Why do I expect this to make sense?

[Smitheroo]

Looking at the plans on TheInsuranceStore that include trip cancellation/interruption etc. the amount of medical coverage is pathetic. (if not, then the premium is very high with still less than ideal medical coverage)  I would think that that since medical coverage is the expensive part, a policy with travel cancellation etc and only minimal medical coverage would be much cheaper, so it could be piggy backed onto a robust medical coverage policy.  Apparently not.  At some point I guess you just have to decide what you are willing to lose when you are a single traveler with travel costs on the lower end. (I realize that high end cruises, expensive flights, or large families is a different situation)  This decision could be different for every trip. In my case it wont break the bank if I have to "eat" $1500 of travel expenses due to sudden illness  but I'm thinking back to those pandemic days where you might be required to quarantine when you arrived in a country.  Right now a positive diagosis of that pandemic disease is a recommended 10 day quarantine. (in the US) Paying hotel bills for 10 days could be painful. And who knows what the actual quarantine requirement might be in the future.  

 

Does anyone have an example of  trip interruption that ended up being very expensive for them ?  I think I recall a recent example of someone having their cruise cancelled by NCL and they didnt have refundable flights. 

[klfrodo]

I was going to leave this alone but, since it's been up over 24 hours with zero responses, I'll give it a go.

I'm unclear as to what your expectations are or exactly what you are questioning. I look at travel insurance as a risk sharing management tool. There is no travel insurance that covers 100% of every possible scenario at a price point most of us are willing to pay. Therefore, what is important to the client? What can they risk? What do they choose to not risk? What do they choose to share risk?

 

You say that TripInsuranceStore policies are pathetic with medical coverage? What's your expectation? The policies that Steve offers are up to $100K which is pretty much industry standard for 3rd party insurance. (I'm sure you could get more if you think $100K is too little. That would require a phone call and possible negotiations directly with the insurance writers. At an additional cost I would assume.) You can save a little money there if you choose a policy where the medical is secondary.

(Cruise line policies, that I'm aware of are all secondary, no pre-existing condition waiver, limited to $25K). 3rd party policies do take age into account for pricing whereas cruise line policies do not.

 

How do I cut insurance costs and yet cover the risks that are important to me. (Remember that travel insurance only covers nonrefundable expenses) Like you, I'm blessed to have the resources where I can afford to lose a $5K cruise. However, emergency medical with evac could cause serious financial hardship.

 

1. I book my airline tickets with an airline I have a status, or I book a higher cost ticket whether that be 1st class or business. If I have to cancel, the costs of my tickets will either be refunded or banked for future use.

2. I book directly with the hotel website and choose the price point that allows me to cancel with no fee up to 48 hours before check in.

3. I book private excursions that allow me to cancel with no additional fee.

4. My State allows me to not have to cover the full costs of the trip and still receive the full medical benefits with a waiver of pre-existing conditions.

5. I ensure I have 2 or 3 backup plans ready to go for certain scenarios that may happen during my trip.

6. I back all this up with extra coverages if needed in emergency with Medjet Assist and a CSR card with some level of protection included.

[Smitheroo]

On 11/3/2023 at 1:34 PM, klfrodo said:

I was going to leave this alone but, since it's been up over 24 hours with zero responses, I'll give it a go.

I'm unclear as to what your expectations are or exactly what you are questioning. I look at travel insurance as a risk sharing management tool. There is no travel insurance that covers 100% of every possible scenario at a price point most of us are willing to pay. Therefore, what is important to the client? What can they risk? What do they choose to not risk? What do they choose to share risk?

 

You say that TripInsuranceStore policies are pathetic with medical coverage? What's your expectation? The policies that Steve offers are up to $100K which is pretty much industry standard for 3rd party insurance. (I'm sure you could get more if you think $100K is too little. That would require a phone call and possible negotiations directly with the insurance writers. At an additional cost I would assume.) You can save a little money there if you choose a policy where the medical is secondary.

(Cruise line policies, that I'm aware of are all secondary, no pre-existing condition waiver, limited to $25K). 3rd party policies do take age into account for pricing whereas cruise line policies do not.

 

How do I cut insurance costs and yet cover the risks that are important to me. (Remember that travel insurance only covers nonrefundable expenses) Like you, I'm blessed to have the resources where I can afford to lose a $5K cruise. However, emergency medical with evac could cause serious financial hardship.

 

1. I book my airline tickets with an airline I have a status, or I book a higher cost ticket whether that be 1st class or business. If I have to cancel, the costs of my tickets will either be refunded or banked for future use.

2. I book directly with the hotel website and choose the price point that allows me to cancel with no fee up to 48 hours before check in.

3. I book private excursions that allow me to cancel with no additional fee.

4. My State allows me to not have to cover the full costs of the trip and still receive the full medical benefits with a waiver of pre-existing conditions.

5. I ensure I have 2 or 3 backup plans ready to go for certain scenarios that may happen during my trip.

6. I back all this up with extra coverages if needed in emergency with Medjet Assist and a CSR card with some level of protection included.

Thank you for your detailed answer. But I would like to ask one more question   Should questions asked here only pertain to information found on Steve's site?   I hadnt gone through that thoroughly but plenty of other  legitimate sites on the Internet offer insurance with medical coverage that is considered inadequate puzzles me. (Including NCL's basic protection plan)   I don't consider $100,000 "inadequate" although I personally would want more than that.  What I was referring to was medical coverage of $25,000.  (for an example)   So, is this forum a question and answer forum for Steve?