Why we should consider trip insurance

[Reijo]

My husband and I used to travel w/o insurance until I woke up one day and realized that we were both in our 60's and what was I thinking!!!! That doesn't mean that we couldn't have used it while in our 20's though. Accidents are never planned, they just happen. On one recent cruise we met a lady in an air cast and as we talked discovered that she had a fall on the ship almost immediately after embarkation. She had a fracture and lots of medical expenses but was told she could complete the cruise but needed to follow up once she got home.

 

A family member of ours was on another cruise line and their 34 yr old son died during an emergency surgery. They were somewhere in the Southern Caribbean and had to fly home. Insurance would come into play here. My husband's 91 year old mother is frail and you never know what can happen. I have a grandson with heart problems......you never know.

 

As for me and my house, we will continue to pay the small amount for insurance in order to have peace of mind.

[John&LaLa]

My husband and I used to travel w/o insurance until I woke up one day and realized that we were both in our 60's and what was I thinking!!!! That doesn't mean that we couldn't have used it while in our 20's though. Accidents are never planned, they just happen. On one recent cruise we met a lady in an air cast and as we talked discovered that she had a fall on the ship almost immediately after embarkation. She had a fracture and lots of medical expenses but was told she could complete the cruise but needed to follow up once she got home.

 

A family member of ours was on another cruise line and their 34 yr old son died during an emergency surgery. They were somewhere in the Southern Caribbean and had to fly home. Insurance would come into play here. My husband's 91 year old mother is frail and you never know what can happen. I have a grandson with heart problems......you never know.

 

As for me and my house, we will continue to pay the small amount for insurance in order to have peace of mind.

 

Well, I'm probably 10 years and 60 voyages away from that wake up call, so I think I'll pocket the 12 grand and reevaluate at a much later date.

[garycarla]

... I don't get insurance on the trips out of FL. Laura is doing a Med and the TA in October of 16. Once we have an idea on airfare, we may add insurance. ...

 

 

This is the sort of logic that baffles me.

 

Why get insurance on some trips, but not others?

[Friscoonetwo]

I was one of those who thought that he was saving money by not buying insurance, notice I said I was one of those. I broke my leg last February 2 weeks before was to sail on the Regal Princess. To quote the ortho surgeon, " Cruise in 2 weeks, I don't think so." Did end up getting 250 back from Princess, if I had canceled a couple of days later would have got nothing. Lesson learned the hard way. insurance on our October cruise was only 88 for DW and I and to me is well worth it. Will never cruise again without insurance.

[John&LaLa]

This is the sort of logic that baffles me.

 

Why get insurance on some trips, but not others?

 

Travel to Europe vs taxi to Port I guess

[sanger727]

"I pretty much agree with the OP.

 

Comments like those above seem, to me, pretty ignorant. There are hundreds of reasons to cancel that are not under your control, not always medical. Although I agree that the cancellation cost is relatively small compared to medical costs.

 

To a certain extent use don't actually lose financially anyway if the trip is cancelled as you were going to pay/have paid for it anyway so the money was already spent. Obviously you lose the enjoyment of the holiday.

 

Where the real risk is, is in medical emergencies, but of course not just the medical bills themselves. In Europe there is a European Health card that gives you the equivalent medical treatment in any EU country as the locals would receive.

 

This is good as it covers the worry of getting treatment. However, it doesn't cover, what could easily be hundreds or thousands in additional costs.

 

For example, if you have a travelling companion they may have hotel/travel/living costs to stay in a foreign country if you're in hospital there - that can easily add up to hundreds.

 

Whilst the EU card will pay for treatment, they won't pay for a medical flight to get you home - easily thousands.

 

I know a friend, who got knocked over by a car in Rome, was in coma for several days/weeks, his wife flew out to Italy to be with him, then he had to be medically flown back to the UK. The cost was thousands.

 

He wasn't insured.

 

He was unbelievably lucky financially, as he'd been travelling to support his local football (soccer) team to a foreign match and when the club heard of what had happened, they paid the bill!!!!

 

I'd go so far as to say that unless you can properly self insure (and I mean afford up to £200,000 for medical costs) you'd be stupid not to have insurance (whoever provides it).

 

We're quite lucky in the UK, we pay £120 ($180) for annual travel insurance for the 2 of us, which covers us anywhere in the world for cancellation and medical costs, including pre-existing medical conditions."

 

I do believe I mentioned that my medical insurance covers me in foreign countries the same way it does here, so I wouldn't be in the hole for the medical bills any more than I would be in the same event was to occur during my normal life. I've checked my plan and it includes medical flights when needed, which is why I'm making statements such as this (not ignorance). My issue is that when I search for reviews for travel insurance outside of a few anticdotes people pop up with on these forums, the only good reviews I see are from people who say "I didn't need it, but it was a nice peace of mind to have". I find lots of bad reviews about many reputable companies where people complain about how little was covered and how often they got denied. If I believed the travel insurance would cover me more completely than my own insurance would I would do it in some situations on the medical side, I just haven't found any reason to believe it will.

 

And yes, when i said I would hobble into the airport with a broken leg that was an exaggeration. But I've seen many people post on here about needing to cancel for this reason or that reason and for me, I wouldn't cancel for most of those reasons.

Edited June 16, 2015 by sanger727

[Midwestgal]

It seems that we're a pretty lucky bunch of people who can afford to cruise, however what about the folks that save for a few years to take the family on a cruise? To have to cancel it for whatever reason can be a devastating amount of money to just be out of.

I myself am lucky enough to vacation a few times a year but I would be unhappy about loosing the money I spent for a trip and unable to go....much nicer to know I will be reimbursed . My Allure cruise next year is just over $1,300 not including air and precruise lodging , I wouldn't want to loose that over not wanting to pay the 6% it cost to buy insurance.

 

Just my opinion.

[Big_G]

This is the sort of logic that baffles me.

 

Why get insurance on some trips, but not others?

 

Risk aversion thresholds may very depending on the cruise. If I was taking a New England-Canada cruise from Boston and being from Rhode Island, I might blow off insurance depending on the price of the cabin. Close to home in a cheap cabin, I'd probably risk it.

[LizzieandLuke]

We live between the Doubletree and the Hilton, about a mile south of 520. I don't get insurance on the trips out of FL. Laura is doing a Med and the TA in October of 16. Once we have an idea on airfare, we may add insurance.

 

Luv living on the beach

 

 

I would get it for the Friday the 13th Cruise. My sister got married Friday the 13th - bad wedding - worse marriage :eek:

[John&LaLa]

I would get it for the Friday the 13th Cruise. My sister got married Friday the 13th - bad wedding - worse marriage :eek:

 

I like living on the edge. :cool:

[BullDawg91]

Keep in mind that even if your regular health insurance will cover you out of the country, foreign medical facilities are likely to want payment in full upfront and your Aetna PPO isn't going to help you with that. It is also likely not going to pay full charges so even if you have paid 100% of charges out of pocket via your credit cards, your chances of recouping 100% from your regular health insurance is slim.

 

What I was told when I asked if my regular health insurance would cover me was "yes, if you can find someone to accept it." That was enough to send me to buy travel insurance.

[spleenstomper]

I actually did buy trip insurance for a quick one person trip to Maine for a long weekend to visit a friend. I believe I paid something like $19.00 for it through insuremytrip.

 

My flight had mechanical issues and was delayed. We landed in Atlanta at 11:30 p.m. And they gave us a voucher for a motel 6. As a single woman traveling alone, I wanted a hotel that did not have doors which open to the outside.

 

Delta booked me at the Sheraton for 69.00. Then my second flight only got me go Boston, so I had to take a shuttle bus (25.00) to New Hampshire, where my friend picked me up.

 

So to the poster on page 1 who said he never gets insurance when traveling in the US-- I do! Every little bit helps these days with expenses.

Edited June 17, 2015 by spleenstomper

[John&LaLa]

I actually did buy trip insurance for a quick one person trip to Maine for a long weekend to visit a friend. I believe I paid something like $19.00 for it through insuremytrip.

 

My flight had mechanical issues and was delayed. We landed in Atlanta at 11:30 p.m. And they gave us a voucher for a motel 6. As a single woman traveling alone, I wanted a hotel that did not have doors which open to the outside.

 

Delta booked me at the Sheraton for 69.00. Then my second flight only got me go Boston, so I had to take a shuttle bus (25.00) to New Hampshire, where my friend picked me up.

 

So to the poster on page 1 who said he never gets insurance when traveling in the US-- I do! Every little bit helps these days with expenses.

 

So what did travel insurance cover? We're you supposed to go further than Boston to begin with :what:

[garycarla]

I notice that some do not buy insurance if sailing from a "drive to" port, but will buy if they have to "fly".

 

So, I guess in those cases they are buying insurance in case they miss the ship, or have to cancel and need to get their airfare money back?

 

After all, you can have a medical problem no matter where you sail from. Right?

[John&LaLa]

I notice that some do not buy insurance if sailing from a "drive to" port, but will buy if they have to "fly".

 

So, I guess in those cases they are buying insurance in case they miss the ship, or have to cancel and need to get their airfare money back?

 

After all, you can have a medical problem no matter where you sail from. Right?

 

I guess miss the ship.

[nbsjcruiser]

No insurance for me even when I can afford it or not

 

If you are young and live a healthy balanced lifestyle you might get sick since you are not immune but if you never get a cold at least for a few days in a year, never break a leg, pressure is perfect and so on and on the chances of that happening onboard is extremely rare. It can happens but give me a break, it has to be extremely coincidence. Not to mention that you are in a cruise, you are happier than never, immune system is sky rocket, nutrients are all over your body, and no stress. Of course a week or 2 before the cruise or any vacation I go in double vigilance= don't do anything stupid now or you will be sick for the cruise

 

Well I wish you no ill will but even healthy people get hurt. We've been travelling for 14 years on cruises and there's been 3 separate trips to the hospital in those 14 years to the tune of about $10K. We're all young and healthy. Had I needed surgery for my broken collarbone I would have been out $20K or more had I not had insurance. You take your chances and smile that you saved $100 or so. I tip my hat to you but the minute you fall or trip and end up in the hospital in a foreign country, I can guarantee you this - the first thing you'll be thinking about is "how much is this gonna cost ?".

[WetToes]

nbsjcruiser - I agree. Accidents and illnesses are not planned.

[Reijo]

I have recently booked a cruise without going through a travel agent for the first time ever. I am planning on getting insurance but don't know how long I have to do so. Any ideas?

[Babr]

It depends on whether you want to get the pre-existing condition waiver or cancel-for-any reason coverage. In that case, you must insure at least the deposit amount within the time limit specified by the company -usually 14 to 21 days after the initial deposit.

 

If those things don't concern you, then you can wait. In that case, most people would wait until they enter the penalty period - usually at final payment. Before then you can cancel and get your money back. Just be sure you know when the penalty period begins.

[happy cruzer]

Keep in mind that even if your regular health insurance will cover you out of the country, foreign medical facilities are likely to want payment in full upfront and your Aetna PPO isn't going to help you with that. It is also likely not going to pay full charges so even if you have paid 100% of charges out of pocket via your credit cards, your chances of recouping 100% from your regular health insurance is slim.

 

What I was told when I asked if my regular health insurance would cover me was "yes, if you can find someone to accept it." That was enough to send me to buy travel insurance.

 

Most travel/med insurance will not pay until you file a claim, you still have to pay up front with a cc. The insurance companies do not know until they get your paper work that your claim is covered.

 

Just an aside many buy a policy without knowing what is covered, they think that they are covered for anything, that would would be expensive cancel for any reason policies but that is only cancellation. Typical exclusions for cancellation are strikes, acts of war, lost passports, and many others.

 

Travel/medical almost always has exclusions for pre-existing, limits on coverage, alcohol related accidents, etc. So there is no true peace of mind with insurance, there always is something not covered.

 

The devil is in the details. You have to determine what risks you are insuring.

[CanadianDee]

Between our employers and our credit card plan, DH and I have pretty good medical coverage and trip interruption insurance.

 

We have never considered trip cancellation until this past few years. Both my parents are quite frail, my mother is late stages Alzheimer's. We started to investigate cancellation insurance and ... well, let me just say, you must read the exclusions. If either of my parents passed away - and their deaths were related to heart conditions or Alzheimer's - we would not be covered.

 

Nearly $500 for the seven days we're away ... and we're not even covered in the unlikely event they pass away in that time window.

 

For those of you saying you're paying for peace of mind, please make sure you're insured for what you think you're insured for.

[Hlitner]

Interesting comments. But folks might want to consider that most travel insurance medical policies also do not pay for medical costs upfront. You usually have to pay out of pocket (or on a credit card) and then seek reimbursement (which can take several months).

 

Hank

[GeezerCouple]

Between our employers and our credit card plan, DH and I have pretty good medical coverage and trip interruption insurance.

 

We have never considered trip cancellation until this past few years. Both my parents are quite frail, my mother is late stages Alzheimer's. We started to investigate cancellation insurance and ... well, let me just say, you must read the exclusions. If either of my parents passed away - and their deaths were related to heart conditions or Alzheimer's - we would not be covered.

 

Nearly $500 for the seven days we're away ... and we're not even covered in the unlikely event they pass away in that time window.

 

For those of you saying you're paying for peace of mind, please make sure you're insured for what you think you're insured for.

 

 

Sorry for the late reply.

 

We've been totally swamped during the past month relocating a very elderly relative cross country to assisted living, and that's finally (mostly) done.

This is someone we often worry about while traveling, so we understand your concerns.

Now, although our relative will be better monitored and generally looked after, "things" could still happen.

 

I'm not sure which travel insurance you were referring to, because there are many insurers out there, and each has several types of policies.

 

But there ARE policies that would cover family members with pre-existing conditions, just as there are policies that would cover travelers with pre-existing conditions - and *not* exclude incidents that are related to the pre-existing conditions.

 

In some cases there are restrictions as to when you must purchase the coverage (or at least start the coverage, even if not pay for the full trip yet), and this could range from 14-21 days from initial deposit, to within 24 hours of full payment of the final portion (defined *very* specifically).

 

If you are still concerned and in need of coverage (for this or a future trip), you might try contacting

 

Steve at TripInsuranceStore.com

 

They've helped walk us through several possible scenarios for different trips, and we've ended up using of one two policies (each with different advantages/disadvantages).

But we DEFINITELY needed to be "covered" if something "happened" to this relative.

 

What happened, instead, was to one of us instead (once each, thus far), and we had coverage that did not exclude pre-existing conditions for us.

It's not clear if either episode "might have been" declared by an insurer to be linked to a pre-existing condition, but because of the type of coverage we had, we didn't need to wait while they "investigated", because it didn't matter.

 

GeezerCouple