Insurance question

[SportsMomof4]

We always buy the insurance through Carnival. I see other insurance companies mentioned. Are there better benefits to using them? What do most people use? Our next group has 8 teenagers (4 of them are my sons friends (19 & 20) & I want them to buy insurance as well so I am sorting through our options. Thanks!

[Tapi]

I have always purchased insurance through a third party vendor. I've had to file two claims in separate occasions (one for lost luggage and one for canceled cruise due to work reasons) and both times I had absolutely no issues.

 

There are two big benefits when booking third party insurance (among others). One is that you can choose a policy that most suits your needs. Not all policies are the same. READ THE FINE PRINT ALWAYS. They cover different things at different levels. For example, when my wife was pregnant, I purchased a policy that specifically covered pregnancy issues. On another occasion, I purchased a policy that would allow me to cancel my cruise if I had to be at work during our cruise week (I was up for promotion and I feared that if I got it, I'd be forced to cancel vacation in order to go to training. And sure enough, it happened!). On our last cruise to Alaska, we were bringing a lot more stuff in our checked luggage so I purchased a policy with higher limits for lost luggage.

 

The second benefit of booking third party insurance is that you can get a policy for a lot less money than the policy offered by Carnival, sometimes for a fraction. More than once I've insured my entire family for less than what it would've cost to insure only one person. And many policies will automatically cover the children of insured adults at no extra charge while Carnival will still charge you for kids.

 

Think of what you need covered. Once again, read the fine print, even if it's time consuming. Even if two policies say that they cover the same thing, the limits may be different and the conditions may be different.

 

Based on your screen name, I will assume that you have active teenagers who engage in sports. Look for policies that specifically cover injuries due to sports activities and either include this coverage or allow you to add it. You'd be surprised to know that many policies will not cover you if you are injured during a sports activity!

Edited January 22, 2014 by Tapi

[SportsMomof4]

Great info...thanks! Is there one in particular that you can suggest? I just finished looking at travel guard & tru travel.

[RubyGold]

I have an annual trip policy where things can be added or removed. Ideal if you go away more than once per year (Including land vacations)

 

The policy even covers food poisoning, and days that are in cabin with sickness (you get compensated for that days cost)

Also cancellations and 'acts of god' such as ship damages and weather.

 

Like stated before, READ THE FINE PRINT.

 

A lot of the insurance companies do not cover 'extreme sports' so be careful if you rent jetskis or go on activity heavy excursions.

 

My policy specifies no extreme sports but does actually include things like civil war reenactment!!!! So read up or call an agent.

[sparks1093]

I always go to www.insuremytrip.com to choose our travel insurance and end up buying a Travel Guard Gold policy as the one that most fits our needs at an affordable price. The website allows you to compare different policies side by side.

[SportsMomof4]

That's great sparks. Thank you.

[beachbum53]

I always go to www.insuremytrip.com to choose our travel insurance and end up buying a Travel Guard Gold policy as the one that most fits our needs at an affordable price. The website allows you to compare different policies side by side.

 

We too go through insuremytrip. It's a great place to stop and compare different policies. We've always purchased CSA, because it provides us with the coverage we're looking for at an affordable rate. And, I discovered that purchasing the policy through insuremytrip was less than purchasing it directly from CSA's web site.

Edited January 22, 2014 by beachbum53

[GTO-Girl]

We also use www.insuremytrip.com.

 

We have purchased Travelex Travel Lite, Travel Guard and Travel Safe. We like to purchase a policy that serves as the "primary" carrier rather than the "secondary". And we like to have a lot coverage in the medical/evacuation area.

 

You will get more coverage for less money than buying through the cruiseline....!!

[heltr]

For all the reasons mentioned above (better coverage for less money)

Also, in the unlikely event of a cruise line going bankrupt you wouldn't want you insurance to be with the bankrupt cruise line!

 

I have used insuresmytrip.com before and had a successful claim. Was going to use them again for my upcoming trip but they were not very helpful when I called with questions. Based on many cruise critic reviews I called tripinsurancestore.com and they were great. Explained my situation and they made specific recommendations. Very helpful and professional so they have earned my future business. Steve (the owner) was great and I also recommend working with him

[snc_cam]

All, thanks for posting these comments since I too am looking into travel insurance for the cruises. Above, someone posted they purchased it for a year. What is the cost for this and where did you get it? Also, is it a 12-month policy or calendar year? Lastly, USAA also has travel insurance. Has anyone compared it with others?

 

Thanks

 

Steve

[cruise_gal21]

All, thanks for posting these comments since I too am looking into travel insurance for the cruises. Above, someone posted they purchased it for a year. What is the cost for this and where did you get it? Also, is it a 12-month policy or calendar year? Lastly, USAA also has travel insurance. Has anyone compared it with others?

 

Thanks

 

Steve

 

I use USAA's travel insurance because of the options and benefits of the different packages. Just find one that suits your needs. Also, my minor child is always free to insure, so the prices are always great!

 

Sent from my LG-L38C using Forums mobile app

[snc_cam]

Thanks for the tip. I looked into them first and they seemed very reasonable. Will compare with the other two websites based on rates and options. I do like USAA, have bought 2 cars through them. As you said, great prices.

[cruiseco]

And, I discovered that purchasing the policy through insuremytrip was less than purchasing it directly from CSA's web site.

 

If that actually happened it would be a violation of insurance regulations. The rates are approved by each state's department of insurance and no discounting or rebating is allowed nor is insuremytrip allowed to add any fees, etc not also paid if going to the insurer directly.

 

Either you were comparing different plans (CSA markets several with different coverages/pricing) or you input different information when getting the quote. By law, if they are the same plan and the same coverage they must agree to the penny.

[cruise_gal21]

Thanks for the tip. I looked into them first and they seemed very reasonable. Will compare with the other two websites based on rates and options. I do like USAA, have bought 2 cars through them. As you said, great prices.

 

I looked into insuremytrip to compare prices myself and nothing came close to the coverage we get with USAA for the same price. You may get lucky and find something there or somewhere else, but it's hard to argue with years of excellent service and success :)

 

Sent from my Nook Tablet using Forums mobile app

[SportsMomof4]

Based on your screen name, I will assume that you have active teenagers who engage in sports. Look for policies that specifically cover injuries due to sports activities and either include this coverage or allow you to add it. You'd be surprised to know that many policies will not cover you if you are injured during a sports activity!

 

Yes I do lol! Great tip...thank you!

[SportsMomof4]

You will get more coverage for less money than buying through the cruiseline....!!

 

Had no idea. Thank you! I didn't realize there were so many other insurance companies & options for travel insurance.

[SportsMomof4]

I looked into insuremytrip to compare prices myself and nothing came close to the coverage we get with USAA for the same price. You may get lucky and find something there or somewhere else, but it's hard to argue with years of excellent service and success :)

 

Sent from my Nook Tablet using Forums mobile app

 

I agree. I will look into them today.

[MizDaisy]

I just compared prices on Insure My Trip, and they were quite a bit more expensive than what was quoted for our next cruise (on NCL)....through the cruise line, $99 per person....one of the least expensive on Insure My Trip was over $150...???:confused:

[SportsMomof4]

I am completely overwhelmed at all the different plans. I have no idea what to choose now :confused:!

[Hlitner]

Interesting thread. Folks need to carefully read the fine print about any kind of insurance. Trying to compare a cruise line offered trip policy (which often has lousy medical benefits) to a more expensive policy offered by a company like CSA is often quite difficult. Rather then just getting sucked into some kind of overpriced trip insurance policy it behooves one to carefully review their own needs and then look for a policy that best meets those needs. For example, some folks have absolutely no medical insurance that covers them outside the USA (such as Medicare) should give a lot of consideration to getting a decent trip medical policy. Others have good reason to need a good trip cancellation policy because perhaps they have some elderly parents at home who give concern or maybe they have their own issues that make cancellation a greater probability. And then there are folks (like moi) who seldom to ever buy any cancellation insurance because it is very expensive and we have found tremendous benefits to self-insuring our cancellation (DW and I are at least $150,000 ahead with all the money we have saved by NOT buying expensive cancellation policies over thirty+ years of travel).

 

So if you think you need some kind of insurance do yourself a favor and take the time to review the various types of policies, their benefits, and their costs.

 

Hank

Edited January 26, 2014 by Hlitner

[MizDaisy]

Interesting thread. Folks need to carefully read the fine print about any kind of insurance. Trying to compare a cruise line offered trip policy (which often has lousy medical benefits) to a more expensive policy offered by a company like CSA is often quite difficult. Rather then just getting sucked into some kind of overpriced trip insurance policy it behooves one to carefully review their own needs and then look for a policy that best meets those needs. For example, some folks have absolutely no medical insurance that covers them outside the USA (such as Medicare) should give a lot of consideration to getting a decent trip medical policy. Others have good reason to need a good trip cancellation policy because perhaps they have some elderly parents at home who give concern or maybe they have their own issues that make cancellation a greater probability. And then there are folks (like moi) who seldom to ever buy any cancellation insurance because it is very expensive and we have found tremendous benefits to self-insuring our cancellation (DW and I are at least $150,000 ahead with all the money we have saved by NOT buying expensive cancellation policies over thirty+ years of travel).

 

So if you think you need some kind of insurance do yourself a favor and take the time to review the various types of policies, their benefits, and their costs.

 

Hank

 

 

 

Can you explain what you mean by "self insuring"?

[donaldsc]

Can you explain what you mean by "self insuring"?

 

You pay for any losses you encounter out of your pocket. OK for small stuff such as cancellation, delay, loss of luggage, etc. Not OK for medical and evacuation which can bankrupt you.

 

DON

[Hlitner]

Can you explain what you mean by "self insuring"?

 

Donald explained it well. But lets put insurance into its proper perspective. All insurance is simply a risk/benefit/cost calculation. When we book a trip (even a 2 month trip) we know how much the trip will cost and can obviously afford that cost or we would not take the trip. So if we pay $10,000 for a cruise and have to cancel the cruise the most we can lose is that $10,000 (plus some more money for other things like air). If we take the trip we will spend the money, and if we cancel the trip we might have to spend the same money. So, we are willing to self-insure that risk and not spend extra money on insurance.

 

However, lets compare that to medical insurance and trip evacuation. Say we are on the same cruise and get sick in Tunesia. We then need to get medical evacuation to some other country with better hospitals (perhaps France). The cost of hiring a jet ambulance might cost about $30,000 and then we could run up nearly unlimited medical bills while being treated in Europe. Our liability for medical is virtually unlimited....and that is not a "risk" we would ever take. So we do always make sure we have decent Travel Medical insurance (we buy an annual policy for about $350 a year that covers up to $250,000 of medical expenses).

 

So, we are willing to "self insure" our trip cost (because it is a known risk we are willing to accept) but we would not consider "self insuring" our medical costs since the potential liability is unlimited and beyond our means and "risk" tolerance.

 

And by the way, that brings up one of my pet peeves. Folks will often be willing to spend a relatively large amount of money to cover trip cancellation and do not seem to worry about medical (which is actually a much bigger risk). Many so-called "Trip Policies" or the "Cancellation Policies" sold by cruise lines, do not have very good medical insurance limits. We see some policies that offer as little as $10,000 in med insurance...which can be less then one day in some hospitals! Go figure.

 

Hank

[lotus land]

Help please. I wanted to get a quote on insurgent trip.com. We are going on a Panama Canal trip with stops in Cartagena, Puntarenas, Puerto Chiapas, Hualtulco, Cabo Lucas, Puerto Vallerata and finally docking in LA. I don't know what to enter as our 'destination'

Thank you.

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app