Viking Insurance

[flare3192]

there are some medical only coverage policies. i have not used it but GEO Blue comes to mind and I have read good things about it. It should be under $500 for two of you.  If I remember correctly you can purchase it as an annual policy or for your trip. I think if for the trip no more than 6 months out. However I think it is secondary insurance which means you would have to use other insurance first. PLEASE check everything I wrote as it has been a while since I looked at it. Also Steve at the insurance store has medical only plans and I think he may sell this also. He is a great source for information

[Babr]

On 10/18/2022 at 2:12 PM, rmalbers said:

I 'thought' a big reason to go with viking is because their insurance had 'cancel for any reason', I thought that's why it cost more.  Is that not correct? 

CFAR with cruise-line sponsored insurance has no impact on the cost because it is not insurance. It is an incentive provided by the cruise line. You are reimbursed in future cruise credits not cash, which costs them little except for administration. They are simply giving you a voucher for your money which they already have and will retain until you use the voucher. If you don’t use it, you lose the money.

 

It is true that CFAR in third-party policies requires an additional premium, and its purchase is time-sensitive. In that case, you are reimbursed in cash but at a reduced rate - usually 75%.

 

So, yes, some people do buy cruise-line sponsored insurance to get CFAR because it is less expensive that way - not more. If there is a difference in cost, it is for other reasons. Third-party policies consider age, amount insured, length of trip, and levels of coverage.

[Insanityx4]

We just booked a cruise on the Polaris and about $16,000 of the cost was paid for in FCC vouchers. Viking Insurance WILL NOT cover the vouchers even though they were for a cancelled by Viking, paid in full cruise, just the additional amount to be paid for the trip, in our case about $9,000. We were able to get full coverage for the entire cost of the cruise through Travel Insured International for about the same price as Viking would charge if we had not used vouchers. It is very disappointing that Viking insurance will only cover the additional monies paid. If we had not purchased the additional insurance through TII our $16,000 would not be covered. Terrible customer service by Viking.

[Steerpike58]

We recently took our first cruise on Viking and insured with the Tripmate.  On the day of travel, instead of going to the airport, my partner broke her tooth and had to have emergency oral surgery to remove the tooth, causing us to miss the flight. However, we were able to get a flight the next day (through Viking), and still join the ship in Venice as it was there for 2 days (so we just missed 1 day of the cruise). 

 

The flights cost us an extra $1500 each, as they were absolutely last-minute.  I'm in the process now of filing a claim with TripMate, and there doesn't seem to be an obvious category for our situation. The choices are: Trip Cancellation, Trip Interruption, Trip Delay, Missed Connection. I first tried 'Trip Interruption', but the reason codes didn't seem to match our situation (though 'Post-Departure - Sickness' may apply), and the 'claims' section only allowed for 'medical expense' and various baggage issues.   I ended up choosing 'Trip Delay', but the 'claims' section still only allowed for 'medical expense' and the various baggage issues; no mention of airfares. So I have no clue how this claim is going to proceed - nowhere to enter the new flight details, the cost, etc. I'll be working on this over the next few days and will report on progress.  

 

If this would be better as a new post, I'll do so. 

[LindaS272]

3 hours ago, Steerpike58 said:

We recently took our first cruise on Viking and insured with the Tripmate.  On the day of travel, instead of going to the airport, my partner broke her tooth and had to have emergency oral surgery to remove the tooth, causing us to miss the flight. However, we were able to get a flight the next day (through Viking), and still join the ship in Venice as it was there for 2 days (so we just missed 1 day of the cruise). 

 

The flights cost us an extra $1500 each, as they were absolutely last-minute.  I'm in the process now of filing a claim with TripMate, and there doesn't seem to be an obvious category for our situation. The choices are: Trip Cancellation, Trip Interruption, Trip Delay, Missed Connection. I first tried 'Trip Interruption', but the reason codes didn't seem to match our situation (though 'Post-Departure - Sickness' may apply), and the 'claims' section only allowed for 'medical expense' and various baggage issues.   I ended up choosing 'Trip Delay', but the 'claims' section still only allowed for 'medical expense' and the various baggage issues; no mention of airfares. So I have no clue how this claim is going to proceed - nowhere to enter the new flight details, the cost, etc. I'll be working on this over the next few days and will report on progress.  

 

If this would be better as a new post, I'll do so. 

Have you called Tripmate?

[Babr]

3 hours ago, Steerpike58 said:

We recently took our first cruise on Viking and insured with the Tripmate.  On the day of travel, instead of going to the airport, my partner broke her tooth and had to have emergency oral surgery to remove the tooth, causing us to miss the flight. However, we were able to get a flight the next day (through Viking), and still join the ship in Venice as it was there for 2 days (so we just missed 1 day of the cruise). 

 

The flights cost us an extra $1500 each, as they were absolutely last-minute.  I'm in the process now of filing a claim with TripMate, and there doesn't seem to be an obvious category for our situation. The choices are: Trip Cancellation, Trip Interruption, Trip Delay, Missed Connection. I first tried 'Trip Interruption', but the reason codes didn't seem to match our situation (though 'Post-Departure - Sickness' may apply), and the 'claims' section only allowed for 'medical expense' and various baggage issues.   I ended up choosing 'Trip Delay', but the 'claims' section still only allowed for 'medical expense' and the various baggage issues; no mention of airfares. So I have no clue how this claim is going to proceed - nowhere to enter the new flight details, the cost, etc. I'll be working on this over the next few days and will report on progress.  

 

If this would be better as a new post, I'll do so. 

 

https://www.tripmate.com/plan/print_certificate/59EAE8E6-508C-4A82-BDFA-A48D32AF65A0
 

You probably have a copy of the policy, but I am putting a link here for quick reference.

 

I think your claim comes under Trip Interruption. Scroll down to that section of the policy (page 16 of 44).  This provision reimburses you for the unused portion of the trip (missed day in Venice) and transportation to catch up to your trip if you must leave after your scheduled departure date because of a covered reason (injury/surgery).

[Steerpike58]

1 minute ago, LindaS272 said:

Have you called Tripmate?

Yes, I called them from the airport on day 1, but they were very unhelpful, simply directing me to 'travelclaimsonline.com' .  I assumed that the online form would be somewhat appropriate. Now that I've visited that site, and seen how inappropriate the 'form' appears, relative to my circumstances, I'm more concerned.  I will try calling them again tomorrow but I wanted to get input from others. This is our first cruise and first encounter with travel insurance of any kind. 

[LindaS272]

4 minutes ago, Steerpike58 said:

Yes, I called them from the airport on day 1, but they were very unhelpful, simply directing me to 'travelclaimsonline.com' .  I assumed that the online form would be somewhat appropriate. Now that I've visited that site, and seen how inappropriate the 'form' appears, relative to my circumstances, I'm more concerned.  I will try calling them again tomorrow but I wanted to get input from others. This is our first cruise and first encounter with travel insurance of any kind. 

We’ve only had Tripmate once and did not have to use it. It’s unfortunate that they have such lousy customer service. We now use other insurance with comprehensive and CFAR coverage—no vouchers. Others on various recent threads extoll Steve at the trip insurance store. For future reference, here’s a link to a Cruise Critic board two years ago where Steve was answering questions about trip insurance:

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

[Babr]

28 minutes ago, Steerpike58 said:

Yes, I called them from the airport on day 1, but they were very unhelpful, simply directing me to 'travelclaimsonline.com' .  I assumed that the online form would be somewhat appropriate. Now that I've visited that site, and seen how inappropriate the 'form' appears, relative to my circumstances, I'm more concerned.  I will try calling them again tomorrow but I wanted to get input from others. This is our first cruise and first encounter with travel insurance of any kind. 

 

16 minutes ago, LindaS272 said:

We’ve only had Tripmate once and did not have to use it. It’s unfortunate that they have such lousy customer service. We now use other insurance with comprehensive and CFAR coverage—no vouchers. Others on various recent threads extoll Steve at the trip insurance store. For future reference, here’s a link to a Cruise Critic board two years ago where Steve was answering questions about trip insurance:

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

 

Yes, Steve and his associates are an excellent resource for helping to find the right policy and, in situations like this, assisting in filing a claim.

 

In the meantime, file this claim under Trip Interruption according to provisions in the policy. Your policy was in effect on the Scheduled Departure date, but you were prevented from leaving as scheduled because of an injury. You are entitled to recover losses for unused part of the trip, transportation to join the trip, and excess medical expense not covered by your primary medical insurance.

Edited October 24, 2022 by Babr

[Steerpike58]

 

On 10/23/2022 at 6:46 PM, Babr said:

 

https://www.tripmate.com/plan/print_certificate/59EAE8E6-508C-4A82-BDFA-A48D32AF65A0
 

You probably have a copy of the policy, but I am putting a link here for quick reference.

 

I think your claim comes under Trip Interruption. Scroll down to that section of the policy (page 16 of 44).  This provision reimburses you for the unused portion of the trip (missed day in Venice) and transportation to catch up to your trip if you must leave after your scheduled departure date because of a covered reason (injury/surgery).

Thanks for the link.  Interestingly, my document is quite different from the one available at 'your' link, even though they both reference plan #GR425V. I've spent some time today comparing 'your' plan to 'my' plan documents, and I think they say pretty much the same thing, just differently structured. 'your' doc is 47 pages long, 'mine' is only 20. 'my' doc is structured as a foldable 3-columns-per-page affair, while 'yours' is more straight-forward.  I suspect the difference is, I chose 'California' as my state; you probably chose a different one. 

 

(For reference, I started at tripmate.com/wpGR425V , then clicked the button 'yes' for 'have you already purchased ...', and then chose California as my state, then clicked on 'View/Print', at which point I got a link as follows: https://www.tripmate.com/plan/print_certificate/E16CEBCA-C1EB-4615-A925-F877732D9030

which gave me 'my' version of the policy.  Note that the url above is somewhat random - I went through the above steps several times in a row, and got a different url each time). 

 

So on 'my' version of the doc (pdf file page 14, pages labeled as 31 and 32), I see:

 

TRIP INTERRUPTION BENEFIT
If your arrival on your Trip is delayed beyond your
Scheduled Departure Date, or if you are unable to continue
the Trip due to one of the unforeseeable Covered Events
listed below that occur during your Trip dates to you or
your Traveling Companion, we will reimburse you for
the unused, non-refundable land or water arrangements

prepaid to the Travel Supplier prior to departing on your
Trip, less any refunds paid or payable, plus one of the
following:
a. Additional transportation expenses incurred to
reach your scheduled destination if your departure
is delayed and you leave after the Scheduled
Departure Date and time;

…

and later ...

 

Covered Events:
1. The Sickness, Injury or death of you, your Family
Member, your Service Animal or your Traveling
Companion. The Sickness or Injury must first
commence while your Trip Interruption coverage
is in effect under the Policy, must require the in-person

treatment by a Physician, and must be so
disabling in the written opinion of a Physician as to
prevent you from taking your Trip (either because
your condition prevents your travel, or because
your Family Member, Traveling Companion or your
Service Animal requires your care);

...

So - I think we are covered! 

 

It never occurred to me to attempt to recover for the one missed day ... there's no specific 'per-day' price allocated, but I guess one could claim 1/14th of the total cruise rate. 

 

Today we had to revisit the Oral Surgeon for a follow-up, and I got a letter from him stating that our situation represented an immediate need, so that part is covered.  

 

The only weird part now is, Viking seem unable to give me anything resembling a simple receipt for the plane ticket they got us; they have given me a copy of a flight schedule for the actual flight we took (flight number, departure time, etc) but without our names attached, and then a screen shot of a 'charge record' that shows our names, credit card numbers, and amounts ... but with no reference to the flight.  Hopefully this will be sufficient to satisfy TripMate! 

 

 

Edited October 25, 2022 by Steerpike58

[Babr]

Yes, there are differences in policies depending on state laws that govern them, but it does appear that the Trip Interruption provision still applies. 

 

I hope Viking can provide you with the necessary documentation so that the process goes well from here on. Calculate a per diem cost for the cruise day missed and any pre-cruise arrangements made by Viking such as a hotel stay.

[zalusky]

We had Tripmate and a Viking cruise to the Midnight Sun this last July.  Unfortunately we both got Covid a week before the cruise and had to cancel.   We had plenty of documentation from my wife’s doctors.

 

Tripmate took about 2 months to come through with the cash.  There were a number of steps we had to do starting with uploading documents showing the cancelled cruise and cancellation fees followed by doctors documentation saying you cannot cruise due to a positive diagnosis.

 

After that it took about 5 weeks to even get looked at and then finally at some point it was approved.  Then it had to go to accounting to verify the amount relative to what you paid, and were penalized.

Finally it got sent to payments.

[oskidunker]

I hope people who claim Viking will get you on the ship, if you buy air through them, at the next port read this. Evidently the original poster was not given that option.

[CurlerRob]

8 hours ago, oskidunker said:

I hope people who claim Viking will get you on the ship, if you buy air through them, at the next port read this. Evidently the original poster was not given that option.

Wrong thread?? 🍺🥌

[oskidunker]

On 3/2/2022 at 6:22 AM, floinnc said:

Several years ago we booked a Viking cruise and insured it with TripMate. The flight (arranged by Viking) was delayed and we missed the cruise. It took 3 months of daily calls to the insurance company, Viking and CEO's of both companies to finally get the refund we were owed. Never again with TripMate. Go with a third party-just my personal opinion.

Did viking not offer to get you on the cruise at the next port? Many swear by booking  cruise line air as a guarantee they wont miss the cruise due to air delay. 

[floinnc]

3 hours ago, oskidunker said:

Did viking not offer to get you on the cruise at the next port? Many swear by booking  cruise line air as a guarantee they wont miss the cruise due to air delay. 

This was a cruise to Cuba several years ago. There were 17 of us on the delayed flight to Miami. Viking was extremely accommodating and did offer to bus us to Key West the next AM. We were all ready to go but the bad weather cancelled that port so they offered to fly us to Havana the next day. That would have reduced our first Viking experience from 7 days to 4 and we opted to fly home. Viking was wonderful and I have no complaints about them. The problem was the insurance company (TripMate) which took months of phone calls to get our refund.

[oskidunker]

So ai am guessing you flew in the same day as the cruise?

[Steerpike58]

On 10/27/2022 at 11:53 PM, zalusky said:

We had Tripmate and a Viking cruise to the Midnight Sun this last July.  Unfortunately we both got Covid a week before the cruise and had to cancel.   We had plenty of documentation from my wife’s doctors.

 

Tripmate took about 2 months to come through with the cash ...

So, forgive my ignorance on these matters - why wasn't this treated as a 'cancel for any reason' claim?  Is 'cancel for any reason' (where you get vouchers only for a future trip) really a special case, maybe a case of 'cancel for no good reason'? That is - if you have a 'good reason', like catching Covid, you can claim for a full refund, but if you cancel for an arbitrary reason ('changed my mind'), then you fall back to the 'cancel for any reason' situation, and get vouchers only? 

[mort&fran]

It’s a long story. One caveat – I always read the terms/requirements and keep hard copies of all bills and receipts so I’m prepared when/if we have to file a claim.

 

I/we never bought travel insurance until approx 10 years ago when my mother-in-law was quite ill and we thought we’d have to cut the cruise short. As it turned out she died before the cruise, but I had a heart attack off the coast of Argentina. I had purchased the insurance from TraveGuard. They covered - the cost of the medical treatment on the ship that saved my life; the week I had to stay in the IC “unit” at a clinic in a small town in southern Argentina (because all flights had been cancelled due to volcanic eruption in Chile); business-class air (per doctor’s order) for my wife and me to Buenos Aires; cardiac surgery plus 5 days recuperation in Buenos Aires (they had a long conversation with the doctor to confirm that I really could not travel back home); business-class air for my wife and me from Buenos Aires home; phone call costs. It was 10 years ago so I do not recall how long it took to get reimbursed, but I do not recall it’s being unreasonably long.

 

Since then we had purchased travel insurance for all of our cruises from TravelGuard and have had a number of claims (never for the reason we had purchased the insurance). And the requirements imposed and times required to receive the reimbursements we felt were reasonable.

 

In May this year we took a combination bus tour and Viking cruise. We have been happy with Viking, so this time I checked their travel insurance (TripMate). The coverage was comparable to TravelGuard’s, but the premium was significantly less (in part, at least, because TripMate did not factor in the cost of the bus tour). Well, we had a claim. I filed the claim forms on 6/3 and additional info 7/7. On 9/10 we received partial payment. I called TripMate 9/12 and learned that they require photos of the actual bills/charges; they do NOT accept credit card statements as proof; so I uploaded the hard copies on 9/12. (I had missed that. I do not recall TravelGuard’s having that requirement). Nothing since; their web site shows that payment has been “in process” since 10/11 (today is 10/29)…

[zalusky]

1 hour ago, Steerpike58 said:

So, forgive my ignorance on these matters - why wasn't this treated as a 'cancel for any reason' claim?  Is 'cancel for any reason' (where you get vouchers only for a future trip) really a special case, maybe a case of 'cancel for no good reason'? That is - if you have a 'good reason', like catching Covid, you can claim for a full refund, but if you cancel for an arbitrary reason ('changed my mind'), then you fall back to the 'cancel for any reason' situation, and get vouchers only? 

We were in the 100% penalty period.

 

So You have three choices:

Accept a risk free voucher Good for two years but is not insurance if you insure with with Tripmate 

 

Cancel for a non covered reason and accept a voucher Good for 12 months which we did not want to deal with.

 

Cancel for a covered Tripmate reason which Covid is one of and get your money back.

 

 

[zalusky]

2 hours ago, Steerpike58 said:

So, forgive my ignorance on these matters - why wasn't this treated as a 'cancel for any reason' claim?  Is 'cancel for any reason' (where you get vouchers only for a future trip) really a special case, maybe a case of 'cancel for no good reason'? That is - if you have a 'good reason', like catching Covid, you can claim for a full refund, but if you cancel for an arbitrary reason ('changed my mind'), then you fall back to the 'cancel for any reason' situation, and get vouchers only? 

Just to reiterate.I don’t like vouchers and will avoid if at all possible.  Money is always better in my hand.  I have no idea what my situation will be like and being tied to a use or lose it window is not acceptable.  We may have other events that pop up whether they are medical or family/friend related that can make things dicey.

 

Also vouchers are not splittable so if you want to go on something smaller you lose the excess.

 

Lastly itineraries and friends can drive choices of the next cruise meaning they might be with a different cruise line.  So money always wins where possible.

[Babr]

9 hours ago, Steerpike58 said:

So, forgive my ignorance on these matters - why wasn't this treated as a 'cancel for any reason' claim?  Is 'cancel for any reason' (where you get vouchers only for a future trip) really a special case, maybe a case of 'cancel for no good reason'? That is - if you have a 'good reason', like catching Covid, you can claim for a full refund, but if you cancel for an arbitrary reason ('changed my mind'), then you fall back to the 'cancel for any reason' situation, and get vouchers only? 

That’s it. Good reason (defined in policy) = cash reimbursement. Arbitrary reason (anything else) = FCC.

 

Apparently Viking offers another option with the risk-free voucher; but, in general, CFAR covers cancellation for any reason other than those defined in the policy. These days COVID is treated as any other illness. With proper documentation such as test results and a doctor’s advice not to travel, it qualifies as a covered reason.

 

Holland America is the only cruise line policy that is truly CFAR. All cancellations are treated the same regardless of the reason. Reimbursement is 90% cash for the Platinum, 80% for Standard.

 

Third-party policies offer it for an additional premium but reimburse at a much lower level - 50% to 75%.

[Steerpike58]

13 hours ago, zalusky said:

We were in the 100% penalty period.

 

So You have three choices:

Accept a risk free voucher Good for two years but is not insurance if you insure with with Tripmate 

 

Cancel for a non covered reason and accept a voucher Good for 12 months which we did not want to deal with.

 

Cancel for a covered Tripmate reason which Covid is one of and get your money back.

 

 

The preference for cash is obvious (as mentioned in your other post).  But regarding the three choices above, can you elaborate on the difference between the first two choices? They both result in vouchers, but the first option lasts for two years, while the second lasts only for 1 year. The second is pretty  obvious - cancel for a non-covered reason - but the first ... under what circumstances will Viking offer you a 'risk free voucher good for 2 years' ? 

 

Even though the 'CFAR' option is not really insurance, and doesn't cost Viking much (assuming they can re-sell your cabin, which seems a good bet given the demand I'm seeing!), do they only offer it IF you purchase the TripMate insurance? That is - if you go without any insurance, OR, choose a 3rd party insurance option, they don't offer the 'CFAR with vouchers' option? 

 

Again, I apologize for my ignorance ... insurance has always been a blind spot for me!  I've traveled a lot in my life and never even given it a thought. Covid finally got me worried enough to consider it, but I have a lot of catching up to do! 

[zalusky]

1 hour ago, Steerpike58 said:

The preference for cash is obvious (as mentioned in your other post).  But regarding the three choices above, can you elaborate on the difference between the first two choices? They both result in vouchers, but the first option lasts for two years, while the second lasts only for 1 year. The second is pretty  obvious - cancel for a non-covered reason - but the first ... under what circumstances will Viking offer you a 'risk free voucher good for 2 years' ? 

 

Even though the 'CFAR' option is not really insurance, and doesn't cost Viking much (assuming they can re-sell your cabin, which seems a good bet given the demand I'm seeing!), do they only offer it IF you purchase the TripMate insurance? That is - if you go without any insurance, OR, choose a 3rd party insurance option, they don't offer the 'CFAR with vouchers' option? 

 

Again, I apologize for my ignorance ... insurance has always been a blind spot for me!  I've traveled a lot in my life and never even given it a thought. Covid finally got me worried enough to consider it, but I have a lot of catching up to do! 

During the height of Covid,  Viking added a Risk Free Guarantee where you would get a voucher for the cost of money paid that you gave you up to 2 years before you had to apply it.  There were two iterations of this guarantee.  The first iteration allowed you to cancel up to the day before and the subsequent iteration you had to cancel up to 2 weeks before.  You could do this for any reason because obviously bookings were falling through the floor.

 

This Risk Free Guarantee version 1 and version 2 only applied to booking made between certain dates.  The version 2 did not apply for bookings made after June 30 2022.  So even though we are now after those dates if you have one of those bookings it still applies.

 

The other problem with the Risk Free Guarantee Voucher was it was not splittable.  You could not apply part of it to 1 cruise and the remainder to another.  So you had to basically apply to an equal or more expensive cruise.  You also could not apply (I think) it to the down payment of the replacement cruise.

 

The problem with the Risk Free Guarantee Voucher is it was not insurable so if you booked a replacement cruise using the voucher and purchased Tripmate they would not pay for the voucher if you had to cancel.  Other insurance programs may have but not Tripmate.

 

Tripmate which is insurance offered by Viking has a CFAR option which gives you a voucher but has the rule that you have to use the voucher within 12 months.

 

Now that Viking now longer offers the Risk Free Guarantee on new bookings you only have the Tripmate   CFAR option (unless you purchase other insurance) but Viking themselves does not offer anything other than their standard cancellation penalty schedule.

 

 

Edited October 30, 2022 by zalusky

[Steerpike58]

1 hour ago, zalusky said:

Now that Viking now longer offers the Risk Free Guarantee on new bookings you only have the Tripmate   CFAR option (unless you purchase other insurance) but Viking themselves does not offer anything other than their standard cancellation penalty schedule.

So even though 'CFAR' is not technically "insurance", and doesn't cost 'TripMate' anything if you do or do not claim it, it's still only available if you buy the TripMate insurance? So this is some sort of 'incentive' that Viking dangles in order to get you to buy the TripMate insurance?  It seems an odd arrangement!