Travel Insurance Are YOU COVERED

[fishtaco]

Don't insurers have an exemption for age discrimination though?

 

In the case of medical, and other lifestyle aspects, there are statistical differences.

 

Same as how some insurers give discounts for elderly because they're more likely to be at home, retired and so on.

 

I have to agree with you on this one for "Once" lol!

 

Although I may sound callus a person of 85 years of age could pass away at any given Time as it is very close to and in many instances beyond life expectancies even though all age life is precious.

 

My father passed away at the ripe old age of 69 2 days before we were due to go on an extended Asian holiday and my T/A covered all travel costs because he had a pre existing he chose not to tell anybody about:confused:

 

T/A did a paper shuffle and re booked us 3 months later and the Travel insurance would not have paid up as it was pre existing even though the entire family was kept in the dark! The specialist letter stated pre existing:(

 

People over 80 years of age are expected by society to pass away within the near future so not really claimable on travel insurance or age discrimination in my opinion.

 

"Logans Run" Was forced death by 30 years of age and I thought that was quite reasonable in the early 1970,s:eek:

[Aus Traveller]

I agree with the couple of posts that comment that placing restrictions on older people for travel insurance isn't 'age discrimination'. Insurance is all about assessing the risks. An older person who takes out life insurance (or even funeral insurance) pays a higher premium than a younger person. As it should be. :)

[TLCOhio]

I agree with the couple of posts that comment that placing restrictions on older people for travel insurance isn't 'age discrimination'. Insurance is all about assessing the risks. An older person who takes out life insurance (or even funeral insurance) pays a higher premium than a younger person. As it should be. :)

 

Agree that age is a legitimate factor in the U.S. for how insurance is priced and the legitimate risks considered. Here are some of my notes, tips, ideas regarding insurance, factors to consider:

 

1. Amount to cover: That's your choice!! Unlike home insurance, there is no requirement to buy coverage at a level to cover ALL and/or every expense/costs. Since this travel insurance costs about 7-9% of the amount you are covering, it is important to consider what level of coverage is worth it, you can afford and/or is really, really needed. The more total dollars you insure, then it costs you more!! Those coverage and insurance costs can add up. Up till 75 days before ship boarding, we can scrub the cruise cost and get it all refunded. But, after that date, that larger amount is at risk if a major health and/or family event happened. Certain tours and hotel reservations are not at risk and could be scrubbed without loss. It is a personal choice for the amount you need to have covered. Not having to cover the airline costs saves lots and lowers big-time the amount of insurance needed for us to be purchased for this trip.

 

2. Health coverage: On a trip like this, whether buying coverage for one, five, ten or twenty thousand dollars total in travel/trip costs, you get that "basic" level of health coverage with most of these plans. As an example with the most basic/cheapest plan noted below, they provide $50K for medical expense benefits and $250K for medical evacuation and repatriation of remains. That's a fairly good level of coverage. If a potential policy or company only covers $1-5,000 in medical coverage, that's not much and way too low. In doing overseas trips, that health coverage is very vital, in my view.

 

3. Primary versus secondary health: This is a key factor!! Personally, I like it when the insurance you are buying provides "primary" coverage. What does that mean? The insurance company will be paying first!! With "secondary" medical coverage, the insurance folks will only pay after and if other potential firms/policies might step up and pay for you. Maybe, if and if??!! That can lead to hassles, potentially. Avoid those companies that only do secondary coverage.

 

4. Web searching: Here is the website I have used to search and compare various different insurance companies and policies.

http://www.insuremytrip.com

This allows you to search and compare many different companies and coverage levels. I have done that in the past and some of these companies should be avoided based on the lower quality levels of A. M. Best ratings on their insurance underwriter. I try to use a company rated as A or A+. Avoid those backed and only rated as B or or lower by Best. Insurance companies will always take your money, give you a piece of paper saying you are "covered". It is when you have a claim or need that the biggest questions come up.

 

5. Our firm/used in past: From past searches, comparisons and study, we have picked and used this firm. You can see and compare their policy options at their website:

http://www.travelexinsurance.com

As an example at our ages and doing coverage for $6000 each on this trip, the costs would range on four different plans from $924 for TravelLite, $998 for Travel Select, $1,056 for Travel Plus and $1,284 for Travel Max. On their website, it will show the differences on the various coverage amounts and types that these four plans provide. We could, as example, only cover $3K, $4K or $5K per person in costs and pay less. Or buy for a higher level and pay more on a cost per thousand dollars of coverage basis. Higher cost plans are not always "best". Your choice, again!! As an example on medical evacuation and repatriation of remains, these four TravelEx options provide coverage from $250K to $2 million per person. In my view, you don't want a plan that only provides $5K or $10K of coverage for this potential need, but is $2 million really needed? Sounds good to have a high, high level, but is is worth paying that much higher cost? Much will depend on where you are visiting and your health conditions. Generally longer coverage does not cost most. Insurance coverage through a cruise ship, in most cases, only covers the cruise itself. You need and want full coverage from when you leave home until you return back. This includes potential risks for all of the pre- and post-cruise travel, stops, time, etc.

 

6. Pre-existing conditions: This one gets a little complicated to explain. Generally, if you purchase your travel insurance plan within 21 days of making your initial trip deposit, then there are no problems on any pre-existing medical conditions. From the insurance company stand-point, they don't want people booking a Jan. 2014 cruise in April 2012, then having a medical issue come up in July 2013 and then wait to buy coverage late when they have a more risky, likely to need to be paid-off situation. Within a few days of booking our Australia-NZ, we did insurance coverage at a lower level of trip cost to avoid any exclusions for pre-existing conditions. Then later this year, as we get closer to the actual trip and knowing more on our costs/budget, we will adjust that amount upward for what level is needed to be covered.

 

7. Other variables: Costs go down and up depending on your age. Those older, to be honest, have higher risks that a health issue could and might pop up, etc. The state you are from is an important factor as insurance standards/requirements differ from state to state. New York State has some of the toughest legal requirements and that may make your costs higher if you are from there. Less companies are licensed to operate and write policies there in NY. Most of the companies, including TravelEx, allow you ten days to examine the written policy in greater detail and cancel if you are not happy. On the website, you can look at more of these details, etc.

 

This whole deal, like regular insurance and some other consumer purchases, can be very confusing and complicated. That's partly on purpose. BUT, certain of these websites are helpful in comparing and focusing on the key questions about what is really needed and its extra costs. You need to balance getting good basic coverage versus the cost. The "best" can cost lots more, but is it really and practically worth it? We want good, basic, primary medical coverage, the medical evacuation protection and some level of the costs protected on a decent chunk of the trip cost. BUT, we are willing to take some risk and loss if a bad, bad situation would come up. We do not have parents alive whose health situations can cause a need to scrub this trip. Nor other family members under current major health challenges/risks. Our health is generally good and less risky. Lots of factors to consider to get what fits your needs and wallet size.

 

For our June 2011 cruise in the Med, there were risks and questions as the Iceland volcano erupted a couple months prior to our trip. Many people got really screwed during that process. Remember that? BUT, insurance companies legal wording can get a little complicated in how "weather situations" are rated and classed. That's another discussion for another day.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 142,881 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

[Aus Traveller]

I have the impression from reading posts from people from USA, that your insurance for holidays is broken up into different components such as travel and health. Am I correct?

 

The travel insurance available to Australians includes everything in the one package with some differences between companies and also between plans from each company. Travellers to USA have to take a policy with higher limits than if travelling in other parts of the world. I haven't ever seen differences for medical expenses between 'primary' and 'secondary' because our normal health insurance (Medicare or private insurance) doesn't cover us when we are overseas (in most countries - NZ is an exception).

 

For example, the plan we use, which is a very common annual policy, covers an unlimited amount for medical overseas, medical evacuation and cancellation. There are stipulated limits for return airfare, resumption of trip, rental vehicle excess, disability, personal items, personal liability etc.

[Aussie Gal]

Actually our Medicare does cover us in a lot of countries in Europe including: U.K, Ireland, Sweden, Netherlands, Finland, Italy, Belgium, Malta, Sweden and Norway. I presume that is one of the reasons our Travel Insurance is so much cheaper when we go to Europe though of course, the cost of being ill in both the U.S. and Canada is astronomical.

 

We have a one year unlimited insurance which we take out each year and is very similar to

Aus Travellers policy. It does change when we reach 80 years of age. We are in our early seventies at the moment so still have a few years to go.

 

Jennie

[Aus Traveller]

Actually our Medicare does cover us in a lot of countries in Europe including: U.K, Ireland, Sweden, Netherlands, Finland, Italy, Belgium, Malta, Sweden and Norway. I presume that is one of the reasons our Travel Insurance is so much cheaper when we go to Europe though of course, the cost of being ill in both the U.S. and Canada is astronomical.

 

We have a one year unlimited insurance which we take out each year and is very similar to

Aus Travellers policy. It does change when we reach 80 years of age. We are in our early seventies at the moment so still have a few years to go.

 

Jennie

I knew were were covered for medical expenses in some European countries, but because we aren't going back there soon, I haven't checked it out.

 

I think a major reason our travel insurance is more expensive if we are travelling to the USA, is that medical/hospital costs there are very high.

[karmac]

I may have missed something but didn't Princess reimburse everyone?:confused:

[Aus Traveller]

I may have missed something but didn't Princess reimburse everyone?:confused:

 

Although the original post mentioned the problems with the Sun Princess cruise, the thread has become a general discussion on what is and what isn't covered under travel insurance.

[karmac]

Although the original post mentioned the problems with the Sun Princess cruise, the thread has become a general discussion on what is and what isn't covered under travel insurance.

 

 

Thanks for that. I didn't have time to read all of it nut I did skim through it:o.