It pays to get the platinum princess insurance

[Knickearth]

After 6 hour flight delay and cancellation of our connecting flight - told by airlines since it was weather delay they take no responsibility for Two nights in a hotel, meals etc. because weather is an Act of God.  So I went on line to read what the platinum insurance package covered and it covers hotel, meals, transportation due to delays.  So today I sent in all the paperwork and fingers crossed that one day the reimbursement will arrive.  lol

[PacnGoNow]

14 minutes ago, Knickearth said:

After 6 hour flight delay and cancellation of our connecting flight - told by airlines since it was weather delay they take no responsibility for Two nights in a hotel, meals etc. because weather is an Act of God.  So I went on line to read what the platinum insurance package covered and it covers hotel, meals, transportation due to delays.  So today I sent in all the paperwork and fingers crossed that one day the reimbursement will arrive.  lol

Yes, my platinum insurance covered my hotel 2 nights, meals, uber transportation to hotel and flight change fee.  Trip interruption.

 

Good luck to you!

 

 

[Arizona Wildcat]

There are a couple of credit cards with excellent coverage including Chase Sapphire.  Does have a fee after the first year.  We found its coverage and claim procedure to be fast and fair.  Even has primary coverage on rental cars.

[cruzsnooze]

That blanket statement it pays to get Platinum Insurance is wrong. It paid for you but others like myself it would be a waste a money. Many of us have different coverages from using credit cards or medical insurance that pays for care anywhere in the world. I carry medjet for evacuation anywhere in the world which is really where the big money is charged not the cruise fare. For the cruise fare I am self insured.

[Kay S]

I like peace of mind.

[cr8tiv1]

@Knickearth Thanks for the follow up post.  I am so sorry your flight home was such a nightmare.  There is a slight difference in coverage between regular and Platinum Princess Vacation Protection (PVP).  

 

I have cruised a lot.  I am "lazy".  The one time I didn't have insurance, ("it was a last minute trip...why would I need....") was the time I needed it the most.  I have "cashed" in on 4 travel insurance claims.

 

I know I should be more invested in choosing my insurances.  But I am covered by Medicare (within the US) and an excellent secondary plan.  So medical is taken care of.  It's the travel portion I am most concerned about.  

 

Crossing my fingers that your claim is processed quickly and you are reunited with your travel expenses.

 

 

 

 

[dog]

1 hour ago, PacnGoNow said:

Yes, my platinum insurance covered my hotel 2 nights, meals, uber transportation to hotel and flight change fee.  Trip interruption.

 

Good luck to you!

 

 

Does it have to be booked through Princess ( other then cruise)?

[NavyVeteran]

16 minutes ago, dog said:

Does it have to be booked through Princess ( other then cruise)?

No. Princess Vacation Protection trip cancellation coverage (if you cancel the cruise) covers only things booked through Princess. It would cover EZAir but not independent air. It would cover hotels and excursions booked through Princess but not hotels or excursions booked independently.

Trip interruption coverage is different. It covers additional costs for things covered by trip interruption. Several years ago I received refunds for the cost of a hotel and meals even though no flights were delayed. I arrived at my home airport as scheduled and picked up my car from the airport parking lot, but I could not drive home because an ice storm had closed the roads. I drove to a hotel close to the airport, stayed overnight in a hotel, and drove home the next day (when the roads were good enough for my four-wheel drive car). Princess Vacation Protection paid for the hotel and an allowance for meals.

[memoak]

When we were young we thought we were invincible and didn’t take any insurance. We just got reimbursed for medical stuff after we got home. Now that we are older we take the insurance

[Mud_Shark]

Just about ditto to the previous post.  24 cruises to date.  Have not purchased any extra insurance or cancellation insurance.  We have health and travel insurance through a government retirement policy and our travel credit card.  Sometimes have to top off if out of the country longer than 40 days.

Just felt that if we had to cancel for some reason or got delayed, we would just eat the cost and in the end it would not be more than the amount we would have paid if we had purchased cfar insurance for all these trips. To date, have not had anything major.

But now, as the years pile up, the possibilities of problems is tending towards us being a little more cautious and protected.

[dog]

5 hours ago, Knickearth said:

After 6 hour flight delay and cancellation of our connecting flight - told by airlines since it was weather delay they take no responsibility for Two nights in a hotel, meals etc. because weather is an Act of God.  So I went on line to read what the platinum insurance package covered and it covers hotel, meals, transportation due to delays.  So today I sent in all the paperwork and fingers crossed that one day the reimbursement will arrive.  lol

were hotels, air booked through Princess?

[PacnGoNow]

6 hours ago, dog said:

Does it have to be booked through Princess ( other then cruise)?

No, I booked through a TA and used PVP platinum insurance. Booked my flights and hotels independently.  That’s where trip interruption came in to pay via the insurance.

Explained very well by @NavyVeteran. 

[Mark_K]

My SIL, the insurance agent, tells me you shouldn’t buy insurance if you can afford the loss.  I wouldn’t be cruising if I couldn’t afford it.

[dog]

2 hours ago, PacnGoNow said:

No, I booked through a TA and used PVP platinum insurance. Booked my flights and hotels independently.  That’s where trip interruption came in to pay via the insurance.

Explained very well by @NavyVeteran. 

So, my CFAR covers cancel for any reason- what is purchased through the cruiseline.

and

It covers trip interruption for other- independent air, hotels etc.

cleared that up- thanks.

[capriccio]

3 hours ago, Mark_K said:

My SIL, the insurance agent, tells me you shouldn’t buy insurance if you can afford the loss.  I wouldn’t be cruising if I couldn’t afford it.

Does your medical insurance include overseas coverage and do you have medical evacuation coverage?  Those expenses are the big ones that many couldn't afford the loss. 

[Mark_K]

36 minutes ago, capriccio said:

Does your medical insurance include overseas coverage and do you have medical evacuation coverage?  Those expenses are the big ones that many couldn't afford the loss. 

Yes, my insurance covers overseas medical.  I read somewhere that your odds of needing a helicopter evacuation are something like once in every 10,000 cruises. I decided to take my chances.

[capriccio]

9 minutes ago, Mark_K said:

Yes, my insurance covers overseas medical.  I read somewhere that your odds of needing a helicopter evacuation are something like once in every 10,000 cruises. I decided to take my chances.

It is not just for an evacuation from the ship since that is usually handled by the nearest country's coast guard.  It is for evacuation back to your home from hospitals anywhere in the world.  Obviously it doesn't happen frequently but when it does it can be more costly than medical charges.  Do some research here about medical evacuations here on Cruise Critic.   Put MedJet Assist in the search field and chose Everywhere.  You will get lots of information.  We use it and it is available on a trip basis or an annual policy.

Edited April 26 by capriccio

[Knickearth]

8 hours ago, dog said:

were hotels, air booked through Princess?

No they were not.  It was due to delay of flight and cancellation of connecting flight.  The cruise portion was done.

[Knickearth]

3 hours ago, Mark_K said:

Yes, my insurance covers overseas medical.  I read somewhere that your odds of needing a helicopter evacuation are something like once in every 10,000 cruises. I decided to take my chances.

Not for me, but I have been on 2 ships where a helicopter had to land on the ship while at sea.  You just never know.

[memoak]

6 hours ago, Mark_K said:

My SIL, the insurance agent, tells me you shouldn’t buy insurance if you can afford the loss.  I wouldn’t be cruising if I couldn’t afford it.

On a last minute cancellation you may be out $10,000 +. No one really wants to risk that

 

[MacMadame]

 

4 hours ago, Mark_K said:

Yes, my insurance covers overseas medical.  I read somewhere that your odds of needing a helicopter evacuation are something like once in every 10,000 cruises. I decided to take my chances.

So this is how statistics can be misleading. The *average* may be 1 in 10,000 cruises (though that seems low - a crew member on reddit says it's more like 1 in 30) but an individual's risk could be higher or lower than that.

 

Your own risk depends on your health but also what the itinerary is. A itinerary in an area with high-tech medical care has a lower risk since you are more likely to be naer a port with a hospital that can care for you until you need to go home, for example.

[Mark_K]

10 minutes ago, MacMadame said:

 

So this is how statistics can be misleading. The *average* may be 1 in 10,000 cruises (though that seems low - a crew member on reddit says it's more like 1 in 30) but an individual's risk could be higher or lower than that.

 

Your own risk depends on your health but also what the itinerary is. A itinerary in an area with high-tech medical care has a lower risk since you are more likely to be naer a port with a hospital that can care for you until you need to go home, for example.

With 3,000 or so people on a ship, having one evacuation every 30 or so cruises wouldn’t be far off from odds of 1 in 10,000 of it happening to me.

[LoveBoatLvr]

9 hours ago, Mark_K said:

My SIL, the insurance agent, tells me you shouldn’t buy insurance if you can afford the loss.  I wouldn’t be cruising if I couldn’t afford it.

Such an interesting perspective, although it only seems to address the issue of needing to cancel. What about medical coverage ON the ship? Genuinely asking- since the ships are registered overseas, would your regular health insurance or credit card cover that? And what if you needed to be flown home from a port? 

[Mark_K]

48 minutes ago, memoak said:

On a last minute cancellation you may be out $10,000 +. No one really wants to risk that

 

No one really wants it to happen, but a solid minority of cruisers must want to risk it because they don’t buy insurance.

[toofewcruises]

4 hours ago, Knickearth said:

No they were not.  It was due to delay of flight and cancellation of connecting flight.  The cruise portion was done.

Then you may not get reimbursed by the Princess insurance.