Royal Caribbean "Vacation Protection" Insurance - Just bought it

[slyster]

Royal's insurance allows cancel for any reason, however they only provide a 75% credit for a future cruise that expires in a year.

 

ok...thanks Bob. I need to read the fine print. I thought you got 100% back if you cancelled for sickness, death, accident, etc. Time to get reading!

[slyster]

Is there a particular company/policy that folks here like?

[Clarea]

ok...thanks Bob. I need to read the fine print. I thought you got 100% back if you cancelled for sickness, death, accident, etc. Time to get reading!

Yes, I should have been more specific.

 

This pertains to Royal's insurance.

 

 

If you cancel for a covered reason, you get 100% cash (check) back.

 

If you cancel for a non-covered reason, you get 75% future cruise credit back.

[slyster]

Okay, got it. I just read that too and was getting ready to post again. Thanks for confirming that though.

[Lisajw]

Is there any travel insurance that covers the airfare to get to the cruise port and back in case you can't go for some reason?

Thanks!

[Clarea]

4 minutes ago, Lisajw said:

Is there any travel insurance that covers the airfare to get to the cruise port and back in case you can't go for some reason?

Thanks!

 

Sure, there are travel polices that cover all expenses if you have to cancel for a covered reason.  There are also polices that have "Cancel for any reason" coverage, though there are caveats to that.

 

Check out these websites:

 

www.insuremytrip.com

www.squaremouth.com

www.quotewright.com

www.tripinsurancestore.com

[cruisenfever]

1 hour ago, Lisajw said:

Is there any travel insurance that covers the airfare to get to the cruise port and back in case you can't go for some reason?

Thanks!

When we fly we take out insurance directly with the airline which is usually through Allianz.  It's affordable and covers the complete cost of your flights. 

[Biker19]

Related to this:

 

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/fl-bz-travel-insurance-kickback-suits-20180927-story.html

 

The lawsuits, which seek class-action status, accuse the companies of violating Florida laws by failing to disclose to consumers that they were earning “kickbacks” from travel insurance companies for every policy sold. The travel companies misled consumers by creating the impression they were merely collecting the purchase price on behalf of the insurers providing the coverage, including Nationwide (Norwegian, Carnival), Transamerica (Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, Carnival), Arch (Royal Caribbean) or Allianz (American Airlines, Delta, JetBlue).

The “kickbacks” increased the cost of the insurance to consumers beyond what they otherwise should have paid, the suits charge.

 

It's a big enough deal that RCCL mentioned it in their 10Q quarterly filling last month with the SEC but said it will not "materially" affect their bottom line.

[katiel53]

We buy insurance for every cruise through insuremytrip.com.  The insurance we get covers medical including air evacuation, but also covers all our expenses from the day we leave home until we return.  It covers our air, hotel and cruise.  

 

The site has many different policies and companies from which to choose.   I don't want to have to wait for a rejection from my regular insurance company.  I also am sure to choose a policy where the insurance is primary.. We have had to use the insurance a few times and our expenses have been covered.

[TTraub1250]

Read the fine print....says up to a certain %.  Got back only 58% and that credit has to be used on a future cruise.  Got back all of the taxes and port fees very quickly from RC, but there is a third party firm that administers the insurance and of course they are paid based on how they "manage" the insurance. Several of these other posts give very good options.... that are much better from one cruiser that has been burnt. Our Host Clarea is not completely correct. 

Edited November 26, 2018 by TTraub1250

[apratt]

On 11/26/2018 at 11:08 AM, katiel53 said:

We buy insurance for every cruise through insuremytrip.com.  The insurance we get covers medical including air evacuation, but also covers all our expenses from the day we leave home until we return.  It covers our air, hotel and cruise.  

 

The site has many different policies and companies from which to choose.   I don't want to have to wait for a rejection from my regular insurance company.  I also am sure to choose a policy where the insurance is primary.. We have had to use the insurance a few times and our expenses have been covered.

 

We booked a cruise and bought Royal Caribbean's "vacation protection plan", but now I am wondering if we need to buy more insurance in addition to that. I worry about the cost of medical care and what would happen if we had to be air lifted or something. 

[katiel53]

1 hour ago, apratt said:

 

We booked a cruise and bought Royal Caribbean's "vacation protection plan", but now I am wondering if we need to buy more insurance in addition to that. I worry about the cost of medical care and what would happen if we had to be air lifted or something. 

I don't believe that the cruise line insurance is the way to go for us.  Their limits on air evacuation are lower, they are not primary and the insurance doesn't cover our way to/from the ship nor the hotel stay prior to the cruise.  Not everyone feels they need the coverage we do.

 

I, personally, wouldn't have the cruise line insurance and insurance from another site.  I'd only pay for one or the other.  I don't know if you can cancel your Royal Caribbean insurance and not have to pay for it or if you have already paid for it.  Another consideration for us is pre-existing conditions and that coverage has to be purchased within 14 days of booking the cruise.

 

If you aren't able to cancel your Royal Caribbean insurance without losing the money paid, I'd leave it for this cruise and in the future check into other policies.

[SRF]

You have to look and shop and READ THE COVERAGE.

 

The cruise line insurance can be a good deal if you are older, as they do not underwrite.  But some of their limits are lower.  They are secondary, but my family's experience is that they will step up and work with the hospital and med evac company to get things done and paid for.

 

3rd party can provide higher limits, but sometimes at a much higher cost.

 

One thing I do is, I do not insure the cost of the trip.  If I miss the cruise, oh well, I am not happy, but I already paid for it, and if will not cause financial hardship.  But medical or med evac could run into the 100's of thousands of dollars and that would HURT.  So I cover that.

 

The nice thing is, my insurance, for a trip, is $32.

[TBone2K]

Also be sure you don't already have insurance through your credit card. I checked into this carefully for when we did a cruise while DW was pregnant (fortunately nowhere near the # weeks limit set by RC).