I learned my lesson through others - help with buying insurance?

[Christina1003]

Hello all - well, I learned my lesson reading all these posts about missed flights, cancelled cruises, and all the damage caused by the Hurricanes.

 

I'm going to suck it up, stop being so cheap, and buy insurance after all.

 

I've never needed it before, so I never bought it. However, this will be our first cruise in May.

 

I haven't went with air though RCI, because it was twice the price of what we'd normally pay. :eek:

 

BUT - how do I go about buying insurance after I already declined it? Can I get it to cover the air I'm purchasing myself? Are independent insurance companies just as good, or is it better to go through RCI?

 

Also, I'm assuming you pay out of pocket first if something happens, and they reimburse you?

 

We're flying from Philadelphia to Port Canaveral the morning of the cruise, in early May on the MOS to the Western Caribbean.

 

Any help is greatly appreciated! I don't have a clue! (obviously! :D)

[NancyIL]

Do your insurance shopping at http://www.insuremytrip.com. Add the cost of the airfare to the total cost of the cruise to get the amount of coverage you need. Yes, you usually pay first, then file a claim to get reimbursed.

 

I found this info very helpful: http://www.travelinsurance-info.com/

[Boo's Mom]

Christina1003...

 

Check out insuremytrip.com

 

You will be able to get a comparison of many, many insurance product..side by side.

 

This is a reputable site.

 

Some airline tickets are refundable. ie: you can change them if something comes up. So...on these, I probably would not include their price in the price of your insurance needs. Or....if they are refundable with a $100. fee....you might include the $100.

 

You will find a very, very, wide variety of prices on the insurance products. Check them out carefully....because most of the time...the cheapest one will cover you just fine. I have found this to be true many times over.

 

Good luck.

 

and...insurance is good. You are being wise. ;)

[Boo's Mom]

ps. You can purchase insurance up until the day of your travel. But, I would highly recommend that you do the purchase at least prior to the day you do your final payment.

 

Things can come up between final payment and sail date....and you want to be covered.

 

We purchase shortly after initial payment....to ensure that we are covered for any pre-existing issues.

 

:)

[nrdsb4]

ps. You can purchase insurance up until the day of your travel. But' date=' I would highly recommend that you do the purchase at least prior to the day you do your final payment.

 

:)[/quote']

 

I agree to purchase sooner rather than later. As someone else mentioned recently, as it relates to hurricanes, once a storm has been named, you can't purchase insurance to cover losses from that event.

[cmjaffe]

Another recommendation to check out insuremytrip.com

gives you all the options you need to make an informed decision.

Carolyn

[kfgarrow]

Just another recommendation for insuremytrip.com. Hubby and I usually pay around $100 to insure our 7 day cruises with air. We are in our late 30s/early 40s and in perfect health. So why do we purchase insurance? Hubby's parents are nearly 80 and in poor health. Something could happen at any time. Also, people don't usually plan travel accidents that include breaking legs while hiking, allergic reactions, etc. That $100 gives me much peace of mind.

[imsulin]

One thing you need to look for when buying trip insurance - besides the coverage - is whether or not the policy you buy is a PRIMARY coverer or a SECONDARY coverer. I always get a PRIMARY coverer because they pay first, and I don't even have to deal with my local Health plan. Good for you for choosing to get it!

[darkauf]

Access America - Price Cannot Be Beat And Excellent Coverage

 

 

D & L

[imsulin]

Primary or Secondary coverage?

[Atiya]

I found this info very helpful: http://www.travelinsurance-info.com/

 

Thanks so much for posting this site! I was looking at insuremytrip.com and being totally clueless about how to choose an insurer, and the travelinsurance-info site was extremely helpful.

[Cruisechik]

Make sure the airline, travel agency, etc is not on the insurance company's DO NOT COVER list.

[Brneyznfl]

Another couple of things to consider. If pre-existing health conditions are an issue be sure that you buy the insurance within the stated number of days required of when you make your cruise deposit. Some travel insurance companies, I've seen 7 days, others are 14. Some policies only cover preexisting conditions on the traveler, some will also cover the traveler's family who are not going on the trip. This part is important to me because I have family not in good health. It's really important to read through the whole policy about what and what is not included. At insuremytrip.com, you can do this. Also, some companies require that you insure the total trip cost which would include the price of your airfare and if your hotel is non refundable, that too.

 

Another little tibit. If you purchase insurance for a cruise and then later down the road you change your mind and want to change ships and/or cruiselines, there are some companies who will let you transfer your coverage and you won't have to buy another policy and lose money on your old policy. This could be good to know if you are a cruise addict who books your cruises over a year ahead of time. ;)

[darkauf]

Correct about transferring the insurance. We originally booked on the Carnival Spirit to do this repositioning cruise from San Diego to Florida. Carnival cancelled that ship as it is leaving the Spirit in California. We rebooked on RCI Radiance of the Seas and Access America just switched our coverage without a problem. We also had a case where the total of our cruise per person dropped below one of their levels and the insurance became less expensive. They issued us a credit to our credit card. They are always polite and helpful. Thank goodness I have never had to use them so I can not attest to having a claim but so far, so good...we never travel without insurance. (except the one time which I stated in a different thread and we almost lost everything due to a early snow storm this past December). We just figure it in the cost of the vacation.

 

Darlene;)