Who does insurance????Why??? What kind???

[firstyearteacher]

This is the first time cruising with our DD (3), I feel if I should get travel insurance. I don't remember in the past if I have gotten it or not. With that being said what is the best insurance to get. I went to insuremytripdotcom but there are so many to choose from with such a wide range of prices, i don't want to overinsure, but I want it to be worth what I am paying... Any help would be appreciated.

I just booked the cruise last night and we are leaving in 30 days....

[cruiser429]

I also use insuremytrip.com

I usually check off the 3 or 4 lowest price insurance policies and then click on compare. I've found they are usually very similar. Things I look for: delayed/lost baggage coverage, coverage for pre-existing conditions (usually available if you get the insurance in the first 10 or so days after making your deposit for the trip), coverage for trip interruption. If you didn't make airline plans through the cruise line (I usually don't) then you want to make sure there is some kind of coverage for getting you the ship if your flight is delayed.

I've only used the insurance twice--my daughter was seen on the trip by the ship's doctor, and I submitted to the insurance after I got my EOB from my insurance company. The other time was for a non-cruise vacation when I wound up in the hospital with the flu.

Definitely worth the money.

Enjoy your cruise.

[AZPam]

I've only used the insurance twice--my daughter was seen on the trip by the ship's doctor, and I submitted to the insurance after I got my EOB from my insurance company.

 

This is exactly why I search for insurance policies that are in "first" postion. That way I haven't had to file with my own insurance company or homeowners policy before receiving payment.

[TravlGrl]

We use insurance and purchase through www.tripinsurancestore.com. Choose the plans that interest you and compare them on the site, then either call them or book directly from the site. It's super easy, though I find insurance in general very confusing. Our next two cruise insurance plans were booked through tripinsurancestore.com, and we purchased TravelInsured both times.

 

We had to make a claim on our travel insurance on our last cruise when the cruise line completely destroyed one of our pieces of luggage en route to the airport, along with some of the contents. We were reimbursed 100% about 3 weeks after the claim was made.

[eandj]

You really need to decide WHAT you want insurance for? Is it for the cost of medical needs? For canceling BEFORE you leave...and importantly, for what reason? Do you have parents at home who might need you to come to their side if THEY get seriously ill?

 

Once you spot 2 or 3 policies that look like they would cover your immediate needs , make sure you read the policies themselves...not just the highlight points listed in the comparison. The devil is in the details, especially when looking at pre-exisiting conditions and things like medical transport if you are really in need of hospitalization. ie some policies just take you to the nearest hospital. Others might fly you to the hospital of your choice.

 

Hopefuly you won't NEED to use the policy, but with a young child along, I certainly would carry it. There have been many discussions on insurance on these boards, so do a search for even more info.

 

We have always used Travel Guard, as they have several different policies depending on what kind of trip we go on (land vs cruise) and our needs at that point in time. We had to use them once for some med reimbursement and they were very efficient and prompt. Had the refunded amount in less than 2 weeks. But there are a couple other VERY popular companies similar.

 

Have a great time!

[cb at sea]

Check and make sure what your regular health insurance covers if you're out of the country--some will cover you, some won't. If yours does, then you won't need to purchase extra.

If you've paid by credit card, some will give you insurance for things like interrupted travel. Check and see what you really need before you start buying more!

[JerseyGem]

Even if your medical plan is so wonderful that it will cover all your costs in foreign countries (including medical evacuation for the injured/sick person and the rest of their party, plus hotel/dining costs for the rest of you while one of you is in the hospital), I still recommend at least a basic policy to round out your insurance needs. So what are your needs? Someone already mentioned elderly parents, but are you flying from somewhere that could have weather bad enough to delay or cancel your flight? Does your flight involve several plane changes- tight connections plus the potential for lost luggage? Does one of you have a pre-existing condition that could prevent the trip at the last moment? Does your 3 yr old ever get ear infections (to the extent that you would not be able to fly with her)?

 

I'm assuming that you both are "young" (maybe even still in your twenties)? (Although I did have my DD at 34.) Many trip insurance policies use your ages to determine the rate- you may find that you could get a decent policy for around $100. This is great "peace of mind."

 

We use various companies (through insuremytrip dot com) and filed a claim last December through AIG Travel Guard. (We had to cancel at the last minute when DD dislocated her shoulder). We were reimbursed for all the cruisefare very quickly and without too much hassle (there's always some paperwork).

[Number9]

This is the first time cruising with our DD (3), I feel if I should get travel insurance. I don't remember in the past if I have gotten it or not. With that being said what is the best insurance to get. I went to insuremytripdotcom but there are so many to choose from with such a wide range of prices, i don't want to overinsure, but I want it to be worth what I am paying... Any help would be appreciated.

I just booked the cruise last night and we are leaving in 30 days....

 

My husband and I always use Access America for our trip insurance. They are very reasonable. We will be on the NCL Gem in April. The cost for our family of 4 is $89.00 TOTAL. We are also taking 2 other kids with us but since they are not our family members, we have to pay $39.00 for each of them.

 

I've been to the ship's doctor on more than one occasion and have always been thankful that we had the insurance.

 

IT IS BETTER TO HAVE AND NOT NEED THAN NEED AND NOT HAVE!:D

[firstyearteacher]

I haven't made flight reservations yet, but am still looking into the insurance... There are just so many to choose from, not sure what to choose..

[blindrid]

I just bought my insurance a few weeks ago and one thing that some had that I didn't like was any emergency evac was sometimes "included" in the medical coverage of, for example, $50,000. Combine any medical treatment serious enough for evac and I was thinking that $50K wasn't much so I bought one that had a separate figuer in evac coverage.

 

Our particular health coverage uses "out of network" pricing which would mean higher deductibles etc. for out of country medical coverage. That does allow me to skimp a bit on the face amount. Don't bank on credit card coverages a lot as they are a bit too restrictive for me.

[simplelife]

I also use insuremytrip.com

I usually check off the 3 or 4 lowest price insurance policies and then click on compare. I've found they are usually very similar. Things I look for: delayed/lost baggage coverage, coverage for pre-existing conditions (usually available if you get the insurance in the first 10 or so days after making your deposit for the trip), coverage for trip interruption. If you didn't make airline plans through the cruise line (I usually don't) then you want to make sure there is some kind of coverage for getting you the ship if your flight is delayed.

I've only used the insurance twice--my daughter was seen on the trip by the ship's doctor, and I submitted to the insurance after I got my EOB from my insurance company. The other time was for a non-cruise vacation when I wound up in the hospital with the flu.

Definitely worth the money.

Enjoy your cruise.

 

Right on Cruiser429. This is exacly what we do. Some of the policies now have a "Cancel for any Reason" rider, whcih I did choose this time because we have bookedan expensive cruise pretty far ahead, and you never know what is going to happen.

An important tip is not to wait on the insurance if you might have a pre-existing health condition; most policies WILL cover these IF you buy the insurance soon after date of first deposit (Usually 10-14 days).

[msu11y28]

I cruised for the first time in December. We didn't get travel insurance...didn't want to pay the extra money. We were scheduled to be flying out of NYC (to Florida) the MORNING of the cruise. As luck would have it, a few days before the cruise it was all over the news that a big storm was due to hit. We were able to change our flight at no cost and flew out the day before. We then obviously had to pay for a hotel in Florida, so the money we thought we were saving by not getting the insurance got used anyway. Next time I am definitely getting insurance, I was panicked from the time I saw the first bad weather report until I actually set foot on the ground in Florida. If I had the insurance I still would have changed the flight etc. but it just would have been nice to have the peace of mind.

[CC Help Michell]

I lifted what I'm going to quote from a post I did on an insurance thread back in November -- it gives the kinds of coverages we look for, and why, and indicates how much this costs for two of us (in our 40's). Hope you find this helpful, and remember your cost will be much less if you are half our ages. ;)

 

 

Basically, I always purchase travel insurance for a cruise vacation. I buy it to cover us from the time we leave home until the time we return (thus covering the air or driving portion of the trip), and I "tweak" the policy we purchase (you can do this with some of the providers at www.insuremytrip.com). I purchase coverage for:

• accident and sickness/medical at $50,000 per person AND I make this coverage "primary" (while my health insurance would cover us outside the country -- if something happens I don't want to be the middle man while my health insurer and the travel insurer point at each other saying "you pay first");
  
• Baggage loss and delay, which I also make primary;
  
• Emergency Evacuation Coverage (which I tweak by adding Hospital of Choice coverage, and by increasing the limit from the standard $100,000 per person, which is too low in many cases -- helicopter or air evacuation can be breathtakingly expensive. For our next cruise it was $5.50 more per person to increase that limit to $1 million, so we did that, though that's REALLY high -- half of that would have done, but wasn't an option -- since the premium was reasonable, we just included it)
  
• Trip Cancellation and Interruption (for any reason)
  
• Acts of Terrorism (not just on the cruise itself, but covering your hometown, ports during the cruise, etc)
  
• A waiver of pre-existing conditions (a very important part if you are purchasing a cruise a good ways out -- who knows what might crop up between your initial deposit and the sail date? Adding this waiver is fairly inexpensive if you do it within 14 days of your initial payment on the cruise -- either initial deposit or payment in full if you are booking late and payment in full is due at booking)
  
• Default/Bankruptcy (I consider this one very important, and it's not available in standard cruiseline policies -- cruiselines can and have gone bankrupt, leaving paid passengers holding the bag)

For our next trip those coverages cost us $178.69 total for 2 travelers. We consider the peace of mind well worth it, but your personal situation might be different, and it wouldn't be worth it for you.

[cutrat]

We (family of 5) travel about three times a year ranging from going on a cruise, spending a week in Vegas, and going to South America and have never had or needed travel insurance. I'm also a diabetic......If I wanted coverage could I even get it????

[CC Help Michell]

We (family of 5) travel about three times a year ranging from going on a cruise, spending a week in Vegas, and going to South America and have never had or needed travel insurance. I'm also a diabetic......If I wanted coverage could I even get it????

 

Yes, but you would have to be sure the policy covers pre-existing conditions, AND make sure the definition of what's covered is very clear to you. Sometimes the only pre-existing conditions covered are those that are medically stable, which is another "defined term."

 

Whether "going bare" is a good risk for your family is a decision only you can make. It depends a lot on your medical insurance at home and what it covers when you are away; whether you have, and book with, a credit card that gives any additional coverage; whether you can afford to self-insure if you have to cancel a trip at the last minute (or cut it short and fly home); whether you can afford to self-insure medical evacuations (which can range from free in some situations (U.S.C.G. or U.S.N.) to $65,000 and up (per posts here)), and other such decisions.

[love2vacation]

In the past I purchased whatever insurance was offered by our TA, this last time I picked one through insuremytrip. We were looking for one that covered pre-existing conditions as well as trip interruption since we have parents who are very old. Also lost luggage or delayed luggage. My DH health insurance does cover when we are out of the country.

 

I always hate to think of having to use it but it is a comfort to have it and it really doesn't cost that much compared to the loss I would take if we had cancel at the last minute or go home in the middle of our trip.

 

It is better to be safe.

[cruiseco]

 

AND I make this coverage "primary" (while my health insurance would cover us outside the country -- if something happens I don't want to be the middle man while my health insurer and the travel insurer point at each other saying "you pay first"); .

 

That really shouldn't be a problem. Your state's department of insurance has a very well regulated and enforced system of "coordination of benefits" specifically for these types of situations. Your tax dollars at work.