Trip Insurance

[Giantfan13]

We are experienced cruisers and have always bought insurance for all our cruises. 

We are sailing on the Anthem in Jan, and I am looking to buy our insurance. Is there anything special we should buy, like Covid related insurance or is that included in most insurance plans. 

Like say we test positive right before we have to cruise and cannot, is something like that usually covered these days or is this something we need to look into and buy separately or pay extra for?

 

Cheers

Len

[smplybcause]

You'll likely have to see if covid is excluded from reasons to cancel. 

 

When I looked for them on the medical side I didn't see any that excluded covering covid if you got sick on the trip, but maybe there are some. 

[RoyalC]

27 minutes ago, Giantfan13 said:

We are experienced cruisers and have always bought insurance for all our cruises. 

We are sailing on the Anthem in Jan, and I am looking to buy our insurance. Is there anything special we should buy, like Covid related insurance or is that included in most insurance plans. 

Like say we test positive right before we have to cruise and cannot, is something like that usually covered these days or is this something we need to look into and buy separately or pay extra for?

 

Cheers

Len

You should be covered by cwc

[Biker19]

9 hours ago, Giantfan13 said:

Like say we test positive right before we have to cruise and cannot, is something like that usually covered these days?

Yes, full refund if you test positive.

[Trailcon]

Does anyone know if the trip insurance cost (thru RCCL) is refunded if you test positive before the cruise?

[binro01]

Most of the larger travel insurance companies in the US do cover Covid related expenses. They make it a point usually to state that they do cover it as a selling point. 
 

CWC you is great on Royal, but there are other expensive issues you might need to deal with if you test positive before or during the cruise that CWC does not cover, like your airfare to and from the port if you test positive before your trip, if you purchased outside of Royal. 

[danoconnl]

Isn't Royal covering the cruise portion if you test positive?

 

Dan

[Giantfan13]

Thanks for all the helpful info.

 

Cheers

Len

[kokopelli-az]

23 hours ago, Giantfan13 said:

We are experienced cruisers and have always bought insurance for all our cruises. 

We are sailing on the Anthem in Jan, and I am looking to buy our insurance. Is there anything special we should buy, like Covid related insurance or is that included in most insurance plans. 

Like say we test positive right before we have to cruise and cannot, is something like that usually covered these days or is this something we need to look into and buy separately or pay extra for?

I just read an article this morning by consumer advocate, Clark Howard, about trip insurance.   You might find it of interest:

https://clark.com/travel/insuremytrip/

 

7 hours ago, danoconnl said:

Isn't Royal covering the cruise portion if you test positive?

 

Dan

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/if-i-test-positive-for-sars-cov-2-what-is-your-refund-policy-and-costs-covered

[Babr]

This article recommends Cancel For Any Reason coverage as the best protection for Covid coverage. One problem with CFAR is that it usually requires you to cancel 48 hours before travel begins. That won’t do you any good if you have a last minute positive Covid test.

 

There are lots of policies that cover Covid as any other illness. The thing to know is that you must have a doctor’s orders not to travel. Do not cancel on the basis of a positive test alone. See your doctor for confirmation of the diagnosis and the necessary documentation to file a claim.

 

CFAR is more expensive if you buy third-party insurance rather than the cruise line policy, but it will reimburse you in cash - not future cruise credit. On the other hand, it usually pays 75% of non-refundable expenses, depending on the policy.

 

CFAR is something of a fail-safe option. You can cancel at the last minute if you just decide you do not want to go. It can be nice to have if you think you may be impacted by something that is not a covered reason for cancellation, but it really isn’t necessary for Covid anymore. Today’s policies cover it.

[SRF]

On 12/2/2021 at 8:42 AM, binro01 said:

like your airfare to and from the port if you test positive before your trip, if you purchased outside of Royal. 

 

Most airlines have no change fees these days.  So you cancel your airfare and get credit for future travel.  Even with non-refundable fares.  Like cruises, there is no refund, but future credit.

[luckyinpa]

i just started researching insurance for my may cruise i just booked.  i found these 2 things in royals info:

 

Cancel any sailing booked by January 31, 2022 up to 48 hours before your sail date and get the full value in a Future Cruise Credit that’s good to redeem until May 31, 2022. And you have endless options to redeem your credit — just pick any cruise you like that sails between now and December 31, 2022.

 

No fear of missing out here. Spot a better price on your booked cruise and our Best Price Guarantee lets you take advantage up to 48 hours before you sail. So you always get the best value. Give us a call and you’ll receive the difference as an onboard credit or rate adjustment — it’s your choice.

 

• 100% cruise fare refund for you, and your Travelling Party, if any of you tests positive for COVID-19 within 14 days prior to the cruise or at the boarding terminal. 
• Pro-rated cruise fare refund if your cruise is cut short for reasons related to COVID-19. 
• If you test positive for COVID-19 during the cruise, Royal Caribbean will cover the costs of COVID-19 related medical treatment onboard, any required land-based quarantine, and travel home for you and your Traveling Party. 

 

so for me i'm lucky in that i basically get CFAR FCC for my cruise. also i'm confident if i test 14 days before the cruise positive that i get my money back. i could pay for CFAR 75% cash back insurance for 25 bucks cheaper thru tripinsurancestore than the royal insurance which gives you 90% FCC back but in essence thats meaningless since you can get 100% FCC for any reason for 'free'. so truly the only insurance i need is medical if i'm willing  to get 100 % FCC for my may cruise.  clear as mud isnt it.

 

also royals medical is only 25K and the private insurance is 100K but royal does give you 50K for the helicopter ride back home.  the only warning i see is that some private insurance has to be bough 21 days after deposit vs anytime before final payment. one thing i'm not clear about is how late you can buy just the medical insurance if you dont care about preexisting conditions

[Babr]

If you do not care about CFAR or pre-existing conditions, you can buy insurance at any time. 

 

 

[sailor05]

Buy it now. Then no doubt that it wasn't pre-existing. Should be good to go!