Can you change your Insurance???

[ocean.queen]

We are not happy with the insurance company our TA bought for us for our cruise in '09. I asked her to change it to the company we have had for all our previous bookings with her...but she said that insurance is non-refundable. I thought that was just AFTER final payment?????

[Crown Prince]

You are right. ;)

Insurance is cancellable Before Final Payment. After final payment, too bad - you bought it.

Tell her to cancel Princess Travel Care, if you want, and credit your credit card. :D

Next time, I would try a different T.A. She does not know the Princess Product.

[ocean.queen]

Thank you!! I have had so much trouble with this TA...I am on a search for a new one. Previous agent (same agency) always bought us Global Alert or MH Ross...very happy with their coverage. This new TA bought TravelGuard this time...have no idea why. I did some checking and the coverage is not near as good. Thanks for your help...I shall call her tomorrow!

[Coral]

Princess insurance is refundable (before final payment) but 3rd party insurance may not be. There is often a certain time that people can view the insurance after purchasing and receive a refund but if it has been more then a few weeks, it probably is not refundable. Each insurance company can be different.

 

I would either check with the agent or call the insurance company direct. I wouldn't count on it being refundable.

[zaandam_2]

travegaurd gives a 'freelook' period, during which time the policy may be cancelled. i believe it is 10 days, after which the policy cannot be cancelled. each company is different and will have its policy on cancellation as part of the fine print.

[Toto2Kansas]

Princess insurance is refundable (before final payment) but 3rd party insurance may not be. There is often a certain time that people can view the insurance after purchasing and receive a refund but if it has been more then a few weeks, it probably is not refundable. Each insurance company can be different.

 

I would either check with the agent or call the insurance company direct. I wouldn't count on it being refundable.

 

I totally agree with Coral on this one. 3rd party insurance, unless one with the 'free look' period attaced, usually will not be refunded after that timeframe. I would definitely be looking for a new TA if she/he purchased this for you without your knowledge or permission. But, even if you switch agents, there is a good chance you are stuck with the insurance she/he purchased for you. Sorry!

[ocean.queen]

Thank you all...I understand better but I don't feel better. I do believe that I should have been told that my insurance was being purchased from a new co other than the one for my previous booking just 3 months before. The search continues.........

[willysgrandma]

Third party insurance can't be cancelled once it's bought unless it is one of the rare companies that has a period that they allow it.

 

What is the difference between the old company and this one in regards to the coverage?

[Samcorl]

Thank you all...I understand better but I don't feel better. I do believe that I should have been told that my insurance was being purchased from a new co other than the one for my previous booking just 3 months before. The search continues.........

 

Both TravelGuard and Access America are excellent trip insurance companies, and the coverage they offer is quite broad. Have only heard positive comments from folks who had to use their insurance from either company. However, it certainly should have been explained to you prior to the insurance being purchased. Sam

[ocean.queen]

TA got back to me today with some advantages of TG vs GA. They are good extras but I would like to compare MHRoss, also, since that is what the previous TA always recommended for us to purchase. I tried to dig deeper into the policies to find these differences but it's tough...these little tidbits are buried. Such as TG has a 24hr emergency phone# and GA only accepts calls till 5:00pm, etc. TG's medical and baggage coverage is lower so I need to find the one that best suites our needs before our next booking. TA said GA only covers you when you reach your destination where TG covers you when you leave home...I think this is incorrect...need to check on it...this is different info that I got from previous TA and I read others to commence at 12:01 on the day the policy begins...no mention as to where you are??

 

BTW...she said she switched us to TG because others were asking for it...gee thanks!

[Plant]

We've bought TravelGuard several times (thankfully, never had to use it :) ) and it covered us from the time we left the house until we returned. We thought their luggage, medical and emergency evacuation coverage was enough for us.

[Coral]

oceanqueen - Even within a specific company such as TravelGuard, there are probably dozens if not hundreds of different policies. It is entirely possible for one TG policy to have something and another to not have it. So read everything carefully.

 

My agent sells Access America - one of her polices is very unique to just her specific agency. If I go to AA's home page, this specific policy can not be purchased.

 

Just wanted to let you know if you are searching for things on the web - it may be better to get the paperwork from your agent concerning each policy.

[cruiseco]

travegaurd gives a 'freelook' period, during which time the policy may be cancelled. i believe it is 10 days, after which the policy cannot be cancelled. each company is different and will have its policy on cancellation as part of the fine print.

 

Travel Guard is actually pretty good about their refund policy. Even though the policy states that the premium is non-refundable after 10 days, I've seen them many times go ahead with a refund for customer service reasons.

 

You'll need to write a letter to fax in stating that you want to cancel and get a refund of the premium (the $5 or $6 processing fee is never refunded) and that no claims will be made against the policy. The TA will also have to submit a letter agreeing to the cancellation because Travel Guard will ask for their commission back.

[Cruise Dreams]

I purchased travel insurance through the online discount agency, when I booked my cruise last week. The policy begins and ends with the cruise dates, but not the day before---when we're flying into the port city. Would it be possible to have this day tacked on to the policy? Or would we have to purchase a separate policy to cover that one day?

 

I've tried getting my travel agent to respond to my phone calls since booking the cruise, but haven't had any luck.....that's a whole other story. I have two days left before final payment is due, so I'm getting a little anxious.

[Coral]

I purchased travel insurance through the online discount agency, when I booked my cruise last week. The policy begins and ends with the cruise dates, but not the day before---when we're flying into the port city. Would it be possible to have this day tacked on to the policy? Or would we have to purchase a separate policy to cover that one day?

 

If you booked it through 3rd party - yes, usually not a problem. Contact the insurance company directly.

 

If you booked the insurance through the cruise line (Princess Love Boat care), unless your air is with Princess, no. Though you could probably add another policy on (3rd party) to cover this.

[cindep]

Thank you for pointing out the dates associated with the policy. I just ''assumed'' it would cover the trip regardless of the dates. Guess I need to get with the insurance company or agent to get my dates changed as we are actually leaving a day ahead of time as well.

 

Ya'll are AWESOME in your help!!!

[Tucker in Texas]

If you go to insuremytrip, you can compare policies "side by side" to see what the differences are between policies. Travel Guard does give you a 10-day "free look". I assume the clock starts" ticking" when you receive the policy in the mail because I just received my policy to find a big mistake--the policy was for $3K coverage for each of us rather than $3K for both of us--doubling the price. The policy said to check it for mistakes and if there were any to call them. I decided to let my TA handle it because they would be less likely to stick it to her and future business than they would for an individual. She said it would be no problem to adjust it Monday morning.

 

Before I call my TA, I go to insuremytrip for a quote. I start out with the "real" dates I need it and the "real" amount I need. I then push the coverage up $200 at a time until it changes the rates higher. For this particular cruise (a 15-day Trans-Atlantic from Barcelona to Galveston), I doubt my exposure will exceed $2,500 but I could get $3K worth for the same amount of money as $2,500. I then move the departure/return date a day or two earlier/later to see if that will raise the rates. It never has so I tack those dates on. Since we always buy as soon as we deposit to get pre-existing coverage, there are unknowns like what the air fare will be or the hotel will be, although most of the time you can cancel a hotel room up to 24-48 hours ahead of time and not be charged I still want it covered. So you have to factor those in. As it turned out, I got my air from England to Barcelona for about half of what I expected to pay based on checking out Orbitz beforehand to find out what the going rate was to figure out how much insurance I needed. (Air to England will be frequent flyer miles). Southwest doesn't publish airfare until about six months before you are flying so you have to work with what they are charging now and add $50 or so to be on the safe side. I figure hotels at $150 a night to be on the safe side.

 

Ironically, the only time I collected on insurance was not for a reason I bought it--the ship blew up! It was the Norway that had the boiler explosion. While NCL refunded my deposit, I already had non-refundable air purchased. I can't remember who the carrier was but all I had to do was give them a confirmation of my air cancellation and the money was refunded. If I was a dishonest person, I could have rebooked the air for a change fee which was back then $25 up to a year but then I have to look at myself in the mirror every morning (lol).

 

Tucker in Texas

[drpack]

For this reason I always wait until just before my final deposit. Then I go with one of the companies that still offers pre-existing if purchased before final payment is made.

 

Another great site were you can compare hundreds of travel insurance plans from the top providers at http://www.squaremouth.com .

[ocean.queen]

drpack...thanks so much for the great website. Cleared up a lot of questions. My phone call this morning to tripinsurance.com cleared up quite a bit, also.

 

I was digging deep into the policies all Sat...very confusing. In April TA used tripinsurance.com and got us MH Ross...I got a brochure that states it is the Enhanced Plan. The brochure refers you to travelproservices.com for explanation of benefits...(why? "because they have a clear explanation" :rolleyes: ) Travelproservices.com explains the MH Ross Extended & Basic Plans but price the MH Ross Enhanced Plan??? ...Extended is incorrect...It should say Enhance...there is no MHRoss Extended Plan. I think my TA copied & pasted from that page so her information is probably, also, incorrect (can't get ahold of her)...she lists it as Global Alert...Extended?? (Global Alerts comparable plan is called "Preferred"). Agent this morning said they replaced Global Alert in March with MH Ross Enhanced & Basic hence why previous TA got GA last year and new TA got MHR in April.

 

I also found out that the features TA said Travelguard had that MHR didn't are incorrect...there is a 24hr emergency #...there is coverage for natural disasters...you are covered from 12:01 of the effective date on the policy not where you are. And yes...Travel Guard is refundable with letters from customer & agent.

 

Thanks for all your help!! Buyer beware...do your research.