Cruise insurance questions

[ZoeyVictoria]

I began routinely purchasing cruise insurance about five years ago.  At first I took the easy route and purchased through the cruise lines, then for the last year or so I switched to Insuremytrip.com.  I am now retired and my cruising habits are changing, so I think I still have a few things to learn.  Can you please verify that:

 

a) I do not need to purchase insurance for any part of the cruise that is refundable, such as port fees/taxes, prepaid gratuities, excursions, etc.

 

b) If I booked a hotel the night before/after the cruise with Marriott points, I should not insure it because the value of points will not be refunded.  And, if I have already traveled to the cruise port and the cruise must be cancelled, I cannot claim the cost of a hotel booked with points or transportation to/from the port (gas and tolls), therefore I should use the dates of the cruise itself for departure and return dates.

 

If I book a "placeholder"  cruise, should I insure it immediately?  If I purchase insurance and later change the cruise, will the insurance transfer?  I failed to immediately insure two cruises that I booked because they were over a year in the future; am I correct in believing it is now too late to cover pre-existing conditions?  Since those cruises are still eleven and fifteen months out, should I just wait until I am positive I will be taking the cruises?  If not insured immediately, what is the prime time to purchase insurance?

 

Are there any fine details that I have missed, anything else I need to know?  Thanks for your help.

 

 

 

 

[neckhardt]

I would think if you called InsureMyTrip.com at 800-487-4722, they would be able to give you accurate information.

 

Let us know your results.

Edited January 24, 2019 by neckhardt

[DrProfessor]

Just be careful with the insurance stuff and read the fine print - it will make your head spin.  My (very) basic big gotcha understanding is that for pre-existing conditions to be covered, most plans require that you purchase the insurance within 15 days of the first time you paid anything for the cruise.  So, if you put a deposit on a cruise 2 years out, then wait until a year out to purchase insurance, missing the cruise due to what that insurance company considers a pre-existing condition is probably not covered.

 

Most will also point out other possible coverages that you might already have (like a credit card travel coverage if the payment was made on such a card).  I know American Express has something like that.

 

Not much of a help, but without a lawyer chiming in...

[Colorado Babe]

20 minutes ago, ZoeyVictoria said:

I began routinely purchasing cruise insurance about five years ago.  At first I took the easy route and purchased through the cruise lines, then for the last year or so I switched to Insuremytrip.com.  I am now retired and my cruising habits are changing, so I think I still have a few things to learn.  Can you please verify that:

 

a) I do not need to purchase insurance for any part of the cruise that is refundable, such as port fees/taxes, prepaid gratuities, excursions, etc. No because you can get back your prepaid gratuities, excursions, etc by cancelling them on the cruise planner

 

b) If I booked a hotel the night before/after the cruise with Marriott points, I should not insure it because the value of points will not be refunded.  And, if I have already traveled to the cruise port and the cruise must be cancelled, I cannot claim the cost of a hotel booked with points or transportation to/from the port (gas and tolls), therefore I should use the dates of the cruise itself for departure and return dates. If you book your hotel with Marriott, don't they allow you to cancel within a certain period of time?  If so, you wouldn't have to claim it on your cruise insurance. 

 

If I book a "placeholder"  cruise, should I insure it immediately?  If I purchase insurance and later change the cruise, will the insurance transfer?  I failed to immediately insure two cruises that I booked because they were over a year in the future; am I correct in believing it is now too late to cover pre-existing conditions?  Since those cruises are still eleven and fifteen months out, should I just wait until I am positive I will be taking the cruises?  If not insured immediately, what is the prime time to purchase insurance? If you purchase the insurance at time of booking, you can move the insurance up to three times before you would lose it.  I purchase an annual plan which is much cheaper than purchasing per cruise.  You may want to consider it.  

 

Are there any fine details that I have missed, anything else I need to know?  Thanks for your help.

 

See my comments in bold.  

 

 

 

[GeezerCouple]

27 minutes ago, ZoeyVictoria said:

I began routinely purchasing cruise insurance about five years ago.  At first I took the easy route and purchased through the cruise lines, then for the last year or so I switched to Insuremytrip.com.  I am now retired and my cruising habits are changing, so I think I still have a few things to learn.  Can you please verify that:

 

a) I do not need to purchase insurance for any part of the cruise that is refundable, such as port fees/taxes, prepaid gratuities, excursions, etc.

 

b) If I booked a hotel the night before/after the cruise with Marriott points, I should not insure it because the value of points will not be refunded.  And, if I have already traveled to the cruise port and the cruise must be cancelled, I cannot claim the cost of a hotel booked with points or transportation to/from the port (gas and tolls), therefore I should use the dates of the cruise itself for departure and return dates.

 

If I book a "placeholder"  cruise, should I insure it immediately?  If I purchase insurance and later change the cruise, will the insurance transfer?  I failed to immediately insure two cruises that I booked because they were over a year in the future; am I correct in believing it is now too late to cover pre-existing conditions?  Since those cruises are still eleven and fifteen months out, should I just wait until I am positive I will be taking the cruises?  If not insured immediately, what is the prime time to purchase insurance?

 

Are there any fine details that I have missed, anything else I need to know?  Thanks for your help.

 

 

 

 

 

You might want to post this on the Travel Insurance section of CC, for more eyes that are familiar with this:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/499-cruisetravel-insurance/

 

Also, we use www.TripInsuranceStore.com when we purchase our coverage (we get it from Travel Insured and they pay the claims promptly, including large claims).

GC

[ZoeyVictoria]

Thank you, some helpful information here.  

 

Yes, my head is spinning, RCFirstTimer!

 

It is very helpful to know that I can move insurance, that would have saved me from having three cruises booked with no insurance at the proper time.  There is one that I booked just one week ago, so I can correct that this afternoon.

 

I started researching annual insurance this morning (that is when my head started spinning).  I looked at it through insuremytrip.com, but read that it is for people who take multiple trips and “don’t care about cancellation insurance”.  I definitely care about cancellation insurance, so I gave that up.  Perhaps I should try again.

 

 

[GeezerCouple]

3 minutes ago, ZoeyVictoria said:

Thank you, some helpful information here.  

 

Yes, my head is spinning, RCFirstTimer!

 

It is very helpful to know that I can move insurance, that would have saved me from having three cruises booked with no insurance at the proper time.  There is one that I booked just one week ago, so I can correct that this afternoon.

 

I started researching annual insurance this morning (that is when my head started spinning).  I looked at it through insuremytrip.com, but read that it is for people who take multiple trips and “don’t care about cancellation insurance”.  I definitely care about cancellation insurance, so I gave that up.  Perhaps I should try again.

 

 

 

Right... please do CALL TripInsuranceStore or some other broker.

Especially when just starting out, this can be very difficult, especially finding "just the right policy for *your* particular needs", etc.

This includes things like pre-existing conditions, etc.

 

We've learned a LOT since starting out here (and again, DO look at the Travel Insurance section, as there is SO much there to read through).  But even so, we still sometimes need to call to ask, "Will THIS be covered?" or "What's the best way to handle THAT?".

 

GC

[Turtles06]

4 hours ago, ZoeyVictoria said:

It is very helpful to know that I can move insurance, that would have saved me from having three cruises booked with no insurance at the proper time.  There is one that I booked just one week ago, so I can correct that this afternoon.

 

What you can do with any particular policy issued by a particular company depends on the terms and conditions of that policy, so don't assume there is a one-size-fits-all answer to each of your questions (except that pre-paid expenses that are refundable if you have to cancel on the morning of your trip departure date don't need to be insured, since you would not have a loss and there's nothing to insure).

 

The most important things are to decide what aspects of travel insurance are important to you (e.g., covering pre-existing conditions, covering foreign travel medical expenses, etc.) and to understand the terms of what you are buying.  As noted above, there is a specific forum here on CC for questions related to travel insurance, and that's where it would be best to post.

 

[rnff2]

Look at Nationwide Cruise Insurance they offer pre-existing coverage that you can purchase at the time of final payment.  They have 2 different policies and only 60 day look back period.  

[SRF]

One thing I have been doing, is to not insure the cost of the cruise.

 

Since I have already paid, and it was budgeted for, missing the cruise will make me unhappy, but it will not put me in dire financial straits.

 

But unforeseen medical or medical evacuation could be a HUGE financial hit.

 

By not insuring the cruise cost, my typical price for insurance is $32 per trip.  A HUGE amount of the insurance price is covering the cost of the cruise.

 

You could also insure the cruise for a lesser amount.  So if you insure for half the cruise price, you would pay a lot less, but in case of cancellation, only get back half.

[GeezerCouple]

1 hour ago, SRF said:

One thing I have been doing, is to not insure the cost of the cruise.

 

Since I have already paid, and it was budgeted for, missing the cruise will make me unhappy, but it will not put me in dire financial straits.

 

But unforeseen medical or medical evacuation could be a HUGE financial hit.

 

By not insuring the cruise cost, my typical price for insurance is $32 per trip.  A HUGE amount of the insurance price is covering the cost of the cruise.

 

You could also insure the cruise for a lesser amount.  So if you insure for half the cruise price, you would pay a lot less, but in case of cancellation, only get back half.

 

For some types of coverages, one cannot "only insure for half the price" (or anything less than all costs) or any claim would be denied.

 

So, as usual, one MUST read the exact terms of one's OWN policy, and not rely upon suggestions of others.

Those suggestions *might* work, but if they don't, it could be an extremely expensive mistake...

 

GC

[Turtles06]

59 minutes ago, GeezerCouple said:

 

For some types of coverages, one cannot "only insure for half the price" (or anything less than all costs) or any claim would be denied.

 

So, as usual, one MUST read the exact terms of one's OWN policy, and not rely upon suggestions of others.

Those suggestions *might* work, but if they don't, it could be an extremely expensive mistake...

 

GC

 

Thanks, I was going to post the same thing.  People should stop making blanket remarks that you can do this or that, when in fact it all comes down to your own specific policy.    The OP should head over to the travel insurance forum as has been advised.

[SRF]

3 hours ago, GeezerCouple said:

 

For some types of coverages, one cannot "only insure for half the price" (or anything less than all costs) or any claim would be denied.

 

So, as usual, one MUST read the exact terms of one's OWN policy, and not rely upon suggestions of others.

Those suggestions *might* work, but if they don't, it could be an extremely expensive mistake...

 

GC

 

Yes, and you need to talk the agent or insurance company.

 

I called the insurer I use, and they are fine with $0 insurance.  It just means, no reimbursement for missing the cruise. WITH THEM.

[GeezerCouple]

12 minutes ago, SRF said:

 

Yes, and you need to talk the agent or insurance company.

 

I called the insurer I use, and they are fine with $0 insurance.  It just means, no reimbursement for missing the cruise. WITH THEM.

This is your wording that Turtles06 and we found troublesome, especially for those less familiar with travel insurance:

 

"You could also insure the cruise for a lesser amount.  So if you insure for half the cruise price, you would pay a lot less, but in case of cancellation, only get back half."

 

There is no statement such as "some policies allow..." or such, or even "... but check the fine print of *your* own policy...."

 

Of course there might be such policies.  But there are many policies where any claim would later be denied *entirely* (not just "the other half of the claim" or such).

 

As Turtles06 so clearly phrased it: 

"People should stop making blanket remarks that you can do this or that, when in fact it all comes down to your own specific policy."

 

GC

[SRF]

Agreed, so I amended what I said.

 

 

[GeezerCouple]

3 hours ago, SRF said:

Agreed, so I amended what I said.

 

 

 

Yes, but please do keep in mind that what you originally wrote *stays* there.

Some newbies, or just those not yet truly familiar with trip insurance, might stop right there and think, "GREAT - that's what I'll do then!!!"

And then go and do it... and perhaps have a claim...

 

It's care with the first posting, not changing it *later*, especially when editing later isn't allowed.

 

Take responsibility for what you post.

 

GC

[SRF]

On 1/26/2019 at 11:44 AM, GeezerCouple said:

 

Yes, but please do keep in mind that what you originally wrote *stays* there.

Some newbies, or just those not yet truly familiar with trip insurance, might stop right there and think, "GREAT - that's what I'll do then!!!"

And then go and do it... and perhaps have a claim...

 

It's care with the first posting, not changing it *later*, especially when editing later isn't allowed.

 

Take responsibility for what you post.

 

GC

 

Are you done?  You have made your point.   I admit I was not fully compliant with my post.  And corrected it in a later post.

 

And I have to assume you have NEVER made such a generalization in a post ever???????