Best Combination For Inexpensive Insurance

[Hogladyrider]

@Jersey42...THANKS...great post with great information!

 

When I was younger I never purchased cruise insurance.  Now retired and 70 and opting for longer cruises and having "older" parents I consider insurance.

 

We have ONLY driven to ports for boarding etc so technically the only insurance coverage I have been interested in is cancellation so as not to lose all monies paid!

 

If one of us gets ill and can't cruise or if we have a death in the family etc.  We don't currently have plans to cruise over seas.  Our two longer cruises are 18 days to Hawaii and then 35 days to Hawaii and French Polynesia.  Neither of us have pre-existing conditions so I am leaning towards taking a gamble without medical coverage but open to all considerations.

 

Wondering if the cruiseline's cancellation coverage would be what we need as it is underwritten by Nationwide.  Life seems to get complicated as we get older!

[Jersey42]

12 hours ago, Hogladyrider said:

@Jersey42...THANKS...great post with great information!

 

When I was younger I never purchased cruise insurance.  Now retired and 70 and opting for longer cruises and having "older" parents I consider insurance.

 

We have ONLY driven to ports for boarding etc so technically the only insurance coverage I have been interested in is cancellation so as not to lose all monies paid!

 

If one of us gets ill and can't cruise or if we have a death in the family etc.  We don't currently have plans to cruise over seas.  Our two longer cruises are 18 days to Hawaii and then 35 days to Hawaii and French Polynesia.  Neither of us have pre-existing conditions so I am leaning towards taking a gamble without medical coverage but open to all considerations.

 

Wondering if the cruiseline's cancellation coverage would be what we need as it is underwritten by Nationwide.  Life seems to get complicated as we get older!

I am on a ship right now and I do not have everything in front of me, but here are a few things to consider.

• Many people would take the reverse approach.  Get good medical coverage and gamble about cancelation.  Medical could be a big unplanned expense.  Cancelation would only cost you what you have already planned to spend.  You may not be happy about missing a long cruise, but it would not affect you financially.
• If you don't take any prescriptions and never go to a doctor for anything other than an annual physical, you probably do not have any "pre-existing" conditions.  If not, be sure to read what the insurance policy defines as a pre-existing condition.  We sometimes have a pre-existing condition and other time do not.  How can that be?  It's all in the definition and look back period.
• If indeed you have no pre-existing conditions, what about non traveling family members?  Some cruise line policies exclude pre-existing conditions for non traveling family members.  So that "death in the family" may not be covered.
• I just noticed your signature and it looks like you are traveling on Holland America.  The good news is the last two points don't pertain to you.  I left them anyway for others who might read this.  Holland America treats all cancelations as Cancel For Any Reason with on pre-existing conditions clause.  They pay up to 90% in cash.  So if all you really want is cancelation insurance for the cruise, it is a viable approach.  In my opinion, if you have no other medical insurance that covers you out of the country, I would look for something instead of or in addition to the Holland plan.

[Hogladyrider]

@Jersey42...Thank You for taking the time to reply while you are on a ship!

 

Yes our 35 day cruise is on HAL.  Your response is exactly the kind of information I am seeking.

 

Have a great cruise!

Susan

[labonnevie]

On 5/21/2023 at 11:06 AM, ljones said:

I also have Chase Preferred and am wondering if anyone has received a benefit / reimbursement from them?  If so, how was the process since they are not an actual insurance company.

While it was trip insurance per se, we did have a rental car accident covered by our Sapphire card. The damage was $2600. They were outstanding, fast, easy paperwork. They paid everything, no questions asked, very promptly. 

[edgee]

On 5/22/2023 at 7:14 PM, jules815 said:

Yeah, I wasn't planning on it. If I'm doing my research correctly, it looks like the best plan for us now at this stage in our lives (newly retired and planning on traveling more) is an annual travel policy. More economical (not cheap) and will cover all of our travel for a year. 

Great idea except for those of us who live in one of a few states which prohibit annual travel policies..eg NY, MD.

[Hlitner]

Each person/couple should do what best fits their own needs/wants/budget and risk tolerance.  You are not only buying insurance, but peace of mind.  As far as an inexpensive way to insure, DW and I simply buy an annual GeoBlue Policy (lots of medical and evacuation coverage) and use a Chase Sapphire Reserve card (trip cancellation/interruption of up to $10,000 per person).   We have, unfortunately, had to file several claims (including a recent major claim) and collected every penny (for medical, cancellation and interruptions).

 

That being said, the Chase cancellation/interruption insurance is administered and reviewed by Eclaimsline which is apparently part of the Allianz family of companies.  Dealing with eclaimsline is quite difficult and somewhat frustrating, but they do pay claims as long as you dot you are diligent, persistent, mildly assertive, and do not give up!   

 

For us, the savings for NOT buying normal trip insurance has been huge.  We once calculated that we have saved far more than $100,000 because of all the travel insurance premiums we have NOT PAID.  I suspect the savings now is closer to $200,000 because we do travel up to 6 months a year.  We are comfortable self-insuring some risk (we have never even considered CFAR coverage) but also think that medical insurance coverage should be at least $100,000 (not the $10-$20,000 included in many trip insurance policies).  

 

We would echo one of the other comments that trip insurance does not generally provide immediate payment.  In fact, our most recent claims (totally over $20,000) took over 5 months to get settled and paid.  Folks need to cover their own related bills during that period of time!   That being said, Geoblue does have a network of hospitals/physicians around the world who do accept "assignment" which means you do not need to pay up front.  However, the odds are that you will likely find yourself dealing with hospitals and physicians who are not part of this network.  In the case of our foreign medical claims (on cruise ships, in Japan, and in Mexico) we had to pay all the medical bills and later get reimbursed by insurance.

 

Hank