Credit card insurance

[Elorac123]

Oh I haven’t got a claim thank goodness.I was just responding to the OP that said to read the fine print but it didn’t hurt to clarify 

Got 2 booked,New Guinea in Feb 19 and Singapore Feb 20 on the Majestic (can’t wait for that one)

Cheers Carole 

[MicCanberra]

That is even better than, not having to make a claim at all is the best result.

[Aus Traveller]

On 10/24/2018 at 5:43 PM, Elorac123 said:

When do you get your “return ticket to Australia” 

Not when you pay your deposit.

Will ask providers tomorrow 

cheers Carole

 

The problem we had was booking a tour 20 months ahead when air tickets cannot be purchased more than 12 months before travel.

 

If you haven't bought your return ticket to Australia, then find you have to cancel, you will not be covered. The problem I see, is that if you buy the return ticket after you became aware that a medical condition will prevent you travelling, you have the problem of a pre-existing condition.

Edited October 25, 2018 by Aus Traveller

[Elorac123]

That was quite a expensive lesson but I am sure you have saved a lot of people grief by posting that.

Cheers Carole

[Stickman1990]

51 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

The problem we had was booking a tour 20 months ahead when air tickets cannot be purchased more than 12 months before travel.

 

If you haven't bought your return ticket to Australia, then find you have to cancel, you will not be covered. 

 

So you had to cancel somewhere between 12 and 20 months out? What sort of costs did you incur with that much notice ?

i wouldn’t have thought there would be many?  The cruise lines I am on would give a 100% refund of any payments at that time 

 

But it seeems like you are saying your cruiseline took the entire deposit on cancellation

 

What was the insurers response when you pointed out that it was impossible to purchase an air ticket any earlier than 12 months out?

 

If that is their only reason for declining the claim then it sounds like a case for review by the industry Ombudsman - have you considered that? The PDS will explain the process for that escalation 

[Aus Traveller]

We cancelled around 9 months prior to the trip, but had seriously considered cancelling for medical reasons for the previous few months. We could have paid our international airfares  in the couple of months before cancelling, but didn't seriously consider it as we then had a pre-existing condition. This was diagnosed around 15 months prior to the trip. It wasn't worth risking several more thousands of dollars (probably around $3,500) to pay for airline tickets.

 

We had paid a non-refundable deposit of $2,516. We appealed the decision from the underwriter not to cover our loss, but the decision was in their favour not our's. They simply relied on one of the conditions that are required to be met for the insurance to apply. One of these is that the insured has a return ticket to Australia. The bank agreed that this condition was not meant to cover our situation, but for people who were living overseas, however, there was nothing they could do.

 

We could appeal to the Ombudsman, but I doubt that it is worth it because the PDS clearly states that having a return ticket is a condition of the insurance.

Edited October 25, 2018 by Aus Traveller

[Stickman1990]

10 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

We cancelled around 9 months prior to the trip, but had seriously considered cancelling for medical reasons for the previous few months....

 

We had paid a non-refundable deposit of $2,516. .......The bank agreed that this condition was not meant to cover our situation, but for people who were living overseas, however, there was nothing they could do....

 

We could appeal to the Ombudsman, but I doubt that it is worth it because the PDS clearly states that having a return ticket is a condition of the insurance.

 

With this extra info it helps clarify why the decision has gone against you I’m afraid

 

1. No return airfare booked despite being inside the time when a booking could have been made

 

2. A relatively harsh non refundable deposit made - therefore exposing you to a risk 

 

3. The policy having a relatively standard clause re needing a return ticket - to be honest it’s not what the bank thinks that matters - it is the insurers decision as they are the providers of the policy not the bank

 

This discussion has caused me to think about my own situation. I use credit card insurance to provide my cover and do book cruises 2-3 years out but in reality my financial risk only really starts when the cruise deposit goes to a non refundable status which is well within the 12 month period.

 

I book air using either points so that happens at 11 months out or if buying a airfare I would do that before the cruise deposit is at risk. Similarly I book accomodation on rates that are cancwllable usually up to a week or so before the stay. 

 

So I just don’t see what my risk is

 

 

 

 

 

[Elorac123]

There is a clause in my Westpac insurance that reads

 

Cover under this section is also provided if the cardholder intends to obtain a return overseas travel ticket, before leaving Australia, and meets all the other eligibility requirements (see “Eligibility for Overseas travel insurance”).

 

So that being the case if you had a your booked overseas ? You obviously INTENDED to obtain a return ticket.

vheers Carole

[Aus Traveller]

1 hour ago, Elorac123 said:

There is a clause in my Westpac insurance that reads

 

Cover under this section is also provided if the cardholder intends to obtain a return overseas travel ticket, before leaving Australia, and meets all the other eligibility requirements (see “Eligibility for Overseas travel insurance”).

 

So that being the case if you had a your booked overseas ? You obviously INTENDED to obtain a return ticket.

vheers Carole

I will check the PDF of our ANZ insurance, but I don't think we have that 'out'. Thanks for the suggestion.

[happysnapper]

On ‎10‎/‎24‎/‎2018 at 6:37 PM, Stickman1990 said:

 

No that's not the case - what many of the policies clearly state is that you must have a return ticket to Australia - it's one of the conditions of activation - along with several others including a minimum spend amount on the relevant credit card

 

Those terms are clearly detailed in the relevant Product Disclosure Statement for the policy - they are not hidden at all. It is really incumbent on anyone relying on the policy for cover to read and comply with the activation requirements - and anything else that is setout in the policy

 

That is not an unreasonable request

 

Ironically if Happysnapper had done so and complied then the cost of cancelling the return airfare would have been covered by the policy along with other costs that were covered by the policy including the deposit on the cruise (I don't believe any policy is going to require you to make final payment before the due date)

It was a cruise out of Australia and return, no airfares involved. As we all know when you booked you usually pay a rather large deposit on a long cruise and its usually well in advance. I put a very strong case to Allianz including a specialists letter to no avail.