Carnival insurance

[sheila59]

Just wondering, when I was booking the lady at Carnival asked if I wanted to take out the insurance, she said I could add it later. Does this cover medical conditions? One of our friends traveling ask if it covers epilepsy?

[klfrodo]

a condition that first presents, worsens, becomes acute, or has symptoms causing a person to seek diagnosis, care or treatment, or prompts a change in medication, during the 60 days before the Cancellation Fee Waiver Program is purchased

 

Straight out of their policy

 

http://www.carnival.com/~/media/CCLUS/Images/pdf/vacation-protection-201205pdf.ashx

 

In other words, IF Carnival determines that the condition is a pre-existing medical condition, then No, it is not covered.

 

Another negative is that Carnivals medical coverage is low. Max payout is only $10,000 USD

[Moosevilleco]

It does but I believe if you have a pre existing condition it must be purchased fairly soon after booking. I think it is two weeks or less from the time you book. You can shop insurance on the internet and compare prices and coverage. You don't have to use the Carnival insurance and can often get it cheaper. Just be sure you read the fine print.

Edited May 25, 2016 by Moosevilleco

[gfountain1]

$10,000 might cover a heli medvac. We get our travel insurance from a 3rd party insurer.

[ryano]

$10,000 might cover a heli medvac. We get our travel insurance from a 3rd party insurer.

 

Emergency medivac is covered at 30,000. Which is still pretty low :) Carnivals insurance is actually through a 3rd party insurer. The coverage is just low compared to the price paid. One good thing is, they dont hold age against you like others do though.

Edited May 25, 2016 by ryano

[Ken076]

Carnival's Insurance has VERY LOW Medical and MedEvac coverage (and does NOT include "Waiver of Pre-Existing Conditions"), but does include "Cancel for Any Reason" (albeit a 75% future cruise CREDIT).

You might be better off with a 3rd party policy (CSA, TravelEx.....) offering higher coverages, "Waiver of Pre-Existing Conditions" if you purchase w/in 14-21 days of booking, and generally lower premiums than Carnival's.

Policies without the "waiver" do not cover medical conditions that initially occurred or existed but "changed" in the (usually) 60 days before purchasing the Policy. In your situation IMO you're better off with a policy that includes "waiver of pre-existing conditions". If you're past 14-21 days of booking there are a few policies that allow purchase after 14-21 days of booking.

 

Ken

Edited May 25, 2016 by Ken076

[erinmarie424]

It looks like it covers injuries due to accidents on the cruise and emergency evacuations. Any claim would have to be sent to your primary provider first. I would have your friend call and ask them about her specific situation.

 

For what it's worth we always buy travel insurance through another provider - you can find one at insuremytrip dot com, it is usually cheaper than the carnival insurance even though we insure the cost of plane tickets as well as the cruise. We have used TravelSafe multiple times and had to file a claim once and they were very easy to work with.

[sheila59]

Thank you. Think it's best if she takes out her own insurance. You never know.

Do most of you take out there insurance?

[peajay84]

DAN (Diver Alert Network) also offers trip insurance and you don't have to be a diver. DAN has a wonderful reputation for taking care of it's insured and paying for covered claims without hassle. Worth looking into.

[BlazinSunsets]

Do most of you take out there insurance?

 

I would say the majority of people on this forum don't use carnival's insurance. You can find better within a few minutes of looking. Squaremouth.com is good for comparing policies.

[ryano]

I ALWAYS get insurance. Generally i would just go with the insurance the cruise lines sell. This last cruise i went through insuremytrip.com and chose Nationwide Choice cruise plan. Much better coverage for just a little more money

Edited May 25, 2016 by ryano

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Thank you. Think it's best if she takes out her own insurance. You never know.

Do most of you take out there insurance?

 

make sure she gets it within 14 days of booking the cruise or the pre existing condition (epilepsy) won't be covered by the majority of insurance companies.

 

Bill

[poobears]

I'm looking into getting Geoblue for travel insurance, they offer a single trip plan and a multi trip plan that will cover all trips you take for a year. It has excellent medical coverage (it does cover preexisting if you purchase it within their time frame) and rates. It has much higher coverage limits than the cruiseline does coves medivacs etc.

 

Not sure what I would use for cancellation insurance though since I can't find one that covers just cancellations as of yet but Geoblue seems to be a good one for the medical side. I've talked to a couple of people that have made claims and they have used it and they had no problems with claims, all were paid fast.

[Je Souhaite]

Just wondering, when I was booking the lady at Carnival asked if I wanted to take out the insurance, she said I could add it later. Does this cover medical conditions? One of our friends traveling ask if it covers epilepsy?

 

NEVER buy the insurance the cruise line offers you. It's twice the price and so restrictive, and worthless if the line goes bankrupt.

[annbuono]

Call Insuremytrip.com. They are great! They will ask you what you are looking to be covered for and get you the best plan. Very reasonable. Also a lot easier than navigating ALL the plans on their website. I just called today for my cruise in October.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

[cdamion]

insuremytrip and squaremouth are my two go-to travel insurance sites. Definitely better coverage for less money than the cruise lines.

 

One thing you should look at is whether they are primary or secondary coverage. If they are secondary, you have to submit claims to any existing policy you have before they will pay anything. Read the fine print!

[sheila59]

Thank you all. Such great information, I will be passing this onto my friend.

[mistycruiser]

I notice that you are from the UK. Is your friend also because most of the responses appear to be referencing US based insurance. I believe things are different for different countries. If you are both UK based I would recommend checking what's available for your country probably via a TA or online searching for travel insurance.

[PatyCake]

If anyone is a USAA member they have awesome coverage at great prices/

[summersigh]

Thank you. Think it's best if she takes out her own insurance. You never know.

Do most of you take out there insurance?

 

Always - independent insurance policy for travel, cancellation and total medical. DH has a pre-existing condition and Medicare is our primary insurance - which does NOT cover out of the USA. I'm on the policy but at a cheaper price because I do not have pre-existings.

[cruisinfanatic]

Always - independent insurance policy for travel, cancellation and total medical. DH has a pre-existing condition and Medicare is our primary insurance - which does NOT cover out of the USA. I'm on the policy but at a cheaper price because I do not have pre-existings.

If you are buying insurance within the 2 weeks or so that you reserve your cabin, it should make no difference in price as pre existing conditions are waived

[Galleon1234]

We have always booked with Allianz. Never sure if basic, classic, or the most expensive one is the one to buy. We drive to port, but want to be sure we have plenty for a medical evacuation... Open to other suggestions as well.

[LaCal]

One thing I just found was I've been pricing all different plans for our upcoming Vista Europe cruise insurance. Going through insuremytrip and going to use Nationwide Cruise ins. For my wife and I it's a great deal and price with excellent coverage

 

BUT when putting in my Mother in Laws info because she's 87 the prices were coming up sky high for hers. Approx $275-$300 just for her 😳😳

 

Went through Carnival for her and it's only $49 for minimum coverage but it'll work in case of needing evac etc

 

So if your older check the pricing all around and at least Carnival doesn't go by age