Amadeus Travel Insurance Explained

[cmthomas]

We have just booked our first river cruise with Amadeus Waterways for a combined land/river tour from Budapest to Istanbul in October. We have been on five prior river cruises but none with Amadeus who has been rated highly by those who post here and have sampled their services.

 

Having reached the age where we feel that we can no longer risk taking such a trip without buying insurance, we found the coverage offered by Amadeus to be priced quite reasonably. However, upon analyzing this coverage offered by Insure America we found it to be lacking in several aspects. Not that I suspect Amadeus of being financially unsound but I would not buy insurance that did not cover such an eventuality and their policy does not. Further, the coverage for medical care and medical evacuation is woefully inadequate. If you have ever heard the horror stories from someone whose spouse suffered a serious heart attack requiring hospitalization abroad during the trip and transfer by air ambulance home when stabilized you would know that this can run into huge costs - well into six figures. And, as most of you know, Medicare pays NOTHING and Medigap pays only a token sum in most instances.

 

I then researched other available insurance on http://www.insuremytrip.com and was surprised to find that many companies offered financial default and the right to recover for losses due to terrorism in a scheduled city canceling the trip ONLY for travel companies on their "approved list" and Amadeus is NOT on any of the approved lists that I was able to examine. I was able to find an insurer called Travel Insured who would provide the above coverage as well as $50,000 for medical treatment and $500,000 for medical evacuation. The cost through Amadeus for the inferior policy providing only $10,000 for medical expense (could go in a day in a hospital) and $15,000 for medical evacuation would have been $458 and the cost through Travel Insured (formerly a part of Travelers Insurance of Hartford) was $684 covering air, river and ground services. Considering that I will be spending about $10,000 on this trip I felt that it was prudent to spend the extra $226 to obtain a good level of insurance coverage with the hope that I will never have to use it.

 

Sorry to be so lengthy but I hope that this information might be helpful to others facing the same dilemma with Amadeus or any other river cruise line.

 

Clarence:)

[land lover]

Clarence.....good advice.

 

I will also add another tip...make sure the insurance you buy is primary.

We still are employeed so have very good coverage for medical but if I am buying a trip insurance policy I want it to pay first.

[Coral]

Clarence -

 

I went through some of this a few months ago (when I booked with Amadeus). I usually book Access America and they would not cover Amadeus for financial default. This bothered me. While I believe they are a sound company, they are still a fairly new company and I wanted that coverage (along with medical and trip delay). I also found Amadeus policy very week in medical benefits. And I am in my 30's and healthy.

 

At the time I was doing my research (October time frame), I called several companies and found that both Travel Guard and Travelex WILL cover for financial default for Amadeus. I ended up booking with Travelex as their policy had much more coverage (and around the same cost) compared to Travel Guard's policy.

 

Travelex has a fantastic reputation - definitely look at them.

 

-Theresa

[Coral]

test...

[cmthomas]

Thank you both for your replies. This is a subject that is greatly misunderstood and deserves discussion.

 

Land-lover, that is one of the factors that persuaded me to select the policy that I picked. The "insuremytrip" web site is so helpful. It provides that information about each of the coverages of every policy by color coded blocks. And multiple polices can be compared side by side.

 

Theresa (Coral) I looked at both of the companies that you mentioned. The "insuremytrip" side by side comparison is most helpful. Your comment that both of those companies will cover Amadeus is correct but their levels of coverage offered was less than Travel Insured for almost the same cost. While $10,000 of medical coverage sounds like a lot it really is not. For example, in the event of a heart attack you may need intensive care for a week or more before being well enough to be transferred home and hospital costs alone can be $1,500-$2,000 per day!

 

I can remember meeting an American tourist in Norway and we struck up a chat. He and his wife had been on a Princess cruise in the Baltic when she had a heart attack. She was still in the hospital after a month and not well enough yet to go home. Princess helped him get a hotel room and put him in touch with his travel insurance company who picked up all of his expenses immediately. They were flying an American doctor to Norway to accompany them home first class as no airline would take them without a doctor in attendance. I cannot imagine the cost of that but I would want more than the $10,000 medical and $15,000 evacuation coverage provided by the policy being recommended by Amadeus.

 

We all hope that it won't be us but it happens too often for me to take the chance.

 

Clarence:)

[iamtrustworthy]

Clarence.....good advice.

 

I will also add another tip...make sure the insurance you buy is primary.

We still are employed so have very good coverage for medical but if I am buying a trip insurance policy I want it to pay first.

 

Hi land lover,

 

Primary isn't always better than secondary. It depends on the size of the claim. Here's how they differ:

 

Primary Medical Coverage means your medical bills are paid from the first dollar. No "coordination of benefit" claim forms need to be filed.

 

This works best if the medical claim's less than the coverage amount. That's because even though you had insurance pay for part of the claim, when the Primary benefits are exhausted, your other insurance won't consider any deductibles or co-pays to be satisfied.

 

For example, here's what happens if you have a $70,000 medical claim with a travel insurance plan that has $50,000 Primary coverage:

 

1) You submit the $70,000 medical claim to the travel insurance. It pays $50,000 (its maximum)

2) You submit the remaining $20,000 to your medical insurance plan. Let's say it has a $5,000 deductible with a 20% copay.

3) Of the remaining $20,000 your medical insurance plan will pay $12,000 and you will be liable for $8,000.

 

Secondary Medical Coverage means your medical bills are paid after any other coverage you have pays their share. This means that Secondary coverage will pay any deductibles, out-of-pocket expenses or co-pays up to its coverage limit.

 

Here's a little detail that's good to know: Secondary coverage assumes you have other coverage that's Primary. If you don't have other coverage Secondary becomes Primary.

 

I hope this helps.

[cmthomas]

Great info Steve. Thanks for contributing to the discussion. Knowledge is power in buying insurance.

 

Are there any stories out there - good or bad - about using insurance for medical care abroad?

 

Clarence:)

[Coral]

Theresa (Coral) I looked at both of the companies that you mentioned. The "insuremytrip" side by side comparison is most helpful. Your comment that both of those companies will cover Amadeus is correct but their levels of coverage offered was less than Travel Insured for almost the same cost. While $10,000 of medical coverage sounds like a lot it really is not. For example, in the event of a heart attack you may need intensive care for a week or more before being well enough to be transferred home and hospital costs alone can be $1,500-$2,000 per day!

 

I am going to have to respond tonight when I get home - where a copy of my coverage is. The policy I purchased offered a whole lot more than the $10,000 of medical coverage. I will let you know the details when I am home. The policy cost me $200 but it was pretty comprehensive.

[Coral]

This is the website of the policy I purchased:

 

https://www.travelex-insurance.com/Enrollments/LearnMore.aspx?bpid=53

 

This is the coverage:

 

 

Benefits (per person) Amount of Coverage

Trip Cancellation Trip Cost ($50,000 limit)

Trip Interruption 150% of Trip Cost ($75,000 limit)

Trip Delay / Missed Connection $1,000

Itinerary Change $250

Medical Expense $500,000

Medical Evacuation / Repatriation Included in Medical Expense benefit level

Baggage $2,500

Baggage Delay $600

24 Hour AD&D $25,000

Common Carrier AD&D $50,000

Rental Vehicle Damage $50,000

Travel Assistance & Concierge Included

Optional Upgrade

Flight Accident $300,000 / $500,000 / $1 Million

[cmthomas]

Thanks for the details, Theresa. I have entered the data for my trip including such variables as cost, ages, length of trip and various coverage selections in an effort to duplicate as close as possible the coverage offered by Travel Insured (and by the way I have no interest in or relationship to ANY insurance company other than as a customer!). The quote that they provided was for $904 as compared to the Travel Insured cost of $684.

 

One thing that bothered me about the Travelex site is that they did not make available (that I could find) a copy of the Insuring Agreement for review before purchase as do other companies. The devil is in the details and I like to read the "definitions" in each policy as you can be sure that if you have a claim the facts will be construed strictly in accordance with those definitions.

 

I think this serves to prove that cost is quite variable and as to that aspect of insurance purchasing you have to compare apples with apples to get a realistic comparison and you have to read the policy to know what you are getting. Their web site makes no mention of coverage for financial default although I feel sure that it is covered since you have the policy to refer to and have indicated that it is covered. It just makes me nervous if I can't find it to read it for myself before buying. I would prefer to read it before buying rather than after even though you do have a short period to cancel without cost.

 

Also, keep in mind that the rate that I am being quoted is for two people. Was your cost of $200 just for yourself? Please don't think that I am trying to argue with you. This kind of sharing of info can be of help to many people so we need to analyze the differences carefully.

 

Clarence:)

[Coral]

Clarence - the price is for one person. And I am in my 30's so I am probably paying a lot less than someone older than I.

 

I ended up narrowing my search down to Travel Guard and Travelex. Both policies (top policy) were $200 to me but Travelex covered more.

 

I had heard of Travelex many times in non-cruise travel magazines and their financial rating is higher than most other travel insurance companies. When I used a local agent, they used Travelex as their main insurance so I had name familiarity with them verses I didn't with the company you choose. My knowledge of the company has absolutely nothing to do with how good the company is - just explaining my rational :)

 

Here is the list of companies they will NO LONGER Cover for financial default with travelex:

 

https://www.travelex-insurance.com/Consumer/NoticeList.aspx

 

If they are not on the list, they are covered.

 

Hope this helps some. Hopefully neither of us will need our insurance on our Amadeus trips :)

 

Theresa

[iamtrustworthy]

Thanks for the details, Theresa. I have entered the data for my trip including such variables as cost, ages, length of trip and various coverage selections in an effort to duplicate as close as possible the coverage offered by Travel Insured (and by the way I have no interest in or relationship to ANY insurance company other than as a customer!). The quote that they provided was for $904 as compared to the Travel Insured cost of $684.

 

One thing that bothered me about the Travelex site is that they did not make available (that I could find) a copy of the Insuring Agreement for review before purchase as do other companies. The devil is in the details and I like to read the "definitions" in each policy as you can be sure that if you have a claim the facts will be construed strictly in accordance with those definitions.

 

I think this serves to prove that cost is quite variable and as to that aspect of insurance purchasing you have to compare apples with apples to get a realistic comparison and you have to read the policy to know what you are getting. Their web site makes no mention of coverage for financial default although I feel sure that it is covered since you have the policy to refer to and have indicated that it is covered. It just makes me nervous if I can't find it to read it for myself before buying. I would prefer to read it before buying rather than after even though you do have a short period to cancel without cost.

 

Also, keep in mind that the rate that I am being quoted is for two people. Was your cost of $200 just for yourself? Please don't think that I am trying to argue with you. This kind of sharing of info can be of help to many people so we need to analyze the differences carefully.

 

Clarence:)

 

Hi Clarence,

 

Travelex is a fine company & I do a lot of business with them, but if you need pre-existing conditions coverage, they have a limitation you may not be aware of.

 

I don't know your trip details, but I suspect the Travel Insured Comprehensive would be a better choice than the Travelex Plus plan. It's reasonably priced & has excellent coverage.

 

Go to www.google.com and search for "trip insurance". You'll find some good sites that offer Travel Insured.

 

I hope this helps.

[cmthomas]

I came to that same conclusion, Steve, and bought my policy from Travel Insured. Their name is not a household word but their ancestry coming from The Travelers is reassuring. At one time The Travelers was the leader in travel insurance and offered by most travel agents.

 

It is my hope that all of the insurance premiums that I pay will be "wasted money", meaning that I NEVER have to make a claim! It is all part of "peace of mind!" However, one does read of stories where the coverage was needed and the customer had bought less than they had thought they had.

 

Of course, the experienced travelers that you see on THIS forum would NEVER be guilty of doing that!!!

 

Clarence:)

[WIT]

The perceptive remarks on this post made me wonder exactly what kind of insurance coverage I would have from my primary insurance company when I went overseas. Blue Cross, my carrier, said that if the cruise operator was headquartered in the US then claims on the cruise would be covered as PPO or out-of-group based on whether the doctor or hospital was on their list. The trip insurance would be secondary coverage, paying deductibles, co-insurance, and the like.

[cmthomas]

One thing to keep in mind. If you are on a "deep water cruise" as opposed to a river cruise and become seriously ill the ship's doctor will have you off the ship at the next port whether you like it or not. On river cruises there is seldom a doctor on board and the closest land is about 50 yards away so you can get shore side care quite rapidly.

 

The quality of care will depend upon where you are in the world. I suspect (but do not know) that care in Western Europe, for example, might be a tad more advanced than that in some locations in Eastern Europe or the Middle East or Central Asia. And I rather doubt that any medical care in those areas will appear on Blue Cross' listed of approved providers. The question for them is what is your reimbursement policy for treatment outside of the plan and outside of the country.

 

Please don't misunderstand my comments as critical of Blue Cross. Most of the carriers will be alike. I traveled extensively for 45 years without ever buying travel insurance. Maybe I was just lucky but now that I am 70 I am not going to press that luck any longer.

 

Clarence:)

[iamtrustworthy]

The perceptive remarks on this post made me wonder exactly what kind of insurance coverage I would have from my primary insurance company when I went overseas. Blue Cross, my carrier, said that if the cruise operator was headquartered in the US then claims on the cruise would be covered as PPO or out-of-group based on whether the doctor or hospital was on their list. The trip insurance would be secondary coverage, paying deductibles, co-insurance, and the like.

 

I used to sell group medical insurance (which is what led me into selling travel insurance). Blue Cross policies are generally the same state to state, but I've never heard of where the cruise operator was headquartered that makes a difference on their coverage.

 

Unless you can clearly read in your Blue Cross' certificate that they are primary, it's best to assume their medical is secondary. And they probably don't cover emergency transportation.

 

BTW, I like Blue Cross because it's easy to use in different states which is why I picked it for my own group insurance.

 

I hope this helps.

[WIT]

My experience in the group health insurance business also never differentiated coverage based on domicile of the cruise company, but that is exactly what my Blue Cross service rep said to me today. When overseas, the Blues use a plan called Blue Card which you can examine at this url:

 

http://www.bcbs.com/coverage/bluecard/

 

The description you'll see looks like primary to me.

 

I used the Bue Card site to confirm that PPO approved doctors and hospitals exist for each country on the Budapest-Black Sea cruise except for Croatia.

[iamtrustworthy]

My experience in the group health insurance business also never differentiated coverage based on domicile of the cruise company, but that is exactly what my Blue Cross service rep said to me today. When overseas, the Blues use a plan called Blue Card which you can examine at this url:

 

http://www.bcbs.com/coverage/bluecard/

 

The description you'll see looks like primary to me.

 

I used the Bue Card site to confirm that PPO approved doctors and hospitals exist for each country on the Budapest-Black Sea cruise except for Croatia.

 

Hi WIT,

 

Thanks for this BCBS info & link. I'll check with my own group plan administrator to see if this applies to our group as well.

[cmthomas]

Great detective work WIT! That is the kind of info that can be helpful to many travelers. I tried to bring up the list of providers but I can't get it without a membership number. If you can print it out or copy it to an email would you send me the list for the areas from Budapest to the Black Sea? Even though I am not a Blue Cross subscriber I would feel comfortable using facilities that they approve as qualified to treat their subscribers. It would be a good reference point. You can either post it here or email it to me at ClarenceThomas3@gmail.com if you are willing to do so.

 

Clarence:)

[Coral]

Clarence - I just compared the 2 policies (Travel Insured and Travelex). For me - the price was $200 for both policies. After comparing the two - I am still glad I purchased Travelex. The Medical Coverge is superior/higher (IMO) on Travelex. The Med Evac is higher on Travel Insured but I am not going to be in the middle of the ocean for needing an expensive Med Evac. I did purchase my insurance within 21 days to cover pre-existing conditions (which I don't have but always buy insurance right away).

 

Regardless, we are both covered much better with our 3rd party insurance compared to Amadeus's plan. The only positive with Amadeus's plan is the "change your mind option" in case a non-covered reason happens and I need to change to a different date.

 

I also have BC/BS but am not sure how well that will work in Russia.

 

I also appreciate the discussion on this thread. Hopefully someone else sailing on Amadeus will learn from this discussion.

[cmthomas]

Theresa, I think that your comparison is valid and also shows that the risks are higher as the age gets higher! No surprise there! I wonder what a helicopter evacuation from a cruise ship does cost. We seem to be hearing about them more often lately.

 

I doubt that this issue is confined to the Amadeus policy and I didn't raise it to be critical of Amadeus. We all must learn to ask questions and know what we are buying in order to be wise consumers.

 

Thanks for your contributions to this subject matter and have a great time in Russia. It is a fascinating country to visit.

 

Clarence:)

[Coral]

I doubt that this issue is confined to the Amadeus policy and I didn't raise it to be critical of Amadeus. We all must learn to ask questions and know what we are buying in order to be wise consumers.

 

Clarence:)

 

You are right. I almost always buy 3rd party insurance. I just looked at Princess's policy and it has either $10,000 or $20,000 in medical coverage. Minimal IMO.

[Hlitner]

Great thread. After spending nearly 35 years in the health insurance business (now retired) I find this topic very interesting. I have a few thoughts. Trip cancellation policies are expensive and what some in the business call silly insurance. Why? Because you are paying often 7% (or more) to reimburse you for money that you would have spent...hence it is not a finanical necessity. The cost of the trip, although a loss, will not ruin anyone's life. As to medical insurance, the real need for those that already have primary insurance that will pay overseas (most will reimburse you, not the facility) is for a secondary policy that will cover costs deemed excessive by your primary (even the secondary will use a reasonable cost clause) and also include evacuation coverage not normally covered by primary policies. For those under 65, American Express offers such a policy ($100,000 med and $100,000 evacuation) for about $150 per year (this is the total per couple) which covers all trips within the policy year up to the first 45 days. I believe this is only for card holders. There are a few similar policies available from other insurance companies for under $200 per year (per couple). Note that these policies are for a year, not for a single trip. I am not sure what the cost is for an AMEX policy once you hit 65.

 

Hank

[iamtrustworthy]

Great thread. After spending nearly 35 years in the health insurance business (now retired) I find this topic very interesting. I have a few thoughts... As to medical insurance, the real need for those that already have primary insurance that will pay overseas (most will reimburse you, not the facility) is for a secondary policy that will cover costs deemed excessive by your primary (even the secondary will use a reasonable cost clause) and also include evacuation coverage not normally covered by primary policies.

 

Hank

 

Hi Hank,

 

I agree with you on the need for a secondary policy. IMHO, I feel that many trip insurance sellers are mis-informed when it comes to understanding primary and secondary coverage on the medical portion of trip insurance. The cynical part of me says that it's just a sales gimmick to convince people that primary is better.

 

I have seen cases where the medical claim exceeded the primary coverage limit and caused the insured to incur large deductibles & copays. Thankfully, none of those claims were from policies we sold to people. Each time I found out about them when the people called us asking for advice on a claim they had in progress (they weren't getting good service from their agent). It's tough to tell people that their claim's being handled correctly by the insurance company.

 

So, thanks for bringing the discussion in this direction.

[cmthomas]

Thanks to Hank and Steve for raising some important points not commonly known to those of us not in the insurance business.

 

I re-priced my $684 policy (for 2) omitting the coverage for trip cancellation and the cost dropped to around $200 so you can see where the insurance companies expect to incur losses. For those of us under Medicare the overseas coverage issue is simple - there isn't any to speak of. Insurance has always been a gamble and the insurance company is the house and the customer is the player.

 

Admittedly, the chances of having a serious illness during any given several week period is slim. It is the consequences of that slim risk from which we seek to protect ourselves. Hank's analysis is right on the mark. We KNOW what is at risk with the cost of the trip. The unknown is in the cost of medical care and evacuation. If one wishes to gamble, it would appear to be smarter to gamble with the trip cost rather than the potentially staggering costs for medical care not covered by health insurance for which you have already paid but is invalid outside of the country. For those not yet covered by Medicare this will take some serious research before determing if you should buy trip insurance.

 

No one has ever said that these decisions are easy! For those who don't wish to do the hard work it may just be easier to pay the premium and know that you will be covered if some unfortunate event comes calling.

 

 

Clarence:)