Travel Insurance tripled Expert advise needed

[kruisey]

Probably due to age and a new diagnosed medical condition(Close to my heart) my Travel Insurance has gone through the roof.Also I have to be clear from any medical attention for 180 (6months) before the cruise.

Experts please?

[LARGIN]

Have you looked into Princess insurance? Age does not matter.

[kruisey]

Have you looked into Princess insurance? Age does not matter.

 

I have that on this cruise for next year but was told they don't pay for the Doctor bills and hospital stays only E.M.transport from the ship???

[LARGIN]

Think you are mistaken. You need to read the policy. I think $20,000 for medical expenses..

[cruiseron36]

Princess travelcare will pay (up to a certain amount) only after your medicare (if you have it) and supplemental coverage or personal insurance coverage. I have used it in the past.

[Pam in CA]

I have that on this cruise for next year but was told they don't pay for the Doctor bills and hospital stays only E.M.transport from the ship???

Absolutely not true. The Princess insurance is secondary insurance in that you need to submit bills to your primary insurance first; you send the results of that (confirmation of non-payment or partial payment) and Berkely Care will pay fairly quickly. When my BIL got sick on the Coral Princess last year, his onboard medical bill was $8,000 for 24 hours of care. His primary insurance paid $6,000, Berkley Care paid $2,000. My sister refused to pay the bill while still onboard the ship. Princess sent a bill a couple of weeks later and that was paid for by the various insurances. She never paid it directly out of pocket.

[janina]

Absolutely not true. The Princess insurance is secondary insurance in that you need to submit bills to your primary insurance first; you send the results of that (confirmation of non-payment or partial payment) and Berkely Care will pay fairly quickly. When my BIL got sick on the Coral Princess last year, his onboard medical bill was $8,000 for 24 hours of care. His primary insurance paid $6,000, Berkley Care paid $2,000. My sister refused to pay the bill while still onboard the ship. Princess sent a bill a couple of weeks later and that was paid for by the various insurances. She never paid it directly out of pocket.

Absolutely correct, it will go through your primary insurance first. Than Princess insurance will kick in. Also try Travel Guard Insurance.

[Coral]

Princess has a very tricky pre-existing clause. Be very careful with it. http://www.princess.com/learn/faq_answer/pre_cruise/prepare.jsp

 

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Q: If I have a heart condition and am on continuing medication, will I be covered under the pre-existing conditions exclusion if my heart condition flares up during my vacation?

A: Yes! Your trip cancellation protection and medical coverage are subject to a pre-existing condition exclusion that applies if an injury, sickness or other condition affecting you, a traveling companion or an immediate family member booked to travel with you first manifests itself or changes within the 60-day period before protection begins. So, if you have no change in your health (even if you are on continuous unchanged medication) in the 60 days prior to purchasing Princess Vacation Protection, pre-existing conditions are not excluded.

 

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Basically, if you have a change in medical condition 60 days before you buy (pay for, not add the insurance) the insurance, you may not be covered for the condition. A change could be a simple change in doses in medication or an additional medication to treat the condition.

 

If you have pre-existing conditions, I think Princess's insurance is the worse insurance to count on.

[kruisey]

Travel Guard dont cover folks once they reach 75:rolleyes:

My doctor didnot talk to me as if it was a big thing Sinus Bradycardia but my prime Insurance knocked me down to the lowest level ,highest price and lots of conditions which makes me wonder even if I paid the high premium that I would be covered.Anyway I am going back to my doctor tomorrow to ask him to give me more answers.

Thank you everyone for your replies they are all appreciated....Kruisey:)

[can786]

My mother and I found Travelguard to be great with a pre-existing condition, though they were not necessarily the cheapest. I spoke to a Travel Guard rep to confirm that they would cover pre-existing conditions since my mother was undergoing cancer treatments. She told me that as long as a doctor would certify that my mom was medically able to travel on the day we booked the trip she would be covered. It didn't matter if her treatment had been changed. My mom passed away in December and we had a cruise booked with non-refundable air and they paid the claim in a very timely fashion.

 

And to say that they don't cover those folks over 75 is untrue - my mom was 80 when she passed away.

[Toto2Kansas]

I just went to the travelguard website, put in a made up cruise date, and told them I was 78 years old. No problem at all getting coverage. :confused:

[Coral]

The OP is in Canada. Their requirements may be different - not sure.

[Liz54]

You are so resourceful Toto. No wonder you always have the info peolpe need!

[kruisey]

Told me age was too great at 75

[Toto2Kansas]

The OP is in Canada. Their requirements may be different - not sure.

 

That could be very possible. ;)

[kruisey]

Travel Guard Canada do insure persons over 75 I must have written down over 60days in error on the web because for persons 75 and over they will only cover you for 60 days.

I spoke with a representative on the phone and we went through as though I was taking a trip(Mine booked is to far in advance) and if I don't include their Trip Cancellation it brings it down to $550 Canadian which is much cheaper than my usual Royal Bank one nearly $900. One still has to be clear of increased symptoms

for 6 months otherwise policy is voided. What a change a year makes when I was only paying around $380.

Thank you all for the name of this Insurance Company..:)

[Pia1913]

I just went to the travelguard website, put in a made up cruise date, and told them I was 78 years old. No problem at all getting coverage. :confused:

 

Something to look forward to. :D

[cruiseron36]

Not sure why this was moved since we were discussing Princess insurance, however. I forgot that kruisey is Canadian and things might be different there regarding ones primary, secondary and supplemental insurances but the BerkelyCare, which is the Princess Insurance normally will pay whatever your primary, secondary and supplemental insurances do not pay and there are no age limitations as there are on many other forms of travel insurance.

 

One thing to remember though is that they will do nothing until you file a claim and get an EOB from your primary, secondary and supplemental insurances. This is from my personal experience on two claims within the last four years.

 

I guess we need to hear from some Canadians who have had any experience in this area.

[patseacruiser]

CSA Luxe Pro will waive pre-existing conditions and you do not have to buy at time of deposit and does insure Canadians but it will most likely be more expensive waiting past the deposit period. If you have to make a claim you most likely will need a doctor to say you were medically able to travel the day you purchased and paid for the insurance.

[cruiseco]

Told me age was too great at 75

 

Travel Guard Canada and Travel Guard US offer completely different plans with completely different coverages.

 

If you've been going to insuremytrip.com once you input Canada as your residence it will only bring up the Travel Guard Canada plans. As mentioned previously, check directly with Travel Guard or just about any of the other US-based insurers. None of them increase the cost if you need pre-ex coverage. If you meet the conditions for the pre-ex waiver (buy in a certain timeframe, insure your total trip cost, be able to travel on the purchase date -- it varies by plan) you're good to go with no additional charges.

 

Travelex, CSA, TravelSafe, Access America, wil all do this for you.

[kruisey]

For added information.

My trip booked with princess is in April 2012 for 38 days including 3 day pre cruise. So with this latest little jolly:eek: of news from my doctor I was wondering how my insurance will change.What a shock at the increase and then if one reads 'The Royal Bank of Canada' conditions with anything to do with heart it seems to me they take your money and have so many clauses that you wonder if they will pay up.:confused:

The lady I spoke with at Travel Guard last night certainly gave me more hope.

Have never had to claim for anything so far from any Insurance Company so i don't really know the ropes ...All I have ever done is pay the premiums each time I have travelled.

Therefore I really appreciate any input from you all........Kruisey:)

[LiftLockCouple]

Kruisey: Because you are Canadian, the American plans will not adequately cover you. A 20K medical policy from Princess could leave you holding a very big bill. My advice to you is Call CARP and talk to their travel insurance folks. As soon as you mention the pre-ex condition you will be forwarded to their Underwriters who will quote a policy unique to you. A second Option is to go to PrimeLink Underwriters insurance http://www.primelinkinsurance.ca/underwriting.htm. A third option is the insurance available through CITI Bank. It is actually Travel Underwiters from Richmond BC but you cannot buy directly from TU. A fourth option is www.insuremytrip.ca , the only policy you will likely be interested in is the Travel Underwiters policy. Having said all of that, your age is against you. The stability periods required for your age is indeed longer than younger folks. The Canadian Bank travel inurance is great if you are 30 and healthy but their pre-ex clauses end up excluding many of us over 45 and then it gets worse after 55 or 60. The American plans with the pre-ex waiver are great for emergency evac but their medical coverages are way to low for us Canucks. There is a great emerg evac option as well, Medjetassist http://www.medjetassist.com/ will get you home from anywhere but will not look after a hospital stay. Good luck.

[kruisey]

Kruisey: Because you are Canadian, the American plans will not adequately cover you. A 20K medical policy from Princess could leave you holding a very big bill. My advice to you is Call CARP and talk to their travel insurance folks. As soon as you mention the pre-ex condition you will be forwarded to their Underwriters who will quote a policy unique to you. A second Option is to go to PrimeLink Underwriters insurance http://www.primelinkinsurance.ca/underwriting.htm. A third option is the insurance available through CITI Bank. It is actually Travel Underwiters from Richmond BC but you cannot buy directly from TU. A fourth option is www.insuremytrip.ca , the only policy you will likely be interested in is the Travel Underwiters policy. Having said all of that, your age is against you. The stability periods required for your age is indeed longer than younger folks. The Canadian Bank travel inurance is great if you are 30 and healthy but their pre-ex clauses end up excluding many of us over 45 and then it gets worse after 55 or 60. The American plans with the pre-ex waiver are great for emergency evac but their medical coverages are way to low for us Canucks. There is a great emerg evac option as well, Medjetassist http://www.medjetassist.com/ will get you home from anywhere but will not look after a hospital stay. Good luck.

 

I will contact CARP.....Kruisey:)

[LiftLockCouple]

Kruisey: I would love to know how you make out with this. Most of the dialogue on these boards about travel insurance is specific to the American market but very little for the Canadians. It seems that most Canadians think they have to deal with a bank for their travel insurance needs. I had a very good discussion on the issue with a CARP advisor at a travel trade show in Toronto a few months ago. Until that discussion I had no idea that CARP is also connected with the underwiters directly, I think it is PrimeLink which I believe is a trade name for Co-operators insurance. Hopefully my suggestion was the right one for you.

A co-worker when asking about a recently diagnosed hypertension condition, was told by a TD bank insurance rep that he could not get insurance at all for the condition because it was to new to be considered " stable ". The advice is flat wrong but seems to be what people are being told. In this case he obtained the coverage he needed through CITI bank Canada. Hopefully you were successful as well.