Travel Guard /AIG Cruise Insurance Buyer Beware

[florisdekort]

This poster has a good one for us every month. In November he was the one who said we should all avoid the Caribbean because of mosquitoes and in December he started a panic discussion about avoiding all of Europe because it's a war-zone. On the other hand, that does make me understand why coverage for psychological distress is important to him.

Edited January 9, 2016 by florisdekort

[K.T.B.]

Don't mind me, I'm just here to eat popcorn and read the funny comments. :D

[ghstudio]

I initially thought this was a strange thread but after re-reading the OP's post a couple of times, I suspect that someone in their party had/has some sort of mental "illness/condition" which was triggered by some action on the part of a crew member.....maybe they moved something in the cabin...or they touched the individual...or something like that. Mental illness can have so many manifestations. The crew member may never have known that something they did (moved a book on a pool chaise) even set the individual off. Having purchased a "pre-existing conditions waived" policy, the OP, thinking that the mental illness was no longer an insurance stopper, went on the cruise. Something set of the "illness" and the passenger, either had to leave the ship/cruise to return to stability or similar....and it was caused by their "not relevant, but pre-existing" medical condition...so the insurance company should cover their costs, etc.

 

I think I understand the OP's position....not sure I agree with it, but it's a valid topic.....that belongs in the cruise/travel insurance section of Celebrity...

Edited January 9, 2016 by ghstudio

[sippican]

This poster has a good one for us every month. In November he was the one who said we should all avoid the Caribbean because of mosquitoes and in December he started a panic discussion about avoiding all of Europe because it's a war-zone. On the other hand, that does make me understand why coverage for psychological distress is important to him.

 

I knew the tone of rant sounded familiar!

[Orator]

I was on the Connie cruise last October when Isreal was cancelled. Many passengers were quite upset and missing the ports that attracted them to book the cruise. I guess we could say that the cancelation caused some anger and stress related problems for some of the passengers. One passenger positioned himself in the balcony in a spot where he could easily be heard by the Captain. During the "Captain's Toast" the passenger yelled at the Captain and blamed him for causing his stress. The audience yelled at the passenger to sit down and shut up, but he continued his rant. I found out the next day from the HD that the passenger was put off the ship. That's what usually happens when a passenger poises a threat to himself or others.

The staff on every cruise causes great stress to me when I'm "asked" to leave the ship at the end of the cruise. Guess I should file a claim an see if my travel insurance company pays.

On a more serious note: Mental health has been largely ignored by insurance companies.

[happy 2 b cruising]

Agree.

 

I'm finding some of these replies rather cruel. I think the OP was trying to be helpful about travel insurance but instead is receiving jabs (loopy,bonkers) in regards to mental health.

 

Trying to find the correct travel insurance for your trip can be very difficult. Op was trying to be helpful, please try not to be cruel in your responses.

Edited January 9, 2016 by happy 2 b cruising

[mcrcruiser]

We were just trying to alert cruise critic members to what this insurance would not cover .

 

The stress related issue had to do with the ships security non response to a missing spouse & the cabin door being ajar .Cruise critic news has reported murders & rapes on cruise ships from time to time .The security issue was not a Celebrity cruise ship ;but ,a long ,21 day cruise on a HAL cruise ship .This non compliant security issue has been reported to HAL corporate office & we are waiting now for their response

 

For those with so much insurance expertise ,try & collect in a partial fire with smoke & water damage for total replacement . It isn't going to happen . Insurance companies can repair vs replace even though you may think the items are destroyed by smoke & water damage . This is a comparison to the fact that most of us human kind don't have the time ,inclination or other reason to be line readers of all our insurance policies . Being human we try to take people at goof faith . Unfortunately the greed factor plays into corporate decisions :eek:

 

The medical cost ($99.50)of this stress issue although declined by Travel Guard /AIG is being paid by our Medicare Advantage plan . We carry a $25000 outside the USA medical when traveling by our Medicare Advantage plan .Most Advantage plans have that provision built into their medical plans .;)

 

From here on in we will use our Citi Hilton honors Reserve credit card ;which will cover our trip cancellation ,trip interruption ,trip delay . & baggage insurance ( one of many perks of this credit card)at NO COST to us ,for any trip up to $5000 cost ,if billed to this Citi credit card . There are many wonderful perks to this credit card .check it out . This is a new credit card for us .Our medical will be covered by our Advantage plan .The future result is good by to all trip insurance plans :D

[Jobeth66]

We were just trying to alert cruise critic members to what this insurance would not cover .

 

The stress related issue had to do with the ships security non response to a missing spouse & the cabin door being ajar .Cruise critic news has reported murders & rapes on cruise ships from time to time .The security issue was not a Celebrity cruise ship ;but ,a long ,21 day cruise on a HAL cruise ship .This non compliant security issue has been reported to HAL corporate office & we are waiting now for their response

 

For those with so much insurance expertise ,try & collect in a partial fire with smoke & water damage for total replacement . It isn't going to happen . Insurance companies can repair vs replace even though you may think the items are destroyed by smoke & water damage . This is a comparison to the fact that most of us human kind don't have the time ,inclination or other reason to be line readers of all our insurance policies . Being human we try to take people at goof faith . Unfortunately the greed factor plays into corporate decisions :eek:

 

The medical cost ($99.50)of this stress issue although declined by Travel Guard /AIG is being paid by our Medicare Advantage plan . We carry a $25000 outside the USA medical when traveling by our Medicare Advantage plan .Most Advantage plans have that provision built into their medical plans .;)

 

From here on in we will use our Citi Hilton honors Reserve credit card ;which will cover our trip cancellation ,trip interruption ,trip delay . & baggage insurance ( one of many perks of this credit card)at NO COST to us ,for any trip up to $5000 cost ,if billed to this Citi credit card . There are many wonderful perks to this credit card .check it out . This is a new credit card for us .Our medical will be covered by our Advantage plan .The future result is good by to all trip insurance plans :D

 

Collecting RCV on partial losses happens every single day. This is why I will never recommend a "direct writer" carrier for non-insurance savvy people. Please purchase your insurance through an independent agent who will act as your advocate when needed. I've been in insurance for 25 years, and never had an issue either with my own claims or a client's. But I know what to look for. That's why you hire a professional, and dont cheap out because premium is the least important part of your policy. If you're shopping on price, well, you get what you pay for.

[Orator]

We were just trying to alert cruise critic members to what this insurance would not cover .

 

The stress related issue had to do with the ships security non response to a missing spouse & the cabin door being ajar .Cruise critic news has reported murders & rapes on cruise ships from time to time .The security issue was not a Celebrity cruise ship ;but ,a long ,21 day cruise on a HAL cruise ship .This non compliant security issue has been reported to HAL corporate office & we are waiting now for their response

 

For those with so much insurance expertise ,try & collect in a partial fire with smoke & water damage for total replacement . It isn't going to happen . Insurance companies can repair vs replace even though you may think the items are destroyed by smoke & water damage . This is a comparison to the fact that most of us human kind don't have the time ,inclination or other reason to be line readers of all our insurance policies . Being human we try to take people at goof faith . Unfortunately the greed factor plays into corporate decisions :eek:

 

The medical cost ($99.50)of this stress issue although declined by Travel Guard /AIG is being paid by our Medicare Advantage plan . We carry a $25000 outside the USA medical when traveling by our Medicare Advantage plan .Most Advantage plans have that provision built into their medical plans .;)

 

From here on in we will use our Citi Hilton honors Reserve credit card ;which will cover our trip cancellation ,trip interruption ,trip delay . & baggage insurance ( one of many perks of this credit card)at NO COST to us ,for any trip up to $5000 cost ,if billed to this Citi credit card . There are many wonderful perks to this credit card .check it out . This is a new credit card for us .Our medical will be covered by our Advantage plan .The future result is good by to all trip insurance plans :D

 

Glad that everything worked out for you. As I understand it your Travel insurance is a secondary coverage. That means that you need to seek compensation from your primary coverage first. The secondary only kicks in when your primary doesn't cover. Just had this experience with GeoBlue and it worked very well.

[mcrcruiser]

Glad that everything worked out for you. As I understand it your Travel insurance is a secondary coverage. That means that you need to seek compensation from your primary coverage first. The secondary only kicks in when your primary doesn't cover. Just had this experience with GeoBlue and it worked very well.

 

Thanks Orator .Actually the Travel Guard /AIG trip insurance was the primary carrier . Because they have that loop hole written into their policies ,I had no choice but to submit the claim for medical attention to my Medicare Advantage plan .:eek:

 

There were other issues aboard this ship which we sailed from San Diego to Sydney Australia ,like my calf getting cut on a piece of gym equipment because of a unprotected rough metal edge (treated at no coat in the infirmary ) .Never fixed for one full week ,.Very slow delivery of MDR dinners (kitchen problems 30 minutes late several evenings ), found a piece of wire in my French fries at lunch once . A/C in our state room & others on our port side .It took engineering 4 days to fix a fan This was the Noordam we sailed & not one of their older ships .It was built in 2006

 

We have taken 70 cruises with over 40 cruises on Celebrity & never had any issues with Celebrity ever :D. We also sailed many HAL cruises with out incidents ;but ,unless HAL 's management in Seattle replies appropriately ,that will be the last HAL cruise we ever take :rolleyes:

 

We do know that things happen on cruise ships just like they do on land People must be alert to the conditions that surround them ,always .;)

[Orator]

Thanks Orator .Actually the Travel Guard /AIG trip insurance was the primary carrier . Because they have that loop hole written into their policies ,I had no choice but to submit the claim for medical attention to my Medicare Advantage plan .:eek:

 

There were other issues aboard this ship which we sailed from San Diego to Sydney Australia ,like my calf getting cut on a piece of gym equipment because of a unprotected rough metal edge (treated at no coat in the infirmary ) .Never fixed for one full week ,.Very slow delivery of MDR dinners (kitchen problems 30 minutes late several evenings ), found a piece of wire in my French fries at lunch once . A/C in our state room & others on our port side .It took engineering 4 days to fix a fan This was the Noordam we sailed & not one of their older ships .It was built in 2006

 

We have taken 70 cruises with over 40 cruises on Celebrity & never had any issues with Celebrity ever :D. We also sailed many HAL cruises with out incidents ;but ,unless HAL 's management in Seattle replies appropriately ,that will be the last HAL cruise we ever take :rolleyes:

 

We do know that things happen on cruise ships just like they do on land People must be alert to the conditions that surround them ,always .;)

 

We can all learn from the experiences of fellow cruisers. I believe that's one of the values of Ceuise Critic. M

[prim8keeper]

mcrcruiser thanks for sharing your experience. We have used TravelGuard for the last several cruises and have had a good experience even when having to file a claim which has happened twice. However I did know what was and was not included before purchasing. For us it's a huge plus that they include cancelling for work in their regular policy. Sorry you had a bad experience but it's nice to hear your other insurance will cover it.

Edited January 9, 2016 by prim8keeper

[mcrcruiser]

Collecting RCV on partial losses happens every single day. This is why I will never recommend a "direct writer" carrier for non-insurance savvy people. Please purchase your insurance through an independent agent who will act as your advocate when needed. I've been in insurance for 25 years, and never had an issue either with my own claims or a client's. But I know what to look for. That's why you hire a professional, and dont cheap out because premium is the least important part of your policy. If you're shopping on price, well, you get what you pay for.

 

I agree with you ,if you can get the right agent who cares about you & not just their commissions . too many times it6 is simply a numbers game X commissions .

 

Only on a couple of occasions have we ever had a independent agent who cared more for his clients than his commissions . Those insurances were medical supplement policies to Medicare ,when we were under 70 .Once we hit 70 + age those blue Cross premiums sky rocketed ,to the point of non affordability

 

Auto insurance imo is best gotten directly from GEICO (if you have a clean past driving record & no accidents ) here in California . Our home policy is with Met Life & Auto because they also insure us for interior earthquake damage ,at reasonable prices .We live in senior condos with a HOA ,so we can not insure the building itself for earth quake .no agent nor company has ever beat Met on it's premiums & we have had them for man y years

 

Just recently I had a very honest Farmers agent who told me he could not compete with Met & that our policy coverage was excellent ;)

[hvsteve1]

As a former agent, I can tell you anything that involves "health" coverage is going to be very dicey when it comes to mental or emotional health claims. That includes any type of insurance.

 

We've used Travel Guard, mainly because our agent recommends it as a coverage that includes pre-existing conditions (at least in the policy we get) which came in handy when my wife's doctor told her, two days before leaving, that she was not well enough to travel at that time. NOTHING was refundable at that time and the insurance paid well into five-figures without any arguments. This was not a cruise but a very expensive private land tour.I never book a cruise or other expensive package without insurance.

[Host Jazzbeau]

We were just trying to alert cruise critic members to what this insurance would not cover .

 

The stress related issue had to do with the ships security non response to a missing spouse & the cabin door being ajar .Cruise critic news has reported murders & rapes on cruise ships from time to time .The security issue was not a Celebrity cruise ship ;but ,a long ,21 day cruise on a HAL cruise ship .

 

So why is this thread on the CELEBRITY forum???

[sirwired]

Not covering mental issues isn't unique to TG. I don't know of any travel insurance that covers them.

The primary reason mental issues are not covered is to keep from paying out when somebody decides to suddenly come down with a phobia so they can cancel their trip for what would otherwise not be a covered reason.

Unfortunately, genuine issues get caught in the crossfire, but again, this is not unique to TG.