Poll: Take the Cruise Insurance or not...

[Katana_Geldar]

If you can't afford the insurance, can you afford the thousand of dollars in medical fees if something happened to you?

[time4u2go]

If you can't afford the insurance, can you afford the thousand of dollars in medical fees if something happened to you?

 

Did you not read my post? I didn't say I couldn't afford the insurance. I said that I choose not to buy it.

[Katana_Geldar]

Ok, I'll bite, why is it that people choose not to buy travel insurance? It's small compared to the price of a trip, and minuscule compared to the benefits it pays out.

 

And for those people who CHOOSE not up buy, particularly for the medical cover, what do they expect to happen if something happens to them? Like the examples I addressed above. Answer those questions for me.

 

Have you considered how crippling such a debt could be if something had happened and you weren't insured? What about your friends and family that help you out? What about the Long term effects of improper medical treatment in a foreign country.

 

You might be the safest and healthiest person in the world, but what about everything else and everybody else? Like the car insurance example before, even if you're the safest driver there are still plenty of other idiots on the road.

[time4u2go]

Ok, I'll bite, why is it that people choose not to buy travel insurance? It's small compared to the price of a trip, and minuscule compared to the benefits it pays out.

 

And for those people who CHOOSE not up buy, particularly for the medical cover, what do they expect to happen if something happens to them? Like the examples I addressed above. Answer those questions for me.

 

Have you considered how crippling such a debt could be if something had happened and you weren't insured? What about your friends and family that help you out? What about the Long term effects of improper medical treatment in a foreign country.

 

You might be the safest and healthiest person in the world, but what about everything else and everybody else? Like the car insurance example before, even if you're the safest driver there are still plenty of other idiots on the road.

 

For some of us, our regular insurance covers many of these things. For the parts that aren't covered, we have enough saved up to cover those things.

[TexCruise371]

We buy it for every cruise through our TA. Most of the time we purchase cancel for any reason insurance. With elderly parents and owning our own business you never know when plans can change real quick. In fact, we have had to cancel 3 times after final payment. It sure came in handy those times.

[Shake]

Ricky......Obviously nobody agrees with you.

 

Sleep well and enjoy Oceania.

[HImom]

For us, it is a weighing of risks, costs & benefits, plus what coverage we have just from our CC. For our planned honeymoon, I believe we did purchase travel insurance & ended up canceling and just losing a minimal deposit. For another trip to Europe, we did NOT buy any insurance but got a little travel insurance complimentary from a CC. Again, we canceled (this time due to health & volcano) and got EVERYTHING back.

 

The upcoming cruise we have planned is fairly short -- 7 days, mostly in the US, and we & parents & other relatives are all in pretty good health. Our insurance DOES cover our medical costs in other states & countries. We COULD afford a total loss, if that happened for this trip and have CCs with very high credit limits. We have chosen to self-insure, plus whatever our CC that we charged on offers as well.

 

We are comfortable with our choice and I certainly respect others who choose to buy travel insurance. Each of us makes calculated decisions about what makes sense for OUR particular situation and moves forward based on those--second-guessing others because of choices they make based on their circumstances is rather presumptuous, IMHO, even if choices others make are not necessarily choices YOU might make.

[Ladysilver]

Katana....truer words were never spoken. You hit the nail on the head; unless you have something else in place to cover unforeseen emergencies, travel insurance should be a natural part of your vacation budget. If you can't afford to do that, you can't afford a vacation. Period.

 

 

I agree 100%.....When my daughter and I were flown back to the states from Mexico I asked one of the pilots what the trip would have cost if we didn't have insurance. His answer was upwards of $30,000, depending on how far they were flying. They flew from Tampa Bay to Merida then back to Houston and on to Tampa Bay. Something else to think about.....The hospital we were in there in Mexico refused to discharge us until the cruise line faxed a "guarantee of payment" to them. That was a scary moment. I felt like I had totally lost control over what was happening to us. I couldn't wait to get out of there!

We were also refunded 75% of our cruise fare. The insurance was priceless to us. I was once one of those people who think "it will never happen to us." Now cruise insurance is just added to the total cost of the cruise. It's a no-brainer for us. :)

[MoneyGuy]

Not buying travel medical insurance is dumb. A serious illness would crush you financially.

 

Trip-cancellation and -interruption insurance is, simply, a poor investment. Same for baggage-loss insurance.

[critterchick]

Ok, I'll bite, why is it that people choose not to buy travel insurance? It's small compared to the price of a trip, and minuscule compared to the benefits it pays out.

 

And for those people who CHOOSE not up buy, particularly for the medical cover, what do they expect to happen if something happens to them? Like the examples I addressed above. Answer those questions for me.

 

Have you considered how crippling such a debt could be if something had happened and you weren't insured? What about your friends and family that help you out? What about the Long term effects of improper medical treatment in a foreign country.

 

You might be the safest and healthiest person in the world, but what about everything else and everybody else? Like the car insurance example before, even if you're the safest driver there are still plenty of other idiots on the road.

 

When I choose not to buy travel insurance, it's because I can afford the consequences of not doing so. Yes, I may have a bit more of a hassle dealing with my regular insurance company than the travel insurance company, but it seems ridiculous to me to carry three insurance policies (we are covered by two policies already that cost us less than $100/month).

 

I think that most foreign countries that we visit have perfectly adequate medical facilities. Some are even superior to ours.

:)

Not buying travel medical insurance is dumb. A serious illness would crush you financially.

 

Trip-cancellation and -interruption insurance is, simply, a poor investment. Same for baggage-loss insurance.

 

That's a rather sweeping statement, don't you think? If you don't have any idea of a person's financial and insurance situation, you are hardly in a position to know whether they would be crushed financially by a serious illness.

 

And I would be interested to know why you think that the other forms of insurance are poor investments. If I've invested $20,000 in a trip and have elderly parents, a sick dog and unpredictable work requirements, I think I want to insure it with a "cancel for any reason" policy.

[time4u2go]

Not buying travel medical insurance is dumb. A serious illness would crush you financially.

 

Trip-cancellation and -interruption insurance is, simply, a poor investment. Same for baggage-loss insurance.

 

Who is the "you" that you are referring to? Or is it a generalization, where you are aware of everyone's financial status?

[MoneyGuy]

Who is the "you" that you are referring to? Or is it a generalization, where you are aware of everyone's financial status?

 

If the loss of a cruise would crush you financially, maybe you shouldn't be cruising. Huge losses like life, limb, health and the ability to earn an income should always be insured. Small losses like travel should virtually always be self insured. I sell travel insurance, by the way, as part of my business. I never advise clients not to get it. If they want it, fine, but I don't market it either.

[Cigar King]

Ok, I'll bite, why is it that people choose not to buy travel insurance? It's small compared to the price of a trip, and minuscule compared to the benefits it pays out.

 

 

Put us down as another couple that does not buy the insurance. Our current insurance covers us, so the only thing we could be on the hook for is if we had to cancel, close to the departure date. I figure by now we are ahead of the game. If I had bought insurance we would have spent that money, which by would be more than a vacation.

[cjdixon4]

Wow, really? We can easily afford the insurance, but we choose not to buy it. And I would expect that most people that choose not to buy it could also afford it.

 

Your logic escapes me.

 

time4u2go ...

Obviously, if you can AFFORD it and choose not to partake of it....then I'm not referring to you. Does that escape you as well? :eek:

[Tranquil Waters]

Have never purchased travel insurance. Our health insurance is very inclusive and covers illness/accidents out of the States as well as at home including air lifting as needed. Health coverage I would not travel without.

 

Basic travel insurance is like any other coverage that financial experts tell you to forego. We have cruised over 20 times without ever having to cancel after final payment date. Most people would also fall under these statistics. Had we paided a couple of hundred dollars for each of these cruises we would have paid out over $4000 dollars. So if I ever do have to miss a cruise I would still be ahead not to have taken the insurance. And if I continue to make my cruises I will be thousands of dollars ahead. :)

 

I would also be more likely to consider insurance if I had sick family members that could increase the chances of having to cancel last minute.....

[marci22]

Point is, you never know when something unexpected will happen. My teenage son had a medical problem 1 week before our cruise that would have required immediate medical attenion if it had progressed. He had never had a similar problem before.

 

We don't have disability insurance, which is usually strongly suggested, and we have not needed it. In the meantime, we have probably saved well over 60k, based on the premiums we were quoted and the time that has elapsed since then. But what if my husband had become disabled?

 

It's a risk/benefit scenario and everyone must determine on their own what is best for them. Just like home insurance, car insurance, etc. Some people are insured to the hilt and some carry nothing.

[time4u2go]

time4u2go ...

Obviously, if you can AFFORD it and choose not to partake of it....then I'm not referring to you. Does that escape you as well? :eek:

 

I didn't see anyone post on here that they couldn't afford the insurance. So who were you referring to?

[Coralc]

Put us down as another couple that does not buy the insurance. Our current insurance covers us, so the only thing we could be on the hook for is if we had to cancel, close to the departure date. I figure by now we are ahead of the game. If I had bought insurance we would have spent that money, which by would be more than a vacation.

 

The insurance for the Vision cruise....which is what? around $3000? was only $145. Cruise Care from the line was $89/per person.

 

Our medical covers us internationally, but I want cancellation too. Mom was not injured by the falling tree that cut her house in half, but you never know what's going to happen with her.

 

I don't want to be out the money if we did have to cancel. :)

[MoneyGuy]

Some of you seem very surprised that many of us don’t buy this insurance. At least one person has posted asking why we don’t. This is why I don’t buy cancellation, interruption or baggage-loss insurance.

 

Note: I’m a financial planner who handles various insurance products as part of my practice. As someone who is insurance licensed, I know how insurance works, when it’s essential and when it’s not a wise financial decision.

 

First off, I ALWAYS buy health and medical insurance and think it’s stupid not to. This is one product you should never leave the house without, so to speak. The purpose of insurance is to spread large risks among many people. That’s why you insure your life and your ability to earn an income when there are others who depend on your income. Think of a 40-year-old man whose wife is home raising three kids and her income if she had to go back to work outside the home would be minimal. Not to insure his ability to earn an income would be stupid. It’s the same for travel medical insurance. I can’t believe some people don’t buy it. Think of the consequences, folks, if you’re stuck in another country with a medical bill of hundreds of thousands of dollars, it would crush you financially. You never risk your financial security to save a small amount.

 

One of the principles of insurance is that you insure huge losses that would be financially devastating, but it’s generally unwise to insure small losses that would have little financial impact. I don’t insure my car windshield and I don’t get extended warranties on things like computers and TVs.

 

I just ran a quote on a typical trip for my wife and me. For a $5,000 expense, trip-cancellation and -interruption insurance with baggage-loss insurance would cost 6.2% of the cost of my trip. I’m ahead if I make 16 trips with no losses. We travel a lot (multiple times a year) and I’m far, far ahead as we’ve had dozens of uninsured trips (again, I always insure for health problems). I’ve saved a lot more than the cost of a trip, should I ever lose the cost of a trip. I’m excluding from this the small amounts of insurance I have through my credit card and through a group plan. If I factored that into my calculation, I’d probably be ahead after about 10 trips.

 

If my next trip is cancelled due to a health issue and I lose $5,000, I’ll grumble, but I take great satisfaction in knowing that I’m up about two or three trips now. I fully expect that one day I will lose the cost of a trip, minus the insurance I have through my credit card and group insurance.

 

Here’s an interesting fact. Insurers generally add about 40-42% on top if the cost of the insurance as their profit. When insurance is necessary (life, disability, critical-illness insurance, etc.), then I don’t mind so much, but I prefer not to pad their wallets when the insurance is unnecessary. Cancellation, interruption and baggage-loss insurance is unnecessary. Anyone who thinks otherwise is missing some facts or places too much emphasis on that little bit of peace of mind.

 

The case has been made that $5,000 is a lot of money to some people and some can’t afford to lose that amount. I agree, but if that loss is financially devastating, maybe they shouldn’t be traveling. I’m not judging, as you have to decide for yourself.

 

We were recently in Europe and some of you will know that our luggage was lost. When I posted about it, someone criticized me with an I-told-you-so attitude. If I’d had lost-luggage insurance, it would not have saved me one dollar or made the adventure any less disruptive (it was no big deal anway).

 

Sme of you have said you don't want to be out the money so you but the insurance. It's almost guaranteed you'll to spend a lot more by doing it your way. Isn't that the bottom line?

[Coralc]

mmmmm. No. Because $145 is a drop in the bucket loss to me compared to $3,000. I spend more than that on my smoking habit per week. I don't want to be out $3000 at one shot for a vacation.

 

And life insurance is a waste of money to us. We have no dependents and both houses are paid off. We already have international medical. The $145 travel insurance covers additional medical AND trip cancellation, evacuation and a bunch of other stuff.

[cruzincurt]

 

I think that most foreign countries that we visit have perfectly adequate medical facilities. Some are even superior to ours.

:)

Really, like where?

 

And could you afford to lay up in that foreign country for some period of time while your loved one is being treated? Seems to me, I'd want to be evacuated back to my home as soon as possible.

[cjdixon4]

I didn't see anyone post on here that they couldn't afford the insurance. So who were you referring to?

 

It was a simple statement of opinion and it wasn't directed to you or anyone in particular. If it isn't applicable to you, then fine. Now do you get it? Or should I paint you a picture like we're in nursery school? LOL

[marci22]

Sme of you have said you don't want to be out the money so you but the insurance. It's almost guaranteed you'll to spend a lot more by doing it your way. Isn't that the bottom line?

 

People spend money differently. It's not any smarter or stupider to get it, as long as you know what the consequences could be.

 

I see lots of posts on here about "X happened and we can't cruise, do you think Royal will give us a credit?"

 

I think cruise insurance is a lot cheaper than other insurances you could buy. Life and disability is just another gamble. I've seen plenty of people not buy either and they do just fine, and have probably saved lots more money than they would have by not purchasing travel insurance.

 

Everyone has their own risk tolerance.

[MoneyGuy]

People spend money differently. It's not any smarter or stupider to get it, as long as you know what the consequences could be.

 

I see lots of posts on here about "X happened and we can't cruise, do you think Royal will give us a credit?"

 

I think cruise insurance is a lot cheaper than other insurances you could buy. Life and disability is just another gamble. I've seen plenty of people not buy either and they do just fine, and have probably saved lots more money than they would have by not purchasing travel insurance.

 

Everyone has their own risk tolerance.

 

Sure, if you want a low-risk way to virtually guarantee you lose money.

 

Everyone makes his/her own decision.

[Cigar King]

The insurance for the Vision cruise....which is what? around $3000? was only $145. Cruise Care from the line was $89/per person.

 

Our medical covers us internationally, but I want cancellation too. Mom was not injured by the falling tree that cut her house in half, but you never know what's going to happen with her.

 

I don't want to be out the money if we did have to cancel. :)

 

 

Looking forward to the Vision...seems like that cruise is taking forever to happen. Anyway, back to the insurance thing, I guess what I am saying is, using your math a cruise costs $3000, the insurance costs another $150, so, basically if you cruise 20 times and put the insurance money aside, you are now self insured. That's what I feel I have done over the years. By not buying insurance, I have saved enough money to lose a vacation, and still be ahead. Anyway, let's be careful we don't jinx ourselves with all this cancelation talk...