Travel insurance

[Crusin-Suzan]

Can anyone recommend an annual policy!  My husband and myself are in great health but in our late 70s!   Or a single policy!  Thanks

[Mary229]

For health the Geo blue Trekker

[GeezerCouple]

7 hours ago, Crusin-Suzan said:

Can anyone recommend an annual policy!  My husband and myself are in great health but in our late 70s!   Or a single policy!  Thanks

 

 

You should browse - and ask questions - on the travel insurance sub-forum of CC:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/499-cruisetravel-insurance/

 

We use a travel insurance broker, www.TripInsuranceStore.com 
(There is no extra charge for this.)

But CALL them; the online policy summaries just can't include enough information to be relevant to the specific needs of each traveler.

 

We've had several claims including a few large ones, and all were paid without any nonsense.

 

We are in a similar age group, btw.

 

[I strongly recommend NOT purchasing insurance through a travel agent.  Get it from a travel insurance professional, someone who can answer your questions and also help you find the most appropriate policy for your specific needs.]

GC

[FlaMariner]

On 8/6/2022 at 12:41 PM, Mary229 said:

For health the Geo blue Trekker

 

+1...we've bought this also.... but so far, only paid the premium and have not had the opportunity to file a claim (and hope we never do).

 

We went the annual route because so much better coverage and less cost......

 

But do go check out the insurance board on cruise critic.  Great info.

 

 

[NCTribeFan]

Yes, the Insurance board here is very helpful.

 

I used to purchase coverage for each cruise, but once i started sailing more often, I opted for an annual policy from Allianz.  Very reasonable cost (I get the mid-tier policy) and has the coverage I want (including Covid coverage now).

 

When everything shut down, I emailed them and they refunded a portion of the premium.  I then repurchased for coverage beginning the day before my November Eurodam sailing.  From that cruise until I disembark my Carnival Pride B2B2B this coming November, it will have covered 10 total cruises (counting each leg separately) plus a couple of land trips.  Very much worth it for me to have that peace of mind.  Pay the premium annually and not have to think about it for 12 months.

[Mary229]

24 minutes ago, FlaMariner said:

 

+1...we've bought this also.... but so far, only paid the premium and have not had the opportunity to file a claim (and hope we never do).

 

We went the annual route because so much better coverage and less cost......

 

But do go check out the insurance board on cruise critic.  Great info.

 

 

Steve on that board is the one who convinced me to buy this product.  2 seniors for less than $300 a year, major insurer, it is an excellent value.  Claims, let’s hope we never find out.   I only bought mine in case there would be country requirements for proof of insurance 

[YourWorldWithBill]

On 8/6/2022 at 11:34 AM, Crusin-Suzan said:

Can anyone recommend an annual policy!  My husband and myself are in great health but in our late 70s!   Or a single policy!  Thanks

Another suggestion: a few years ago a friend recommended the AmEx platinum card, specifically because of its travel insurance. For $64 extra I get something like 100k medical. Cancellation insurance is included with the card, but only up to $10,000. Even if it's an expensive trip for us, the cruise itself is usually within that range, and I can cancel hotels and air. The card has a hefty fee, but considering the insurance and other perks it's worth looking into. One thing not included: cancel for any reason; but for the reasons that I would have, it seems to be covered.

[Cruise NH]

The first thing I would suggest is to see what coverage you already have so that you don't duplicate coverage (and the cost).  We found our BCBS plan covered us medically any where in the world (we held onto it even though we are now covered by Medicare).  It doesn't cover evacuation back home, only to a covered hospital where ever we are, so we know we have to buy a medical evacuation plan.  

[southernbreezes]

I have used Seven Corners for years. Excellent customer service, easy to reach and speak to someone who can help with anything. Had one major claim (over $10,000) and it was handled perfectly. This is the policy I have.

https://www.sevencorners.com/coronavirus/annual-travel-insurance#/quote

 

[Hlitner]

Agree with Mary.  We have long been fans of the annual GeoBlue Trekker policy for those who simply need an annual travel health policy.   And our support remains even after having to go through their claims process for a major claim.  The real test of any insurance policy comes when you have a claim.

 

Hank

[Crusin-Suzan]

We bought Allianz yearly policy!   We have about 80 days of cruising the next year!   We also have  Chase Sapphire CC that has travel insurance!   We never used travel insurance before but with our age and this past couple of years with this covid craziness thought we should start!

[Babr]

1 hour ago, Crusin-Suzan said:

We bought Allianz yearly policy!   We have about 80 days of cruising the next year!   We also have  Chase Sapphire CC that has travel insurance!   We never used travel insurance before but with our age and this past couple of years with this covid craziness thought we should start!

Be sure you fully understand what Chase covers. It is not a comprehensive travel policy. For example, it does not cover pre-existing conditions. Travel delay is limited to $500 pp for things like mechanical breakdown or strike, not illness. Trip interruption will reimburse for unused portion if your trip is interrupted for a covered reason, but it pays only change fees for return transportation, nothing extra if you have to buy new tickets.

[Crusin-Suzan]

That’s why we bought the yearly one!

[Babr]

7 minutes ago, Crusin-Suzan said:

That’s why we bought the yearly one!

Allianz Cancellation and Trip Interruption max out at $15,000 per policy per year if you choose the highest level of coverage - no matter how many trips you have planned. A single claim could deplete it.

 

I’m sure you know that. Just a bit of clarification for those who may not.

[Jersey42]

15 hours ago, Crusin-Suzan said:

We bought Allianz yearly policy!   We have about 80 days of cruising the next year!   We also have  Chase Sapphire CC that has travel insurance!   We never used travel insurance before but with our age and this past couple of years with this covid craziness thought we should start!

It sounds like you have done your homework and hopefully Allianz works for you, or better yet you never have to use it.

 

In addition to Babr's comments, the reason the Allianz plans would not work for us is the medical coverage.  The plans max out at either $20K or $50K per trip.  I want more more ,as this would be the biggest unplanned expense I would want to insure for.  The medical is also secondary coverage, so you have to file first with your home insurance and Allianz pays what they did not pay. For those of us on Medicare with a Medigap plan that covers foreign emergency travel, primary medical coverage is very important.  Otherwise we could use up our Medigap lifetime maximum in a single trip.  That is why I always tell people looking at travel insurance to be sure to completely understand the medical coverage and how it works with your existing medical coverage. 

 

A positive with Allianz, is they have a pre-existing conditions waiver as long as you purchased within 14 days of your first trip deposit.  All annual plans do not offer this waiver.  Anyone else reading this who is thinking about an Allianz plan should pay attention to the 14 day requirement, otherwise pre-existing conditions are excluded for most coverages including medical, cancelation and interruption.  Also, the pre-existing condition lookback period is longer than with most plans (120 days).

Edited August 11, 2022 by Jersey42
lookback

[oakridger]

Good information @Jersey42.  Since I plan on starting to travel more again in 2023 I am definitely going to be looking at a yearly plan.  The single cruise insurance is getting more and more expensive (as I get older and older!!)  

 

~Nancy

[rljan]

We have an annual policy from Travel Insured International.  It’s worth checking out.

[hallpau]

48 minutes ago, rljan said:

We have an annual policy from Travel Insured International.  It’s worth checking out.

Good luck is you file a claim with them.  I had used them for several year and my first claim with them was denied when our 2020 World cruise was terminated due to the pandemic.  We were doing an independent safari with several of our friends and all of their travel insurance policies reimbursed them but Travel Insured told me that we could have taken the safari if we had shown up and therefore denied it???  After giving them over $25K in premiums over the years....they will not get another dime from me.

[Jersey42]

9 minutes ago, rljan said:

We have an annual policy from Travel Insured International.  It’s worth checking out.

This one takes a different approach from all of the others I have looked it.  In certain circumstances it could be a good policy and in others, there are better options.  Here is why.

 

This policy (Travel Insured Annual Multi-Trip Protector) offers a fairly low annual premium for base benefits such as medical, evacuation, delay, baggage and missed tours and connections.  Then you can optionally insure each trip for benefits such as cancellation and interruption. 

 

The medical is decent at $100k per trip and it pays primary.  It does have a waiver of the pre-existing conditions clause but it is not clear if you must purchase the optional benefits for each trip to get the waiver.

 

The biggest downside is the cost if you want to insure all of your trips.  Premiums vary by trip and your age but I tried purchasing the optional trip specific coverage for several hypothetical trips.  In most cases the premium was slightly higher than what it would have cost me to purchase a good trip specific plan.  So over the cost of a year I would pay the annual premium plus the cost for each trip.  I could just purchase a plan for each trip with better medical and evac coverage and save some money.  Each person needs to do the comparison to see how the costs work for their situation.

 

When might this policy be a good option:

• You are positive you do not need pre-existing conditions coverage OR you get something in writing that states the pre-existing conditions exclusion is waived for the entire year if you purchase the policy within 21 days of making the initial deposit on your first trip. AND
• You want the base coverage and will only purchase the trip cancelation/interruption coverage for some of the trips. (in this case the costs may make sense)

 

Like with all travel insurance, the devil is in the details.  It is always better to understand them before you have to make a claim.

 

We have chosen to get an annual GeoBlue-Trekker medical and evacuation policy.  Then we rely on our Chase card or self insure for some trips. For others (more expensive and pre-existing conditions might be an issue) we purchase a trip specific policy.

[rljan]

Of course, you must do your homework and chose the best policy for your needs.  If you want full coverage for many trips, the T.I.I. policy is not the cheapest option.  However, it covers any trip over 500 miles from home for the year.  Whatever works best for you is the one you should chose and if you've had a bad experience with an insurance company, I wouldn't do business with them.