How much would you pay for trip cancellation insurance?

[SoCal Cruiser78]

Princess is a good example of why we do not recommend using cruise line cancellation policies unless you already have very good medical coverage (for outside the USA). The cruise lines generally stress cancellation provisions (which have a very limited liability) and provide inadequate medical coverage. The two Princess Vacation Protection packages only provide $10,000 or $20,000 (in the more expensive package) in total major med. And even their trip evacuation limits are somewhat low ($25,000 or $50,000)...So perhaps a typical Princess cruiser pays X number of dollars to get $8000 ( And yet folks will pay several hundred dollars to get that $8000 of coverage with little concern about the UNLIMITED liability of medical emergencies...

 

All valid comments. I was just giving a point of reference to the OP. I agree Princess' medical limits are too low. The trip I am taking next will be a CA coastal, so my regular medical will cover me in all ports except Ensenada and any shipboard medical charges. I'll admit, I am taking a chance this trip with the Princess insurance alone.

 

On longer trips away from U.S. ports, I often "triple up". If on Princess, I get their policy for the 100% cancellation feature, a primary medical policy from Travel Guard or similar carrier, and MedJet Assist for repatriation to my local hospital.

Edited April 12, 2015 by SoCal Cruiser78
spelling

[serendipity1499]

For those using insuremytrip dot com to find comparison pricing, you may also want to do the insurance pricing dance to get the optimal option for you!

 

To do that, add up the 'at risk' cost for a cancellation. This is not simply the total cost of the trip, it is only what would be non-returnable to you. In the case of most cruiselines, if you cancel prior to the cruise, taxes and port fees are refunded, so the 'at risk' cost is less. Airfares depends on the carrier. Southwest for instance offers a credit for a future trip which may or may not be useful to you.

 

Most of the insurance options have various base coverages that are independent of the trip costs (medical, evac, baggage, etc.). Look at the options with the 'at risk' trip amount and find the underwriter and option you feel best meets your needs.

 

Then, the pricing dance is done by trying different trip cost scenarios as many of the insurance options are priced in tiers (usually either at $500. or $1000 total trip cost points). You need to find the price points for that underwriter & option. You can insure for any coverage amount you want, the insurance company will only payout for claims what you can support with documentation up to the insured amount for the issued policy.

 

For instance, if there is a price break $50 less than your 'at risk' total, most times it will make sense to insure at the top of the lower tier and self-insure the $50. (as the insurance cost will be lower and in some cases may even cover the $50.). The flip side, if we are near the middle of the tier, we usually bump to the top of that tier for it doesn't cost anymore and gives us flexibility (like if we later decide to switch to pre-paid hotel bookings that are non-refundable).

 

Anyway, I wanted to point this out, for I don't think it is obvious at first.

 

In answer to the OP's question - we always insure our cruise vacations, but not for cancel for any reason (if we decide to book, we are going). We purchase for two reasons; medical/evac in foreign countries/sea and to cover for family emergencies that might require us to cancel or leave the trip early. Cost for us is ~3.5%. which is quite small for the piece of mind.

 

All valid comments. I was just giving a point of reference to the OP. I agree Princess' medical limits are too low. The trip I am taking next will be a CA coastal, so my regular medical will cover me in all ports except Ensenada and any shipboard medical charges. I'll admit, I am taking a chance this trip with the Princess insurance alone.

 

On longer trips away from U.S. ports, I often "triple up". If on Princess, I get their policy for the 100% cancellation feature, a primary medical policy from Travel Guard or similar carrier, and MedJet Assist for repatriation to my local hospital.

 

brentp & SoCal Cruiser I have a question for you both..Will these policies cover a person who is 85 which my DH is? I tried looking at Medjet Assist when we booked our 68 day cruise & could not find a quote on a policy for DH..

 

This always scares me, as a large repatriation bill amount would really be a hit on our finances.. We do have his company medical insurance but not repatriation & DH doesn't want to stop cruising, so we continue to purchase the insurance through our agent..

[SoCal Cruiser78]

 

brentp & SoCal Cruiser I have a question for you both..Will these policies cover a person who is 85 which my DH is? I tried looking at Medjet Assist when we booked our 68 day cruise & could not find a quote on a policy for DH...

 

Unfortunately, MedJet cuts off purchase of policies at age 85, last I checked. I have a family member who purchased an annual policy at age 84, and it will cover past her 85th birthday. But they will not sell or renew a policy after you turn 85.

 

You might consider taking future cruises as close to home as possible, so any repatriation for your DH would not be as big an expense. I haven't checked any MedJet competitors to see if they will insure past 85 yet. Perhaps another CCer will know of one.