hurricane season/cruise/ travel insurance

[vols_159]

Due to the recent weather problems in the last week.. I wanna talk travel insurance.. Any problems with having the insurance and than it not being good.. And stories would help.. I havnt bought travel insurance in the past.. and had good luck but i know all it would take is one problem to wish that i had.. Whats a good company/ policy to use and good price range to look for..

 

And if the post in against CC rules i am sorry and im sure it will disappear..

[che5904]

There is an article on CC that covers this exact topic. I haven't had time to read it yet so I cannot speak to the helpfulness of it, here's the link

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/articles.cfm?ID=274

 

I've always had basic coverage through a credit card for travel and have to admit, I'm not even sure what exactly mine covers. I knew at the time and felt it was fine for the type of travel I did. But after all the posts the last couple of months that will be one of the first things I do before booking my next cruise is look further into this. Cruising is a relatively new type of travel for us.

[happy cruzer]

There is a board just for talking about travel insurance here on cc.

 

You might check over there.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?s=&daysprune=&f=635

[RJake1]

If you google travel insurance you will see an array of options. There is one site which brokers for a number of different carriers and you can compare the cost / provisions side-by-side which is handy.

 

Its not expensive. For a 2 week cruise to Europe (3 people) I paid around $340.

 

I never used to buy it but last year I had an emergency and was thankful I had travel insurance. It doesn't cover everything, and it doesn't guarantee you a new trip, but it does help mitigate any losses you suffer.

 

My advice is to buy from an A+ or better company. Don't be penny wise...pound foolish.

[psagui]

We have cruised 4 times and never bought insurance, never had a problem. This past spring we schedule a cruise to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary,as usal I did not purchase insurance, but I mentioned it to my husband, and he said maybe we should (we were spending much more than we usually did), so I called the next day and added the insurance (through NCL). 6 weeks before we were to sail, I developed a medical issue, I waited until the week before hoping we would be able to still do the cruise but in the end I had to cancel.

 

The insurance claim procedure was painless, one small form and a note from the doctor and had my check in time to make the final payment on our rescheduled cruise for next week (less than 4 weeks). and yes I got the insurance this time!

 

I know you can shop around for outside insurance, but I'm gogin to stick with the one offered by NCL after having such a good experience with them

[wack001]

Due to the recent weather problems in the last week.. I wanna talk travel insurance.. Any problems with having the insurance and than it not being good.. And stories would help.. I havnt bought travel insurance in the past.. and had good luck but i know all it would take is one problem to wish that i had.. Whats a good company/ policy to use and good price range to look for..

 

And if the post in against CC rules i am sorry and im sure it will disappear..

 

Never bought it, Never considered, Never will, life is life and things happen.

[McDebbie]

We never used to buy it either since we live in S Florida and knew we could probably make the port, no hotels, etc. Then Wilma hit and we had a house with no roof and a cruise scheduled the next week. What to do, what to do? Lose the money on the cruise or take our chances with rain and an unprotected house? I won't go without it again.

[Bobcat Pete]

Always buy it.

Never used it. Never worried. Never had my life savings wiped out due to a medical emergency outside the U.S.

Priceless.

[rajones007]

My Visa has all kinds of insurance built into it, even travel medical. It has basic cancellation insurance too (up to $1000 per person, I think), but I always top it up and expand it to full coverage and to cover the actual cost...if necessary. It's reasonably priced, in my opinion. So I have no qualms about buying it.

 

I guess I'm like my Dad. He always bought insurance for practically everything, and not just travel.

[Sauer-kraut]

If you go to InsureMyTrip.com you can compare many policies and companies. It is really helpful, they are helpful over the phone as well and terms and conditions are explained clearly. I really like that website and have used it for two different trips.

 

You can also look into "cancel for any reason" insurance which is a separate rider, that will also cost a bit more, but it covers just about everything.

[happy cruzer]

Always buy it.

Never used it. Never worried. Never had my life savings wiped out due to a medical emergency outside the U.S.

Priceless.

 

Careful, many US citizens have no medical insurance in the US and get wiped out financially. My research says that in many countries the healthcare is as good as the US and more affordable just depends which country you are looking at. Sometimes these choices are not as obvious as it seems.

 

Anyway the OP is wanting to talk about hurricane coverage. I did see a post saying that one policy only covered your cancellation if you home was uninhabitable, that policy required that not one single room still was inhabitable. The policy holder had most of the roof blown off but they were not covered. So the OP is right to do alot of research, but mainly they will need to read every policy carefully including the definitions such as what uninhabitable means.

[sparks1093]

I recall a thread on CC (I think on the NCL boards, but not sure) where the OP's travel insurance picked up the cost of the $36,000 medical evacuation her husband received because of a broken leg. That's the main reason that I carry it, although having coverage for lost baggage, travel delays, etc. is also helpful. Not every policy will cover every contingency but I've learned that all we can do is limit risk, we can never eliminate risk entirely.

[che5904]

That's the main reason that I carry it, although having coverage for lost baggage, travel delays, etc. is also helpful. Not every policy will cover every contingency but I've learned that all we can do is limit risk, we can never eliminate risk entirely.

 

Very well said and realistic.

[Sharonbel]

We wouldn't travel without it.....one medical evacuation can set you back A LOT. We have pre-existing conditions (covered if you buy it around the time you book) I do not get it with the cruiselines...I use an independent one. I have had to use it for trips to the ship's doctor 3 times...they covered my bill....yes my health insurance would also but no questions, no co-pay etc.....that's drugs too. At home I would have had (on just one of the medical issues) had to pay at least $80 of costs and that was about the cost of the insurance....I felt good, a wash!!

 

Our friend's dad died while we were sailing with them once...the insurance company paid the HUGE phone bill, paid for emergency air home ($1000pp), paid for all their meals in transit, paid for the taxi home & paid them a per diem for the lost cruise days.....the $160. insurance premium for the 2 of them took care of almost $2600. in unexpected travel costs & they got $900. back for lost cruise days.

 

If you are on medicare you have no insurance out of the country but your suplimental insurance does cover (have to check your insurance) this, HOWEVER you have to settle up with the hospital when you are released & then fill out lots of forms & hope most is re-embursed.....Can you see trying to put $50K on your visa!! This is a reason if over 65 you should have this insurance.

 

Now for the best yet....if you get delayed and stuck in a port because the ship leaves early...like last week in Puerto Rico....your insurance company gets you home or to the next port (or pays for most of it).....THAT is worth not having to make all the arrangements...you get a number to call and they take over, put you up in a hotel & pay your meals if you can't get out till the next day.....my kind of peace of mind since I would be so angry.

 

Insurance is only cool if you need it but when disaster happens BELIEVE me you will be soooo happy you have it.

[vols_159]

We wouldn't travel without it.....one medical evacuation can set you back A LOT. We have pre-existing conditions (covered if you buy it around the time you book) I do not get it with the cruiselines...I use an independent one. I have had to use it for trips to the ship's doctor 3 times...they covered my bill....yes my health insurance would also but no questions, no co-pay etc.....that's drugs too. At home I would have had (on just one of the medical issues) had to pay at least $80 of costs and that was about the cost of the insurance....I felt good, a wash!!

 

Our friend's dad died while we were sailing with them once...the insurance company paid the HUGE phone bill, paid for emergency air home ($1000pp), paid for all their meals in transit, paid for the taxi home & paid them a per diem for the lost cruise days.....the $160. insurance premium for the 2 of them took care of almost $2600. in unexpected travel costs & they got $900. back for lost cruise days.

 

If you are on medicare you have no insurance out of the country but your suplimental insurance does cover (have to check your insurance) this, HOWEVER you have to settle up with the hospital when you are released & then fill out lots of forms & hope most is re-embursed.....Can you see trying to put $50K on your visa!! This is a reason if over 65 you should have this insurance.

 

Now for the best yet....if you get delayed and stuck in a port because the ship leaves early...like last week in Puerto Rico....your insurance company gets you home or to the next port (or pays for most of it).....THAT is worth not having to make all the arrangements...you get a number to call and they take over, put you up in a hotel & pay your meals if you can't get out till the next day.....my kind of peace of mind since I would be so angry.

 

Insurance is only cool if you need it but when disaster happens BELIEVE me you will be soooo happy you have it.

 

what company did you use? if you dont mind me asking