In the ER w/husband. Have to cancel tomorrow’s cruise. Process?

We are booked for the Amsterdam departing Seattle tomorrow. My husband fell last night, and experienced some other issues. So we’ve been in the ER for 8 hours now. Looks like we can go home soon, but the doctor wrote a note advising us not to go on the cruise. I bought insurance about a week ago through Insuremytrip. But I only insured it for half. I know, I know. I was willing to gamble a little on the trip cost. And that’s okay. It was the coverage I wanted should something happen on the cruise. I didn’t anticipate anything happening before we left. Where do I go from here? Is there a process? Call our TA? Insuremytrip? HAL? Thanks much!

Another question: We paid for the trip with our Alaska Airline’s Bank of America card. Do you know if they offer any coverage? I knew the risks of not insuring for the total amount. Just glad I insured it for half. Thanks again!

On your travel insurance: you will file a claim with the insurance company. If it's Allianz, I can tell you that it's really easy to file the claim online. You will need to upload a copy of the cruise documents showing your reservation and payment details, which you probably have in electronic form, and a copy of the doctor's instructions. A snapshot taken with your phone may suffice, if it's sufficiently legible. (I have filed a claim with Allianz, although it didn't have to do with a cruise.)

If you lose something on air fares to the departure port, you can claim for that, too. You would want to work out with the airline what value, if any, your tickets will have if you cancel. Filing on insurance can wait if you're overwhelmed right now, but you should call the airline right away in case there is any value to salvage.

Because you purchased the insurance recently, there may be some questions about whether the health problem had become apparent before you purchased it.

On the credit card, this information is likely to be on the issuing bank's web site, although it may not be easy to find.

Thank you. Thank goodness no flights are involved. I’m just sitting here with nothing to do but wait until they let us go home. Its all good.

The insurance company should have a 24hr 800 number. Call and ask. You may need something from the cruise line documenting the cancellation.

So sorry this happened. Sending prayers your way.

I believe cruise taxes and some fees are to be refunded by the cruise line if someone cancels.

All the best!

Do you think the calls can be made tomorrow? Or should I call when we get back home tonight?

Another question: We paid for the trip with our Alaska Airline’s Bank of America card. Do you know if they offer any coverage? I knew the risks of not insuring for the total amount. Just glad I insured it for half. Thanks again!

I do not believe Alaska Airlines credit card includes insurance.

American Airlines does $6000 per person per trip

United Airlines card does for $1500 per person per trip (it used to be $10,000)

But Alaska does not as of the last time I checked.

Is it possible there is a waiting list for this cruise, though usually they have to present the full passenger manifest 72 hours before departure. Only thinking of this in the slim case HAL can cut you a break on a refund, if they sell the cabin to someone else. Or their Friends and Family rate replacement for this cabin.

So sorry this happened. Thanks for reporting so we can all learn from this very unfortunate experience. Best wishes to your husband. God speed.

We are booked for the Amsterdam departing Seattle tomorrow. My husband fell last night, and experienced some other issues. So we’ve been in the ER for 8 hours now. Looks like we can go home soon, but the doctor wrote a note advising us not to go on the cruise. I bought insurance about a week ago through Insuremytrip. But I only insured it for half. I know, I know. I was willing to gamble a little on the trip cost. And that’s okay. It was the coverage I wanted should something happen on the cruise. I didn’t anticipate anything happening before we left. Where do I go from here? Is there a process? Call our TA? Insuremytrip? HAL? Thanks much!

First of all, I hope your husband is okay. Then as far as claiming insurance you’ll need a few things. The insurance you just purchased a week ago and your credit card travel insurance will need doctor statements signed. If you’re still in the ER, it would be great if you could access those forms before you leave and have the doctor sign them. Then the credit card will be the secondary insurance with the purchased insurance being primary. So first call the cruise line and see if they will do anything for you. Then the insurance company, and finally your credit card company. Everyone will have their own forms to file a claim and will want to know of any reimbursement you received since they will only pay the difference. Best case would be if the cruise line will just let you transfer your current cruise payments to a future cruise. Good luck with this. Just be patient. It will all work out.

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We are home now. Looks like it could have been dehydration that caused him to fall. I swear... he hates to drink water - too much effort for what’s it causes! :-( Lesson learned, I hope. His wrist and back are quite sore, but nothing broken. He had a serious stroke 6 years ago; he’s of a ‘riper’age, so it was just good to get him checked out. He’s still quite unsteady on his feet, so I’m relieved we’re not going. I know the ship is full, but I certainly would not expect HAL to refund us any amount. But we’re long time customers, but cancelling day of isn’t on us. I’ll try, but I’m not expecting anything. I’ll call them tonight (10:30 Pacific Time), and see if anybody answers. Then I’ll get to the other calls tomorrow. Lesson learned people: get insurance. And don’t try to save a few bucks by covering only half unless you’re a lil bit of a gambler like me. Half is better than nuttn though. We’ll see how/what they cover later. I do have a ‘doctors’ note and all the paperwork. We’ve been on many cruises, but this is the first we’ve had to cancel. Thanks so much for all your suggestions and advice.

See if they will let you transfer dates to a later sailing, if that works for you. Sometimes that is a way around the cancellation fees.

I am so glad to hear that your husband is doing better. Health issues are so scary.

Such a scary situation, but glad it wasn't worse.

Hope everything works out for you with insurance.

Glad your husband is on the mend.

Sorry to hear about your husband and having to cancel your cruise.

Hope everything works out for you.

Prayers that he will feel better in a few days.

Glad to hear that your husband will recover.

You were wise to take him in to be checked.

Sorry to hear you have to cancel the cruise and I think you have received all the advice you were looking for and hope that the cancellation goes easily for you.

Do you think the calls can be made tomorrow? Or should I call when we get back home tonight?

You should make the calls ASAP.

Happy your dh will be discharged from hospital and shouldl be okay. All the best wishes.

Sorry you missed your cruise. How long for you to reach your home? You said no flights.

Is it possible there is a waiting list for this cruise, though usually they have to present the full passenger manifest 72 hours before departure. Only thinking of this in the slim case HAL can cut you a break on a refund, if they sell the cabin to someone else. Or their Friends and Family rate replacement for this cabin.

 

So sorry this happened. Thanks for reporting so we can all learn from this very unfortunate experience. Best wishes to your husband. God speed.

That 72 hour thing for the manifest is an urban legend that has been disproved time and again. Don't know why people keep bringing it up. Manifest goes to CBP 60 minutes before departure. That's why you must be onboard at least 60 minutes before sailing time. EM

That 72 hour thing for the manifest is an urban legend that has been disproved time and again. Don't know why people keep bringing it up. Manifest goes to CBP 60 minutes before departure. That's why you must be onboard at least 60 minutes before sailing time. EM

Thank you for the correction. Can't say where I first heard this, but am guilty for passing it on. I think I heard it in a discussion about changing a cabin mate at the last minute. I won't make this mistake again.

I have used cruise insurance several times . You need all the paperwork from your ER visit and all the paperwork from your cruise proving how much you paid . You will also need the statement from your credit card when you made the payment .It usually takes a few weeks to receive a refund .

Thank you for the correction. Can't say where I first heard this, but am guilty for passing it on. I think I heard it in a discussion about changing a cabin mate at the last minute. I won't make this mistake again.

I think that the source of the confusion is HAL's request that passengers complete their online check-in 72 hours in advance:

The way they phrase this, purposefully or otherwise, a reader might conclude that passengers risk not being allowed to sail if they wait to check in at the terminal.

We are booked for the Amsterdam departing Seattle tomorrow. My husband fell last night, and experienced some other issues. So we’ve been in the ER for 8 hours now. Looks like we can go home soon, but the doctor wrote a note advising us not to go on the cruise. I bought insurance about a week ago through Insuremytrip. But I only insured it for half. I know, I know. I was willing to gamble a little on the trip cost. And that’s okay. It was the coverage I wanted should something happen on the cruise. I didn’t anticipate anything happening before we left. Where do I go from here? Is there a process? Call our TA? Insuremytrip? HAL? Thanks much!

To begin, I am glad to hear your husband is doing well enough that he did not require hospitalization. I can totally relate to how frustrating and overwhelming this experience can be. My story is very involved so I will do my best to keep it to the point. If it is wordy I apologize in advance.

I had to cancel our cruise in February 2018. I also purchased this insurance and all other travel policies through Insure My Trip. But, I purchased our insurance within 2 weeks of purchasing our cruise which was in 2016 ,which then covered us both for any potential pre-existing conditions. We always get travel insurance but this was our first ever claim. What I learned was a lot, and a very lengthy process.

FIRST, if you booked through a travel agent, they must contact the cruise line and cancel your reservation. Unless, they are closed and you cannot reach them, then you can call the cruise line. But , have your travel agent follow up ASAP. The cruise line will send your TA a notice of cancellation etc. Also, you will need a copy of the cruise line's cancellation policy and cancellation fees.

SECOND, the insurance company is important but the THIRD PARTY that processes their claims is even MORE important. I never knew this was how claims were handled. The processing company we had, I found out from CC, was the worst to deal with! Not nice people and not very cooperative in offering help. I finally found one woman who was a compassionate human and spent two hours on the phone with me. Through Cruise Critic, I scrolled down the the site for Insurance claims on the main page of the Boards and learned most of this information. The processing company is called Trip Mate. They process claims for some of the best cruise lines including Viking. I It took me 2 months to receive our payment from them. The cruise line will reimburse your taxes and port fees, not your insurance.

THIRD,Keep a copy of everything you send to the claim company, number every page and keep the pages in the same order as you sent to the insurance claim company, and do not forget a single thing they require. Even though I did that, after one month, the processing company asked for more information. When I called them I told them that information was in the package I sent them registered mail, return, receipt, requested. I even told them which page had that information they requested. Of course they said that page was missing. I had stapled all 29 pages !!! I then faxed them the second copy of what they "were missing". They said the clock needed to start all over. I was really upset. Not just the length of time this all took to prepare, but the stress of making sure everything was correct. My husband had gotten seriously ill in September 2017 and almost died, and none of it was a pre-existing condition (which would also have been covered). He had multiple complications on top of complications which lasted until April 2018 when he finally was almost back to normal.

FOURTH.. Even the note form the ER physician will probably not be sufficient information, in most cases. They will request he complete forms that the processing company provides for you to print. For you to get this information, go to the website for the insurance company you purchased your insurance through. Looking under a heading "Filing Claims" or something similar. This should link you to the processing company and how to file your claim.

FIFTH.. and lastly, do no give up! Take your time. Stick to your guns. Complete and send every form they require and do so in a very orderly fashion.

As you said, you will only receive the amount you covered with insurance, but, better than nothing. I wish you and your husband the best with continued good health. If I can be of further help, let me know and I will do my best.

We cancelled a HAL cruise on embarkation day. HAL refunded port fees and shore excursions.

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At the time you cancel yourc ruise HAL cancels any shore excursions or laternative dining you may have booked and paid for and refund is automatic.

That 72 hour thing for the manifest is an urban legend that has been disproved time and again. Don't know why people keep bringing it up. Manifest goes to CBP 60 minutes before departure. That's why you must be onboard at least 60 minutes before sailing time. EM

Of course this applies to U.S. departures only. A few years ago we arrived at the pier in Barcelona at 4:25 pm for cruise sailing at 5! (Long story shortened: never let your husband talk you into flying to Europe the day the cruise departs). They had already had muster drill. Because we missed muster, when we got to our cabin, our steward claimed we had been declared "no shows." He even showed us his cabin list with our names crossed out. This was before the Costa Concordia disaster. I'm not sure what would happen now.

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Sorry to hear about the health scare but good to,know that dehydration was the source. Hope he recovers quickly and you are able to get some reimbursement.

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