Main reason for insurance

[Mark_K]

According to International Travel News, if you take three cruises a year you can expect to need a medical evacuation once every 1,333 years.  And some portion of those will be done by the USCG for free.

 

May the odds ever be in your favor.

[DCPIV]

29 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

As for trip protection, interruption,  lost luggage, etc.  the travel insurance for that is pretty expensive in general.  Sometimes we do not get that and take the chance and self-insure.  But it depends entirely on your own personal financial situation and level of risk.

 

That is true when it comes to buying insurance by the trip.

 

Check out annual plans, though.  We have one with Travel Insured International that has some very nice base benefits for a very low cost.  We can optional benefits on a per trip basis if we wish.

 

We also decided to "splurge" on a Medjet Assist plan as a "belt & suspenders" approach.  Again, it's the sort of money I'll never miss should we ever need to call upon them, and we can afford the cost should we never make a claim.

[Orator]

25 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

I agree that you need extra medical coverage to deal with possible medivac events and major uncovered medical expenses.  We use GeoBlue for this and get a 1 year annual policy.  Pretty inexpensive.  As for trip protection, interruption,  lost luggage, etc.  the travel insurance for that is pretty expensive in general.  Sometimes we do not get that and take the chance and self-insure.  But it depends entirely on your own personal financial situation and level of risk.

I've used GeoBlue. GeoBlue is a wonderful policy for a medical emergency or evacuation. Be sure to read the restrictions. It doesn't cover medical evacuation, trip cancellation, travel delays or lost luggage. It's more than fine when you desire to cover medical emergencies abroad of medical evacuation. It is their call if you need evacuation and what hospital you will be transported to. You might need some other insurance if you need to fill in the gaps in coverage. Cost is very reasonable.

[bEwAbG]

Not sure who this news story is trying to convince to do what.  Guess they're trying to guilt the cruise company into paying something but every cruise contract I've ever signed has been clear on who is responsible for what if you need to depart the ship.  These people gambled and lost, or they didn't think anything bad would happen.  Just not a risk you can take when traveling, especially as you age, unless you're prepared to sit on a chair outside a hospital in a foreign country.  If the boyfriend is recovering, it would probably be cheaper to let him get better there and then have them both fly home on a regular flight.  Hopefully all ends well for both.

[MAGSMFC]

The Penguins -  can you please let me know what Insurance Company you use for your annual insurance cover and do you pay extra for cruise cover.  Ours is due now and I am struggling to decide who to go with.

 

Many thanks

[zitsky]

In my 30's and 40's (and 20's!) I thought nothing could go wrong and never bought insurance.  When we started cruising in my 50s is when we started buying trip insurance.  We had a good experience with our covid-canceled cruise in Sept 2022.  The insurance company just shifted the policy to our next sailing.

[edgee]

34 minutes ago, bEwAbG said:

Not sure who this news story is trying to convince to do what.  Guess they're trying to guilt the cruise company into paying something but every cruise contract I've ever signed has been clear on who is responsible for what if you need to depart the ship.  These people gambled and lost, or they didn't think anything bad would happen.  Just not a risk you can take when traveling, especially as you age, unless you're prepared to sit on a chair outside a hospital in a foreign country.  If the boyfriend is recovering, it would probably be cheaper to let him get better there and then have them both fly home on a regular flight.  Hopefully all ends well for both.

Unfortunately annual travel policies are not available to residents of some states. Examples: Maryland and NY.

[the penguins]

31 minutes ago, MAGSMFC said:

The Penguins -  can you please let me know what Insurance Company you use for your annual insurance cover and do you pay extra for cruise cover.  Ours is due now and I am struggling to decide who to go with.

 

Many thanks

I see on your profile you live in Halifax. Is that Halifax UK?

If yes I can help, if not then sorry but I can't.

[the penguins]

1 hour ago, JeanieC,Aston said:

P&O cruises in the UK req minimum £2m medical cover insurance for you to be allowed to cruise.

I suspect Cunard will be the same.

 

“Your policy must include medical cover of £2 million minimum that includes cover for emergency evacuations and medical expenses related to COVID-19. You must also ensure your policy includes full cover for any and all pre-existing medical conditions worldwide, or as a minimum, in the countries you are due to visit.”

 

I have unlimited cover with my insurer for £600 a year for both of us but does not include travel to the USA.

It covers lots of pre-existing med conditions.

Some UK companies won’t even consider cover for the US or Caribbean for over 70’s or if they do the cost is prohibitive.

Hi Jeanie,

I think you are paying way over the odds. We live in the UK, are both over 75 with preexisting medical conditions. Our annual policy covers us worldwide  (including USA), unlimited trips upto 30 days, extra days for a small premium. Suggest you look at Nationwide's Flex Plus account : the account includes all the travel insurance detailed above, breakdown cover on your cars and mobile phone insurance for less than the premium you are paying just for the travel. Travel policy has great service, we had to cancel our last cruise on day of departure as I was taken ill literally as we were leaving the house. Claim settled in full within 5 days. Several other claims made, all settled quickly and with no increase in premiums due to the claims.

 

[smtcan]

We are fortunate that my retired employee health plan covers trips up to 90 days outside Ontario.  We have had two issues, one major, when my husband had a heart attack on a cruise in China.  Apart from covering costs, the insurance company provided help navigating the Chinese system.  They booked a hotel for us after the hospital stay and a car to take us there.  The same English speaking driver took us to the airport and a doctor from Boston accompanied us on the flight, joining husband in first class while I was in economy.  They even arranged a car to take us home.

There is no way I could have managed all this alone, while worrying about my husband.  We didn’t see a bill until a couple of months after our return and when we did, it had a zero balance.  
The other issue was less concerning.  I slipped and broke my wrist in Zanzibar.  Again the clinic dealt directly with the insurance company so we had nothing to pay, although in this case the cost was something we could have covered without the insurance.

[JeanieC,Aston]

13 minutes ago, the penguins said:

Hi Jeanie,

I think you are paying way over the odds. We live in the UK, are both over 75 with preexisting medical conditions. Our annual policy covers us worldwide  (including USA), unlimited trips upto 30 days, extra days for a small premium. Suggest you look at Nationwide's Flex Plus account : the account includes all the travel insurance detailed above, breakdown cover on your cars and mobile phone insurance for less than the premium you are paying just for the travel. Travel policy has great service, we had to cancel our last cruise on day of departure as I was taken ill literally as we were leaving the house. Claim settled in full within 5 days. Several other claims made, all settled quickly and with no increase in premiums due to the claims.

 

Hi 

Depends on the level of pre existing medical conditions.

I asked Nationwide if I opened the Flexi Plus account re insurance,taking into account my conditions they said they wouldn’t cover me.

[TeeRick]

2 hours ago, Orator said:

I've used GeoBlue. GeoBlue is a wonderful policy for a medical emergency or evacuation. Be sure to read the restrictions. It doesn't cover medical evacuation, trip cancellation, travel delays or lost luggage. It's more than fine when you desire to cover medical emergencies abroad of medical evacuation. It is their call if you need evacuation and what hospital you will be transported to. You might need some other insurance if you need to fill in the gaps in coverage. Cost is very reasonable.

I have the annual plan for multiple trips.  It covers $500k for Medical Evacuation.

[Arizona Wildcat]

The reason many policies cannot be sold in some states is the insurance regulators require a payout of at least X%.  Usually 50-60%.

Some possible losses such as rental cars, luggage, travel delays and csncellations - even cruises - can be covered for very little by simply using the proper credit card.

Interesting the OPs question was answered in about two answers.  People buy insurance for only two reasons.

To cover a catastrophic loss you could not pay by writing a check.

And because it is required like auto coverage.

That it.

The other fact is most people do NOT understand the coverage they already have.  Spoke with a CC poster who did not know their existing PPO insurance coverage would cover them with a max out of pocket of $4000.  They thought they had no international coverage. 

[MAGSMFC]

Yes I live in Halifax, England

 

Many thanks

[Markanddonna]

I believe travel insurance from the cruise line might be an option for those over 80. Not as good but not age based. 

[Orator]

43 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

I have the annual plan for multiple trips.  It covers $500k for Medical Evacuation.

I meant “does cover medical evaluation “  Doesn’t cover other items listed.Thanks for clarifying. 

[Baron Barracuda]

Need to be mindful that when comparing insurance policies the devil is in the details.  Coverages may appear similar but digging into the fine print reveals significant differences.  Have received helpful and knowledgeable guidance from agencies like Insuremytrip and Squaremouth. 

[dlh015]

2 hours ago, TeeRick said:

I have the annual plan for multiple trips.  It covers $500k for Medical Evacuation.

May I ask if you purchase this in addition to the insurance you can buy from the cruise line or instead of it?

Thank you!

[Dar & Bob]

21 hours ago, Lastdance said:

We have a month-long trip with two cruises and a stay in Europe; our insurance is almost $2,000 for both of us...it is getting ridiculous!  However, it is what it is...nowadays anything can go wrong, even when being very healthy!  There is no credit card that can cover insurance that we would find acceptable, but that's just us.  I cannot find a year-long policy due to my cabin/suite bookings.  We are way over the limit, so giving thought to cruises after 2024!

We buy the Annual Policy even though could possibly only cover a percentage of the cruise cost.  For us that money is already spent and not our major concern but everyone is different.  That said we don't go away for more than a couple of weeks at a time 🙂

 

[TeeRick]

4 hours ago, Orator said:

I meant “does cover medical evaluation “  Doesn’t cover other items listed.Thanks for clarifying. 

Ok no problem at all.  I was just reporting on my policy from GeoBlue.  There are different ones.  I have the Trekker.

[phoenix_dream]

3 hours ago, dlh015 said:

May I ask if you purchase this in addition to the insurance you can buy from the cruise line or instead of it?

Thank you!

I can't answer for him obviously, but I can tell you what we do.  We buy the GeoBlue policy only.  We have some amount of general travel coverage through our credit card, as well as some medical coverage in our Medicare Advantage plan.  Why do we not buy cruise or other general travel insurance?  A personal decision of course.  As I stated, our credit card provides some benefits.  Beyond that we take the risk.  We have taken close to 80 cruises total so far.  Had we bought travel insurance for each of those trips it would have cost us WAY more than any expenses we might encounter if something goes wrong with one of our cruises.  It is not the right choice for everyone and it depends on many personal factors.  Having worked for an insurance company for 30 years (not a travel one, but general principles the same) I learned that insurance companies make lots of profit with people buying unnecessary, or excessive insurance.  Again, not everyone has the same situation and for some it makes sense.  I just urge people to evaluate all factors before deciding.

[Lastdance]

1 minute ago, TeeRick said:

Ok no problem at all.  I was just reporting on my policy from GeoBlue.  There are different ones.  I have the Trekker.

Unfortunately, I could not use that coverage, but others on this board also use it and it works great for them.  I just need to stop planning monthly cruises with land stays and so much more, but we missed out on so many cruises that we have gone “overboard.”  

[TeeRick]

3 hours ago, dlh015 said:

May I ask if you purchase this in addition to the insurance you can buy from the cruise line or instead of it?

Thank you!

It is actually two different things.  I will speak for us.  It is different for everybody.

 

1) We buy the GeoBlue medical policy (Trekker Essential) which is annual and covers all of your trips and vacations for an entire year.  If you travel outside the US it is worth it, whether it is cruising or a land vacation.  GeoBlue is a backup to our primary medical insurance.  They have a health network in almost every country.  It is pretty inexpensive.

 

2) For cruises, a separate travel policy is needed if you are worried about trip cancellation and disruption, lost luggage, the usual stuff.  These do come with some medical coverage benefits too.  Maybe for a single trip (cruise) this is all you need but it is generally very expensive.

So we personally choose not to buy it.  We are more worried about a major medical event and cost of that.  The travel cancellation stuff is a risk we choose to take.  

[Orator]

13 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

Ok no problem at all.  I was just reporting on my policy from GeoBlue.  There are different ones.  I have the Trekker.

I made the same choice. 

[dlh015]

5 minutes ago, phoenix_dream said:

I can't answer for him obviously, but I can tell you what we do.  We buy the GeoBlue policy only.  We have some amount of general travel coverage through our credit card, as well as some medical coverage in our Medicare Advantage plan.  Why do we not buy cruise or other general travel insurance?  A personal decision of course.  As I stated, our credit card provides some benefits.  Beyond that we take the risk.  We have taken close to 80 cruises total so far.  Had we bought travel insurance for each of those trips it would have cost us WAY more than any expenses we might encounter if something goes wrong with one of our cruises.  It is not the right choice for everyone and it depends on many personal factors.  Having worked for an insurance company for 30 years (not a travel one, but general principles the same) I learned that insurance companies make lots of profit with people buying unnecessary, or excessive insurance.  Again, not everyone has the same situation and for some it makes sense.  I just urge people to evaluate all factors before deciding.

Thank you for your input. We have pretty good coverage with our Senior Advantage and cc...and I have always found the cruise insurance too high for the benefits. 

 

I have seen that GeoBlue gets good comments on this board. I can get it for the entire year for less than 1/2 of the cruise offering. It seems to be a no-brainer...I sent a note off to the company asking if one is covered for cruises that leave and return to the USA, not just internationally. I assume yes, but I wanted to be sure. I read the entire 22 pages of the policy but again...well, you know.

 

Thanks again!