Travel Insurance - Proof you should never leave home without it!

[Acruisingperson]

4 hours ago, Babr said:

Maybe she misspoke. There is a website called insuremytrip, and they sell policies from a number of companies. They even have a search feature that lets you find Covid-friendly policies. 
 

Cost is based on the amount insured and ages of the policy holders. Underwriters have assessed the risk and set the price. They are usually pretty good at that, but Delta may prove them wrong. It seems to be changing the rules for everyone.

I think age makes a big difference. I’m 47 and got a policy that includes COVID medical coverage for $138. My mother who is 69 got the same plan (we live in different states and had to get our plans separately) and it was $210. We are doing a land vacation after canceling our cruise, but that price difference was close to what we saw when pricing insurance for the cruise. 

[cruiselvr04]

Check the cruise insurance boards here on cruise critic.  Steve at the insurance store is very good.  My understanding is any insurance will cover covid as long as you have a doctor saying you have covid, not just a positive test unless it specifically rules it out in a pandemic clause?  It’s now being treated as any other illness.  Do not take my word for it though.

 

We used to use Nationwide although I never needed a claim.  We now are back to CSA for their pre existing conditions inclusion.  We have a suite this next time so costs are higher of course.  We paid around $350 for 7 days of coverage.  I upped it a bit to 100,000 of secondary medical just because of covid.  We just consider insurance a cost of cruising like some people get the beverage package.  
 

Could we pay for evac out of pocket? Yes.  Would it crush us to lose the cruise money.  No.  We just want to protect what we have.  Not everyone will agree. If your answers are different you definitely need insurance.  

[dmwnc1959]

4 minutes ago, cruiselvr04 said:

Check the cruise insurance boards here on cruise critic.  Steve at the insurance store is very good. 

WOW, and I didn’t even know that was a thing! Very nice, THANK YOU! 
 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/2500-qa-cruise-insurance-with-the-tripinsurancestorecom-june-2021/?ct=1629481773

[Jimbo]

34 minutes ago, bstel said:

Nationwide underwrites the policies for many of the companies selling the policies.  Insure My Trip or Travel Insurance .com are all just aggregator sites to compare policies from multiple sources.

$147 for 2 people for a 7 day trip really is pretty average price.  Based on what i have seen it appears the insurance underwriters mostly have rolled the "Covid" coverage under their general medical coverage, which makes sense.  Covid is just a sickness and is treated to the level needed.  Comparing policy prices pre Covid and post Covid (not statistical) it looks like Covid really hasnt change the overall cost for insurance.

Bet the evac off a cruise ship or at one of the ports isn't very good then for $147.

[Babr]

18 minutes ago, Jimbo said:

Bet the evac off a cruise ship or at one of the ports isn't very good then for $147.

 

As I’ve said before, evacuation off the ship is done by the Coast Guard or its equivalent depending where you are. It does not cost you anything. Insurance kicks in once you reach land.

 

Also remember that evacuation insurance gets you to the nearest facility capable of treating you. It may not be something you are comfortable with (think of places you visit on a Caribbean cruise), but they won’t transfer you unless all doctors involved and the insurance company agree that it is medically necessary. If they decide you can be taken care of where you are, that is where you’ll stay until you can fly home by commercial air. 
 

That is not to say they will never authorize an air ambulance, but you can understand they want to avoid it if possible. To have more control of your treatment, you need a separate policy for air evacuation.

[sparks1093]

45 minutes ago, Jimbo said:

Bet the evac off a cruise ship or at one of the ports isn't very good then for $147.

We purchased Nationwide's Essential plan for $116 for our upcoming Bermuda cruise (2 people low 60 and low 50). The plan includes &75,000 for medical care and $250,000 for emergency evacuation (that's per passenger), which includes being returned to the US if needed following medical treatment. If you go solely by price you could be seriously overpaying, or over insuring (we always check the terms for a low priced plan, a mid-priced plan and a high-priced plan and have found the mid-priced plans to provide what we need).

[sparks1093]

32 minutes ago, Babr said:

 

As I’ve said before, evacuation off the ship is done by the Coast Guard or its equivalent depending where you are. It does not cost you anything. Insurance kicks in once you reach land.

 

Also remember that evacuation insurance gets you to the nearest facility capable of treating you. It may not be something you are comfortable with (think of places you visit on a Caribbean cruise), but they won’t transfer you unless all doctors involved and the insurance company agree that it is medically necessary. If they decide you can be taken care of where you are, that is where you’ll stay until you can fly home by commercial air. 
 

That is not to say they will never authorize an air ambulance, but you can understand they want to avoid it if possible. To have more control of your treatment, you need a separate policy for air evacuation.

The terms and conditions of the plan are going to dictate where you are taken. Our plan for the upcoming cruise says this:

Emergency Evacuation means:
(a) Your  medical condition warrants immediate Transportation from the hospital where You are first taken when injured or sick to the nearest Hospital where appropriate medical treatment can be obtained;
(b) after being treated at a local Hospital, Your  medical condition warrants Transportation to the United States where You  reside, to obtain further medical treatment or to recover; or
(c) both (a) and (b), above.

 

So if one of us needs to be evacuated to a better hospital on a nearby island and then needs to be evacuated home the plan will provide coverage up to the covered amount (at least that is how this layperson reads it).

[Babr]

9 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

The terms and conditions of the plan are going to dictate where you are taken. Our plan for the upcoming cruise says this:

Emergency Evacuation means:
(a) Your  medical condition warrants immediate Transportation from the hospital where You are first taken when injured or sick to the nearest Hospital where appropriate medical treatment can be obtained;
(b) after being treated at a local Hospital, Your  medical condition warrants Transportation to the United States where You  reside, to obtain further medical treatment or to recover; or
(c) both (a) and (b), above.

 

So if one of us needs to be evacuated to a better hospital on a nearby island and then needs to be evacuated home the plan will provide coverage up to the covered amount (at least that is how this layperson reads it).

You are correct. The key word is “warrants” and who decides that.

 

I don’t mean to imply that you will not be taken care of. It just means the decision is out of your hands. For any condition, Covid or otherwise, the attending physician and the insurance company will decide if you are receiving appropriate care and whether you need to be transferred to a higher level facility.  Then the receiving physician and hospital have to agree.

 

 

 

[ReneeFLL]

18 hours ago, Deez123 said:

Yeah.   Typical.   Do it to make the headlines, then drop.   

 

Suggest that anyone who is uphappy with RCL and their handling of CV-19 protocols; wait until the very last minute to cancel.  Don't give them time to fill the spot.

Why do you have such an issue with Royal? What did they do to you or was it nothing?

[sparks1093]

1 hour ago, Babr said:

You are correct. The key word is “warrants” and who decides that.

 

I don’t mean to imply that you will not be taken care of. It just means the decision is out of your hands. For any condition, Covid or otherwise, the attending physician and the insurance company will decide if you are receiving appropriate care and whether you need to be transferred to a higher level facility.  Then the receiving physician and hospital have to agree.

 

 

 

Which in reality is exactly how decisions are made with my regular health insurer when you get right down to it.

[Lou33]

On 8/19/2021 at 4:08 AM, livingonthebeach said:

 

Right — that’s why it’s important to check if it pays upfront and what it does and doesn’t cover. 

Very few insurance policies will pay upfront.  If they are primary (as opposed to secondary), that means they will reimburse you before you file a claim with your regular health provider.  

 

But EVEN, if you have a policy that will pay upfront, it is up to each hospital to decide if they will accept that type of payment.  If you go to a hospital in a foreign country, it is best to have your credit card in hand as you walk through the door.

[Sunshine3601]

3 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

We purchased Nationwide's Essential plan for $116 for our upcoming Bermuda cruise (2 people low 60 and low 50). The plan includes &75,000 for medical care and $250,000 for emergency evacuation (that's per passenger), which includes being returned to the US if needed following medical treatment. If you go solely by price you could be seriously overpaying, or over insuring (we always check the terms for a low priced plan, a mid-priced plan and a high-priced plan and have found the mid-priced plans to provide what we need).

any idea if this policy will pay the hospital / medical facility direct or do you need to pay and then get reimbursed?   

[Lou33]

28 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

any idea if this policy will pay the hospital / medical facility direct or do you need to pay and then get reimbursed?   

We have the Nationwide Essential plan for our upcoming cruise.  It is a decent plan for the money.    This plan will definitely NOT pay upfront. 

 

"PAYMENT OF CLAIMS - The Company, or its designated representative, will pay a claim after receipt of acceptable Proof of Loss."

 

And this is true with the majority of travel insurance.   But again, when you go to a hospital in a foreign country, you are at their mercy.   Often, the only thing that will get their attention is showing them your credit card.  They don't want to hear about travel insurance.

 

This original post was very informative and very good to keep in mind if you have an upcoming cruise.  It's always smart to have travel insurance if you are not covered when out of the country.  But in this case it may not have made a difference.  Even if the insurance would have payed upfront, the hospital in Belize probably wouldn't have accepted it anyway.  

 

 

 

 

Edited August 20, 2021 by Lou33

[livingonthebeach]

55 minutes ago, Lou33 said:

Very few insurance policies will pay upfront.  If they are primary (as opposed to secondary), that means they will reimburse you before you file a claim with your regular health provider.  

 

But EVEN, if you have a policy that will pay upfront, it is up to each hospital to decide if they will accept that type of payment.  If you go to a hospital in a foreign country, it is best to have your credit card in hand as you walk through the door.

 

Yes -- this is important to note.  I checked with my Allianz travel insurance and they will guarantee or advance payments to hospitals and medical facilities overseas.  Of course if the facility refuses and demands payments from you, then you are out out luck if you don't have a high limit credit card or wads of cash.  At least with travel insurance you have the possibility of being reimbursed for whatever outlay you may be asked for.  Without travel insurance you are plain OOL.

[sparks1093]

41 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

any idea if this policy will pay the hospital / medical facility direct or do you need to pay and then get reimbursed?   

Of course I do,, I've read the terms and conditions. Not only is it pay and get reimbursed it is also secondary to my primary insurance. My main concern in getting insurance is for medical evacuation though so we're ok with it. (And yes, our primary does cover us overseas as well.)

[livingonthebeach]

26 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

Of course I do,, I've read the terms and conditions. Not only is it pay and get reimbursed it is also secondary to my primary insurance. My main concern in getting insurance is for medical evacuation though so we're ok with it. (And yes, our primary does cover us overseas as well.)

 

Do you mind posting what you paid for it and how long is your cruise?  That would give us a ballpark figure and help us to compare.  

[Lou33]

19 minutes ago, livingonthebeach said:

 

Do you mind posting what you paid for it and how long is your cruise?  That would give us a ballpark figure and help us to compare.  

There are websites that compare plans for you and give you quotes   insuremytripDOTcom

[Babr]

15 minutes ago, livingonthebeach said:

 

Do you mind posting what you paid for it and how long is your cruise?  That would give us a ballpark figure and help us to compare.  

The cost of third-party insurance is based on the amount insured and the ages of the insured as well as number of days.

 

What someone else paid may not really give you a ballpark figure if your age is very different from theirs or if you paid more or less for your cruise.

 

You can easily get a price by going to a website like insuremytrip and entering your specific information. You’ll get several choices from various companies, but Nationwide Essential is readily available.

[livingonthebeach]

14 minutes ago, Babr said:

The cost of third-party insurance is based on the amount insured and the ages of the insured as well as number of days.

 

What someone else paid may not really give you a ballpark figure if your age is very different from theirs or if you paid more or less for your cruise.

 

You can easily get a price by going to a website like insuremytrip and entering your specific information. You’ll get several choices from various companies, but Nationwide Essential is readily available.

 

I fully understand that all the factors you mentioned play into the price, that’s why I mentioned BALLPARK figure — just to get an idea.  I’m also aware of the insuremytrip website, however, that site doesn’t always include all the options as it has sponsors. 

[Babr]

2 minutes ago, livingonthebeach said:

 

I fully understand that all the factors you mentioned play into the price, that’s why I mentioned BALLPARK figure — just to get an idea.  I’m also aware of the insuremytrip website, however, that site doesn’t always include all the options as it has sponsors. 

Did not intend an affront, but I still contend it will not necessarily give you a ballpark figure unless your cruise is in the same type accommodation, and you are close in age, assuming you are both doing a seven-day cruise.

[livingonthebeach]

6 minutes ago, Babr said:

Did not intend an affront, but I still contend it will not necessarily give you a ballpark figure unless your cruise is in the same type accommodation, and you are close in age, assuming you are both doing a seven-day cruise.

 

True it you want to split hairs -- and it did come off as an affront.  To me, ballpark means a range -- give or take -- maybe it means something different to you. I just wanted to know if the price fell in between the normal range of the recent CV-19 policies being offered.

 

Since there are very limited cruises being offered at the moment and most cruisers right now are about in the same age range, I didn't think it was an off-the-wall question as you suggested. Have a good night. 

[livingonthebeach]

52 minutes ago, Lou33 said:

There are websites that compare plans for you and give you quotes   insuremytripDOTcom

 

Yes -- thanks for pointing this out. 

[Babr]

6 minutes ago, livingonthebeach said:

 

True it you want to split hairs -- and it did come off as an affront.  To me, ballpark means a range -- give or take -- maybe it means something different to you. I just wanted to know if the price fell in between the normal range of the recent CV-19 policies being offered.

 

Since there are very limited cruises being offered at the moment and most cruisers right now are about in the same age range, I didn't think it was an off-the-wall question as you suggested. Have a good night. 

See post #83.

[Sunshine3601]

1 hour ago, livingonthebeach said:

 

Do you mind posting what you paid for it and how long is your cruise?  That would give us a ballpark figure and help us to compare.  

If you go back a few posts, they paid $116 for 2 people (low 60 and low 50 I assume means their age.

It's for a cruise to bermuda, so probably a 5 night cruise, not sure.

[livingonthebeach]

1 minute ago, Babr said:

See post #83.

 

Ok thank you I must have missed it previously.