Cruise Holiday Insurance?

Who do you all use for your holiday insurance when on a cruise?

Are there specific policies for cruising, or do I just buy a normal policy and add all the destinations onto it? Surely I need specific cover incase I need to leave the ship for a medical emergency?

I shall be cruising with my wife and 8yr old son around the Med.

Thanks

Steve.

I suspect we all use a multitude of different companies. But you should check very carefully that you have cover for cruises - some companies do not cover you unless you have it as an add on, some do. Some have different levels of cover - they call them all kinds of things eg bronze, silver , gold or standard & premiere and it may be that the lower levels do not cover cruises.

So shop around and check carefully what is and is not covered.

Unless you are buying an annual policy it is wise to take out the policy when you book or very soon after - and make sure your company know that you have already booked.

Good luck!

As long as it covers the areas you are cruising to and covers the costs of a potential helicopter medical evacuation you should be fine. Make sure you also have an EHIC card as that is often a requirement for insurers.

I use American Express Travel Insurance, originally I did single trip insurance but lately I have gone for their Annual policy. This means if you want to book extra non-cruise and/or P&O weekend short breaks then there is no add-on during the year because you are covered. You need to be covered for the geographical area appropriate for where you are travelling. I have Europe then if I go USA or Caribbean a supplementary upgrade fee needs paying and policy amendment. EHIC useful on shore in Europe and when looking at policies a couple of things spring to mind. Always mention cruising.

1 Excess, can sometimes be increased or completely removed. You need to weigh up chances of a claim occurring and consider how much excess is against likelihood of making a claim.

2 Each person needs a disclosure of pre-existing medical conditions e.g. asthma, diabetic etc. Policies will either include or exclude relevant cover for your condition.

Regards john

Our travel insurance comes free with our bank account and has global cover that includes cruise and ski holidays. ( I think they might draw the line at bungee jumping!!!:D) We have to pay an extra £36 per annum as my partner has type II diabetes.

I think most policies just state Europe as the destination and then you have the cruise add on for a couple of extra quid. At least this is what I did a couple of years ago.

Thanks for the replies.

Most online holiday insurers I've looked at dont seem to have a cruise option, instead they seem to assume I'm on a normal holiday but they give me the option of selecting all the countries I'm travelling to. But they make no mention of cover for being on a cruise where the following problems may occur...

• I may have to be helicoptered off the ship
  
• The ship may deviate to another country (emergency/weather) and I may not be covered in that country.
  
• There may be other specific types of cover I need when being on a cruise ship
  

I shall keep searching:)

I use American Express Travel Insurance, originally I did single trip insurance but lately I have gone for their Annual policy. This means if you want to book extra non-cruise and/or P&O weekend short breaks then there is no add-on during the year because you are covered.

Thanks John. Just had a look at the American Express Cruise Insurance, which looks quite good, and their annual family policy doesn't cost much more than others single trip policies. The only confusing part is that if I increase my excess from £50 to £100 the premium is reduced, but if I increase it further to £200 the premium is increased???

Who do you all use for your holiday insurance when on a cruise?

 

Are there specific policies for cruising, or do I just buy a normal policy and add all the destinations onto it? Surely I need specific cover incase I need to leave the ship for a medical emergency?

 

I shall be cruising with my wife and 8yr old son around the Med.

 

Thanks

 

Steve.

For years now, we have gone with Marks & Spencer Premium Club on an annual policy. They are competitive, but the benefits (gifts, spend vouchers, free coffees etc) cover a considerable value of the premium.

Never any problems. Give them a call.:D

Thanks PORT ROYAL, but I've just checked their website and they are no longer accepting new customers.

Thanks for the replies.

 

Most online holiday insurers I've looked at dont seem to have a cruise option, instead they seem to assume I'm on a normal holiday but they give me the option of selecting all the countries I'm travelling to. But they make no mention of cover for being on a cruise where the following problems may occur...

 

• I may have to be helicoptered off the ship
  
• The ship may deviate to another country (emergency/weather) and I may not be covered in that country.
  
• There may be other specific types of cover I need when being on a cruise ship
  

 

I shall keep searching:)

You are correct! Thats why you need to check with them first. With the greatest respect to some forum members , not everyone bothers to check but just assume they are covered.(There are lots of threads about Travel insurance) Could prove to be a very expensive mistake......!The devil is in the detail and although it may not make specific reference to cruises when trying to find insurance online, it is the policy document you need to read. You can always phone first before you sign up online.

We use LV and have always found their level of cover very good but I am sure there are others..

You need to remember that a lot of insurance companies try to find a reason NOT to pay out!

We use Insure & Go. We buy the annual policy on line and there is the option to have cruise cover which we always take because we take several cruises each year.

I am at this point as well just booked my first cruise and trying to sort out insurance. It seems some companies give more cover than others especially for onboard ship. Things like if you are confined to your cabin £150 day refund and not being able to do excursions you have booked and missed ports of call. General travel insurance cover you for the medical side it seems on most I think but not the extra items not sure how much they might be needed. Booking the insurance is a bad as sorting out p & o pricing structure.

Its a minefield and you have to look into the detail when checking. Some policies classify Europe but exclude some countries actually in Europe others dont and Worldwide can be expensive if not actually visiting worldwide countries. Also be aware that policies on online comparison sites dont always match with the same policies with the same company on their own website so prices differ i.e. Insurandgo for example. At the end of the day there is no company as the best as one size doesnt fit all and what is good for one might be expensive for another. Its just a matter one afternoon making a list of reputable insurance companies and check quotes online alongside compare sites and then if any doubts ring the companies as they are the only ones who can actually give you advice not anyone on here.

Thanks PORT ROYAL, but I've just checked their website and they are no longer accepting new customers.

Strange, but just tried and buy/quote and site let me in, with no "sorry" :rolleyes:

http://bank.marksandspencer.com/insurance/travel-insurance/landing/quote-and-buy/?WT.srch=1

Try this link :)

When we looked at M&S last year they were more expensive than Insure & Go for Annual cover for us, this may be because of OH's medical conditions, and the on-line site did not offer cruise cover.

For years now, we have gone with Marks & Spencer Premium Club on an annual policy. They are competitive, but the benefits (gifts, spend vouchers, free coffees etc) cover a considerable value of the premium.

 

Never any problems. Give them a call.:D

And they won't let you pay extra for any pre-existing conditions not already covered in the exclusions.

And they won't let you pay extra for any pre-existing conditions not already covered in the exclusions.

The OP did not mention a pre-existing medical condition.

Do you have knowledge of the OP's, and family's, confidential medical history?

with over 30 years insurance experience I would not take a policy that needed to add cruising as an optional cover. Once they know which part of the world you are travelling to that should suffice. If a cruise has to be specified what else does.

I hope no-one is confusing the 'cruise' policies with the optional cover offered by some policies, these give extra cover for such things as increased cover for baggage or compensation if you are confined to your cabin.

The OP did not mention a pre-existing medical condition.

 

Do you have knowledge of the OP's, and family's, confidential medical history?

Obviously not! What a pointless question!

Merely a Fyi point for anyone reading who might have! Just thought I was adding a bit of extra information - didn't realise your permission was required. Sorry for trying to be helpful!

I hope no-one is confusing the 'cruise' policies with the optional cover offered by some policies, these give extra cover for such things as increased cover for baggage or compensation if you are confined to your cabin.

I was looking for a policy which included increased cover for confinement to cabin, I thought that might be useful to have is there a reason why you are saying you should not do that

The OP did not mention a pre-existing medical condition.

 

Do you have knowledge of the OP's, and family's, confidential medical history?

I am looking forward to my first P&O cruise very much, but it will be my last if the people on the ship are anything like some of the posters on here :rolleyes:

I'm sure the OP and others welcomed your input Kruzze :).

Just like the post above yours that reads about Pre existing as well.

Same as Josey1953 we also use Insure And Go and they cover our pre existing free of charge .

Also we like the cover for cabin confinement, which I hope we will never need.

Good to see some other options that have been posted as well.:)

I appreciate all the replies, thank you.

I have just purchased American Express' Annual Essential Cruise Holiday Insurance for our family. After I had increased the voluntary excess to £200, and ticked the book stating I hold one of those European health card thingies, it came to £27 which I thought was excellent.

 

You need to remember that a lot of insurance companies try to find a reason NOT to pay out!

On big claims I would say ALL.

David.