Cruise Insurance - Am I missing Something?

[bigwalt0176]

With the laest cancellation by Celebrity, I have read with great interest the implemenation of cruise insurance.

 

Since the curise line will credit me for the cruise and air (if booked through them) for a mechanical problem or cancellation for whatever reason, the insurance will not cover me.

 

The insurance will not, from my understanding, cover my air fare except for a rescheduling charge. This change may or may not be covered by the cruise line.

 

If I miss my flight or it is late, they will provide some compensation but so will the cruise line if I book through them

 

They will not cover pre-existing conditions. So if I have a heart condition and require evacuation, the insurance will not cover it.

 

Am I missing something here? Or does the isurance only cover lost bags?

[kitty9]

You're missing a lot. Third party cruise insurance DOES cover pre-existing conditions as long as you purchase it within 10 to 14 days of booking your cruise. And, there is one policy that will cover pre-existing conditions if you purchase it a week before your cruise, but it will be more expensive. I have pre-existing conditions, and purchase insurance early, and three times I had to cancel a cruise at the last minute due to problems with my pre-existings, and I got full refunds.

 

Other things you're not thinking of include a death in the family, an illness that you or anyone in your travel party may have that causes a cancellation, an accident or any other mishap that could happen right before your cruise departs. Insurance will cover all these things, including your airfare if you get coverage that includes air.

 

Another thing you need to cover is emergency medical evacuation off the ship if you require medical attention that the ship's medical center cannot offer. My mother's 1/2 hour evac flight back to FLL was $9000. The average cost to evac you off the ship is $25,000 to $30,000.

 

Finally, if your own personal medical insurance doesn't cover you outside the US, you need insurance to pay for any problems you may experience on the ship or on land. Also, Medicare does not pay one dime outside the US.

 

So as you can see, there are a lot of other things that travel insurance covers.

[ghstudio]

You really shouldn't be asking here...you should be reading the policy offered. For example, pre existing conditions are often covered if you buy the insurance within 15 day of your first payment. There are many policies....the one offered by celebrity allows you to cancel for any reason and gives you a significant credit towards another cruise. Others only pay if you or a member of your family is seriously ill or dies. Others have options to cover different things.

 

Don't believe any answer you get here....read the policies.

[Lsimon]

All policies are different and some of the companies have a selection of policies available covering things differently at different costs. So things like pre-existing conditions and what expenses are covered for what events and the amounts of coverage can vary quite a bit. Bottom line is you need to research to make sure the coverage you are buying is what you want and need and at a price that makes sense for you.

 

Good starting points are the cruise line's coverage and insuremytrip.com which is sort of an online travel insurance agent representing several different companies.

[hylasgirl]

You're missing a lot. Third party cruise insurance DOES cover pre-existing conditions as long as you purchase it within 10 to 14 days of booking your cruise. And, there is one policy that will cover pre-existing conditions if you purchase it a week before your cruise, but it will be more expensive. I have pre-existing conditions, and purchase insurance early, and three times I had to cancel a cruise at the last minute due to problems with my pre-existings, and I got full refunds.

 

Other things you're not thinking of include a death in the family, an illness that you or anyone in your travel party may have that causes a cancellation, an accident or any other mishap that could happen right before your cruise departs. Insurance will cover all these things, including your airfare if you get coverage that includes air.

 

Another thing you need to cover is emergency medical evacuation off the ship if you require medical attention that the ship's medical center cannot offer. My mother's 1/2 hour evac flight back to FLL was $9000. The average cost to evac you off the ship is $25,000 to $30,000.

 

Finally, if your own personal medical insurance doesn't cover you outside the US, you need insurance to pay for any problems you may experience on the ship or on land. Also, Medicare does not pay one dime outside the US.

 

So as you can see, there are a lot of other things that travel insurance covers.

 

NO.. this is not true and you shouldn't be telling people this. It's all about the policy. You DO NOT have to purchase insurance 10 to 14 days of booking your cruise. This is not RIGHT to tell people this. It is all based on the policy purchased. If you purchase the LUXE plan through CSA it is good for ALL pre-existing conditions up until 24 hours AFTER making your final payment.

 

Do your homework on a policy and purchase with confidence. Do not listen to anyone. Do your OWN research and ask many questions. For me... I haven't found a plan better than the LUXE plan with CSA. I have pre-existing conditions, and I have had MUCH success with this company.

 

Don't simplify insurance to people on this board. There are many things to consider...

 

To the OP... don't take someone else's word HERE as the RULE... it is not. Ask questions. This statement outlined is not fact. It might have been for their policy. But it sure isn't for any policy I have bought.

[Buellwinkle]

I find it best to shop prices on the internet but then buy from a travel agent as they know all the rules, especially about travel insurance. But it does cover a lot if you get sick before you go, if you get sick while at port and such. I always get it and for my last cruise (last week) I paid $31 each which is such a small amount considering the coverage that it was worth it to me. I used Costco travel which was very helpful and I would use them again. The biggest hole for me was that I used frequent flyer tickets to fly, so if my cruise was cancelled, they would not cover the equivalent value of my free tickets that I may lose. Don't know if anyone would. You pretty much have to book the entire trip including airfare through them if you want their insurance to cover air also. So if you booked your own air travel and you can't make the cruise, they won't cover the cost of changing or cancelling airfares.

[hylasgirl]

I find it best to shop prices on the internet but then buy from a travel agent as they know all the rules, especially about travel insurance. But it does cover a lot if you get sick before you go, if you get sick while at port and such. I always get it and for my last cruise (last week) I paid $31 each which is such a small amount considering the coverage that it was worth it to me. I used Costco travel which was very helpful and I would use them again. The biggest hole for me was that I used frequent flyer tickets to fly, so if my cruise was cancelled, they would not cover the equivalent value of my free tickets that I may lose. Don't know if anyone would. You pretty much have to book the entire trip including airfare through them if you want their insurance to cover air also. So if you booked your own air travel and you can't make the cruise, they won't cover the cost of changing or cancelling airfares.

 

See, that is the problem... I have found travel agents do not know enough about travel insurance. I have had many travel agents tell me that you have to buy travel insurance when you book a cruise to have pre exisiting conditions covered. This statement is not true. The best thing is to talk to an insurance agent at a reputable company and get all the facts out in front of you. Many people don't even know what a pre-existing condition can be... CSA states that ANYone traveling or NOT traveling with you... if that is the reason why you have canceled and this person is exhibiting symptoms, or seeking treatment for any ailment making that the reason for you canceling, that would have needed to be under a pre-existing clause. Like the OP says... say your father has had heart issues in the past and is still undergoing treatment under a doctors observation... and is NOT traveling with you... If your father then has a heart attack, causing you to cancel... You WOULD not be covered unless you had the pre-existing condition clause.

 

The best thing you can do with travel insurance, like any other insurance.. is not assume someone knows something more than you should know yourself. Know your benefits and be prepared.

 

It is NOT true that you have to book your airfare with the cruiseline for you to be covered. With certain agencies, you can insure your airfare. You DO NOT have to book your air with the cruise line. You do not have to insure when you book a cruise. Some insurances do not cover for Carrier Delays... some do not insure against Strikes... KNOW your coverage. I refer to CSA because I know they cover for carrier delays... I know they cover for strikes (which a lot of insurances do not) because I was involved with a strike in Barcelona that stranded thousands... a lot of insurances didn't help people. CSA did. I am not a CSA cheerleader because I know there are many good insurance companies out there. BUT, CSA has been good to me.

 

Do not take what a travel agent tells you for the RULE. They do not know enough about what they sell. AND... most will tell you there is pre-existing condition coverage if you book when you book a cruise. This is not necessarily true either.

[Toothfairy754]

I have had travel insurance for every cruise I have taken. Partly because my TA offers it at no cost, but mainly because you just never know what might happen. Luckily so far I have not had to use it,BUT I would rather have it than not if I needed it.

[Bobblsc]

As stated above, CSA does not have to be purchased until within 24 hours of the final payment to cover pre-existing conditions. The same applies to HTH. These two firms are apparently under the same corporate ownership. I know because when calling CSA and later the same day HTH, the same person answered. She said so.

 

For some reason the premium calculations are different. I have found HTH to be advantageous for us. Check both on www.insuremytrip.com. The premiums for CSA and HTH are a bit higher than some other companies, but the advantage is that if you cancel a cruise before final payment, you do not lose your premium dollars with these because you have not yet bought the insurance.

 

Bob :cool:

[Mysticks1]

I have been researching trip insurance over the past week and have found insuremytrip.com to be the best tool. With it you can compare policies side by side and see which policy offers the best coverage for you and see what insurance company is backing the coverage and their rating.

Another thing to note is that the policies also vary as to whether they will be the "primary" or "secondary" coverage. I found that to vary greatly in the policies that I have looked at. That could make a big difference in items such as your baggage. Some policies are secondary only meaning they will only pay after your homeowners or similiar policy pays.

[rebar-art]

I always purchase trip insurance through TA and never thought s thing about it until he told me that TraveleGuard has said that the Celebrity cancellation of the Mille is NOT covered and I am just out my airfare (on Air New Zealand.)

I plan to fight it, but I am afraid they will use every loop hole they can to get out of paying their claims....

[ghstudio]

Too much bad information is being posted on this board (not necessarily this thread)

 

Celebrity will evacuate you in a medical emergency, up to $25K...and they do cover pre-existing conditions that are controlled and stable. At least this is my interpretation of the policy....but you can make your own decisions after actually reading the policy which is available at:

 

http://media.celebritycruises.com/celebrity/content/pdf/insurance/DofC%20CEL%20060607.pdf

 

I think it's a pretty good, low cost policy for a caribbean cruise which is why we take it.

[kitty9]

NO.. this is not true and you shouldn't be telling people this. It's all about the policy. You DO NOT have to purchase insurance 10 to 14 days of booking your cruise. This is not RIGHT to tell people this. It is all based on the policy purchased. If you purchase the LUXE plan through CSA it is good for ALL pre-existing conditions up until 24 hours AFTER making your final payment.

 

Do your homework on a policy and purchase with confidence. Do not listen to anyone. Do your OWN research and ask many questions. For me... I haven't found a plan better than the LUXE plan with CSA. I have pre-existing conditions, and I have had MUCH success with this company.

 

Don't simplify insurance to people on this board. There are many things to consider...

 

To the OP... don't take someone else's word HERE as the RULE... it is not. Ask questions. This statement outlined is not fact. It might have been for their policy. But it sure isn't for any policy I have bought.

 

 

Did you not read my post? I did say there was a policy you could purchase at the last minute that covers pre-existing. But MOST policies DO require you to purchase within a specific timeframe in order to cover pre-existing. Yes, the one you mention can be bought much later, and like I said, I DID mention that in my post, but did not mention the specific name LUXE !!!!!

[hcat]

I have a simple (I think) question--but still no answer

 

What ins can you purchase that will cover airfare if you buy air on your own & then your cruise is cancelled by the cruise line?

 

We have cruise line ins that satisifes us in geneeral ( & which has been used successfully by us for a med emereency), but this time we have non-refundable air & want to insure that aspect of our trip (quite a major expense)...

[DaveFr]

You're missing a lot. Third party cruise insurance DOES cover pre-existing conditions as long as you purchase it within 10 to 14 days of booking your cruise. And, there is one policy that will cover pre-existing conditions if you purchase it a week before your cruise, but it will be more expensive.

 

Did you not read my post? I did say there was a policy you could purchase at the last minute that covers pre-existing. But MOST policies DO require you to purchase within a specific timeframe in order to cover pre-existing. Yes, the one you mention can be bought much later, and like I said, I DID mention that in my post, but did not mention the specific name LUXE !!!!!

Darcie,

 

There is no trip insurance policy I know of that will waive the pre-existing condition exclusion if purchased up to a week before a cruise. As another poster noted, both CSA and HTH have policies where pre-existing conditions will be waived as long as the policy is taken out no later than 24 hours after final payment. Final payment is usually due 70 - 90 days before a cruise. If you have information to the contrary, please post the name of the trip insurance policy. Thanks.

 

Dave

[JNCRUISEBUMS]

I have used the travel insurance, broke my leg 2 weeks before the cruise and they paid within 3 weeks. Thank God for the insurance!

[hylasgirl]

I have a simple (I think) question--but still no answer

 

What ins can you purchase that will cover airfare if you buy air on your own & then your cruise is cancelled by the cruise line?

 

We have cruise line ins that satisifes us in geneeral ( & which has been used successfully by us for a med emereency), but this time we have non-refundable air & want to insure that aspect of our trip (quite a major expense)...

 

hcat... I do KNOW that if you "choose" to buy the air portion of the insurance through CSA, they will cover your air fare. As to what justifies a cancelation is all dependent on the policy. When making a call to any insurance... go over your specific questions. The agent knows much better about specifics than any of us here on the CC know. No one can possibly comment on your exact needs. We ALWAYS buy air on our own, and most of the time we insure it with CSA because their conditions best fit my needs. We did not insure our air when we used Skymiles for travel. I do believe if you called them, you could JUST insure your air. Double check anything that you have questions with.

[hcat]

Thanks-- we will try them.. Delta had ins but did not cover that issue--

 

I had been thinking about it all along & then boom--the Millenium got cancelled & lots of people had airfare problems--& were booked on lines that only service that location...

 

still can't see using cruise line air since they do not plan the routes or times the way I would..

[mcmarya]

I think one of the questions being asked is about coverage for airline tickets when the cruise line cancels your cruise. Even if you have covered the cost of your air with a cruise insurance policy, I don't think that a cancellation by the cruise line of your cruise is considered a covered event under most policies. I have wondered about this and would be interested to know.