Cautionary tale about HAL and insurance

[LDVinNC]

I hope it is okay to post this link:

 

http://elliott.org/thats-ridiculous-2/the-secret-rule-about-insurance-your-cruise-line-doesnt-want-you-to-know/#more-50495[/url]

 

An interesting story.

[dakrewser]

A rather sensationalized account of something that pops up here on a weekly basis. No new information, and - of course - lots of digs at the cruise industry (as that site is noted for).

[Riversedge]

That sounds like a nightmare. Thanks for posting. I never buy insurance through HAL, preferring to save money and get a better policy for less money somewhere else. (we now buy an annual policy). This sounds like it was more a problem with what she was told by HAL and not the company itself however.

[frankc98376]

I didn't know about the waiting until 24 hours part. Thanks!

[f3red]

This post is intended to be helpful, and not as a tangential distraction...

 

Last year, I was looking at the credit cards my wife and I have, as a result of damage to a tire on a car we rented in England. Long story short: the damage was covered by the protection that was included with the card - and the rental agent knew about it (I didn't) and processed it quickly. :)

 

When I returned home, I looked at the coverage included on our cards and was amazed to find that the cost of trip insurance I had bought for several recent trips was WASTED! My main card provides all the coverage I had paid extra for from an insurance company! :eek:

 

To be honest, I pay a hefty annual fee for the card. BUT every trip I take I save $300 or more (sometimes much more!), and get additional benefits - miles, airline lounge access, ec.

 

So ... please find out the exact coverage offered by your credit cards - and the limitations/restrictions/requirements necessary to qualify for coverage. All I had to do was charge all travel expenses to my main card. My other cards provide lower coverage levels, and exclude some things the main card covers.

 

I have purposely not identified the specific cards I use, as each of us has different travel styles, preferred travel providers, etc. But if you look around you will find a card that suits you and provides valuable benefits as I have described. When I first heard that the annual fee was almost $500, I said "No way!" Now I am glad to spend that and SAVE MONEY! :cool:

[Fouremco]

I hope it is okay to post this link:

 

http://elliott.org/thats-ridiculous-2/the-secret-rule-about-insurance-your-cruise-line-doesnt-want-you-to-know/#more-50495[/url]

 

An interesting story.

Thanks, an interesting article.

[SilvertoGold]

This post is intended to be helpful, and not as a tangential distraction...

 

Last year, I was looking at the credit cards my wife and I have, as a result of damage to a tire on a car we rented in England. Long story short: the damage was covered by the protection that was included with the card - and the rental agent knew about it (I didn't) and processed it quickly. :)

 

When I returned home, I looked at the coverage included on our cards and was amazed to find that the cost of trip insurance I had bought for several recent trips was WASTED! My main card provides all the coverage I had paid extra for from an insurance company! :eek:

 

To be honest, I pay a hefty annual fee for the card. BUT every trip I take I save $300 or more (sometimes much more!), and get additional benefits - miles, airline lounge access, ec.

 

So ... please find out the exact coverage offered by your credit cards - and the limitations/restrictions/requirements necessary to qualify for coverage. All I had to do was charge all travel expenses to my main card. My other cards provide lower coverage levels, and exclude some things the main card covers.

 

I have purposely not identified the specific cards I use, as each of us has different travel styles, preferred travel providers, etc. But if you look around you will find a card that suits you and provides valuable benefits as I have described. When I first heard that the annual fee was almost $500, I said "No way!" Now I am glad to spend that and SAVE MONEY! :cool:

 

An excellent post. Thanks for the reminder and good advice.

 

It is so easy to overlook the long pages on coverages included.

[9876]

Last spring I had to cancel a cruise I had charged on our Chase card that does include trip cancellation. Honestly, I am typically of the camp we will see what they cover when the need arises. There are typically so many loopholes. I am happy to report that they did cover my cancellation. One thing I did learn though is that pre-existing illnesses are not covered. As I get older that benefit might not be quite so valuable but it sure was nice when I needed it.

[Tampa Girl]

Last spring I had to cancel a cruise I had charged on our Chase card that does include trip cancellation. Honestly, I am typically of the camp we will see what they cover when the need arises. There are typically so many loopholes. I am happy to report that they did cover my cancellation. One thing I did learn though is that pre-existing illnesses are not covered. As I get older that benefit might not be quite so valuable but it sure was nice when I needed it.

 

Which Chase cards include trip cancellation, please? And how close to sailing did you cancel? And did you have to provide medical evidence of the cause for your cancellation? It does not appear that the policy was a "for any reason" one.

[LDVinNC]

I have a Citi card that covers trip cancellation up to $3000/pp. Enough for most trips for us. I don't see anything in the flyer about pre-existing conditions, and that could be very important, so I will call in case they are like Chase. Thanks for the heads-up.

[gpb11]

Whatever / however you're obtaining coverage, it's up to you to READ the fine print and understand the details. That's what count far more than what some random customer service agent on the phone might claim.

[SLOTheta]

I have the United Club Visa - it's $450 a year, but well worth it. It covers almost everything traditional travel insurance would cover. I've used it several times when I've had cancelled, delayed flights or lost baggage. Along with excellent travel insurance, I get two free bags (50lbs) checked free and complimentary Club Lounge access all around the world.

 

Here are some highlights taken from a site I use to compare cards and FF programs: milecards.com

 

Emergency medical evacuation. If you travel more than 100 miles from home and for more than 5 but less than 60 days, and charge the transportation there with the card, you will be eligible for reimbursement for emergency evacuation due to illness or injury not covered by your personal medical insurance. This includes you, your spouse, and children under 18 (25 if they are full time students) whose are traveling with you and whose tickets are purchased using the card. If you are hospitalized more than 8 days, you can get airfare in economy class reimbursed for a friend or loved one to be at your bedside. Repatriation of remains is also covered up to $1,000.

 

Lost luggage reimbursement. $3,000 in reimbursement for lost luggage and contents when checked with a carrier. You must purchase the ticket with the card. Limited coverage for jewelry, fur, and other items.

 

Lost luggage reimbursement. $3,000 in reimbursement for lost luggage and contents when checked with a carrier. You must purchase the ticket with the card. Limited coverage for jewelry, fur, and other items.

 

Roadside assistance. Up to $50 per event, up to 4 times per year, including battery boost, flat tire service, fuel delivery, towing, and lockout assistance. Call 1-866-359-5402 for assistance.

 

Travel accident insurance. $500,000 in coverage for accidents during travel that involve loss of life, limb, sight, speech, or hearing while traveling on a common carrier ticket purchased with the card. This is not coverage for accidents that occur beyond the transportation portion of the trip.

 

Baggage delay benefit. $100 per day up to $300 for essential items that need purchasing in the event of a delay in baggage arrival. This excludes item like contact lenses, dentures, jewelry, cameras, and others.

 

Trip cancellation / interruption. Up to $10,000 reimbursement if you must cancel or cut short a trip due to death, illness, or injury of the cardholder or an immediate family member which a physician declares will prevent the cardholder from traveling on a trip purchased with the card. This is for the non refundable portion of a ticket only. Inability to make a trip due to hazardous weather also qualifies.

 

Trip delay coverage. $500 toward expenses like food and lodging if the ticket you purchase with the card incurs a delay of m0re than 12 hours or requires an overnight stay. This includes yourself, spouse, and children under 22 years old as long as the ticket was purchased using the card.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[f3red]

Well, since others are posting the different cards they use, I'll tell you that my preferred travel card is the Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite MasterCard. Right now they have a pretty tasty intro offer: 60,000 AA miles, etc. Benefits are similar to those previously described for the United card. More here: https://secure.fly.aa.com/citi/hero-exec or just go to the AA website for a link.

 

"Secret" awesome feature: every authorized card holder can access the AA Admirals Club - shhhhhhh...

[RedmondCruiser]

We always take out the HAL platinum coverage and have only had to use it once. We had to cancel out on the morning of the sailing, from Seattle. This was on a Sunday. My card was credited on Monday. I consider that to be good service. Having been in the insurance industry for 32 years the old saying is "The big print giveth and the small print taketh away" or as Bill Gates says "the worlds not fair - get used to it"

[blue whale]

Slotheta:

 

Your card covers up to 10,000 for cancellation??? What if my trip costs more?

 

Thank you all. We take the HAL platinum because of my husbands age. I will remember about the 24 hour window!

 

Great reminder.

 

D

[sail7seas]

imO,oe of the most important things to rememb er about HAL co verage. it is not travel insurance. It is trip cancleatio/ini4trruption. their b est only pays $10,00 in medical bill.s That is nothing for peroplewho do not havre rl if you gert sikc or injured $10,000 is not much

Edited July 19, 2016 by sail7seas

[iancal]

We never buy travel insurance from any travel vendor or TA. Cruise lines included. We use of credit card insurance and we use our travel medical from my pension plan.

 

Additional coverage to extend our travel medical days we buy from an insurance carrier. Our experience over many years of travel is that the travel policies offered by the travel vendor, bank, or auto club, etc tend to be relatively overpriced and the coverage less comprehensive.

 

The big plus is that we do not need cancel or any reason insurance.

Edited July 19, 2016 by iancal

[sail7seas]

OP, Thank you for the link.

Edited July 19, 2016 by sail7seas

[Zyzygy]

Even though all of the critiques of HAL Platinum are valid (expensive; limited amount of medical and medical evacuation coverage, etc.) DW and I are obliged to purchase it every time.

 

We both have preexisting medical conditions which could cause a last-minute cancellation, and I have no desire to engage in a lengthy battle with a travel insurance company or a credit card company about what is or is not a preexisting condition. My condition is cardiac, and I would expect a travel insurer to deny coverage if I had any kind of cardiac problem, even if not the specific cardiac problem I have already had diagnosed.

 

Call us foolish, but we buy the HAL Platinum even though we have World MasterCard and AmEx Platinum at our disposal. Both of those credit card plans exclude cancellation due to preexisting conditions.

 

I also like the idea of having direct access to the assistance of HAL's local port agents, rather than someone on a phone in Pittsburgh. If there were a hospitalization, HAL would have a local representative whom we would be able to call upon.

 

To each his own.

[f3red]

Thanks, Zyzygy, for reinforcing what I mentioned in my initial post, that we all have individual travel styles and requirements. I guess the takeaway from this discussion is that we all should do the necessary research to identify what protection works best for each of us.

 

Happy cruisin',

f3

[sail7seas]

Even though all of the critiques of HAL Platinum are valid (expensive; limited amount of medical and medical evacuation coverage, etc.) DW and I are obliged to purchase it every time.

 

We both have preexisting medical conditions which could cause a last-minute cancellation, and I have no desire to engage in a lengthy battle with a travel insurance company or a credit card company about what is or is not a preexisting condition. My condition is cardiac, and I would expect a travel insurer to deny coverage if I had any kind of cardiac problem, even if not the specific cardiac problem I have already had diagnosed.

 

Call us foolish, but we buy the HAL Platinum even though we have World MasterCard and AmEx Platinum at our disposal. Both of those credit card plans exclude cancellation due to preexisting conditions.

 

I also like the idea of having direct access to the assistance of HAL's local port agents, rather than someone on a phone in Pittsburgh. If there were a hospitalization, HAL would have a local representative whom we would be able to call upon.

 

To each his own.

Yess,, to each his/ her own. Do you have medical insusrasncr thatweould pay an out of country doctor or hospital? Anyone on Mfdicsre reallyneeds travrel indutrance for medical coverage.. Trip ncrellatio cocts might be the lease t of yourf you rworries wre one of you to becomr really ill or have a babad sv ccifdednt and Medi care wwon' psy,out of country.

[SoCal Cruiser78]

Deleted post.

Edited July 23, 2016 by SoCal Cruiser78

[summersigh]

One thing I did learn though is that pre-existing illnesses are not covered. As I get older that benefit might not be quite so valuable but it sure was nice when I needed it.

 

My DH has to get pre-existing condition trip insurance. I get a matching policy without the pre-existing clause for a cheaper rate. It includes cancel for any reason and anything else you can think of :D It runs us, for both, about 8% of the cruise price. Seems like a lot except that if he were to have a medical emergency and have to fly home in an air ambulance the charges would be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Also, like Sail 7 Seas says above Medicare does not cover out of the USA.

Edited July 23, 2016 by summersigh

[Tampa Girl]

My DH has to get pre-existing condition trip insurance. I get a matching policy without the pre-existing clause for a cheaper rate. It includes cancel for any reason and anything else you can think of :D It runs us, for both, about 8% of the cruise price. Seems like a lot except that if he were to have a medical emergency and have to fly home in an air ambulance the charges would be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Also, like Sail 7 Seas says above Medicare does not cover out of the USA.

 

Would you care to reveal the name of the insurer? Also, when does this policy have to be purchased? The beauty of HAL's Standard or Platinum CPP plans is that they can be purchased up until the time of final payment. While the Platinum Plan does provide $50,000 in evacuation coverage, I realize that that this amount would probably not cover trans-Atlantic or trans-Pacific costs. It also covers $10,000 in medical coverage.

 

OTOH, the necessity for med-evac coverage is questionable on a TA, where evacuation is probably not possible in the middle of the Atlantic. For our purposes, I have not been able to find a better cancellation policy than HAL's.

 

My husband also has cardiac issues (just having had stents implanted), but our concern is not so much that something would happen enroute, but that one us would become ill or have an accident just before sailing; hence the importance of a cancellation policy. Our final payment is mid-August. If anyone has suggestion as to other policies, I would welcome the suggestions.

[LDVinNC]

I suggest insuremytrip dot com or tripinsurancestore dot com, both favorites of lots of folks on these boards. You might want to call them to discuss your needs after looking at the websites.

 

I don't agree with your contention that evac coverage may not be necessary on a TA - what if you are in London, Rome, wherever, and have a problem and need to be transported home?