Total Believer in Travel Insurance

[Daytonasailor]

Have only purchased insurance for my overseas trip in Oct of 17. After reading both sides of the comments, I decided to get insurance for my 10 day cruise to aruba and beyond. Total for air, hotel and cruise is $4000.

Our insurance for all was $183. I think that the peace of mind is worth that. But, that's just my opinion.

[oskarNZ]

While I have spent thousands on travel insurance over the years, I’d still rather never have to use it than feel like I’ve somehow got my money’s worth by making a claim. The same can be said for most types of insurance.

 

Perhaps it’s a cultural thing, as I’m feeling quite shocked that anyone would advocate not getting insurance.

 

In saying that, other than perhaps for rental car hire, I never get insurance for travelling in my own country. The government will cover me for accident and medical cover in an emergency and my home contents insurance will cover damaged luggage etc.

Whereas, any NZer who travels to the US uninsured is considered crazy. Infact a higher tier of insurance is usually recommended to cover extremely expensive medical and legal fees.

 

I guess without understanding how different countries protect their citizens, or without knowing what other non-travel insurances cover during ones travels, it’s hard to judge or offer reliable advice.

[fshagan]

I guess without understanding how different countries protect their citizens, or without knowing what other non-travel insurances cover during ones travels, it’s hard to judge or offer reliable advice.

 

I was amazed at how low the cost was for some folks from the UK who had over $1 million in health insurance for about the equivalent of $50.

 

Our trip insurance is typically 5 - 8% of the cruise cost for coverage less than that of our UK cousins.

[cargo13]

Interruptions: For cruises --travel insurance is a must--too many moving parts/logistics that can set you back $$ if missed/delayed.

Medical + evacuation: is our biggest concern for international trips.

Cancellation: If you book your cruise close to departure and /or know you are going without risk of any cancellation, then buy travel insurance close to departure and the insurance premium will drop/be much less/affordable--at least on our travel insurance provider --GENERALI Travel Insurance (used to be CSA).

 

We rarely book far in advance where we would need cancellation coverages.

[Cruiserbillyboo]

Why do you think trip cancellation/interruption insurance is so heavily pushed by the cruise lines and travel agencies?

Do you think it is because they have our best interests at heart? NO WAY.

Is it because this insurance is a huge money-maker for them? ABSOLUTELY YES.

 

Why is it such a money maker? Simple math.

These types of insurances generally cost roughly, give or take a small amount, but roughly, 10% of the price of a cruise.

 

To be “worth it”, then, roughly, 10% or your trips would need to be cancelled or interrupted. Sure, such cancellations or interruptions do happen, but 10% of the time within the general travelling community? NOT EVEN CLOSE.

 

As implied by numerous others in this thread, once you’ve cruised roughly 10 times without an interruption, which is the experience of the vast majority of us, you are ahead of the game.

 

Sure, many will say “but I had a trip cancelled or interrupted so it was worth it to me”. Fine. But over the entirety of the travelling community at large, it doesn’t happen nearly often enough to make it mathematically (as opposed to emotionally) “worth it”.

 

THAT is why it’s a huge money-maker for the cruise lines/insurance agencies, and why they push it so hard.

 

Simple math.

 

Emotions are totally different story.

[fshagan]

Why do you think trip cancellation/interruption insurance is so heavily pushed by the cruise lines and travel agencies?

Do you think it is because they have our best interests at heart? NO WAY.

Is it because this insurance is a huge money-maker for them? ABSOLUTELY YES.

 

Why is it such a money maker? Simple math.

These types of insurances generally cost roughly, give or take a small amount, but roughly, 10% of the price of a cruise.

 

It's actually from 4 to 8%, but I get your drift. I have never paid more than 6% personally, and the majority of that is for medical insurance where the risk is much greater than just the loss of the money I have already spent on the cruise.

 

All insurance works this way. There is a shared pool and the person buying into it is doing so to minimize their individual risk. That's why we have car insurance, and life insurance, and buy other types of insurance. We minimize the risk. It's not emotional, it's a financial decision.

 

But, there's another reason travel companies push so hard for insurance. They don't give refunds, even if your child is diagnosed with cancer two days before the cruise. But, they do offer you trip insurance so they have given you the choice to pay for your refund. If you are willing to risk having your child get sick and losing the money you have already paid out for the cruise, then you can't complain very much. You made an informed choice.

[sandancer]

My handbag was stolen in Barcelona. We had just disembarked from a cruise, not yet checked into our hotel so I was carrying lots of valuables. My jewellery, money, credit cards etc etc. Our insurance covered the cost of replacing everything I lost. That alone covered the cost of travel insurance for many years. Like most savvy UK travellers we don’t leave home without it, especially for travel to the US or cruising.

 

 

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[varoo]

Consumer Reports had a comprehensive write-up on this subject some time back. Basically they said that is important to be aware of what travel insurance coverage you already have before buying more.

 

Every year many people are frightened into throwing away their money buying unnecessary additional travel insurance that merely duplicates coverage they already have from other sources.

They also pointed out that although basic Medicare itself does not cover people traveling outside the USA, millions of Americans are enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans that do.

Some are not even aware of what coverage their plan gives them when traveling abroad.

 

But the various Medicare Advantage plans are not all created equal. So there as well, it is important to know what coverage you already have before deciding how much additional travel insurance, if any, to buy.

[waterbug123]

 

Why is it such a money maker? Simple math.

These types of insurances generally cost roughly, give or take a small amount, but roughly, 10% of the price of a cruise.

 

To be “worth it”, then, roughly, 10% or your trips would need to be cancelled or interrupted. Sure, such cancellations or interruptions do happen, but 10% of the time within the general travelling community? NOT EVEN CLOSE.

 

As implied by numerous others in this thread, once you’ve cruised roughly 10 times without an interruption, which is the experience of the vast majority of us, you are ahead of the game.

 

Sure, many will say “but I had a trip cancelled or interrupted so it was worth it to me”. Fine.

 

This. I get it if people are concerned medical coverage and evacuation coverage. And I get it if someone rarely travels but saves for years and plans a big extravaganza of a trip. But for those of us who cruise multiple times every year and take multiple land-based vacations as well, it doesn't always make sense. Even if we had to cancel a cruise/trip and we had insurance that reimbursed us a couple thousand dollars of non-refundble trips costs that we'd paid, that would be nowhere close to the amount we would have spent on hundreds of insurance policies over the years if we insured every trip.

 

 

My handbag was stolen in Barcelona. We had just disembarked from a cruise, not yet checked into our hotel so I was carrying lots of valuables. My jewellery, money, credit cards etc etc. Our insurance covered the cost of replacing everything I lost. That alone covered the cost of travel insurance for many years. Like most savvy UK travellers we don’t leave home without it, especially for travel to the US or cruising.

 

I guess if you always travel with thousands of dollars/euro/pounds in cash and lots of valuable jewelry you have an additional risk, but most would advise doing neither. Personally, other than a couple of pieces of inexpensive costume jewelry, I don't travel with any fine jewelry besides the ring and diamond stud earrings I always wear, so there's very limited risk of having valuable jewelry stolen. Credit cards can be replaced so losing them doesn't have to be a costly event, and we don't carry thousands of dollars in cash; we use a debit card to get money from ATM's as needed. We make sure that our assorted cards are divided between us too, in case one of us loses a wallet or whatever... we still have access to credit/debit cards that the other person is carrying.

[sandancer]

We also don’t carry thousands of dollars (or pounds in our case) either. I was simply pointing out that insurance covers you for more than cancelled flights and medical emergencies. For us to have the latter happen on a trip to the US would be a major disaster. The comfort of knowing if the worst were to happen we would be able to have medical treatment if needed is well worth the relatively small annual insurance premium.

 

 

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[LondonTowner]

It amazes me how many Americans travel without taking out some kind of travel insurance. What happens if you need an emergency airlift from the cruise ship? We've seen this happen a couple of times. Who is going to pay for the helicopter?

 

What happens if you need to be flown home by air ambulance from a foreign hospital with an accompanying nurse.

 

Emergencies can and do happen every day. Although within the EU we have medical treatment covered, but it doesn't pay for any kind of transport costs or repatriation.

 

It's just madness to go away without travel insurance, especially as medical bills can be so expensive.

 

 

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[Loughlyn]

How do I get evac ins? I always buy ins

When book cruise is that part of it?

 

 

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[Jade13]

. DW and I cruise 70-100 days a year and have not purchased any kind of trip insurance except for 1 cruise (out of over 100 cruises).

 

 

. We do purchase an ANNUAL Travel Medical Policy (GeoBlue) which gives us $250,000 or medical coverage (and $500,000 of evacuation coverage). This single policy costs us about $450 a year (total cost for a couple) and covers the first 70 days of every trip we take throughout an entire year.

 

However, last year we did obtain a Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa....which provided up to $10,000 (per card) of cancellation and interruption protection.

 

 

Hank

 

 

 

Your first paragraph said you never purchase travel insurance (except one time). But I would argue that you do have travel insurance.. It’s a combination of an annual Geo Blue travel medical with evacuation, and a Chase visa with up to 10K of cancellation and interruption protection.

 

 

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[Jade13]

Deleted

[Jade13]

 

And finally my pet peeve. Many Trip Insurance Policies ONLY insure $10,000 - $20,000 or medical! Having worked most of life in the medical insurance industry I have always thought that $100,000 of Medical coverage should be considered a minimum for most folks. That cancellation policy might well cover a few thousand dollars of lots trip cost...but what happens if you have a major medical emergency that gets you a $75.000 hospital bill?

 

Hank

 

 

 

Agree

 

 

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[Jade13]

 

Perhaps it’s a cultural thing, as I’m feeling quite shocked that anyone would advocate not getting insurance.

.

 

 

I think most people are advocating having medical coverage, especially medical evacuation - which could be part of ones medical plan they already have, through a credit card, or purchased separately.

 

What many are saying is that some can afford to “self insure” the cost of the vacation.

 

 

 

 

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[goingplaces1132]

I always buy insurance through an outside company, not the cruise line. That way I'm covered from time I leave house until I return. The company I use insures the kids for free with my purchase. I usually have never paid more than 100 and usually closer to 40-60. It even covers someone flying to get the kids if something happens to me. My friend's husband had to be flown home due to medical issues from a cruise once. It covered the whole family. I made one claim when flights after a cruise was cancelled for days. Covered my one way rental car (700.00), hotel, food and gas until we got home. The ship's insurance would not have covered this, since our flight was not booked through the cruise. Emergency Evacuation and being able to get home in case of a family emergency at home are all important to me!

 

 

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[phoenix_dream]

My biggest concern about traveling without insurance is covering the medical evacuation if needed. We can cover the cruise fare, hotel, flights if needed but can not afford the cost of the evacuation. If you are on medicare, I would think twice with traveling without travel insurance. Happy Travels

I agree this is definitely a situation that must be considered. Medicare does not cover you overseas, and evacuation can be very expensive. While we don't buy general travel insurance, we do buy that kind of coverage for that reason.

[phoenix_dream]

It's interesting to read people's views on this subject, and truthfully rather astonishing how in many cases emotion overrules reason. If someone wants to buy travel insurance for peace of mind, go for it. Your money, your decision. But if you are buying it to protect yourself financially I encourage you to do a true risk evaluation to determine if it is worth it. Consider what other coverage you may have - health insurance, Medicare advantage or other supplement plan, coverage through your credit card, etc.. You may be surprised how much you are already covered. Consider how often you travel, and consider whether you can absorb the costs that might be incurred should your travel be cancelled or interrupted. Evaluate your potential medical risk apart from other risks as the insurance coverage may have different options. Only then can you really determine if it is right for you. The answer may be yes, insurance makes sense. But in many cases the answer will be no. Or the answer will be split between medical coverage and trip coverage.

 

Anyone who knows the insurance world well will tell you that insurance was never, and is never, meant to prevent you from incurring any out of pocket costs. If you buy it for that reason you are spending way too much money for it. Insurance on a personal level (as opposed to business insurance, a different subject) is meant to prevent you from life altering costs. So, peace of mind coverage - go for it if you wish. Financial protection? Do the math and make your determination based on reason and logic.

[leisuretraveler223]

Travel insurance = peace of mind, priceless!

 

Oh no! They most decidedly put a price on it every single time!:D

 

If it's good for you, great. But it's not for everyone. And while some may not consider it out of ignorance to the issues, there are many of us who are well aware of the possibilities and have decided it is not a profitable investment and choose to self insure. I will always reevaluate what is going on in my life to determine if it's worth it. But right now, no way, no how. It would be nothing but a loser for me.

[LondonTowner]

I'm quite astounded at many of these comments that having travel insurance is a waste of time and that in the event of an eventuality will pay the costs. Well, if somebody finds paying out 100,000 USD, GBP, Euros or whatever currency an easy feat, well, good luck to them.

 

That's easily the kind of costs medical/repatriation fees can cost.

 

We buy an annual multi trip policy and wouldn't travel without it. Most years we use it on a number of occasions, so consider we get our money's worth.

 

As previously stated, maybe it is a cultural thing, I don't know. What I do know, is I like to have peace of mind and know I am covered.

 

 

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[Cruiserbillyboo]

I'm quite astounded at many of these comments that having travel insurance is a waste of time and that in the event of an eventuality will pay the costs. Well, if somebody finds paying out 100,000 USD, GBP, Euros or whatever currency an easy feat, well, good luck to them.

 

That's easily the kind of costs medical/repatriation fees can cost.

 

Indeed.

 

But I believe the thrust of this thread is about trip cancellation/interruption insurance, not medical coverage. Two VERY DIFFERENT things.

[LondonTowner]

Cruiserbillyoo

 

Our annual insurance includes all those elements too, plus delayed luggage, loss of money or valuables etc, etc. In the U.K. Travel insurance doesn't just cover medical cover, but it is an important part of it.

 

 

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[Fouremco]

Indeed.

 

But I believe the thrust of this thread is about trip cancellation/interruption insurance, not medical coverage. Two VERY DIFFERENT things.

Yes, the OP was talking about cancellation/interruption insurance, but the less specific title and inevitable thread drift have led to some confusion. Then again, I think that in general there's a great deal of confusion about the whole subject of travel insurance.

[neverbeenhere]

Then again, I think that in general there's a great deal of confusion about the whole subject of travel insurance.

 

Just like Life Insurance, you practically have to die.