cruising careers, we're well ahead of the game). After all, if I have a heart attack at home, I'll be out some money in the form of deductibles. If I have a heart attack overseas, I'll be out about the same amount of money. I buy insurance for the longer cruises because when the fare gets over a certain amount, I'm not comfortable taking that big of a risk.

[fleckle]

Maybe I'm stating the obvious, but before I bought travel insurance for the first time I checked our health insurance policy, and the credit card I used to pay for the cruise. Our HMO covers medivac anywhere in the world, and reimburses for emergency medical expenses anywhere, also. Our credit card cover trip interruption and luggage delay/loss.

 

We only buy cancellation travel insurance, and only buy it based on high dollar amounts we're spending on a trip. If you don't have to have medical included, it's a lot cheaper.

Excellent advice! Also, some homeowners' insurance policies cover loss or damage to possessions while traveling. Many people waste money duplicating coverage they already have because they are not aware of what coverage they already have.

 

Someone mentioned that Medicare does not cover emergency medical treatment out of the country or evacuation costs, which is very true. However, many people have Medicare Advantage plans that do cover such expenses.

 

Those travel insurance policies are huge profit makers for the insurance companies because what they actually pay out is a tiny amount compared to what they take in. Once you determine what coverage you already have, it comes down to a matter of deciding how much out-of-pocket loss you are willing to risk versus the costs of repeatedly purchasing additional travel insurance.

 

For those who travel frequently and want the extra coverage, it may be beneficial to buy an annual policy instead of purchasing a separate additional policy for every trip.

 

Some time ago Consumer Reports did an extensive investigation of travel insurance and published a report about it. Consumer Reports finds that travel insurance is rarely needed

http://www.chathamjournal.com/weekly/living/home/cr-travel-insurance-70414.shtml

[torpeedo]

Stargate, I believe those lookback date are before the effective date of your policy, the date you purchased it. Yes, 180 days is a lot but if you are OK when you purchased the policy IE no changes within those 180 days and you are stable and able to travel on the date you purchased the insurance, you should be fine. You can call and ask to be safe..

We always purchase insurance and agree the prices have really increased. We have decided to purchase medical policies and not bother with cruise cancellation costs unless it's a cruise that is higher $$$. We have been using Quotewright and they have many policies to choose from and the medical policies also have pre ex waivers. MUCH cheaper than the package deals. We've used Insuremytrip many times as well but Quotewright seems to have more medical only policies to choose from. We also buy medical policies that are secondary payors since it's also much cheaper. We don't mind submitting to our medical insurers first and providing paperwork to the travel insurance company. The main thing to consider is if you are covered out of the country by your medical insurance company and for how much. If you do have medical coverage out of the country, your are very lucky and your exposure is just the cost of the cruise and any medical deductible! MEDICARE does not cover out of the USA.

We have used our travel insurance on oneoccasionfor a ship board medical bill of $690 and it was covered secondary to our medical insurance. No problems. I think it was Travelex.