CSA Travel Protection?

[Joanandjoe]

I looked up insurance for my 11/25/06 Noordam cruise on www.insuremytrip.com, as recommended by jhannah on another thread. I found an insurance company, CSA Travel Protection, that appears to waive pre-existing medical conditions if the inurance is taken out with or before the FINAL payment. That sounds great for a cruise more than 15 months away. Has anyone dealt with this company?

[montgomeryfamily]

Here are two threads from the Princess forum discussing CSA and containing posts of reviews from cruisers who have used CSA. They report that CSA staff were helpful and claims were paid promptly.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=213393&highlight=CSA

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=106716&highlight=CSA

[Joanandjoe]

Thanks, Kathy.

[pcs15]

I have used CSA several times and have had to file claims twice - once due to travel delays and once for cancelling a cruise due to a death in the family. Both claims were handled very smoothly and took about 6 weeks. One required verification of a rental car on a small out island in the Bahamas and the claim agent was very diligent in getting the verification. My experience with them has been nothing but positive. Good luck, and I hope you never need to file a claim!

[Artemis]

We, too, had an excellent claim experience with CSA. And we have bought a number of policies through insuremytrip.com -- great resource.

 

Wow! I could've sworn you had to be very confused re: the time to purchase. Normally, the policy must be purchased within a certain time, e.g., 14 days, after initial deposit, which is what we experienced when we bought our CSA policy in Dec. 2004 that resulted in the claim and when we bought another just this past May. Your post made me curious, so I went to insuremytrip.com to check it out, and indeed, CSA now features a "buy within 24 hours of final payment" provision. This is a smart business move, as they can sell more policies in this extended timeframe.

[booboo4031]

A new feature of CSA Freestyle Luxe policy is that it covers pre-existing conditions if purchased within 24 hours of final payment. This just came about in the last month or so. I called just last week to confirm this with them. I have used them in the past with no problems, but I wanted to be sure which CSA policy was affected.

[sail7seas]

We did some investigation yesterday about his new policy.

 

 

This new policy is called "Comfort Plan" and must be written anytime up to 24 hours prior to making final payment. This new plan has only been available for about 3 weeks.

 

It sounds like another good policy from which we can choose what is the best for us.

 

We have not written any insurance for about our last 40+ cruises but are seriously considering writing this policy.

 

Our AmEx Platinum covers emergency medical evacuation which is such a huge exposure one could possibly have. In the past, we have always been willing to 'self-insure' the cost of our cruises and 'take the hit' if we had to cancel. We've been lucky (thus far) that we have had some 'free cruises' for all of the times we did not pay out premiums and never suffered a loss. Maybe I'm thinking we have started to :) push our luck?

 

The premiums for Comfort Plus seem appropriate for the type of coverage.

[CruiseQueen13]

I've heard good things about CSA - never used them. We use travelguard, travelex, etc

[booboo4031]

I just called CSA to verify what I had said in a previous post and they did confirm my information. In order to cover pre-existing health conditions with the the comfort plus/freestyle luxe plan you have up to 24 hours after final payment to purchase the policy. I just wanted to be sure I had the correct info I was passing along since I just bought a policy and will need to buy another in a few weeks.:)

[sail7seas]

I just called CSA to verify what I had said in a previous post and they did confirm my information. In order to cover pre-existing health conditions with the the comfort plus/freestyle luxe plan you have up to 24 hours after final payment to purchase the policy. I just wanted to be sure I had the correct info I was passing along since I just bought a policy and will need to buy another in a few weeks.:)

 

 

YESTERDAY....we were told we had to purchase the insurance 24 hours PRIOR to making final payment in order for pre-existing health conditions to be covered.

Hmmmm?????

[bellebaby]

The following is from the CSA "Comfort Plan" policy:

 

The Pre-Existing Condition Exclusion is waived provided you meet all of the following requirements:

1) the payment for this plan is received prior to or within 24 hours of your final payment for your Covered Trip; and

2) you are not disbaled from travel at the time you make your plan payment; and

3) the booking for the Covered Trip must be the first and only booking for this travel period and destination.

 

 

I don't think it says 24 hours before final payment, but the wording is open to interpretation. I always make final payment a few days ahead of the due date and would buy the policy at that time. It is a great alternative for someone who thinks their plans may change and doesn't want to forfeit trip insurance premiums. I will definately consider the policy the next time I'm in the market for coverage.

[montgomeryfamily]

Also CSA has travel policies that will refund the insurance premiums if the cancellation is before penalty. They have two policies that include this coverage and one policy with which you can pay a small fee to have the insurance premium return rider attached.

[sail7seas]

Also CSA has travel policies that will refund the insurance premiums if the cancellation is before penalty. They have two policies that include this coverage and one policy with which you can pay a small fee to have the insurance premium return rider attached.

 

Do you know what the provisions as to 'pre-existing conditions' are with those policies?

Each person has to be very careful to pick the policy that best suits there needs for the best premium. What is good for one person is less so for another.

[jhannah]

Sorry. I think I figured out what I had posted about.

[montgomeryfamily]

The CSA Comfort does not have the provision for the waiver of insurance premiums in case of cancellation without penalty. The CSA Freestyle has the waiver rider you can add for a small fee, but this doesn't exclude pre-existing conditions (and it is the cheapest of all of the CSA policies)

 

The CSA Freestyle Luxe and CSA Luxe policies both contain the waiver of insurance premiums which provide for return of the premiums in case of cancellation. Both CSA Freestyle Luxe and CSA Luxe policies also provide a waiver of pre-existing conditions if purchased "within 24 hours of final payment"--the same as the CSA Comfort policy.

 

Freestyle Luxe and Luxe provide $250,000 in medical coverage and $1.000.000 in emergency evacuation. Comfort provides $50,000 medical and $250,000 emergency evacuation. Coverage for trip interruption, trip delay, and travel interruption are the same. Freesyle Luxe and Luxe provides $1500 for baggage and $500 for baggage delay--Comfort provides $1000 and $250 respectively. Freestyle Luxe and Luxe offer a few other extras as well that Comfort doesn't offer, such as identify theft protection.

 

The cost of Comfort is a little cheaper, but Freestyle Luxe and Luxe provide much more coverage. Of course, you have to decide whether or not it is worth the extra cost for the additional coverage.

[sail7seas]

GREAT analysis/comparison, Kathy.

 

Thank you very much. Extremely helpful.

[starysacz]

Thank you Montgomeryfamily for the valuable information. I have been reviewing the various policies with the intent of purchasing for a cruise in April 2006.

[montgomeryfamily]

Glad you found the information helpful. :)

 

Even more good news about the CSA Freestyle Luxe and Luxe policies. CSA has expanded the waiver for return of insurance premiums so that the waiver includes return of insurance premiums whenever the trip is cancelled, not just before final payment date. In addition, the insurance premiums will be returned for a cancellation for any reason--whether covered or not. The only caveat is that the insurance must be purchased before final payment date.

 

So this means that with the CSA waiver of insurance premiums, if you must cancel a cruise for a covered reason, like illness, you will get all of your monies, including what you pay for insurance. And if you cancel a cruise for a reason that is not covered, such as you change your mind, you still will get your insurance premiums back, so at least you aren't out that money. I'm not aware of any travel insurance company that offers this type of premium return.

 

Here is the CSA language for the Return of Premium Waiver:

 

"CSA's Return of Premium waiver guarantees that at a minimum, you will be refunded the cost of your CSA Freestyle Luxe insurance premium if you cancel your trip for any reason (covered or not). Additionally, if your trip is cancelled due to a covered reason beyond your control (refer to your Certificate of Insurance for coverage details), you will receive the CSA Freestyle Luxe insurance premium back in addition to any claim you may have filed.

 

In order to take advantage of the Return of Premium waiver, all travelers insured on the policy will need to cancel the trip."

[bellebaby]

montgomeryfamily

 

I agree with you that CSA is bringing new alternatives to the travel insurance market. The only negative I see with these policies is that some of the coverage, including medical, is secondary, not primary. In other words, a claim would have to be submitted to any other available insurance (medical, homeowner's, etc.) first and if denied or only partially covered, then CSA would pay. However, the flexibility CSA now offers may outweigh the "hassle" factor of submitting to other carriers first. Interesting....

 

Thanks for the information!

 

B

[sail7seas]

Really good information. Thank you.

Makes me wonder why anyone would purchase the trip cancellation policies offered by the cruiselines? These CSA policies are so much better and I think even the premiums are lower.

[Dog Mommie]

Sail,

 

The very 1st. cruise we ever booked, the travel agent STRESSED to NEVER buy insurance thru the cruise/tour/air etc. lines because they rarely cover much more than THEMSELVES!:eek: Amazing to me...40+ cruises with no mishaps! You must be one of the luckiest people I've had the pleasure to converse with...no mishaps AND having the opportunity to sail so much!:D

 

Montgomeryfamily...great info! Thanks very much for your due diligence.;)

 

As to the original ?, we have used CSA numerous times, and the few claims we've had to make were taken care of promptly. Just remember to KEEP ALL TAGS AND RECIEPTS off new clothing, otherwise you only get a (low) % of their reasonable worth!:cool:

[sail7seas]

I've tried posting this twice already and it got lost in Cruise Critic Cyber netherland.....I'll try again. :)

YES....We know we have been VERY Lucky. We have been on about 60+ cruises (including lines other than HAL) and we have never had a mishap, illness or any reason to cancel or lose out on our full cruise. VERY Luck.

We have not taken insurance for a great many years. We came real close to having a problem a year and a half ago when I had a heart attack less than two weeks after we returned from back-to-backs on Maasdam in the Caribbean. If that had happened during the cruise, the results could have been very different. I think I'll opt for treatment at Massachusetts General Hospital vs. Cozumel General. :eek: Our medical insurance covers us for treatment anywhere in the world. We may have to lay out money, but we would be reimbursed.

We also have AmExPlatinum which provides as part of membership, emergency medical evacuation. Because of those two coverages, we have always been willing to 'self-insure' the price of our cruises. The two things outlined here are where the big expenses lay. As long as they were covered, the price of our cruise was quickly absorbed after a number of cruises where we did not lay out hundreds of dollars in premiums. We have saved, literally, tens of thousands of dollars in unpaid premiums.

We have been very, very lucky that, to date,we have suffered no loss.

With that said, we paid final payment for one of our upcoming Volendam cruises and the day before we made final payment, we wrote a CSA Policy. I think I don't wish to push our luck any further. :)

[Dog Mommie]

Sail,

 

Very glad you seem so healthy and happy now! Really hope you NEVER have to use the dreaded insurance!;)

 

We have had to cancel 2 out of our 18 (I think!) cruises due to illness with parents. Both of us have mothers that live in our area and we are their 1st. line of caregivers. Therefore, we never book a cruise without the insurance!

[montgomeryfamily]

Bellebaby, you are correct that the CSA coverage is secondary. Thanks for pointing that out to people who may have read this thread and not understood that. Also, this insurance, like most other travel insurance, excludes some high risk activities you may take on your trip from coverage, such as scuba diving.

 

I have found that most travel insurance available iis secondary, although some is primary. So it is important to review any travel insurance policy and determine what the coverage includes, excludes, amount of coverage, and other factors that are important to you. I have rarely recommended a specific travel insurance on CC because I think that the purchase of travel insurance depends on so many personal factors. The only reason I've gone into this discussion about CSA is because that is the topic of this thread.

 

For those who are confused about travel insurance, including what is primary insurance and what is secondary insurance, there was a discussion of this topic on the Celebrity forum where I tried to explain the difference. You can find this thread here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=216179&highlight=CSA. I intend to add a similar discussion to the August 19, 2006 Caribbean Princess Cruise Critic group cruise forum also, since this seems to be a topic of general interest to so many.

 

Sail7Seas, I'm glad that you have never had a mishap on any cruise and I hope that you never have to use the travel insurance you purchase. It is the one "investment", on which I prefer not to see a "return". :)

 

Dog Mommie, I'm glad that you had a wise travel agent who advised you about the cruise line insurance. Our travel agent had never done this on our first few cruises and had actually recommended the cruise line insurance. (Unfortunately, it was before this board was around also.) My eyes were opened on the one time we cruised on a cruise line which we have never used since and which I'm not going to name here because I don't want to cause controversy by others who may have a different opinion of that cruise line. We had a several mishaps, some caused by the staff on this "fun" ship and had a horrible time in dealing with Berkely, the cruise line underwriter--the cruise line deferred all the issues to them. This was the first time I had read the insurance binder and I was really surprised by all of the exclusions, etc, plus this is secondary insurance also. So I began doing a lot of due diligence in the travel insurance arena.

 

It is very difficult to obtain a copy of the cruise line insurance binder which contains all of the policy information/coverages/exclusions, because the cruise line refers you to the travel insurance underwriter. This is how I found how that Berkley handles most of the cruise lines' insurance programs. The cruiselines do handle themselves the programs where you can cancel and get some portion of the cruise fare back in credits, but that program has never been of much interest to me.

 

While I am in good health and have personal medical insurance, the coverage for medical evacuation under my personal medical insurance is insufficent in my opinion. In addition, my brother, who often travels with me, is disabled and his medical insurance does not provide medical coverage for events/sickness which occur outside the US. His medical evacuation coverage is also sorely lacking.

 

Sail7Seas, I suspect that the reason many people buy the cruise line insurance is because they were like us in our early cruises--the travel agent recommended it and we assumed coverage that isn't actually included. There are also some people who are more interested in the program to obtain cruise credit for cancellation for any reason, rather than medical or other coverage.

 

Everyone has their own reasons for purchasing travel insurance. You just need to look carefully at any travel insurance policy you are considering purchasing to make sure it will provide what you most want. I've not been able to find the "perfect" travel insurance that would provide everything including primary coverage. I suspect that if such insurance was offered, it would be cost prohibitive. So it is often a matter of trade-off and making sure that you pick the travel insurance that best provides the coverage you need/want.

[sail7seas]

Kathy.....

 

IMO, your postings on this subject are so valuable they should be made a 'sticky' at the top of the page and kept there permanently. I have printed out this information and wish to have it to refer to in the future.

Thank you for your very profession anaylysis and very clear explanations.

This is an example of the best of what these bulletin boards provide. IMO