To get insurance or not

[nseagirl]

Ok. Now I'm worried. I did buy insurance but I bought it through the cruiseline. Now I'm scared that may not be enough. Should I double up and buy some from one of the independents mentioned here?:confused::confused:

[cruiseco]

Thank you everyone for your input. Still not sure what we are doing yet but I know that it is past the date to buy from someone other than the cruise. It seems most want you to buy within 15 days or so. I THINK we can still get it through the cruise line though. Hubby seems to think we should just take our chances I am still mixed. Especially after hearing the majority of you here saying to get it!

 

Not so. All of the major third-party plans are available up until the day peioe to your departure. However, if you need coverage for pre-existing medical conditions there will be a time window in which the policy may be purchased. A couple of companies will even let you get pre-existing condition coverage up until the final payment date of the cvruise.

[jtm22372]

just called my health care provider and was told they cover all medical and dental outside of the u.s including medivac

[Lou33]

Lou,

Does your insurance cover trip interruption if a family member dies?

 

While you may have ample health insurance wherever you go, we do not and we have parents and children who could be affected by their own medical needs. We carefully select our travel insurance because we do know what our health insurance covers.

 

Hi Alcpa1,

 

No, of course my health provider will not refund the price of my cruise, but we are able to assume the risk for just a few thousand dollars. We can get future credit for our airline tickets. Many people are also not aware that many cruiselines will give a 50% refund after you make final payment, up to a week or two before departure. So it is only those 1 or 2 weeks when you are at risk for the complete cruise fare.

 

You mentioned that you buy travel insurance because you are not sure what your health insurance covers. That is exactly the point that I was trying to make. It's not hard to find out if you are already covered. If you should learn that you are already coved by your health provider, maybe you will still choose to buy travel insurance for other reasons, maybe not, but at least you would know.

[donaldsc]

read some of the HORROR stories from ONES who didnt get the INSURANCE:eek:

after my first cruise and not taking it...i NOW dont travel without it, and luckily THANK GOODNESS i dont have a HORROR story to tell:)

do yourself and your family a FAVOR...GET THE INSURANCE;)

 

 

Only the few people w horror stories post them on Cruise Critic. The very great majority; i.e., almost everyone; cruise without any problems and do not post "no problem" cruise stories. That is why cruise companies really push insurance - they are a great profit center.

 

This is not to say that you should not get insurance. Only you know the level of risk that you can tolerate. That is why there are people who speculate in pork bellies and people who leave their money in bank CDs.

 

We buy private insurance that costs us about $300 for a full year for 2 people, regardless of how many trips we take as long as each trip is less than 60 days. It covers medical and evacuation only. It even covers trips in the US if I am more than a defined distance from home. These are the only 2 costs that could be really big and could be a major financial hit. If I had to cancel a trip before I went, the loss would not be devastating. IMHO, trip delay, luggage loss, and all that other little things that some policies cover is a total waste of money.

 

My wife had a medical problem in Australia and had to spend 3 days in hospital. I also fell while hiking on the trip and made 2 trips to outpatient wards. Could we have afforded the cost if we did not have the insurance - easily. Was it nice that we did not have to pay - yes.

 

We will continue to carry these policies as we feel that the value received is worth the money.

[donaldsc]

Lou,

 

The different travel insurance that we have used through the years have provided us with peace of mind. It certainly helped when a suitcase with all of my dirty cruise laundry mysteriously vanished from both the airlines computer and conveyor belt. Do you recall the pictures of dumped luggage in Ft. Lauderdale years ago? Yep, one of those empty suitcases was mine. Thankfully the insurance paid a reasonable portion to replace the contents.

That is why we do not cruise without insurance.

 

Buying insurance to cover lost luggage is, IMHO, total insanity. What was the value of all your dirty stuff?

 

DON

[alcpa1]

Lou,

We have gotten the insurance because we DO know what our health policy does and does not cover. I guess I did not make myself clear. Our health policy does not cover us everywhere outside the US. We have separate evac insurance so my savvy DH scours the available policies and chooses the policies that suit our needs. We have used different companies based on where we are sailing.

Donald,

The lost luggage coverage was part of the deal. It came in handy as our claim PAID over $5,000 and that was with devaluation for "used" clothing. There were no valuables like jewelry or cameras involved either. I know better than that.

Both of our mothers have been diagnosed with cancer in the last three months, long after we had booked our next cruise. We have a son in his middle 30's who has already had one heart attack. This is simply why we book the insurance. We would not be wiped out if we had to cancel a cruise but the cost of the insurance allows us the freedom to cancel or return home if there is a G-d forbid. If all goes well we will board our ship this weekend. Tonight it is still touch and go. As you can see we would not be entitled to a cruise line cancellation refund. The cost of the cruise is the least of our concerns. And, please do not flame me for cruising. Neither of these wonderful ladies is in dire straits this week. We are leaving them in good hands.

[iheartbda]

Buying insurance to cover lost luggage is, IMHO, total insanity. What was the value of all your dirty stuff?

 

DON

Do you just throw away all your dirty clothes, never wash them and just purchase new? To think that all these years I've been doing laundry.:p Just because they were dirty does not mean they were worthless.

[donaldsc]

Do you just throw away all your dirty clothes, never wash them and just purchase new? To think that all these years I've been doing laundry.:p Just because they were dirty does not mean they were worthless.

 

I have actually thought of that when I take really long land trips. Bring a change of clothes and pop into a store every few days to buy new stuff. It would make it a lot easier to pack. Your suitcase would also be very light.

 

DON

[Billy and Charlie's Mum]

I don't know if it is the same in America but we have a platinum credit card and travel insurance is included free of charge. It is a very good policy too. Covers for everything from lost luggage to medical evacuation up to $20,000,000.