Trip insurance

[chascougs]

Need some help with trip insurance. Went to a website that listed various policies and companies offering insurance for our family cruise in late November this year. We have 7 people in our party ranging in age from 3-77 and all in relatively good health. What type of policy would you recommend and what is a reasonable expectation of policy cost. Thanks for any help, I have a hard time deciphering insurance lingo.

[cozgal]

Insurance is needed to cover cost of trip, trip interruption, lost baggage, medical evacuation etc...cost will depend on how much coverage you get and ages...you may find this article helpful..

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[Cathy p]

He or she should be able to help you out. My Daddy has taken over 30 cruises and never had insurance. Well he had a problem on the ship. It was a big mess and I guarantee you he has it now.:)

[cherylandtk]

chascougs--with insurance, its like asking the rest of us which pair of shoes will fit your feet best...only you can really decide. You will want at least the basic coverages (trip delay, baggage delay, trip interruption and medical) Look at the online site in chart form, so you can compare all the policies with each other as far as cost per coverage, and then go with what you think is best. You don't have to purchase the same brand policy for each person if you think one fits the oldster better than than the youngster, either.

 

Couple of things to compare--if anyone has existing medical conditions that could flare up before or during the trip then you want a policy that waives pre-existing conditions (most do if you purchase within a week or two of making your deposit, some are within a day or two of making your final payment) That right there should narrow the choices down some.

 

Then, each company offers about three different levels of coverage--sort of basic, midrange and super-duper. Figure out which level everyone needs, perhaps on a "how likely is it that this person will use the coverage" basis or "if its needed, how much coverage is needed" basis.

 

As for cost, especially if you include airfare purchased on your own, you can input various trip $ amounts and ages and see where the cost increases come into play for the individual policies. Some companies have price levels based more on age categories while others base it more on trip costs, although both factors come into play in all policies. In general, a policy for a week should run about half of what the cruise line charges for the same level of coverage.

[kitty9]

Just remember that for any in your party with Medicare, it doesn't cover them for anything once they leave the US. You will need to be covered for trip cancelation, emergency medical treatment including medical evacuation (that can run as high as $30,000 without insurance), and trip interruption. Also, if anyone in your group has ANY pre-existing conditions for which they've been treated or taken medication for within 180 of your cruise, you have to purchase the insurance within 10 to 14 days of booking the cruise. If you don't, most policies won't cover any pre-existing condition. You can cover pre-existing if you purchase the insurance later, but it will cost you much more than if you had purchased the insurance at the time of booking.