Cruise Insurance Question

I'm still a cruise newbie and I've always purchased the insurance offered by NCL. What does everyone do on the board.....purchase outside insurance or what NCL offers and what are the pros and cons?

I just use the Ins Company offered by my TA. I'm guessing the are all pretty competitive.

I'm still a cruise newbie and I've always purchased the insurance offered by NCL. What does everyone do on the board.....purchase outside insurance or what NCL offers and what are the pros and cons?

Here is a link to the Travel Insurance section of CC:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=635

We always purchase our travel insurance from

http://www.TripInsuranceStore.com

CALL them, don't just read the online summaries, as the fine print really matters.

Steve (owner) is the greatest resource. They sell a variety of policies from several vetted insurers.

He also helps with claims (if needed).

We've had two large claims with Travel Insured policies purchase through his company, and both were paid with no nonsense.

That is what it is all about, after all.

(He also will suggest if he thinks someone does *not* need an upgrade, etc. Hard to beat!)

I'm still a cruise newbie and I've always purchased the insurance offered by NCL. What does everyone do on the board.....purchase outside insurance or what NCL offers and what are the pros and cons?

I want more medical and evacuation coverage than is offered by cruise line insurance so I use outside insurance TravelGuard.

I used my work's extended health benefit which covers medical insurance as well as the credit card which also offers emergency medical services insurance as well as trip interruption insurance.

Think of it this way, the cruise line is only going to sell you coverage for the cruise. If you are flying to the port, lose your luggage, get sick, need a hospital etc. you need to cover yourself with a 3rd party insurer who offers what you want to cover.

I usually don't buy insurance now I'm wondering if I should? Do most people buy insurance?

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I would also look at insuremytrip.com & squaremouth.com [better search filters]. As was posted before, the fine print is crucial. If you are not comfortable finding a policy on the website, call and talk to an agent. They will be able to explain the terms and limitations of a policy [primary vs. secondary coverage, cancel for any reason, pre-existing conditions coverage, deductibles, etc.].

Most policies require that they be purchased within 14 - 20 days from your first payment, in order to be covered for "cancel for any reason" or "pre-existing conditions". It will vary by carrier. I would seriously consider including these options in the policy that you pick. I hope that you have a great cruise.

:)

I don't buy insurance.

If you are injured or become ill overseas, you may need special a medical transport service to get you back home. Medical evacuation will cost anywhere from $25,000 and beyond. This is in ADDITION to medical bills.

Nope, not for vacations.

If I bought insurance for every vacation I take, I would be broke, and wouldn't be able to take anymore vacations.

I am a rebel, not buying trip insurance.

But I am sure you can get hundreds of folks who bot it who thought it paid off.

Just go ahead, have a claim, see what hoops you get put through to use it. All the exclusions written up by their clever attorneys, to invalidate claims.

I don't buy the extended warranties at the stores either, for my new toaster, T.V., etc. That's another rip off.

To each their own, make your own decision.

:eek:

I purchase outside insurance. I have never found NCL to be competitive for the type of insurance I want. Actually, they don't seem to include much coverage. Often I just get extra medical and evacuation insurance. I usually book air with SWA points and there's no fares to reimburse. The hotels I book are refundable if canceled.

I'm still a cruise newbie and I've always purchased the insurance offered by NCL. What does everyone do on the board.....purchase outside insurance or what NCL offers and what are the pros and cons?

If we book with CAS we usually use the NCL insurance. If we book a big trip - Hawaii, Mediterranean, or longer Caribbean trip, etc we use Allianz (formally Access America).

We had to use it (Access America) in St. Thomas for a vehicle accident/trip interruption and they paid 100% - this included hospitalization, hotel, food, airfare and ground transportation.

We just needed to use the NCL insurance this June - claim is in - communication that it was received - will let you know the outcome. :)

I usually don't buy insurance now I'm wondering if I should? Do most people buy insurance?

 

 

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I have started buying insurance after my parents had to pay CASH in Russia for my father to be treated and fly home unexpectantly. I use Allianz a nd always book it immediately when I buy the first portion of an overseas trip, be it the cruise or hotel or airfare. It is easy enough to amend later so that we're covered from the day we leave until the day we get back.

I tried another company last time but did not like their packet of info and lack of a wallet card I could print to have on my person. Luckily I've never had to file a claim but every time I have phoned Allianz they have been very prompt and friendly.

For travelling in the US I do not buy extra insurance.

I usually don't buy insurance now I'm wondering if I should? Do most people buy insurance?

 

 

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We always do. However, it's about how you can accept the loss if something occurs, and afford the cost of medical if out of country. Insurance is strictly a personal decision. Insurance is bought hoping you never have to use it, but will give extreme piece of mind if you do.

Nope, not for vacations.

If I bought insurance for every vacation I take, I would be broke, and wouldn't be able to take anymore vacations.

I am a rebel, not buying trip insurance.

But I am sure you can get hundreds of folks who bot it who thought it paid off.

Just go ahead, have a claim, see what hoops you get put through to use it. All the exclusions written up by their clever attorneys, to invalidate claims.

I don't buy the extended warranties at the stores either, for my new toaster, T.V., etc. That's another rip off.

To each their own, make your own decision.

:eek:

Obviously, the choice to purchase insurance vs. assuming the risk to pay for any costs/losses is a personal one.

(I'm not going to argue about that *except* to remind that although the travel costs are capped - including accounting for extra costs of return fare if purchased at the last moment, etc. - MEDICAL costs are certainly not at all capped if one doesn't already have full coverage, including medevac, from one's own health insurance. Medicare itself does *not* include international care. Okay... that point is made.)

Now... about the "hoops" one must go through... IF one insures through a reputable company AND one reads ALL of the terms, then this need not be a problem.

We've had two large claims with Travel Insured (including the very first time we took out travel insurance, and that claim will pay for many insurance policies in the future!).

We only needed to submit the completed claim form, a form or letter from the treating physician, and documentation of the costs being claimed.

All of that is quite reasonable for an insurer to require, so they know the claim is valid (not bogus or inflated, etc.).

Both times, a rep assisted us with what we needed.

(And in one case, Steve, of http://www.TripInsuranceStore.com was the person who told us that what we thought was not a covered event/cost *was*, and he checked about exactly which part of the policy terms would indeed cover everything. We had assumed it wouldn't be covered, and weren't pleased, but we sent Steve an email to ask "just in case". SO glad we didn't just assume the wrong thing, needless to say.)

Both times, within less than 2 weeks of submitting the final docs, we got an email telling us the claim was approved, and we should be receiving a check within 10 business days.

Both times, the check arrived sooner.

We've read about certain other companies that don't, er, um, pay quite as "efficiently", or keep saying they can't find the paperwork, or such.

That's another reason we purchase the coverage through

http://www.TripInsuranceStore.com

They "vet" the insurers they use.

We also always make certain that we get coverage that does not exclude pre-existing conditions, so there isn't ever any need to argue about that, either.

If one doesn't want to purchase insurance, fine.

But don't make the decision assuming (or stating/implying) that valid claims won't get "paid off".

That is simply not accurate, not from the reputable insurers, anyway.

(By the way, we don't purchase those "extended warranties" either. ;) We agree with your position on that one!)

Nope, not for vacations.

If I bought insurance for every vacation I take, I would be broke, and wouldn't be able to take anymore vacations.

I am a rebel, not buying trip insurance.

But I am sure you can get hundreds of folks who bot it who thought it paid off.

Just go ahead, have a claim, see what hoops you get put through to use it. All the exclusions written up by their clever attorneys, to invalidate claims.

I don't buy the extended warranties at the stores either, for my new toaster, T.V., etc. That's another rip off.

To each their own, make your own decision.

:eek:

Agree... well stated! We consider ourselves to be "self-insured"!

I think the OP's question was if we buy the insurance through the cruise line or independently. For a couple of reasons I buy it independently.

1. Independent covers more, including insolvency of the cruise line.
   
2. I can specify much higher medical / evacuation / repatriation levels.
   
3. I'm always suspicious that the decision on paying will be best for the cruise line, not for me, the customer, if I buy through the cruise line.
   

My main concern is not the risk of losing the few thousand dollars for the cruise cost, but the potential devastating cost of medical care at sea or in a foreign country. I find setting those items very high on an insurance policy isn't very expensive and often still less than the cruise line's plan.

For us it depends on the trip. For the lower cost / lower risk trips, we go without. Our first cruise we got the insurance just in case. This last trip, we got it for two reasons...1) I don't trust my boss as far as I can throw him, and 2) my wife needed a visa for Europe which required it.

I want more medical and evacuation coverage than is offered by cruise line insurance so I use outside insurance TravelGuard.

Ditto! We had to cancel earlier this year and TravelGuard was good about refunding all out of pocket expenses, though they weren't as quick as they usually are since they were inundated with a lot of claims due to zica virus and various disasters. Once our TA contacted his contact at TG they were very quick in issuing the refund without additional information.

We buy the insurance. It's good to have to cover anything unforeseen, just hope that you never have to use it.

Here is a link to the Travel Insurance section of CC:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=635

 

We always purchase our travel insurance from

 

http://www.TripInsuranceStore.com

 

CALL them, don't just read the online summaries, as the fine print really matters.

 

Steve (owner) is the greatest resource. They sell a variety of policies from several vetted insurers.

 

He also helps with claims (if needed).

 

We've had two large claims with Travel Insured policies purchase through his company, and both were paid with no nonsense.

That is what it is all about, after all.

 

(He also will suggest if he thinks someone does *not* need an upgrade, etc. Hard to beat!)

Thanks for this advice. I just bought a policy from him.

Definitely buy it! Example: Five years ago we were going on a cruise. When our son/daughter-in-law arrived at the airport, right before their flight to the cruise port, he received word that his business partner was killed a few hours before from a snowmobile accident. He turned around and went back home to help with his partner's family/his business. His travel insurance covered his cancellation on everything and was reimbursed. You just never know!

I have never bought trip insurance. Don't plan to start either.

We did not buy insurance when we were younger just because we didn't worry about things happening. As we have matured and been made aware of all the possible things that can happen, especially the medical costs when out of the country , we now buy trip insurance. We have used Insuremytrip and the tripinsurancestore.