I just bought Travelex insurance instead of Princess

[GottaLuvCruising]

I always buy Princess (platinum) insurance, but actually had to visit the infirmary on a recent cruise.  Having to file first with my primary insurance, then with Aon was a PITA.  For a little less than Princess insurance I bought a Travelex Select policy that is primary payor on both medical ($50K) and emergency evacuation ($500K.)  

 

Do you buy Princess insurance?  Other?  None at all?  

[rgmacm]

We buy Allianz through AAA.  

I  prefer getting insurance through a 3rd party rather than the cruise line.  We've only had 2 claims with Allianz....one they paid quickly and without hassle.  The other we ended up dropping as we were taken care of by the airline (after they - airline- had originally told us 'no' ).

Edited October 22, 2019 by rgmacm

[Oak City Man]

I have bought from Princess on our cruises.  We have reached Ruby status which grants the platinum policy for the price of the standard one. This kind of makes it a no brainer.  BTW, this is the only Ruby benefit worth anything.

 

 Buying from Princess is easier than searching on your own.  If you go with a third party be sure to read the fine print.  If you travel a lot, I have heard of polices that cover all trips for a year.

 

I have never had to file a claim, so I can't comment on the process.  

[4cats4me]

We usually buy Travelex. Never buy Princess. 

[Peckishpixie]

I buy Travelex every time. I like it because it covers your whole vacation, from the time the shuttle picks you up at your door to the time it brings you back home. The agent who I bought it from said "if the car driver gets in an accident backing out of your driveway, we cover it" princess only covers the cruise and the airfare if you book it through easyair

[Bollycats]

I always book Travelex. We have sold it at my agency for years and have always liked them. I like that it's primary coverage. Don't have to go through my own health insurance first. 

[Oak City Man]

22 minutes ago, Peckishpixie said:

I buy Travelex every time. I like it because it covers your whole vacation, from the time the shuttle picks you up at your door to the time it brings you back home. The agent who I bought it from said "if the car driver gets in an accident backing out of your driveway, we cover it" princess only covers the cruise and the airfare if you book it through easyair

 

Well, the airfare and the cruise is pretty much the entire trip for us.  I'm not sure what you mean by "shuttle".  

 

BTW, I hope you realize the agent was "selling" you a policy.  What would you expect her to say?  I suppose what the agent was referring to about the car getting in an accident is trip delay coverage.  Princess also covers this, as do most (all?) vacation insurance policies.

 

I also just checked, Princess is cheaper than Travelex for my next cruise.  So if you prefer Travelex go right ahead.  Just do not act like the Princess coverage is somehow inferior.  It's actually quite similar.

Edited October 22, 2019 by Oak City Man

[GottaLuvCruising]

2 minutes ago, Oak City Man said:

 

I also just checked, Princess is cheaper than Travelex for my next cruise.  So if you prefer Travelex go right ahead.  Just do not act like the Princess coverage is somehow inferior.  It's actually quite similar.

I chose Travelex because it is primary payor where the insurance through Princess is secondary.  One (obviously inexperienced) Princess agent specifically and erroneously told me that their insurance is the only one accepted by the infirmary.  The infirmary doesn't deal with any insurance.  

[Tedferg]

We previously bought insurance from other companies and always found the coverage was better. However as we have gotten older the premiums with third parties became exorbitant and so we default to Princess.

[Peckishpixie]

39 minutes ago, Oak City Man said:

 

Well, the airfare and the cruise is pretty much the entire trip for us.  I'm not sure what you mean by "shuttle".  

 

BTW, I hope you realize the agent was "selling" you a policy.  What would you expect her to say?  I suppose what the agent was referring to about the car getting in an accident is trip delay coverage.  Princess also covers this, as do most (all?) vacation insurance policies.

 

I also just checked, Princess is cheaper than Travelex for my next cruise.  So if you prefer Travelex go right ahead.  Just do not act like the Princess coverage is somehow inferior.  It's actually quite similar.

I meant that when you leave the house for the trip (we take an airport shuttle. Maybe others take a taxi or drive) the vacation protection starts. So, if you get in an accident pulling out of your driveway, travelex covers that. Princess starts covering you when you get on the ship, or when you get on the plane IF you booked the plane through Princess. It stops when the boat docks or you get off the plane if you booked through Princess. For those of us who book our air through someone else, having your medical covered right away is actually a better plan. I know he was trying to sell me something and it was something of value to me so I bought it. I have somehow managed to make the decisions that are best for me enough times that I lived to be a senior citizen, so I think I can decide what insurance is the right fit too. 

[Peckishpixie]

44 minutes ago, GottaLuvCruising said:

I chose Travelex because it is primary payor where the insurance through Princess is secondary.  One (obviously inexperienced) Princess agent specifically and erroneously told me that their insurance is the only one accepted by the infirmary.  The infirmary doesn't deal with any insurance.  

Even with princess insurance you have to pay the bill and be reimbursed for on board medical. For ashore medical Teavelex does give you a card "accepted at clinics world wide" but we haven't had to try that out (knock on wood) so I dont know if it is true.

[JF - retired RRT]

1 hour ago, Tedferg said:

We previously bought insurance from other companies and always found the coverage was better. However as we have gotten older the premiums with third parties became exorbitant and so we default to Princess.

Same for us. At our age, third party ins. is 2X Princess.

[luvflorida]

3 hours ago, GottaLuvCruising said:

I always buy Princess (platinum) insurance, but actually had to visit the infirmary on a recent cruise.  Having to file first with my primary insurance, then with Aon was a PITA.  For a little less than Princess insurance I bought a Travelex Select policy that is primary payor on both medical ($50K) and emergency evacuation ($500K.)  

 

Do you buy Princess insurance?  Other?  None at all?  

We never travel out of the country without insurance. I always buy it through a 3rd party and always choose it as the primary payor. I usually go to the SquareMouth site to choose the insurance that will fit my trip. You can compare different insurance products and use the various filters to find one that best suits you. 

[joepeka]

We've used Travelex versus the cruise line offered insurance just for the reason stated above: they are the primary provider on any claims, not secondary to whatever health insurance you have otherwise.

[Daniel A]

We insure with Travel Insured International through USAA.  We select the primary payer for an extra $25.  I haven't compared to other policies but it was cheaper than Princess.

[Coral]

Most of the time, I use Allianz. I have used Travelex (and live near their corporate headquarters) previously. I only used Travelex because Allianz (formerly Access America) would not cover a river cruise line for financial default.

 

I read an article a few years ago and wish I could find it again. There are times when you have a large claim, that using an insurance company that is secondary is actually better. If it is a small claim, it doesn't matter. Problem is, we don't know what type of medical claim we may have in the future.

 

I would never count on Princess for medical coverage. It is so minimal.

Edited October 22, 2019 by Coral

[LoriPhil]

After purchasing the Princess Platinum I realized the medical is only for $20K, which is way low if something dire happens. We're past the 15 day period, but will be looking for supplemental medical-only insurance with a beefier coverage as our primary as a contingency.  Being a senior is way more complicated than I realized!

[Griller]

I've been looking at the John Hancock travel insurance, does anyone have any experience with them?

They have a Primary medical, and decent amount of coverage and good evacuation/repatriation  cover too, it seems much better than Princess and about the same cost.

[Alaskanb]

We have a GeoBlue annual plan that we will continue until our next cruise in 2021. https://www.geobluetravelinsurance.com/products/multi-trip/trekker-compare-plans.cfm

[CineGraphic]

We always use http://www.insuremytrip.com  as they offer all types of plans from multiple carriers, and it's very easy to compare policies. For our upcoming 10 day Caribbean cruise, we just purchased medical & evacuation only.....for less than $80 for the two of us.

[Nebr.cruiser]

We have never used cruise line insurance; usually use Insure My Trip and choose the coverage we need.  Now, we have started using GeoBlue, since we mainly want good medical/evacuation coverage.  

 

We can eat the cost of a missed cruise (would hate it though!) but perhaps not the cost of some medical problems or evacuation needs.  

 

I can see possibly using Princess insurance as we age; are getting very close to the point that other insurance isn't very affordable.

 

We have had to use travel insurance three times; they all paid the expenses, but in all cases you do have to turn in paperwork, of course. A bit of a hassle, but there has to be some proof. 

 

BTW, none of those three times were for our medical problems but those of elderly parents.

 

Now we are close to being the 'elderly' parents!  

 

 

[GeezerCouple]

5 hours ago, Daniel A said:

We insure with Travel Insured International through USAA.  We select the primary payer for an extra $25.  I haven't compared to other policies but it was cheaper than Princess.

 

We've always had Travel Insured, purchased through www.TripInsuranceStore.com.

(They also sell policies from other insurers, so speaking with them - NOT just reading online summaries - can help one to get a policy that best fits one's needs.)

We did once purchase another insurer's policy, but had no claim, so our experience isn't particularly useful.

 

However, we have had several claims with Travel Insured, including two large ones, and they DO pay, which is what matters.

 

We start the policy within the first few days so pre-existing conditions are covered.  (The timing is 10-21 days from FIRST payment, such as the deposit.  The exact number depends upon the state of residence.)

The policy we get also covers non-traveling family members, of any age, with no exclusion for pre-existing conditions.  Our most recent claim was when very elderly MIL (approaching 100) landed in the ER with heart trouble, shortly before we were supposed to depart on a one-month cruise and land trip.  She's okay, but more fragile now, which I supposed isn't surprising at her age...  We had worried about her health for all the times we have purchased insurance, but until this past episode, all of the reasons for our claims were "ours", not hers.

 

We "don't leave home without it" 

 

GC

 

[GottaLuvCruising]

11 hours ago, Daniel A said:

We insure with Travel Insured International through USAA.  We select the primary payer for an extra $25.  I haven't compared to other policies but it was cheaper than Princess.

Good to know for next time!  (We are both veterans.)  

[GottaLuvCruising]

11 hours ago, joepeka said:

We've used Travelex versus the cruise line offered insurance just for the reason stated above: they are the primary provider on any claims, not secondary to whatever health insurance you have otherwise.

This ^ is our primary concern as, while I can deal with the claim filing process for ourselves with secondary travel insurance, it's more complicated if one of our granddaughters gets sick or injured.  Then their parents would have to do the primary file first; I want to avoid that hassle and have the peace of mind to know their care is covered.  

 

Lots of great responses, feedback and information.  Thank you to everyone who assisted.  

[Daniel A]

8 hours ago, GeezerCouple said:

We start the policy within the first few days so pre-existing conditions are covered.  (The timing is 10-21 days from FIRST payment, such as the deposit.  The exact number depends upon the state of residence.)

 

I was advised by the rep at Travel Insured that in addition to making the initial policy purchase within 10 days of the first payment for a cruise, each time we make a payment to Princess for the cruise (including Princess excursions and drink and celebration packages) we have to advise Travel Insured of the new amount within 10 days or we lose the pre-existing conditions waiver. 

Edited October 23, 2019 by Daniel A