A Tale of Two Insurance Policies

[cruisin lady ca]

GeezerCouple

(If your policy is like ours, if you don't go on the trip but didn't have any claim on the insurance, for example, you could transfer the coverage to another trip within something like a year - but double check that.)

 

I didn't know that this was even a possibility. I will ask Deanna when I call her to add coverage for our airline tickets.

Edited March 1, 2016 by cruisin' lady

[GeezerCouple]

GeezerCouple

 

 

I didn't know that this was even a possibility. I will ask Deanna when I call her to add coverage for our airline tickets.

 

It would be nice if your policy has that.

We've used that a few times... applied the premium for the (very modest) deposit, and then transferred it to a totally different trip.

 

Ask Deanna for "general hints", etc.

When we started working with them (all of them... 4, I think?), we really picked their brains each time another "possible scenario" came to mind.

But it's proved invaluable in terms of getting up to speed relatively quickly.

 

But I still ask, each time, something like, "is there anything else I should be considering" or "is there any other policy that is better for *this* trip?", etc.

 

A lot also might depend upon if you want (as we must have) a waiver for pre-existing condition exclusion, or if there's any chance of a "personal choice' "Cancel For Any Reason" (depending upon timing of DH's work schedule), etc.

We've used one other policy besides the TravelInsured (but no claim on the other company... yet).

 

Oh, IF your air tix have a change fee or cancel fee, then you only need to insure that cancel fee, not the full price.

Saves a bit compared with needing to insure the full cost of totally non-refundable air.

[marci22]

...TravelGuard, Travel Insured, CSA, RoamRight and Travelex plans do NOT use TripMate to process claims. MHRoss, TripMate, TravelSafe and Global Alert do. It is safe to say I will never purchase one of those latter four brands as long as they use the Trip Mate processing (or any other brand that uses Trip Mate).

 

I spoke to someone at tripinsurancestore and the two policies recommended to me were Global Alert and TravelSafe :(

[cherylandtk]

So call Steve back and ask why those two policies were recommended, and then ask which policy they recommend that does not use Trip Mate processing.

[k9x8]

We purchased insurance when we booked through United. It is Allianz, and they have been very good. I was disembarked after 24 hours on the ship, and it's the cruise line that caused a four month delay. The ship's medical center doesn't give you medical codes, just a bill, and Prudential wanted the codes. It took a letter from NCL's legal department to convince Prudential that wasn't going to happen.

 

My primary insurance covered most of my $2000 on board bill. The woman there who worked with me even called NCL. She and a second woman parsed out the codes. (Yes, my insurance covers me anywhere.) All that when they could have simply sent a letter denying coverage.

 

Oddly, I wasn't required to submit anything to my primary insurance for my hospital stay. Whoever Allianz uses in Italy took charge as soon as my husband called. We never paid a penny, never saw a bill. Indeed, the hospital was reluctant to discharge me, I believe, because I was a cash cow. The insurance company would have booked us flights home and arranged for me to have oxygen, but I was well enough to continue the land portion of our trip.

 

The only thing we are SOL on are the very expensive last minute, one way tickets home on American, because United made us whole by redepositing miles and refunding fees. We could not delay getting home, and the Lufthansa strike went on for quite some time.

 

Anyway, my advise is to take screenshots of everything and save every slip of paper. I even did screenshots of my credit card statements showing all our payments.

 

And for those who've read my previous posts, NCL is steadfast in their refusal to refund port fees and taxes. Twice now they've told me I get no "compensation" for being disembarked, but they do not refer specifically to fees and taxes.

[jaja]

So call Steve back and ask why those two policies were recommended, and then ask which policy they recommend that does not use Trip Mate processing.

 

Just an fyi....I had saved this thread for future reference and when I called Steve's company today...I inquired about the Global Alert policy(because it has the coverage I wanted at a good price)...yes...it does use Trip Mate...but was told..they used to have problems with it..but no longer do..and that Global Alert is one of there best selling policies..:confused:

[cruiseco]

Just an fyi....I had saved this thread for future reference and when I called Steve's company today...I inquired about the Global Alert policy(because it has the coverage I wanted at a good price)...yes...it does use Trip Mate...but was told..they used to have problems with it..but no longer do..and that Global Alert is one of there best selling policies..:confused:

 

Global Alert doesn't just "use" Trip Mate, they're owned by Trip Mate. I don't know if that means they get better claims processing but it can't hurt

[cherylandtk]

FWIW, I do keep track of policy claims timing when I see them posted on CC. Trip Mate may be better than they used to be (I have no personal knowledge since I won't use them) but from what people have posted they still take much longer to respond to claims than other companies. Case in point, Aon Affinity just processed a medical cancelation claim for a Princess cruise in two weeks. Have not seen any reports of that sort of timing from Trip Mate.

[JVilleGal]

Some people do not want to supply medical records and seem to think a "note" from the doctor should be enough. This often is part of the delay we hear about so often.

 

 

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[GeezerCouple]

Some people do not want to supply medical records and seem to think a "note" from the doctor should be enough. This often is part of the delay we hear about so often.

 

 

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Right.

 

Part of the problem (but NOT all!) is that not everyone recognizes that the insurers *need* to verify that each claim is valid in all respects: deadlines, type of event, etc.

[JVilleGal]

No not "All" but I often hear about the Intrusive Medical records request and why won't they just believe the Doctors letter. Well they are an Insurance company and you had medical issues so certainly the insurance Company will dig into all aspects of your medical

Claim before writing a $25,000 check.

 

 

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[cherylandtk]

Some people do not want to supply medical records and seem to think a "note" from the doctor should be enough. This often is part of the delay we hear about so often.

 

 

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Just to clarify, this was not an issue AT ALL with the claims I made which is the subject of this thread. I do agree there have been subsequent complaint threads where people complained about the time due to needing to wait for Medicare denial or providing incomplete documentation. But neither of my claims required ANY additional documentation; they were submitted complete with all required releases and documents.

[JVilleGal]

Well good you are in the 1%

 

 

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[bUU]

The Primary medical (aka "First Payer") isn’t better than Secondary (aka Excess) medical coverage, although it’s often sold that way. The only difference is the order in which claims are paid.

Resurrecting this old thread to ask if there is, practically speaking, any real advantage to primary over secondary, and if so, could you characterize the advantage? If my company health insurance is accepted, because we're in (say) Alaska, then why wouldn't I want it to cover what it covers? Similarly, if my company health insurance isn't accepted, because we're in (say) British Columbia, then is there any real difference between primary and secondary?

[iamtrustworthy]

Resurrecting this old thread to ask if there is, practically speaking, any real advantage to primary over secondary, and if so, could you characterize the advantage? If my company health insurance is accepted, because we're in (say) Alaska, then why wouldn't I want it to cover what it covers? Similarly, if my company health insurance isn't accepted, because we're in (say) British Columbia, then is there any real difference between primary and secondary?

 

The answer would vary depending on where you live. Do you live in Alaska or British Columbia? If not, where do you live?

[bUU]

Georgia.

 

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[JVilleGal]

Georgia.

 

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First issue with your insurance in Alaska is you will be "out of network" which IF the policy pays it will be at the 40 to 60 percent of the claim depending on how your insurance deals with "OofN". On the Ship you Insurance won't cover you at all. In Canada your US coverage is unlikely to cover.

 

Primary vs Secondary = Secondary only pays after your primary (your medical ins in the US) turns you down.

 

 

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[bUU]

So it would just be a matter of WHEN reimbursement comes?

 

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[JVilleGal]

So it would just be a matter of WHEN reimbursement comes?

 

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No the real issue is IF you are covered at all and how much coverage. Covered in Canada = unlikely, covered in Alaska = maybe depending on your Insurance but "Out of Network", covered OnBoard the ship = No!!

 

 

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[bUU]

I was asking about the difference between "primary" and "secondary".

 

So it would just be a matter of WHEN reimbursement comes?

[JVilleGal]

I was asking about the difference between "primary" and "secondary".

 

So it would just be a matter of WHEN reimbursement comes?

 

 

 

Yes and a ton of hassle because you have to fill out all the paper work to be completely denied by your primary... letter from doctors etc before you can even start the process with the secondary coverage provider. This is even if everyone know Medicare won't cover you in Canada you still have to get an official denial.

 

Also with Primary they will often negotiate up front with the Hospital so you don't have to pay in advance.

 

 

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[bUU]

Hmmm... I don't see much of a choice. None of the policies I see that match my other criteria provide primary insurance.

 

Given the choice between secondary insurance and no insurance, I believe you'd agree that the former is better than the latter.

[JVilleGal]

Why don't you call Steve or one ☝️ f his folks at the Trip Insurance Store and ask them to educate you and tell them what you are specifically looking for. They are super helpful and that's even if you don't buy from them.

 

 

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[bUU]

I did speak to them this morning.

 

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[JVilleGal]

I did speak to them this morning.

 

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They are the experts so I would be inclined to believe what they have shared with you rather than CC posters who are not experts.

 

 

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