Travel Insurance would not pay

[c&d]

Was watching our local news out of Cleveland, Oh. 5 men from the area booked a Alaska cruise, they purchased insurance. There was a delay in their connecting flight the airline did not have a crew for the connecting flight. They ended up missing the ship. The insurance company told them they do not cover a delayed flight due to no crew. They contacted local news channel the airline compensated them for the flights but they are out the cost of the cruise. The insuruance company that they booked the travel insurance with would not re-imburse them for the missed cruise. The guys spend a total of $12,000 for the 5 of them. They booked the cruise 10 months in advance.

 

I never heard of this, would have never thought about this not being a covered reason. Makes me think twice about insurance. The guys were flying out 2 days before the cruise.

[JRock59]

For me this is just another reason to book air travel through the Cruise line and not on my own. Sounds like the insurance they had covered the Cruise only and not the travel to get there. Book it all together and it's all covered.

[Bars7816]

This would be just about too much! Would like to know what policy they bought, and if it was from the cuise line. The policies are all different. The devil is in the fine, fine print.

[excitedcruzr]

The guys were flying out 2 days before the cruise.

 

If they flew out 2 days before, wouldn't there be at least a few flights going to their destination that they could hop on to? Maybe not all at once, since there was 5 of them, but at least get the guys to their destination one or two at a time.

[firefly333]

I once had to cancel a A1 all inclusive, we both paid about $1000 or more for and purchased the insurance. My bfs father died and we went to the funeral and missed it.

 

Insurance paid him but not me, ... said I was not related to his dad, so was not covered under the policy.

 

I rarely if ever bother to buy it now.

[lake_wannabees]

The guys were flying out 2 days before the cruise.

 

How on earth did a missed airline connection for a flight two prior to a cruise cause them to miss the cruise?

[marym933]

For me this is just another reason to book air travel through the Cruise line and not on my own. Sounds like the insurance they had covered the Cruise only and not the travel to get there. Book it all together and it's all covered.

 

I agree. It sounds like they had cruise insurance, not insurance on the flight. Cruise insurance takes effect when you are on the cruise, not before or after.

[okwriter]

If they flew out 2 days before, wouldn't there be at least a few flights going to their destination that they could hop on to? Maybe not all at once, since there was 5 of them, but at least get the guys to their destination one or two at a time.

 

That's what I'm thinking. No crew for TWO DAYS? :confused:

[sloepoke]

like others have said, the devil is in the details.

 

some policies are good, others aren't so good. it pays to carefully figure out what's covered and what isn't.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

For me this is just another reason to book air travel through the Cruise line and not on my own. Sounds like the insurance they had covered the Cruise only and not the travel to get there. Book it all together and it's all covered.

 

It sounds like they bought insurance through the cruiseline but not the air.

 

That's ridiculous having to pay hundreds more pp for the flight so you can catch up to the ship.

 

If the would have bought the right insurance they would have had less problems.

 

Bill

 

 

 

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

[klfrodo]

Link to actual story

http://www.newsnet5.com/dpp/money/consumer/troubleshooter/barberton-family-lost-alaskan-cruise-due-to-flight-crew-issue

[Timmys_mom]

We can speculate all we want, but you do have to be very careful when you purchase insurance. However, what I am reading is that they would have covered the loss if it had been for some other reason other than "lack of crew." Am I misinterpreting what was said?

 

When I purchase it, I make sure it covers the travel days to and from the cruise, not just the cruise portion. And I make sure the cost of the flights are included in the "value", otherwise, it leaves the door open for them to deny a claim.

[vbmom87]

I once had to cancel a A1 all inclusive, we both paid about $1000 or more for and purchased the insurance. My bfs father died and we went to the funeral and missed it.

 

Insurance paid him but not me, ... said I was not related to his dad, so was not covered under the policy.

 

I rarely if ever bother to buy it now.

 

So sorry you were not covered when your friend's father passed away. I just wanted you to know that some plans would have allowed you to cancel your cruise and been reimbursed. The key is to look for plans that do cover you if something prevents your traveling companion from traveling. It is about the fine print.

[sloepoke]

so they actually flew out the day of the cruise.

 

it's really unfortunate. but especailly when you have connections, or are coming from a small airport, it's a good idea to book extra time.

[Timmys_mom]

Link to actual story

http://www.newsnet5.com/dpp/money/consumer/troubleshooter/barberton-family-lost-alaskan-cruise-due-to-flight-crew-issue

They were flying in the day of the cruise, not two days before. They did get to the airport 2.5 hours before the flight, however.

 

"The cruise line would only offer a refund on pre-booked excursions, not the $12,500 cruise tickets. Their trip insurance would not cover a missed trip due to an airline error"

[DEL67]

We have had the opposite experience. Twice in the last year we have had to pay for substitute flights: one to make a cruise when Lufthansa cancellled our connecting flight and the other when we missed a flight because our Continental flight was 4 hours late arriving in Heathrow cuasing us to miss our connecting flight.

 

In both cases, insurance companies reimbursed us for the flights. Of course, I made sure that my insurance covered both the flight and the cruise or tour.

[vbmom87]

They were flying in the day of the cruise, not two days before. They did get to the airport 2.5 hours before the flight, however.

 

"The cruise line would only offer a refund on pre-booked excursions, not the $12,500 cruise tickets. Their trip insurance would not cover a missed trip due to an airline error"

 

If memory serves me right, I recall reading about someone who purchased insurance through the cruiseline. They missed their flight and cruise. They were told the insurance did not cover them for the missed cruise. However I think they were given some credit toward another cruise. When I read this, I immediately called my insurance provider. I was told my insurance would have covered me. I purchased my insurance independently.

[vbmom87]

 

In both cases, insurance companies reimbursed us for the flights. Of course, I made sure that my insurance covered both the flight and the cruise or tour.

 

Unfortunately most people don't realize that there are differences in plans and therefore don't ask questions. They often don't know what questions to ask. I have learned a lot reading the CC forums. I found the following site very helpful.

 

http://www.tripinsurancestore.com/

 

The website has a lot of valuable information on it. They also have a live chat feature which I really like. That way I can print out my conversation. I have learned that travel insurance doesn't cover a lot of what people assume it does. They do pay out and pay out quickly if it is a COVERED loss.

[B and C Blake]

Another thing that is in fine print. If you do not have proper travel documents to make a connecting flight to meet your ship the travel insurance will not cover a missed ship at port of departure.

 

So if the guys missed the ship why did not not just fly to 1st port to meet the ship??:confused:

No mention of that.

[klfrodo]

Link to actual story

http://www.newsnet5.com/dpp/money/consumer/troubleshooter/barberton-family-lost-alaskan-cruise-due-to-flight-crew-issue

 

I guess the link doesn't work.

 

A couple of problems that I see.

 

1. They were flying in the same day of the cruise.

2. The flight delay occured at the originating airport. This delay caused them to miss the connecting flight in Chicago.

3. They chose to go back home rather than catch the ship at a different port.

 

Reasons to deny?

1 Depending on the policy,, the flight must be delayed for more than XX hours before covered benefits kick in. Some policies 2 hours, some 4 hours, some 8 hours.

 

2. The cruise ship departed on time. Just because the passenger wasn't on the ship is NOT the cruiselines responsibility. Empathy? Yes.. Deserving of full reimbursement? No

 

3. Insurance policy MAY have kicked in had the passengers attempted to catch up to the ship at a different port. However, since it was an Alaska cruise, that may not have been possible considering PVSA.

[tiyana4]

Try this link.

[vbmom87]

Try this link.

 

Thank you for posting. It sounds like they did not miss the cruise by enough hours for most travel insurance policies to kick in. This is something many people do not realize until it is too late. I have read of several others who had the same problem. They missed the cruise, but not by enough hours to qualify for a refund. It sounds picky for the insurance companies, but it is my guess that if they covered everyone who missed their vacations by minutes to a few hours, the premiums would have to be much higher for everyone else. Instead, their policies clearly state how many hours you have to miss your tour by in order for them to pay. Unfortunately, most travelers buy insurance but file the document that explains their coverage without reading it. Then when the insurance doesn't cover them they are complaining to everyone. The insurance company will only reimburse you for COVERED reasons, but not for any reason you think it should be covered. I have never read of anyone not being reimbursed by the travel insurance policy for a COVERED reason.

 

It is sad that between the five of them, someone didn't realize they were cutting it too close with their flights. (My guess is they thought their travel insurance would cover them) As others have mentioned they could have tried flying out to the first port. In spite of PVSA, I have read that if you want to pay a fee, (at one time it was posted as being $300) you can board at a later port. I know on our 2008 I was told we had 15 people boarding at our first port in Ketchikan.

 

I really feel for these men. If they booked through a travel agent I say shame on that agent. They should have warned them of the risk involved in flying out the day of the cruise. IF the agent sold them the travel insurance they also should have explained how it worked. IF they booked on their own, then it was up to them to research all this. Unfortunately most people don't think of the what ifs.

 

After reading these boards, I realized that I needed to get educated about travel insurance. I have spent hours reading the website I linked above. Every time I buy a new travel insurance policy I am contacting the trip insurance store because I always have a new question. I joke that one needs a master's degree in travel insurance to understand it. The issue is that all policies are so different. I have a friend who recently arranged a tour to Ireland. The agency booked their flights, provided insurance and arranged the tour. They missed their connecting flight in NY. The airlines put them up for the night and gave them food vouchers. However, they missed the first day of the tour. Of course the travel agency is not responsible that they missed their flight, even though they booked it for them. They checked their travel insurance plan and discovered it was a plan that was only for medical. They lost nothing near to the amount of the men in this article, but they did learn a lesson about researching travel insurance and not trusting your travel agency. They also learned the necessity to fly out at least a day early.