Do you ever NOT get travel insurance for your cruise?

[pacheco18]

That's a different question

 

No one on these boards can tell u about ur pre existing conditions

[titong]

That's a different question

 

No one on these boards can tell u about ur pre existing conditions

 

Obviously, you can't. However, someone who reads or posts on these boards could certainly tell us, if they had been in a similar situation what their experience has been.

[GeezerCouple]

I just got the Chase United Airlines card which the brochure states covers cancellation insurance. The brochure also states that it does not cover pre-existing conditions. Does anyone know what that means? For example, I have never had a heart attack. However, about 7 months ago. I had an angioplasty with stents. Now I feel fine. Does that mean that if I have to cancel a cruise because of heart problems, like a heart attack, that Chase would not reimburse me, and instead would call that a pre-existing condition?

 

Asking Chase (or insurance affiliate) would certainly be good, but in a case like this, I certainly wouldn't count on any verbal response given over the phone by a rep - someone who could be mistaken, misunderstand the question, or just lazy (giving "any old convenient answer").

 

Read the policy carefully, about how "pre-existing conditions" are defined.

And remember, IF an insurer can find a valid reason to deny a claim, that's just about guaranteed to be what happens.

 

In some policies, there is a "look back" period, and only conditions that developed within that relatively recent period are problematic.

 

In at least some policies, if a pre-existing condition is something chronic like blood pressure, but it's "controlled" [careful of definition here, too] with medicine, it's not considered one of the pre-existing condition exclusions IF there has been NO change to the prescription dosing AND no one [medical personnel type] has recommended changing the dose within x amount of time.

An existing in-place stent might or might *not* fall into the "no change of treatment".

 

It would all depend upon whether and how "pre-existing condition" is defined.

 

You may "feel fine", and that is GREAT!

But if one of the biggest risks you have in terms of a possible medical need to cancel or be evacuated and/or hospitalized in a foreign country is heart-related, if it were us in your situation, we'd do our very best to make sure that is NOT excluded.

 

You mentioned cancellation insurance. IF you use the Chase/UA card for this insurance, do you have suitable medical/surgical and evacuation/transport coverage through other insurance?

THAT is where the potential catastrophic costs can arise.

 

GeezerCouple

[pacheco18]

You would be foolish to rely on someone else's experience with respect to pre existing conditions. Every medical situation is unique. Only the benefits administer can give u reliable information. Not chase. You need to contact the benefits administrAtor

[pacheco18]

Asking Chase (or insurance affiliate) would certainly be good, but in a case like this, I certainly wouldn't count on any verbal response given over the phone by a rep - someone who could be mistaken, misunderstand the question, or just lazy (giving "any old convenient answer").

 

Read the policy carefully, about how "pre-existing conditions" are defined.

And remember, IF an insurer can find a valid reason to deny a claim, that's just about guaranteed to be what happens.

 

In some policies, there is a "look back" period, and only conditions that developed within that relatively recent period are problematic.

 

In at least some policies, if a pre-existing condition is something chronic like blood pressure, but it's "controlled" [careful of definition here, too] with medicine, it's not considered one of the pre-existing condition exclusions IF there has been NO change to the prescription dosing AND no one [medical personnel type] has recommended changing the dose within x amount of time.

An existing in-place stent might or might *not* fall into the "no change of treatment".

 

It would all depend upon whether and how "pre-existing condition" is defined.

 

You may "feel fine", and that is GREAT!

But if one of the biggest risks you have in terms of a possible medical need to cancel or be evacuated and/or hospitalized in a foreign country is heart-related, if it were us in your situation, we'd do our very best to make sure that is NOT excluded.

 

You mentioned cancellation insurance. IF you use the Chase/UA card for this insurance, do you have suitable medical/surgical and evacuation/transport coverage through other insurance?

THAT is where the potential catastrophic costs can arise.

 

GeezerCouple

 

You are so right. I could not agree more.

 

After doing all this research I have totally changed my strategy. - and we are both In perfect health

[titong]

Asking Chase (or insurance affiliate) would certainly be good, but in a case like this, I certainly wouldn't count on any verbal response given over the phone by a rep - someone who could be mistaken, misunderstand the question, or just lazy (giving "any old convenient answer").

 

Read the policy carefully, about how "pre-existing conditions" are defined.

And remember, IF an insurer can find a valid reason to deny a claim, that's just about guaranteed to be what happens.

 

In some policies, there is a "look back" period, and only conditions that developed within that relatively recent period are problematic.

 

In at least some policies, if a pre-existing condition is something chronic like blood pressure, but it's "controlled" [careful of definition here, too] with medicine, it's not considered one of the pre-existing condition exclusions IF there has been NO change to the prescription dosing AND no one [medical personnel type] has recommended changing the dose within x amount of time.

An existing in-place stent might or might *not* fall into the "no change of treatment".

 

It would all depend upon whether and how "pre-existing condition" is defined.

 

You may "feel fine", and that is GREAT!

But if one of the biggest risks you have in terms of a possible medical need to cancel or be evacuated and/or hospitalized in a foreign country is heart-related, if it were us in your situation, we'd do our very best to make sure that is NOT excluded.

 

You mentioned cancellation insurance. IF you use the Chase/UA card for this insurance, do you have suitable medical/surgical and evacuation/transport coverage through other insurance?

THAT is where the potential catastrophic costs can arise.

 

GeezerCouple

 

Thank you very much for the very thorough and well-thought out answer. Your post answers many of my questions. Yes, I already have excellent health and evacuation insurance. On my most recent Oceania cruise, I came down with a bad cold and had to see the ship's doctor. The doctor charged me about $200 for my very brief visit. My health insurance reimbursed me in it's entirety. The only thing that I am interested in is the cancellation insurance. Also, I noted a number of posts back someone posted that they did not have cancellation insurance, and stated that Oceania would not give them any credit for towards another cruise. I asked two different Crystal representatives what their policy was. They both told me that they decide whether to give a passenger who has to cancel the cruise credit toward another cruise on a "case by case" basis. This they stated is different than if you have cancellation insurance, and in that case the person is guaranteed a refund. Without it, Crystal stays they do it on a "case by case" basis.

[titong]

Asking Chase (or insurance affiliate) would certainly be good, but in a case like this, I certainly wouldn't count on any verbal response given over the phone by a rep - someone who could be mistaken, misunderstand the question, or just lazy (giving "any old convenient answer").

 

Read the policy carefully, about how "pre-existing conditions" are defined.

And remember, IF an insurer can find a valid reason to deny a claim, that's just about guaranteed to be what happens.

 

In some policies, there is a "look back" period, and only conditions that developed within that relatively recent period are problematic.

 

In at least some policies, if a pre-existing condition is something chronic like blood pressure, but it's "controlled" [careful of definition here, too] with medicine, it's not considered one of the pre-existing condition exclusions IF there has been NO change to the prescription dosing AND no one [medical personnel type] has recommended changing the dose within x amount of time.

An existing in-place stent might or might *not* fall into the "no change of treatment".

 

It would all depend upon whether and how "pre-existing condition" is defined.

 

You may "feel fine", and that is GREAT!

But if one of the biggest risks you have in terms of a possible medical need to cancel or be evacuated and/or hospitalized in a foreign country is heart-related, if it were us in your situation, we'd do our very best to make sure that is NOT excluded.

 

You mentioned cancellation insurance. IF you use the Chase/UA card for this insurance, do you have suitable medical/surgical and evacuation/transport coverage through other insurance?

THAT is where the potential catastrophic costs can arise.

 

GeezerCouple

 

Geezer, excellent suggestion you gave about looking at the definition of "pre-existing condition." I just looked and saw the definition in the Chase United Mileage booklet and it looks like it only has a 60 day "look back period." It states in relevant part: "illness, disease...of you for which medical advice, diagnosis, care or treatment was recommended or received within the 60 day period immediately prior to the purchase of a Covered Trip. The taking of prescription drugs or medication for a controlled condition throughout this 60 day period will not be considered to be a treatment of illness or disease."

Thus, it appears to me that the pre-existing condition statement only applies within 60 days prior to the purchase of Covered Trip like a cruise etc. If you are outside of the 60 days, the pre-existing condition statement does not apply. Do you agree?

[rallydave]

Thank you very much for the very thorough and well-thought out answer. Your post answers many of my questions. Yes, I already have excellent health and evacuation insurance. On my most recent Oceania cruise, I came down with a bad cold and had to see the ship's doctor. The doctor charged me about $200 for my very brief visit. My health insurance reimbursed me in it's entirety. The only thing that I am interested in is the cancellation insurance. Also, I noted a number of posts back someone posted that they did not have cancellation insurance, and stated that Oceania would not give them any credit for towards another cruise. I asked two different Crystal representatives what their policy was. They both told me that they decide whether to give a passenger who has to cancel the cruise credit toward another cruise on a "case by case" basis. This they stated is different than if you have cancellation insurance, and in that case the person is guaranteed a refund. Without it, Crystal stays they do it on a "case by case" basis.

 

Just as others have stated and there are no guarantees regarding cancellation insurance covering your specific cancellation. There is absolutely no way any of us on this board nor the administrator you talk to on the phone prior to the actual cancellation who can provide an answer to what will happen should you need to cancel for a medical condition.

 

Should you need to cancel and file a claim, the insurance company and their team of experts and lawyers will do all they can within the limitations of the policy rules to avoid paying your refund. Should they deny your claim, most likely you will have the ability to sue and if your lawyer is better than theirs and finds any sort of loophole in their decision, you may be able to get your refund however unlikely that situation is to occur. Just remember, the insurance company is in business to make money by avoiding paying claims so they have spend millions to write very specific terms and conditions in their policies that favor them and not the customer.

 

Hopefully, none of us will need to ever use the policies we purchase and should the need arise, hopefully we will see our refunds.

[pacheco18]

Just as others have stated and there are no guarantees regarding cancellation insurance covering your specific cancellation. There is absolutely no way any of us on this board nor the administrator you talk to on the phone prior to the actual cancellation who can provide an answer to what will happen should you need to cancel for a medical condition.

 

Should you need to cancel and file a claim, the insurance company and their team of experts and lawyers will do all they can within the limitations of the policy rules to avoid paying your refund. Should they deny your claim, most likely you will have the ability to sue and if your lawyer is better than theirs and finds any sort of loophole in their decision, you may be able to get your refund however unlikely that situation is to occur. Just remember, the insurance company is in business to make money by avoiding paying claims so they have spend millions to write very specific terms and conditions in their policies that favor them and not the customer.

 

Hopefully, none of us will need to ever use the policies we purchase and should the need arise, hopefully we will see our refunds.

 

Dave -- you are so right.

Same is true of ANY insurance policy

If I had a preexisting condition I was concerned about, as an attorney (a litigator), here is what I would do.

 

Call the benefits administrator - get name and ID number of the rep

Ask my questions and write the down the answers

Followup with a letter confirming the conversation with a copy to Chubb (get address from rep). These calls are recorded.

 

It is not a guarantee, but it is the best thing you can do for yourself in advance. Stating whether a fellow CC members thinks your pre-existing condition is covered, won't be very effective.

[Hawaiidan]

I never place a bet or book a cruise that I can not afford to loose.

 

Time , tides and dollars over the years has saved me $$$$$$$$$$$$

in insurance. I can thus afford to loose a hand or too.

 

Self insured , if you start in the beginning , will pay off if and when in spades to your benefit.

 

Never bought insurance, never will....and this is for cruises up to 50K

 

fear sells ! diligence prevails!;)

[orchestrapal]

i never place a bet or book a cruise that i can not afford to loose.

 

Time , tides and dollars over the years has saved me $$$$$$$$$$$$

in insurance. I can thus afford to loose a hand or too.

 

Self insured , if you start in the beginning , will pay off if and when in spades to your benefit.

 

Never bought insurance, never will....and this is for cruises up to 50k

fear sells ! Diligence prevails!;)

 

ditto!

Edited November 10, 2013 by orchestrapal

[Mura]

My DH agrees with you, Dan, but with life insurance not trip insurance. Perhaps because we started buying trip insurance we hadn't yet built up an account to protect us. In general we CAN afford to lose the money ... we just don't want to!

 

So we do get trip insurance although we try to limit it to cancellation when and if we can.

 

Back when Renaissance went bankrupt, we were about to pay our final payment for a Singapore-Hong Kong cruise the following January, so we were only out a $500pp deposit when the bankruptcy occurred. We DID get our deposit back from Amex a few months down the road. Most people I knew did as well with the exception of one friend who'd paid his deposit with Discover which did NOT refund his depost. As a consequence he cancelled the credit card.

 

We ended up replacing that cruise with a January '02 cruise on NCL (on the DREAM which has since been sold) and met two Canadian couples who had been booked on our Singapore-Hong Kong cruise but also the leg before it from Sydney. I don't recall if they had trip insurance or not, but if they did the company reneged and they were out a LOT of money. Clearly that loss didn't break the bank since they replaced the lost 30 day cruise with another one.

 

Mura

[Cancun01]

Also, I noted a number of posts back someone posted that they did not have cancellation insurance, and stated that Oceania would not give them any credit for towards another cruise. I asked two different Crystal representatives what their policy was. They both told me that they decide whether to give a passenger who has to cancel the cruise credit toward another cruise on a "case by case" basis. This they stated is different than if you have cancellation insurance, and in that case the person is guaranteed a refund. Without it, Crystal stays they do it on a "case by case" basis.

I am the person that you are talking about Oceania not only not giving any type of credit although they have my $15,000 + plus my understanding also the monies paid by the now-occupants of that stateroom (Marina 12002). My main issue is the fact that I was treated as a persona non grata. Your information is consistent with the information provided to me by Crystal and a few other lines - it would be treated on a "case by case" basis presumably not by a flawed form letter. In my fact finding this morning another luxury line have tentatively offered me a substantial credit if I can produce documentation and also pending senior approval on Monday. Any equivalent cruise will still cost me more than we lost but they must have passed their MBA 100 course :D Even if it does not work out I know where my loyalties will be. Thank you for the information anyway.

Edited November 10, 2013 by Cancun01

[titong]

I never place a bet or book a cruise that I can not afford to loose.

 

Time , tides and dollars over the years has saved me $$$$$$$$$$$$

in insurance. I can thus afford to loose a hand or too.

 

Self insured , if you start in the beginning , will pay off if and when in spades to your benefit.

 

Never bought insurance, never will....and this is for cruises up to 50K

 

fear sells ! diligence prevails!;)

 

Very well stated. I agree.

[titong]

I am the person that you are talking about Oceania not only not giving any type of credit although they have my $15,000 + plus my understanding also the monies paid by the now-occupants of that stateroom (Marina 12002). My main issue is the fact that I was treated as a persona non grata. Your information is consistent with the information provided to me by Crystal and a few other lines - it would be treated on a "case by case" basis presumably not by a flawed form letter. In my fact finding this morning another luxury line have tentatively offered me a substantial credit if I can produce documentation and also pending senior approval on Monday. Any equivalent cruise will still cost me more than we lost but they must have passed their MBA 100 course :D Even if it does not work out I know where my loyalties will be. Thank you for the information anyway.

 

If I was in your situation, I would write and/or call FDR again, and if I got no satisfaction, I would not cruise Oceania in the future.

[pacheco18]

First -- it is not about what you can afford to lose -- it's about whether you want to spend a small about to insure against the loss. That's a totally different question. If you can afford to spend the $ on a cruise, in all likelihood you can afford to lose it. I can afford to rebuild my house in case of a fire. I'd rather have insurance and keep my money for other things.

 

In response to whether the O should have reimbursed the poster with the large loss, as much as I feel sorry for the situation, Oceania is NOT the insurer of our trips. They are not our medical insurer either. There have been posts where cruisers were not even allowed to substitute one cruiser for another where a spouse fell ill. This is O's business model. It is not a secret. As a business owner you cannot make exceptions unless you want to open the floodgates to future claims (otherwise it can be construed as unequal treatment and could be actionable) and I am sure there have been and will be others with similarly unfortunate situations. This is why we buy insurance. Oceania is simply not responsible if we fail to insure ourselves, no matter the reason.

 

This is why people choose refundable or non refundable tickets and the like.

 

It may be a reason for that poster never to choose O again.

But that is simply putting blame where it does not belong. O has does nothing except adhere to its longstanding policy. Of course, if you don't like any policy, choose another cruise line. We are all free to cruise on whatever line we choose.

[SedonaJoel]

I generally don't buy trip insurance. We've done about 50 cruises and never have cancelled - so I'm way ahead.

 

But.... Why not get the free trip insurance that has been mentioned in this forum from the various Chase credit cards? Especially when using the Chase Sapphire card which gives 2 points per dollar of cruise fare charged (plus a 7% year end bonus). That amounts to at least a 7% savings on not buying the insurance plus about a 10% additional savings by using the Chase Ultimate Reward points to convert to United or BA (American) miles to buy first class air for a future cruise.

[pacheco18]

I generally don't buy trip insurance. We've done about 50 cruises and never have cancelled - so I'm way ahead.

 

But.... Why not get the free trip insurance that has been mentioned in this forum from the various Chase credit cards? Especially when using the Chase Sapphire card which gives 2 points per dollar of cruise fare charged (plus a 7% year end bonus). That amounts to at least a 7% savings on not buying the insurance plus about a 10% additional savings by using the Chase Ultimate Reward points to convert to United or BA (American) miles to buy first class air for a future cruise.

 

Unless your card benefits are different, Sapphire only covers 5k of the cancellation fee, assuming you charge both your cruise and your companion's on the card. That works to some extent for some of the shorter cruises in the lower end cabins on O. Once you get into the longer trips and higher priced cabins, it only covers a small portion. For you, that's more than before so that's good.

 

You are a lucky gambler LOL I am generally not risk averse (I'm going to Egypt for 3 weeks this February!) but some of us are risk averse in these types of situations.

[SedonaJoel]

If you have several Chase cards - and charge $10,000 of the cruise fare to each you get $5,000 per person per card. Charging $10,000 to each of 3 Chase cards gives you $30,000 in insurance you don't need to buy.

[GeezerCouple]

I generally don't buy trip insurance. We've done about 50 cruises and never have cancelled - so I'm way ahead.

 

But.... Why not get the free trip insurance that has been mentioned in this forum from the various Chase credit cards? Especially when using the Chase Sapphire card which gives 2 points per dollar of cruise fare charged (plus a 7% year end bonus). That amounts to at least a 7% savings on not buying the insurance plus about a 10% additional savings by using the Chase Ultimate Reward points to convert to United or BA (American) miles to buy first class air for a future cruise.

 

Okay, I obviously have some serious homework to do.

 

7% of *what* for that year end bonus?

 

Do you happen to have a link to this Chase program?

We've got some Chase cards, but not "signature". Not YET anyway :)

 

Thanks!

 

GeezerCouple

[pacheco18]

If you have several Chase cards - and charge $10,000 of the cruise fare to each you get $5,000 per person per card. Charging $10,000 to each of 3 Chase cards gives you $30,000 in insurance you don't need to buy.

 

Not exactly

Please go back and read the relevant posts. It's a little more complicated than that

[SedonaJoel]

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card gives a 7% point bonus for the points accumulated (even if they are used) during the calendar year. for example if you charge $10,000 of your cruise fare you get 20,000 points immediately and a 700 point bonus at the end of the year.

 

You do even better by applying for the new cards in both your name and your wife's name. The Sapphire card has a 40,000 point sign-up bonus and the Ink cards have a 50,000 point signup bonus each. So two Sapphire cards will give you 80,000 points and four Ink cards (there are Ink personal and business cards) will give you 200,000 points - total 280,000 points - enough for 2 first class international tickets on United, BA, or AA.

 

For links and information take a look at http://www.thepointsguy.com or google for the offers.

 

I know for sure that the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, the Chase Ink cards and the Delta Explorer cards all offer $10,000 worth of free trip cancellation insurance and according to Chubb (their insurer) the coverage is cumulative.

 

I send Chubb an email to confirm and they responded affirmatively,

[funny26]

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card gives a 7% point bonus for the points accumulated (even if they are used) during the calendar year. for example if you charge $10,000 of your cruise fare you get 20,000 points immediately and a 700 point bonus at the end of the year.

 

You do even better by applying for the new cards in both your name and your wife's name. The Sapphire card has a 40,000 point sign-up bonus and the Ink cards have a 50,000 point signup bonus each. So two Sapphire cards will give you 80,000 points and four Ink cards (there are Ink personal and business cards) will give you 200,000 points - total 280,000 points - enough for 2 first class international tickets on United, BA, or AA.

 

For links and information take a look at www.thepointsguy.com or google for the offers.

 

I know for sure that the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, the Chase Ink cards and the Delta Explorer cards all offer $10,000 worth of free trip cancellation insurance and according to Chubb (their insurer) the coverage is cumulative.

 

I send Chubb an email to confirm and they responded affirmatively,

 

From the research some of us have done, the latest benefits brochure and talking to a Chase agent yesterday, the $10 you mention for the above cards are cumulative per card for two people; that is $5K per person coverage and 2 people are included. The only card we could find that gives $10K per person, $20K cumulative is the UAL Signature Visa card. The UAL Explorer MasterCard is $5K per person.

 

If this isn't what you mean, would appreciate contact info for Chubb so we can contact ourselves. The agent I talked to yesterday was really surprised that the $10K per person didn't apply to the mastercard but, did to the visa as she was under the impression that all of the cards had the same coverage.

 

Thanks,

[Paulchili]

If I was in your situation, I would write and/or call FDR again, and if I got no satisfaction, I would not cruise Oceania in the future.

 

I am really confused.

In your prior post you agree with Hawaiidan about never getting insurance and now you want you money back from Oceania for cruise cancellation or never cruise with them again (if you were in OP's situation)?

What am I missing? :confused:

[SedonaJoel]

Yes - This is what I meant $10,000 total insurance for 2 people ($5,000 each) per card used. My specific question to Chubb was using both the Saphire Prefered card and the Ink Bold cards.

 

This is the email from Chubb:

 

Mr. Gilgoff,

 

If a portion of the trip(s) were booked to both cards and they are separate accounts, [subject to the terms and conditions of the cards] you would be eligible for the benefits on both such cards.

Please let me know if you have any additional questions.

 

Mark Chesler

Benefit Assistance Center

Federal Insurance Company

202 Halls Mill road

Whitehouse Station, NJ 08889