Insurance and Cancellation

[BosoxI]

DW and I have two cruises scheduled over Christmas/New Year. Final payment will be required soon. We have not yet purchased insurance.

 

I have just learned that two close family members are seriously ill. My choices seem to be either to cancel the cruises prior to final payment, something I am loath to do, purchase the insurance now, or wait longer to see how things turn out.

 

If I choose the latter, can I purchase the insurance after final payment and still cancel with no or slight penalty? Or will that ability be lost because I waited closer to embarkation date?

 

I realize the insurance might to more expensive the longer I delay purchase but that is a price I am willing to pay.

[roxievegas]

call celebrity or your travel agent to ask about timing. We always purchase the travel insurance - currently have four trips booked and they average under $100 per person for each cruise. For us it is piece of mind - rather pay the insurance and know that we can get the money back on the cruise if we cancel for legit reason. Also if you have paid for the insurance and use choice air to book your flights the airfare is also refundable. Again double check with celebrity.

[cbradley1209]

call celebrity or your travel agent to ask about timing. We always purchase the travel insurance - currently have four trips booked and they average under $100 per person for each cruise. For us it is piece of mind - rather pay the insurance and know that we can get the money back on the cruise if we cancel for legit reason. Also if you have paid for the insurance and use choice air to book your flights the airfare is also refundable. Again double check with celebrity.

 

May I ask where you get insurance for under $100 per person? Thanks-chris

[roxievegas]

taking 13 day transatlantic cost for insurance is $89.00 per person, 9 day norway cruise - $89.00 per person, 12 day Baltic cruise (russia) $159.00 per person. Cruise Care Protection booked with cruise through celebrity. Insurance is like any insurance - you pay for something you hope won't happen and you get nothing back if nothing happens, but if something does happen, you are glad you got it. We had purchased an internet travel insurance coverage 5 years ago for a trip (not cruise) to europe and got hit with the storm of the century and were stuck in Paris. Insurance did not help us at all - so some times things work and sometimes they don't.

[az_tchr]

CBradley - I get 10K worth of insurance per cruise for $79 a year. It is part of the benefits on my Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa. Bigger benefits like PRIMARY car rental insurance, trip interruption and cancellation insurance, extended warranties if bought in NAmerica. Am guessing BoxSox1 could get the same deal. I have collected when car broke down and we were stuck for a week in Montana.

 

Am guessing this available only to US residents, but am guessing similar programs available in Canada and elsewhere.

[cle-guy]

CBradley - I get 10K worth of insurance per cruise for $79 a year. It is part of the benefits on my Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa. Bigger benefits like PRIMARY car rental insurance, trip interruption and cancellation insurance, extended warranties if bought in NAmerica. Am guessing BoxSox1 could get the same deal. I have collected when car broke down and we were stuck for a week in Montana.

the $10k, is that annual limit for all claims, or just the reimbursement of cruise fare? Also what are med-evac limits?

 

I have been looking for annual policies, and I found one for $449/year with 250k med-evac, 50k medical, but only $5000 trip cancellation/interruption coverage. Also includes rental car collision up to 45k, and allow pre-existing conditions.

[az_tchr]

It is $10K per claim on trip insurance. No medivac. Wife and I are lucky to have full coverage for that on our regular health insurance. Rental Insurance is primary not secondary coverage up to the cost of the car. That is the big difference. Also lost and delayed baggage and trip coverage. Lost luggage up to $3000.

 

Have only ever collected on trip delay and lost luggage. http://www.chase.com/online/sapphire/credit-card-benefits

 

With something like this for free in year one and $79 in following years wonder way any cruiser from the US would buy trip insurance.

[chamima]

Your link doesn't work but when I looked up Chase Sappire Preferred it's $95 a year.

I haven't had a chance to look up the insurance benefits on the card yet.

 

 

EDIT: It DOES say that if you charge the trip on the card you get up to $10,000 in reimbursed expenses.

TRIP CANCELLATION/TRIP INTERRUPTION INSURANCE

 

If your trip is canceled or cut short by sickness, severe weather and other covered situations, you can be reimbursed up to $10,000 per trip for your pre-paid, non-refundable travel expenses, including passenger fares, tours, and hotels.

 

 

I tend to be a cynic and this seems to be too good to be true.

$95 is less than we pay for insurance for even one cruise.

Edited September 17, 2015 by chamima

[Muushka]

It is $10K per claim on trip insurance. No medivac. Wife and I are lucky to have full coverage for that on our regular health insurance. Rental Insurance is primary not secondary coverage up to the cost of the car. That is the big difference. Also lost and delayed baggage and trip coverage. Lost luggage up to $3000.

 

Have only ever collected on trip delay and lost luggage. www.chase.com/online/sapphire/credit-card-benefits

 

With something like this for free in year one and $79 in following years wonder way any cruiser from the US would buy trip insurance.

 

Because we all don't have medical insurance that would cover medivac or out of country medical treatments.

[Iamthesea]

To answer the OP's question...

 

If you are very close to the relatives, I advise you to cancel the trip. Been in that situation when we didn't cancel. While our insurance may have been a help to get us back home after a death (was not expected so soon) we are not so sure it would have because we booked the insurance at final payment knowing that the family member was sick.

 

Also, the guilt that is still with me today about missing "the end" will always overshadow the memories I had of that trip. The trip itself was overshadowed by worry and then getting the news, followed by not being able to get home in time for the funeral. :(

 

We had decided to go ahead with the trip because it was overseas and so much planning had gone into the trip, plus we had people counting on us for excursions. Some planned by me, and others counting on us (4 persons) for their private excursions.:rolleyes: The family member told us to go ahead with the trip.

 

If you are not particularly close to the family member, then only you can decide. However, think about the other family memebers and the support that they might need either during the illness or after a death. Or, buy your insurance, but get the cancel for any reason. CSA Luxe has a policy that can be purchased at final payment and it includes pre-existing conditions. Again, not sure if we would have been covered even having that pre-existing coverage.

Edited September 17, 2015 by Iamthesea

[az_tchr]

I get that one but many trip insurance policies do not cover medivac either. Why not buy that coverage separately. Policies available for a hundred $$. Medexassist is $4 a day for example for $100K in coverage.

 

Cle - don't forget they will not cover that Rolls you always rent whist in the UK!

 

As to the original posters question - I agree cancel. While they would be covered with the medical issues, unless you bought a any reason policy you would not. Probably best to schedule this for another day.

Edited September 17, 2015 by az_tchr

[FunForUs]

the $10k, is that annual limit for all claims, or just the reimbursement of cruise fare? Also what are med-evac limits?

 

I have been looking for annual policies, and I found one for $449/year with 250k med-evac, 50k medical, but only $5000 trip cancellation/interruption coverage. Also includes rental car collision up to 45k, and allow pre-existing conditions.

 

This sounds pretty good. Would you mind telling be the name of the company? thx Shirley

[cle-guy]

This sounds pretty good. Would you mind telling be the name of the company? thx Shirley

 

Allianz https://www.allianztravelinsurance.com

[SFO-F/A]

I'd cancel the trip.

[If only]

DW and I have two cruises scheduled over Christmas/New Year. Final payment will be required soon. We have not yet purchased insurance.

 

I have just learned that two close family members are seriously ill. My choices seem to be either to cancel the cruises prior to final payment, something I am loath to do, purchase the insurance now, or wait longer to see how things turn out.

 

If I choose the latter, can I purchase the insurance after final payment and still cancel with no or slight penalty? Or will that ability be lost because I waited closer to embarkation date?

 

I realize the insurance might to more expensive the longer I delay purchase but that is a price I am willing to pay.

 

I hate to ask this but if either person has been deemed to be terminal, there would be no coverage.

We cancelled a trip to Spain/Portugal in Oct on Equinox because my brother has terminal cancer, there is no such coverage with any company for that reason, so we decided to stay on this side of the pond and do short cruises. You did say serious so I thought I had better let you know.

Edited September 17, 2015 by If only

[cle-guy]

I hate to ask this but if either person has been deemed to be terminal, there would be no coverage.

We cancelled a trip to Spain/Portugal in Oct on Equinox because my brother has terminal cancer, there is no such coverage with any company for that reason, so we decided to stay on this side of the pond and do short cruises. You did say serious so I thought I had better let you know.

 

The Allianz Policy I was referring to seems to cover death of family member, there don't seem to be any exclusions as to if they were already under treatment or not. It also covers pre-existing conditions, if bought when the trip is booked.

[If only]

The Allianz Policy I was referring to seems to cover death of family member, there don't seem to be any exclusions as to if they were already under treatment or not. It also covers pre-existing conditions, if bought when the trip is booked.

 

That's what we thought but if a family member has been deemed terminal the insurance coverage will not cover your return trip, at least a Canadian insurance company. There is also nothing in insurance wordings to cover it.

[dabear]

The Allianz Policy I was referring to seems to cover death of family member, there don't seem to be any exclusions as to if they were already under treatment or not. It also covers pre-existing conditions, if bought when the trip is booked.

 

The Allianz policy policy I recently bought (Classic) did have a requirement of buying it within 15 days of purchasing a cruise (ie deposit) in order to have preexisting coverage. Family members included siblings. BTW, the premium I believe is based upon amount of coverage and age of passengers. I also think it is safer to buy the insurance from an independent company rather than the cruise line in the event the latter goes bankrupt (while rare, it has happened a few times).

[cle-guy]

The Allianz policy policy I recently bought (Classic) did have a requirement of buying it within 15 days of purchasing a cruise (ie deposit) in order to have preexisting coverage. Family members included siblings. BTW, the premium I believe is based upon amount of coverage and age of passengers. I also think it is safer to buy the insurance from an independent company rather than the cruise line in the event the latter goes bankrupt (while rare, it has happened a few times).

 

For single trip policy, this is the case.

 

For an annual policy, all they need is start date and passenger ages and home state. They limit coverage to $5000 for reimbursement for cruise costs for covered reasons, so no need to stipulate cost of individual travel portions to calculate rates.

[cbradley1209]

The Allianz policy policy I recently bought (Classic) did have a requirement of buying it within 15 days of purchasing a cruise (ie deposit) in order to have preexisting coverage. Family members included siblings. BTW, the premium I believe is based upon amount of coverage and age of passengers. I also think it is safer to buy the insurance from an independent company rather than the cruise line in the event the latter goes bankrupt (while rare, it has happened a few times).

 

Yes, every policy I have looked at (and they are many), in order to cover pre-existing conditions (perhaps yours isn't), you have to buy the insurance when you book the trip.

 

My husband was confronted with something as mundane as a bum hip. He had seen a doctor for it prior to our booking and no matter where I looked, cancellation would not have been covered because he had seen a doctor prior to our initial booking. unless I had bought the insurance at the time of our booking.

 

My insurance would have followed these lines. Because he had seen a doctor I would not have been covered if we had to cancel.

 

I sincerely hope everything turns out okay for you and your loved one. chris

Edited September 17, 2015 by cbradley1209

[chamima]

One of the benefits our wonderful TA offers is insurance that covers pre-existing conditions as long as it's purchased with or before final payment.

[purpletequila]

CBradley - I get 10K worth of insurance per cruise for $79 a year. It is part of the benefits on my Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa. Bigger benefits like PRIMARY car rental insurance, trip interruption and cancellation insurance, extended warranties if bought in NAmerica. Am guessing BoxSox1 could get the same deal. I have collected when car broke down and we were stuck for a week in Montana.

 

Am guessing this available only to US residents, but am guessing similar programs available in Canada and elsewhere.

 

 

Uhm, what? I have this card but knew nothing of this. Would that $79 cover all passengers booked with the card? How do you do that....so that the $79 charge appears on the bill? I had a family member use AMEX thinking they were better. Hmm. I learn something here every day.

[purpletequila]

I have an extended family member who is also terminally ill. Does the cruise care protection I bought at booking cover for this reason or is it only for immediate family members?

[Iamthesea]

Yes, every policy I have looked at (and they are many), in order to cover pre-existing conditions (perhaps yours isn't), you have to buy the insurance when you book the trip.

 

My husband was confronted with something as mundane as a bum hip. He had seen a doctor for it prior to our booking and no matter where I looked, cancellation would not have been covered because he had seen a doctor prior to our initial booking. unless I had bought the insurance at the time of our booking.

 

My insurance would have followed these lines. Because he had seen a doctor I would not have been covered if we had to cancel.

 

I sincerely hope everything turns out okay for you and your loved one. chris

 

Hi, I mentioned above that CSA Luxe offers pre-existing coverage purchased at, or within 24 hours, of final payment.

 

Some TA's will also offer insurance coverage with pre-existing coverage, though I have never seen a TA policy that covers enough of med-vac when traveling overseas.

 

I have an extended family member who is also terminally ill. Does the cruise care protection I bought at booking cover for this reason or is it only for immediate family members?

 

In my opinion and the opinion of others on this board, the Cruise Care offered through cruiselines is very limited. :(

Edited September 17, 2015 by Iamthesea

[az_tchr]

Purple - The charge - now actually $95 is the renewal charge. Thus you pay it annually. It covers up to the 10K limit card holders. That would be you and your spouse or whoever you had as an authorized card holder. Suggest you go on the Website for chase Sapphire Preferred and read not only the overview but the details. FWIW - I do not work for Chase but do have the card and have collected on benefit from them. As to the policy you bought - every policy is different. I am not an expert here, only a retired teacher who travels most of the year. Need to read the fine print, but would guess a death in immediate family is a definite maybe. An extended family member can almost guarantee no, but let us know what they say.

Edited September 17, 2015 by az_tchr