Trip Cancellation Ins.

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dcb
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Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by dcb »

Wife and I have booked an Alaskan Cruise+Land with Holland-American through AAA for next year. The total cost approx. $2700/person. We have been offered the option of cancellation insurance at a premium of about $300/person.

This seems somewhat excessive to me but not having much experience with touring companies (we typically arrange our own travel) I could be wrong. It covers cancellation for most any legitimate reason plus some other ancillary medical type insurance (for which we have coverage through other means).

Have others found this to be a typical rate for this type of coverage? Are there other independent sources of trip cancellation insurance you have found adequate and cost effective?
Don
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ResearchMed
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by ResearchMed »

FIRST: Take a look at CruiseCritic.com
You'll find a Forum much like this one, for each cruise line, and also for other topics including travel insurance, and airfare, plus ports of call and "what to do/see" recommendations.

There are some advantages of getting travel insurance through the cruise company, but probably more advantages to getting the travel insurance through an outside company, of which there are *many* to choose: many types of insurance coverage and many different vendors.

We just changed to TripInsuranceStore.com, who have quite a few different choices.
Another provider is InsureMyTrip.com, but we've found their offerings to be more confusing to sort out, and the costs are the same anyway - for the identical coverage.
You'll pay the same no matter how you buy it, from a company like this or directly from the insurer, as the insurance is regulated. (The company pays a fee/commission, not the customer.) This will probably NOT apply to the coverage through the cruise company, especially if they use a term other than "insurance", which is likely if what they do is offer you credit for a future cruise.

There are several things to consider, such as whether you want coverage for pre-existing conditions (you MUST purchase this type of coverage within a "window", usually 14 - 21 days of making the reservation or first payment, but for some policies it can be different) or a "cancel for any reason" [CFAR], which will add a bit to the policy cost (and usually provides only 50%, 75%, or 90% of the money back, but you can "just change your mind, no questions asked"). There are sometimes "extras" such as making the medical coverage "primary" instead of "secondary", and lots more. Sorting through all of these choices is why we changed to TripInsuranceStore.

There is a separate Medevac coverage (I think this is available "per trip" as well as on an annual basis), which will pay for you to be moved from any hospital you end up in, anywhere, to "the hospital of your choice, anywhere". The regular trip insurance will probably cover the costs of getting you to that "first hospital", plus any care that isn't covered by your own medical coverage. Many health insurance policies do NOT cover any costs incurred outside the USA (assuming you have USA-based coverage). If you are NOT based in the USA, this can be very different.

There is a lesser coverage ($2500 or $5000k per year), which is purchased on an annual basis, but the terms are somewhat different. It didn't quite provide what we needed (it could possibly leave us uninsured for pre-existing condition coverage for a subsequent trip, if we filed a claim that used up much of the coverage for an earlier trip).

Just ask questions about the "what if's" that occur to you.
Most of the "complaints" about travel insurance turn out to be because people didn't understand the coverage, and the "problem situation" simply wasn't covered from the start. Either it is never covered, or they chose a policy that didn't include that type of coverage.

Enjoy the cruise!
We are planning an Alaska cruise next year, too :happy (Different cruise line)
We joke that it is near the top of our travel list, "before the glaciers melt" :shock:

RM
The Wizard
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by The Wizard »

Can't give you a direct answer since I "self insure" for the various trips I do each year. I have had a couple cancellations where we've lost a bit of $$, but not the whole thing, just rebooked later...
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Retread
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by Retread »

Don't waste your money. To pay $600 to insure a fairly remote risk of $5,400 is nuts. We've been on 20+ cruises and never bought the insurance. It's like an extended warranty on a car. Pure profit for the seller.
Bruce
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Robert44
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by Robert44 »

I would definitely recommend getting trip insurance. The first time I ever purchased trip insurance, I had a stroke in Mexico. If you every get seriously ill in Mexico, you are in big trouble.
The policy paid $10,000 toward a private jet flying us from Cancun right to our airport in St. Louis. (Total price was $12,000, we we paid $2k). Will never travel again without insurance.
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Sheepdog
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by Sheepdog »

When a person is older, like my wife and I are, trip insurance may be prudent. I didn't until I reached 70. Our 11 day cruise this coming January cost about $6000, so I purchased insurance at a cost of $258. I didn't purchase trip insurance for the airfare (separate booking), however. I just self insured that as it cost under $800. The medical coverage, as mentioned by Robert, is quite valuable.
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tibbitts
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by tibbitts »

Retread wrote:Don't waste your money. To pay $600 to insure a fairly remote risk of $5,400 is nuts. We've been on 20+ cruises and never bought the insurance. It's like an extended warranty on a car. Pure profit for the seller.
Bruce
I haven't read the entire thread, but $600 seems high - depending on the terms. The key here is that the OP is covered 100% for medical without any supplemental insurance, and that's probably much of the cost of this coverage. So it might be possible to find coverage that would be less expensive. Most of us buy the insurance primarily for the medical coverage aspect, and it's not "nuts" to do that, since expenses can easily reach $100k+, for which many of us would have no other coverage.

Incidentally while I almost never buy extended warranties on products, I did once pay $600 for an extended warranty on a $15k car, and made back the cost plus a little bit. So it's not always "pure profit" for the seller. Also I know people who've also taken 20 or so cruises, and been remibursed by insurance in the $100k range (split between a couple of those trips.) So you can't conclude much from having taken 20 cruises and not needed any coverage - but again, if you're answering just based on cancellation coverage and not considering medical at all, then your position seems more reasonable.

Paul
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dcb
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by dcb »

Thanks to all who have replied so far with many different perspectives.

Just to elaborate a little on our situation. We are in our early 70's but with no medical issues. I have medical insurance beyond S.S. that will cover us while traveling, including such things as med-vac. I would simply like to insure against having to cancel the trip for a legitimate illness, injury, or serious family issue. Or perhaps a problem getting to the airport or embarking point because of an accident, weather, etc.

In looking at various policies, they all seem to be somewhat inclusive of both cancellation insurance and various levels of medical coverage during the trip. And as Tibbitts hinted in his response, the medical may be the bulk of the premium. So, as Retread mentioned in his post, "don't waste your money" may be the best option for our situation.
Don
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ResearchMed
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by ResearchMed »

It's a good idea to fly in at least a day in advance, so if your flight is delayed or you miss connections, etc., you don't also miss the ship.

If you purchase the airfare through the cruise line, they usually (but CHECK!) will make sure, if there is a "miss", to get you to the next port at their own expense. (If it's a close call, and several passengers are affected, they might hold the ship, same as with shore excursions booked through the cruise line.)

We've found that we can usually get cheaper fares on our own, but not always. For a cruise in December, we saved a lot of money adding the airfare to the cruise costs. We selected the flights we wanted (not "what the cruise line would have selected", but YMMV), and our Travel Agent got a quote for us. We were quite surprised at the savings, and booked through them. It was the same dates, so we are still flying in a few days in advance, and staying an extra night after the cruise. It doesn't always work out that way.

We mostly want the medical and evacuation insurance coverage.
However, we also still get the CFAR add-on. DH has occasionally needed to change travel dates, or cancel entirely, due to work/consulting schedule changes. Hotels seem to be accommodating (mostly), and airfares are rarely so high (for domestic, anyway). But the entire cruise? That's in another league, and not something where we can just "change the dates slightly"!
Once that changes, we'll probably stop bothering with the CFAR coverage. We certainly don't need to insure "in case we simply changed our minds", obviously.
On the other hand, the CFAR coverage would also include death or illness of someone not in the immediate family, or other difficult situation, so it's up to the individual to sort out what the potential problems are, and what warrants insurance or not.

You might want to check IF there is a policy that covers primarily what you want, without the medical/evac coverage, at a lower cost, if that is your concern.

RM
leonard
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by leonard »

I keep waiting for them to start selling reinsurance to consumers on these consumer insurance policies. Maybe the insurance company issuing the policy will go bankrupt. Upping the scam even more.

Life has risk and it isn't cost effective to mitigate all the risks with insurance.
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ResearchMed
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by ResearchMed »

leonard wrote:I keep waiting for them to start selling reinsurance to consumers on these consumer insurance policies. Maybe the insurance company issuing the policy will go bankrupt. Upping the scam even more.

Life has risk and it isn't cost effective to mitigate all the risks with insurance.
There was a cartoon just a couple of days ago that showed discussion of "insurance insurance", but this was for "whatever isn't covered" by the first policy.
Of course, that would be an interesting policy coverage to interpret...

RM
leonard
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by leonard »

ResearchMed wrote:
leonard wrote:I keep waiting for them to start selling reinsurance to consumers on these consumer insurance policies. Maybe the insurance company issuing the policy will go bankrupt. Upping the scam even more.

Life has risk and it isn't cost effective to mitigate all the risks with insurance.
There was a cartoon just a couple of days ago that showed discussion of "insurance insurance", but this was for "whatever isn't covered" by the first policy.
Of course, that would be an interesting policy coverage to interpret...

RM
The big joke is why people keep buying this stuff. It's a huge commission for the seller-retailer of the product and nearly pure profit for the insurer.

For Alaska - I would get the Grizzly, Calving Iceberg, and hypothermia package from Allstate.

EDIT: So it appears that Bogleheads are frugal - except for the high-profit-margin-to-insurance-companies travel insurance. An interesting exception.
Last edited by leonard on Tue Oct 15, 2013 4:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Gnirk
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by Gnirk »

I buy the trip insurance primarily because of the medical. And yes, I've actually used it, twice.
Once when we missed a flight connection in London, and had to stay overnight, the insurance paid the $350 pr night for our hotel, and for airline change charges, even though we were flying on miles.

And we used it a second time when I had a stroke while on a 10-day Holland America cruise, and subsequently spent 4 days in the hospital in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Yup. A foreign country. Paid for the ambulance, hospital, husband's hotel and meal charges, reimbursed us for the 7 unused days of the cruise as well as refunding our unused excursions, and our airline change fees. The company offered to send an RN with me on the flight home, and would have medi-vac'd me back to Seattle, if necessary. Never did get to see the fall foliage!!!

The trip insurance was well worth it, and I won't travel to a foreign country without it.
user5027
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by user5027 »

We buy the insurance on our cruises primarily for the medevac coverage. We were on a transatlantic when a passenger had a suspected heart attack. The ship turned around and an Irish Coast Guard helicopter lowered a basket to retrieve the passenger and take them to a hospital. I cannot fathom what the cost was.
cherijoh
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by cherijoh »

I think the trip cancellation policies are based on the amount of coverage, the type of coverage included, and the ages of the travelers being covered. The rule of thumb I remember is ~6% of the total cost, but I am younger.

I would recommend getting the insurance if overseas or on a cruise or other package tour where you would forfeit big bucks if you had to cancel at the last minute. In addition to $$ related to any medical emergency or getting stranded you have piece of mind - just contact the emergency number and they will take care of it! BTW, if the insurance company used by your tour provider isn't a name brand I would consider booking it independently.

FYI - I had to cancel a trip 10 days before I left due to a torn ligament and all I needed to do was visit the doctor and have him fill out and fax the form. I had my refund within ~2 weeks. I'm pretty sure my insurance that time was through Travel Guard. See http://www.travelguard.com/quickquote/
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JamesSFO
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by JamesSFO »

If you spend time over at CruiseCritic--I do--you'll find that people regularly post furious that the cruiseline won't reimburse them for something or other but that they didn't buy the insurance. $300 pp seems high, most policies I've bought have been more like $140-180pp from cruiselines.

I usually by insurance for cruises, I've been lucky enough not to need. But on our most recent cruise there were two ambulances at every port PLUS on embarkation after sailaway, there was a US Coast Guard medical evac. There were 2600 passengers, but about 10 of them had medical emergencies that I was aware of on this one trip... To have that taken care of guaranteed, $160 pp on this most recent trip would have been well worth it.
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Phineas J. Whoopee
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by Phineas J. Whoopee »

I agree with the advice to buy medical + medevac insurance. Having to pay for that stuff on your own could seriously set you back, and in many countries (realizing you're only going to Alaska but trying to generalize my comment for anyone who comes across this thread later) you have to demonstrate ability to pay before urgent treatment. I'm told by reasonable sources the letter you get from the insurance company usually works, so carry it on your person (fortunately I've had no experience in that regard).

Trip cancellation insurance is another matter. I try only to insure against that which I can't afford to lose. The cost of traveling for pleasure obviously is a sum I can do without, because if it wasn't, the trip wouldn't have been affordable to me in the first place; therefore no insurance is necessary.

Your Mileage (as it were) May Vary.

PJW
7milehi
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by 7milehi »

I usually cruise 2-3 times per year and always buy insurance through insuremytrip. Travel insurance rates vary widely . Get the cheapest insurance quote that has full coverage on the cost of the trip and at least $100,000 of emergency medical evacuation . We are on a cruise in December with a total cost of $3500 and got full trip cancellation coverage with $100,000 EME for $103 for my wife and myself with an AM Best A+ rated company . Some policies wanted 3 times that much for less coverage .
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aja8888
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Re: Trip Cancellation Ins.

Post by aja8888 »

I have tipped the cruise staff more that the cost of the insurance on the cruises we have been on. I probably lost more on the blackjack tables too, and spent more in port in a gift shop. Buy the insurance as its a small cost in relation to the rest. And having a medical emergency at an older age on a boat is not fun. When we were younger, the only medical stuff we worried about was getting a hangover on the ship (or my wife conceiving).
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