Cancellation Protedtion Plan

[seaworthy1]

New to HAL. I have read HAL's description of their standard and premium plans.  My question is " has anyone had the misfortune to use either plan, and did it deliver as promised"?  We are booked, but before final payment, and are considering buying one of these options.

[kazu]

14 minutes ago, seaworthy1 said:

New to HAL. I have read HAL's description of their standard and premium plans.  My question is " has anyone had the misfortune to use either plan, and did it deliver as promised"?  We are booked, but before final payment, and are considering buying one of these options.

 

My friend has used it for cancellation and it was paid promptly.

 

I had to use it once for cancellation and it was paid very fast.

 

I have had to use it sadly for the other components.  My travel portion for days lost was paid in about 30 days.  My medical component is pending as they required me to apply to my provincial plan which takes time.

 

the cancellation component is paid very quickly.  It’s the main reason I get it.

 

[TiogaCruiser]

44 minutes ago, seaworthy1 said:

New to HAL. I have read HAL's description of their standard and premium plans.  My question is " has anyone had the misfortune to use either plan, and did it deliver as promised"?  We are booked, but before final payment, and are considering buying one of these options.

I’ve had that experience twice. Both were with the Platinum plan. The first time I used it was 2017 when a family member became ill and needed cardiac surgery 4 days before I was to leave. I received all the fully refundables (shorex, dining) back on my credit card with in 2 days. The refund for 90% of the cruise, flights and pre-cruise tour was back on my credit card by the beginning of the next week (like 5 days).  
 

The second time I used it was at the start of Covid. I was scheduled to board Maasdam the following week, travel advisories had been issued for several days, some other lines had announced they were going to pause for a few weeks. (CCL and HAL were hell- bent on cruising anyway and even offered us OBC to go.). I cancelled under Platinum 4 hours before the Pause was announced. I got refunded about 6 months later. I totally understand and remember well how challenging that time was, and it has not stopped me from buying platinum CPP. 
 

So a few things to weigh- CPP Platinum carries very little medical coverage. I personally don’t need it as my employer’s insurance covers overseas. I do buy an evacuation policy.
 

Platinum is roughly 10% of your CRUISE only fare.

However, in the first case it also covered my flights and the expensive multi day tour to Iguazu as I had purchased all from HAL. So my “loss” was ~20% of the CRUISE portion. (Platinum cost ~ 10% plus the 10% remaining after the 90% refund.)

 

Had I purchased private CAR insurance in the first case, the cost would have been based on the cruise, flights, and tour. ( I just listed them in cost ascending order-I had gotten a screaming deal on the cruise.). The return for a CAR cancellation would have been 50-75%. (So out 50-25% + cost of insurance. As it turned out, I would have gotten a full refund (and been only out the cost of the insurance) as the ill nuclear family member qualified as covered by the “cancel for medical reason” for most insurances. (I might have had a fight on my hands though in the “pre-existing” category.)

 

Be aware of what you are buying- like many things trip insurance is not one size fits all. I buy CPP platinum when it makes sense, and CAR when that is best based on circumstances and my risk tolerance.

Edited August 23, 2023 by TiogaCruiser

[horseymike]

We had an HAL cruise booked years ago , we decided to purchase the Platinum Protection Plan from HAL. At the time I was unemployed, prior to departure of the cruise I was able to secure a job. Needless to say we cancelled our cruise.

HAL paid back 90 % of the cruise fare in short order with no problem.

[Torquer]

Also consider buying insurance from other companies than HAL.  You are very likely to find you can get better coverage for cheaper.  There is lots of discussion on private insurance companies and comparison to the cruise lines here:  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/499-cruisetravel-insurance/

[kazu]

20 minutes ago, Torquer said:

Also consider buying insurance from other companies than HAL.  You are very likely to find you can get better coverage for cheaper.  There is lots of discussion on private insurance companies and comparison to the cruise lines here:  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/499-cruisetravel-insurance/

 

I will just add - this was very true for me and I didn’t use HAL’s cancellation insurance for many years - but as we get older, it can be a good deal - especially since it is cancel for any reason.  A lot of insurance companies have caveats.  

I’m not raving about HAL’s medical - just the cancellation benefit - not sure what the threshold is but here in Canada, it skyrockets when you get past a certain age.

HAL’s cancellation is easy and no tricks. And can be cheaper than a policy that limits certain things or doesn’t cover because “your Mum or dog is sick”.  some of us would cancel for that reason and a lot of insurance companies wouldn’t cover.

As our parents, pets and we get older, it can make sense IMO.

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

I buy the HAL Platinum Protection plan only for the "cancel for any reason" not for the medical which as others have said is very low. I have used it several times and have been reimbursed promptly for the 90% of cruise fare- the most recent the 90% was on my credit card within 3 days. The excursions and meals bought took about a week.