Insurance Question

[Tazluli]

Hi All - I have search and cannot seem to find the answer here. I hope you can give me some insight.

 

We are going to book a cruise on RCL. Looking at the insurance that they offer, it looks like it really does not cover much. Do people normally get their insurance from the cruise line? Would it be best to look elsewhere for a better policy? I actually never thought to do a deep dive into the insurance, but ever since COVID, I am paying more attention. 

 

Thanks for your help!

[TheOldBear]

You may want to look at the archived Q&A session on the Cruise/Travel Insurance page.

 

A couple of the travel insurance sites [TripInsuranceStore; InsureMyTrip] offer side by side policy comparisons, definitions of terms used by the policies and other helpful features. 

I compared on TripInsuranceStore their available policies vs 'CunardCare' and decided to go with a policy purchased via the store. Much better medivac coverage, 'primary' for medical coverage [avoids needing to send paperwork to Cigna where it is rejected 100% of the time] for not much price difference.

[Babr]

Go with a third-party plan. You’ll get higher limits for medical and evacuation. Just be sure you understand how they cover Covid related issues. 
 

There are some threads here on that subject, but you might feel more comfortable speaking to a professional to be sure you are getting what you need. The previous post suggested a couple of places to consider.

[Tazluli]

On 9/18/2020 at 2:48 PM, TheOldBear said:

You may want to look at the archived Q&A session on the Cruise/Travel Insurance page.

 

A couple of the travel insurance sites [TripInsuranceStore; InsureMyTrip] offer side by side policy comparisons, definitions of terms used by the policies and other helpful features. 

I compared on TripInsuranceStore their available policies vs 'CunardCare' and decided to go with a policy purchased via the store. Much better medivac coverage, 'primary' for medical coverage [avoids needing to send paperwork to Cigna where it is rejected 100% of the time] for not much price difference.

Thank you for your advice. I never noticed the Q&A section. I should have searched better. 

[Tazluli]

On 9/18/2020 at 7:43 PM, Babr said:

Go with a third-party plan. You’ll get higher limits for medical and evacuation. Just be sure you understand how they cover Covid related issues. 
 

There are some threads here on that subject, but you might feel more comfortable speaking to a professional to be sure you are getting what you need. The previous post suggested a couple of places to consider.

I am thinking because of COVID and the fact that my husband and I are getting older, I am really paying more attention to the insurance. Thank you for your help. I think we are going to go with a third-party plan.

[Hlitner]

On 9/18/2020 at 11:35 AM, Tazluli said:

Hi All - I have search and cannot seem to find the answer here. I hope you can give me some insight.

 

We are going to book a cruise on RCL. Looking at the insurance that they offer, it looks like it really does not cover much. Do people normally get their insurance from the cruise line? Would it be best to look elsewhere for a better policy? I actually never thought to do a deep dive into the insurance, but ever since COVID, I am paying more attention. 

 

Thanks for your help!

I would like to congratulate you for actually reading the cruise line plan :).  Many don't and many more do not care.  There are many third party options depending on your own needs/wants.  You can either do your own research (web sites like insuremytrip.com and squaremouth.com offer many options) or you might want to simply call a knowledgeable travel insurance broker such as Steve Dasseos at the  tripinsurancestore.com.  Before I get flamed for mentioning that web site and broker I will make it clear that I have never talked to Steve or purchased any policy through his company.  But his reputation is excellent and he has also been featured here on Cruise Critic.

 

Hank

[Tazluli]

14 hours ago, Hlitner said:

I would like to congratulate you for actually reading the cruise line plan :).  Many don't and many more do not care.  There are many third party options depending on your own needs/wants.  You can either do your own research (web sites like insuremytrip.com and squaremouth.com offer many options) or you might want to simply call a knowledgeable travel insurance broker such as Steve Dasseos at the  tripinsurancestore.com.  Before I get flamed for mentioning that web site and broker I will make it clear that I have never talked to Steve or purchased any policy through his company.  But his reputation is excellent and he has also been featured here on Cruise Critic.

 

Hank

Thanks Hank. We have never been on Royal Caribbean and seeing that the deposit was non-refundable as soon as you paid it, it made me do a deep dive into the insurance. It was flimsy, but then again, I do not know how it compared to other cruise lines since I was one of those that never read the policy. 

 

We ended up going with a third party insurance company. Our trip is not until January 2022, so hopefully all will be well with cruising then.

 

[Hlitner]

1 hour ago, Tazluli said:

Thanks Hank. We have never been on Royal Caribbean and seeing that the deposit was non-refundable as soon as you paid it, it made me do a deep dive into the insurance. It was flimsy, but then again, I do not know how it compared to other cruise lines since I was one of those that never read the policy. 

 

We ended up going with a third party insurance company. Our trip is not until January 2022, so hopefully all will be well with cruising then.

 

My pet peeve with insurance is health insurance/evacuation coverage.  I have previously posted that folks often insure for the wrong reasons or underinsure.  So consider when booking a cruise (or a trip) that you are committing yourself to spending X dollars on a trip.  If something happens and you lose all the money you paid for that trip you are financially no worse off then if you had taken the trip and your only loss is that you missed out on a trip.  But a major medical emergency has unlimited liability potential!  A medical problem can easily bankrupt most folks as the cost can quickly soar over $50,000 or much higher.  My major problem with just about all the cruise line policies is that they underinsure medical while stressing cancellation protection.   Having spent my adult lifetime in the medical insurance world I think that $100,000 or medical coverage is a reasonable minimum for most folks.  But many cruise line policies only give medical coverage of $10,000 - $20,000 which is not nearly enough if a serious medical problem were to arise.  And now folks need to be extra aware of whether a policy will cover medical situations related to COVID.  Many policies specifically EXCLUDE coverage for COVID and pandemics so let the buyer beware.

 

Hank

[klfrodo]

I took Hank's advice

 

If my trip is going to cost me 5 or 10K, I'll forego the comprehensive trip insurance. If I miss the trip for whatever reason, I won't be financially devastated. I'll have some "splainin" to do with my wife,,,, but after 10 or so trips with no claims, I'm even.

 

No medical or evacuation on the other hand can and would be financially devastating.

 

Therefore, when I'm getting a quote for trip insurance, instead of saying the trip costs are $5000 per person, I'll put $499.

That gives me all the medical and evac coverage that policy offers, while limiting the comprehensive to whatever the max % of trip cost is as listed in the benefits. (Note: I can still do this AND have coverage for Pre-Existing medical conditions in Washington state.. Your mileage may vary)

 

Why $499?  Most insurance policies have a break point where they set costs. $0 - $500 is one price, $501 - $1000 is a higher price and so on. So $1 trip cost is going to be the same price charged at $499.  $499 will cover a hotel and a meal or 2 if I ever have a legitimate Trip delay or such.