Carnival Insurance VS the other

[I Luv Crusin]

I just booked a Bermuda cruise for next (2011) Oct. When I asked the cost of Carnival insurance I was told $79.00 pp. This seems reasonable and looks like it's a pretty comprehensive package.

 

Previously, I thought their insurance was more with less coverage.

 

I'm I imagining that it's a good deal?

[Marie51]

I just booked a Bermuda cruise for next (2011) Oct. When I asked the cost of Carnival insurance I was told $79.00 pp. This seems reasonable and looks like it's a pretty comprehensive package.

 

Previously, I thought their insurance was more with less coverage.

 

I'm I imagining that it's a good deal?

 

It's hard to say if it's a good deal because the cost of cruise insurance depends on the price and duration of the cruise and ages of travelers and you do not give anymore information. Go to http://www.insuremytrip.com and get quotes from other companies and then you will know if it is a good deal.

[Ken076]

I just booked a Bermuda cruise for next (2011) Oct. When I asked the cost of Carnival insurance I was told $79.00 pp. This seems reasonable and looks like it's a pretty comprehensive package.

 

Previously, I thought their insurance was more with less coverage. It still is!

 

I'm I imagining that it's a good deal? Not really - see below. It's to your advantage if you purchase a 3rd party policy w/in 14 days or so of booking a cruise to get "Waiver of Pre-Existing Conditions, and in some cases some expanded benefits.

 

Ken

 

TRIP INSURANCE SUMMARY

The Carnival Berkely Policy provides low Medical coverage, marginal MedEvac coverage and no "Waiver of Pre-Existing Conditions". The Policy DOES offer Future Cruise CREDIT if your claim is denied as due to a Pre-Existing Condition and now includes cancellation coverage for Hurricane Warning and Job Layoff. If you cancel your Cruise before final Payment, the Carnival Policy premium is refundable. Carnival and Berkely both claim that the Policy also covers your independently purchased AirFare. The Carnival Policy is less expensive than the 3rd party policies if you're age is in the 70’s, as Age is not factored into Carnival Berkely’s premium as it is with 3rd Party Policies.

The 3rd Party Trip Insurance Policies such as CSA, Travel-Ex and Travel-Insured offer much higher coverages and are much less expensive if you're younger. They generally offer "Waiver of Pre-Existing Conditions" (which can expedite the claims process) if you purchase w/in 14-21 days of your Cruise Deposit; CSA allows you to purchase up to Final Payment and retain the Waiver. Otherwise, you can purchase Carnival Berkely Insurance up to 14 days before sailaway, and you can purchase most other policies practically up to sailaway. You MUST be physically fit to travel the day you purchase.

Most Policies are “Secondary” meaning that you have to first file claims with your own Health and/or Homeowners Insurance and be reimbursed/rejected by them, then the 3rd party Policy will pay what your insurance doesn’t pay (up to the limits of the policy). Primary Policies pay everything (up to limits of the Policy) without requiring you to first file and coordinate benefits with your personal policies, which can help expedite the claims process.

“Cancel for Any Reason” coverage is usually offered as an option, usually for additional 50% of the premium . It’s important to read the associated Policy as many policies do not pay 100% and many policies pay LESS the later you cancel. The Princess Berkely Policy offers 75% Cancel for Any Reason Future Cruise CREDIT.

You need to select a Policy at least somewhat based on your own situation/concerns (if traveling with kids, if prior medical conditions, if over age 70, if Military, if concerned about LayOff….:

TravelEx and TravelInsured insure kids free with insured adults.

USAA offers their members discounted (about 9%) Travel-Insured Policies with some expanded coverages.

TravelEX is PRIMARY and includes kids under 16 free and offers a Business/Military upgrade.

CSA Freestyle includes Cancellation for Layoff and for School Year Extension.

Patriot TRIP is PRIMARY coverage and includes Cancellation for Layoff, Cancelled Leave for Military, Fire & Police and Missed Cruise for Flight Delay.

TravelSafe includes Cancel for Hurricane Warning and Cancel for Any Reason (not always 100%).



You can compare Policies and Premiums for your specific age, destination, dates and cruise costs, at the Insurer's sites or at sites such as www.insuremytrip.com and www.buyamericaninsurance.com . Note that some Policies also have a $6 or $8 application Fee added-on.

 



If you're not into Research, checkout CSA Comfort and CSA Freestyle, and TravelInsured Trip Protector and AIG TravelGuard Premier Protect -- you can get quotes based on your age and cruisefare (don't include Govt Fees & Taxes) from the Insurer's website or insuremytrip.com or others . .



FIRST check your personal Health Plan for out-of-country coverage and your Homeowners and Credit Card for Trip Cancellation/Interruption & Baggage Loss/Delay coverage!!! (for example, World MasterCard includes Flight AD&D and Rental Car CDW, minimal Trip Cancellation/Delay and Baggage coverage, and Government Employee’s Blue Cross includes Out-of-Country Medical Coverage, via an out-of-country Provider Network. )

[smileeys]

Wow! What a great detailed answer! My pvp pushed their insurance really hard but I refused. I didn't know all details and this certainly provides that and I am positive I made right decision. My only question was if it had cancel for any reason coverage and he said no - none have that. I got insurance getting quotes from insuremytrip as everyone on here has always suggested.

[steelerfan27]

I order the insurance from my travel agent whenevern I travel.

[deepnite10]

i purchased my insurance thru CCL cuz it was also cheaper than the

travel insurance i could get thru the automobile club..

[CRZCRAZY]

The trip insurance I've gotten from TravelEx also insure my hotel rooms, trip to and from the port, etc. It covers to and from "origination point" which means you're covered when you leave your house (you get into an accident driving to the pier). I've been told if you go on a tour off the ship that isn't provided by the ship, you're not covered on Carnival's insurance, not able to find that in print but I know I'm covered with the private insurance.

Our trip in Sept will include a cross country Amtrak ride, 4 nights in NY, the cruise, shore excursions, airplane home, and car to and from Los Angeles. With the Travelex policy it's all covered under one umbrella.

[Ken076]

Wow! What a great detailed answer! My pvp pushed their insurance really hard but I refused. I didn't know all details and this certainly provides that and I am positive I made right decision. My only question was if it had cancel for any reason coverage and he said no - none have that. I got insurance getting quotes from insuremytrip as everyone on here has always suggested.

 

There are several Policies with Cancel for Any Reason; most are an added 50% Premium and you have to purchase within a few days of your cruise deposit and many don't pay 100% in all cases: TravelEx "All Events option", TravelInsured TripProtector, CSA Freestyle Deluxe. ken

[Ken076]

The trip insurance I've gotten from TravelEx also insure my hotel rooms, trip to and from the port, etc. It covers to and from "origination point" which means you're covered when you leave your house so does Carnival Berkely (you get into an accident driving to the pier). I've been told if you go on a tour off the ship that isn't provided by the ship, you're not covered on Carnival's insurance, That part isn't true - not able to find that in print but I know I'm covered with the private insurance.

Our trip in Sept will include a cross country Amtrak ride, 4 nights in NY, the cruise, shore excursions, airplane home, and car to and from Los Angeles. With the Travelex policy it's all covered under one umbrella.

 

ken

[Ken076]

i purchased my insurance thru CCL cuz it was also cheaper than the

travel insurance i could get thru the automobile club..

 

Unless you're well into your age 70's, that's generally not the case. ken

[CRZCRAZY]

ken

Friends of ours were on their own for port exploration and she broke her leg, Carnival would not cover it. Also when I booked my next trip with the Amtrak and 4 nights in NYC, Carnival said the only thing their insurance would cover was the cruise portion. Just going on first hand information.

[gtalum]

http://www.insuremytrip.com

 

Better policies than Carnival offers, for much less money.

[GottaLuvCruising]

We purchased TravelEx for our last booking and tried this morning to buy it for our Spirit / Hawaii cruise. Unfortunately I can't buy it now for a trip that is more than a year away. I like TravelEx because it is primary and even the least expensive coverage is $100K evacuation. A medical emergency is my biggest concern and Carnival's policy through Berkely has only $25K coverage (if I remember correctly) and even that is secondary. At less than half the cost, TravelEx includes all of our trip components and is primary. So December 19th I will buy the policy.

[LHP]

Friends of ours were on their own for port exploration and she broke her leg, Carnival would not cover it. Also when I booked my next trip with the Amtrak and 4 nights in NYC, Carnival said the only thing their insurance would cover was the cruise portion. Just going on first hand information.

 

 

Totally NOT doubting this happened...but the main purpose of anyone buying travel insurance is to cover medical emergencies and medical evacuations....

 

so not covering that just doesn't make sense.....it just sounds like a piece of the puzzle is missing??????

[LHP]

This was under the "exclusions"

 

 

scuba diving,

unless it is recreational diving at less than 30 feet in depth;

skydiving; hang gliding; parachuting (not including parasailing);

contests of speed;

 

 

so perhaps it was not because she wasn't on a Ship Excursion.....perhaps it was because she was doing something that was excluded in writing when she purchased the policy???

[truchattycathy]

Depends on the price of the cruise. I pd $29 for 7 day, but my cruise price was less than $500. I looked on the insuremytrip.com and was baffled by the options, so I just called them, told them what I wanted and they gave me the best options. For $10 more I could have considerably increased my medical insurance, but my insurance covers that so I took the $29 plan. Good luck and have a great cruise.

[CRZCRAZY]

I just got coverage from TravelEx for our Magic transatlantic which is over a year away, and when I got it for our Hawaii trip next April, it was also over a year.

The TravelEx Basic isn't available more than a year in advance, but the Select and Max plans are. I go for the Select plan anyway because of the pre-existing waiver, higher medical (15k vs 50k), and Emergency Medical Evacuation (100k vs 500k).On several trips I've bought the insurance before I could book flights, they have me email that info later after flights have been booked. Works great. The coverage for medical under Carnival's plan is 10k, Emergency Medical Evacuation 30k, and trip interruption is limited to "non-refundable cancellation charges imposed by Carnival Cruise Lines". Airfare is only included if it was purchased from Carnival. I just got done getting a policy for our trip in March and it covers more than Carnival for $9 less. My TravelEx policy is primary coverage. It may be more convenient for someone to buy from Carnival, I, however, am going to use someone else for my insurance, especially for those trips I take where I book my own airfare, stay a couple nights before or after, and like the higher coverage of TravelEx and similar companies. The "Door to Door" coverage as stated by Carnival's policy is "Your location on the contracted departure date of Your Sea/Land Arrangements and terminate on the earlier of the following: (a) Your return to Your origination point (as specified in the travel tickets); or (b)11:59 P.M. local time at Your location on the day the Sea/Land Arrangements are scheduled to be completed" That means you're not covered to and from any pre or post cruise activities unless it is in the Sea/Land Arrangements paid for through Carnival.

 

As far as the broken leg, I'm not sure what she was doing, but I do know that it wasn't illegal so private insurance would have covered her.

[GottaLuvCruising]

I just got coverage from TravelEx for our Magic transatlantic which is over a year away, and when I got it for our Hawaii trip next April, it was also over a year.

The TravelEx Basic isn't available more than a year in advance, but the Select and Max plans are. I go for the Select plan anyway because of the pre-existing waiver, higher medical (15k vs 50k), and Emergency Medical Evacuation (100k vs 500k).On several trips I've bought the insurance before I could book flights, they have me email that info later after flights have been booked. Works great. The coverage for medical under Carnival's plan is 10k, Emergency Medical Evacuation 30k, and trip interruption is limited to "non-refundable cancellation charges imposed by Carnival Cruise Lines". Airfare is only included if it was purchased from Carnival. I just got done getting a policy for our trip in March and it covers more than Carnival for $9 less. My TravelEx policy is primary coverage. It may be more convenient for someone to buy from Carnival, I, however, am going to use someone else for my insurance, especially for those trips I take where I book my own airfare, stay a couple nights before or after, and like the higher coverage of TravelEx and similar companies. The "Door to Door" coverage as stated by Carnival's policy is "Your location on the contracted departure date of Your Sea/Land Arrangements and terminate on the earlier of the following: (a) Your return to Your origination point (as specified in the travel tickets); or (b)11:59 P.M. local time at Your location on the day the Sea/Land Arrangements are scheduled to be completed" That means you're not covered to and from any pre or post cruise activities unless it is in the Sea/Land Arrangements paid for through Carnival.

 

As far as the broken leg, I'm not sure what she was doing, but I do know that it wasn't illegal so private insurance would have covered her.

 

Excellent information! Thanks for the heads up...we purchased the "Select" plan this morning. The additional coverage gives us added peace of mind and it's still much less than Carnival's plan.

[t13nif]

I went to insuremytrip and most, if not all, policies will not cover my mom, who just turned 80. Are there policies available for her? She has no medical conditions, no medications, doesn't even wear glasses.

[SASA13]

I also called Insure my trip.com and talked to the rep telling her what I wanted. She emailed me ( within 5 minutes) a few options and I took the one that seemed the best to me. Hopefully, we won't need it, but it is better safe than sorry for about $110.00 ( for both of us).

[Ken076]

I went to insuremytrip and most, if not all, policies will not cover my mom, who just turned 80. Are there policies available for her? She has no medical conditions, no medications, doesn't even wear glasses.

 

First, I would confirm with Carnival/Berkely that the Carnival Policy WILL insure someone age 80 or higher (I know of no age exclusion) - their Policy does not factor age and is therefore by far the better financial deal for anyone in their upper 70's or higher. They do not provide "waiver of pre-existing conditions" but WILL issue a Future Cruise Credit if her claim is denied as being due to a pre-existing condition (and only a 60-day pre-existing window).

 

I was only aware of one Policy that states they will not cover age 80 or so - maybe this shows up in the premium tables for the other policies you mention. TravelGuard insures above age 80. I'd personally call the 800 number for TravelInsured, TravelEx and CSA to see if they have policies for age 80 and higher. The thing you'll find is that the premium may well be 2 or 3 times the premium you're used to, as the 3rd party policies DO factor age into the premium calculation.

 

ken

[blindrid]

i purchased my insurance thru CCL cuz it was also cheaper than the

travel insurance i could get thru the automobile club..

 

I avoid the cruise lines insurance like the plague. If you don't compare with others (not AAA or whatever) you don't know. Cheaper is not always bestest.

 

I use http://www.tripinsurancestore.com/ because I think Steve offers great service with questions, whatever. You can select the coverages you want / or don't want and just not boilerplate policies that some TA's sell.

[t13nif]

First, I would confirm with Carnival/Berkely that the Carnival Policy WILL insure someone age 80 or higher (I know of no age exclusion) - their Policy does not factor age and is therefore by far the better financial deal for anyone in their upper 70's or higher. They do not provide "waiver of pre-existing conditions" but WILL issue a Future Cruise Credit if her claim is denied as being due to a pre-existing condition (and only a 60-day pre-existing window).

 

I was only aware of one Policy that states they will not cover age 80 or so - maybe this shows up in the premium tables for the other policies you mention. TravelGuard insures above age 80. I'd personally call the 800 number for TravelInsured, TravelEx and CSA to see if they have policies for age 80 and higher. The thing you'll find is that the premium may well be 2 or 3 times the premium you're used to, as the 3rd party policies DO factor age into the premium calculation.

 

ken

 

Thank you for your reply. I booked the cruise through an online TA and was offered insurance through them, but i was in such a rush that i didn't get it at the time. I have no idea how much it costs through them and i haven't had a chance to call them directly (they are in a different time zone so it's difficult for me to call work). Our first cruise i bought insurance through the TA, and the next 2 cruises i bought third-party, but of course, my mom was 79 at that point (she just turned 80 in June). I went directly to the CSA travel insurance site today and i think i have found the policy we had before, and there weren't any age restrictions. We know the premium will be much higher because of her age, but many policies exclude age 80 and up! I would never consider going on a cruise without insurance. We waffled about getting it for our first cruise, got it, and then needed it, as we ended up stranded in the port city for 5 days due to massive winter storms (thankfully AFTER the cruise). We had trip delay/ interruption and we were reimbursed everything :).

[CRZCRAZY]

An example of coverage for older cruisers is coverage we were looking at for my mother in law. At 88 yrs, TravelEx doesn't offer their Basic plan, but offer their Select plan. For a 4 day cruise and trip down the day before, it's $163 vs Carnival's offering at $65, but the coverage is a lot higher with TravelEx (for example, Emergency evacuation $500,000 for TravelEx and $30,000 for Carnival) Still not a bad deal considering the coverage. For the two trips we're taking her to Mexico, I'm opting for the lower coverage from Carnival because we won't be that far from home and I don't think we'd need the same coverage as when I'll be in Paris or Spain for the transatlantic, or going down to Panama on the Freedom. If she were going further from home, I'd go for the higher coverage. It depends on what you feel you'll need. Like trip interruption, if the ship gets in late, the only thing I might have to worry about is the weekend rush out of LA. Nothing to worry about insurance covering like if I were flying across the country.

[pe4all]

I went to insuremytrip and most, if not all, policies will not cover my mom, who just turned 80. Are there policies available for her? She has no medical conditions, no medications, doesn't even wear glasses.

We booked my mom on our upcoming cruise (Glory) for her 82nd bd present. She is pretty healthy as of this moment, but as she has had medical issues in the past (stroke, cancer) insurance was a necessity. We ALWAYS get travel insurance anyway, as dh and dd have pre-existing medical conditions. I called CCL, and their rep told me pre-existing conditions are not covered. They were also pretty darned expensive. I then called my regular travel insurance company - we use Travelguard Gold plan. My mom's premium was almost more than the total price of the other 3 of us going! We paid it ($295 for the 4 of us- my mom's premium was $140:eek:)- a bargain for peace of mind. We are just happy mom is here to enjoy her first CCL cruise with us!:)