Rccl travel insurance

[rudeney]

Looking back at our 2007 cruise, we paid $218 for RCCL's insurance on a $4200 booking for two people. This year, we paid $487 for insurance on a $6900 booking for three people through Global Alert Travel including "cancel for any reason" which was an extra $160. Based on percentages, RCCL's was about 5.2% of travel cost, Global Alert was 4.75% without CFAR, or 7% with CFAR. Note that we are now it in higher-risk age bracket compared to 8 years ago.

 

Based on these numbers, I'd say the cruise line's insurance is way overpriced. And that's even assuming their percentage has not increased over time.

[mistshar]

That's great-- what company?

 

It is Allianz.

 

You are VERY wrong and are being mislead.

 

I am not being mislead because I am able to read the policies and I know what it says. I have seen several people on here say that they have insurance which is the same way. Just because you haven't seen one does not mean it does not exist.

 

This is a direct quote from the insurance policy. "Coverage for an Existing Medical Condition is excluded unless: 1. You purchased your plan on or before making your final trip payment;"

[denatravels]

 

 

 

This is a direct quote from the insurance policy. "Coverage for an Existing Medical Condition is excluded unless: 1. You purchased your plan on or before making your final trip payment;"

 

 

They had ONE exception-- interesting that ONE thing would be listed with a number.

[geogran]

My apology to OP berylde:

I did not mean to high jack your original post with my questions; I should have started a separate post.

Returning back to berylde's original question, please....

 

(But thanks to rudeney for your detailed comparison, and to cruising sister and denatravels for your helpful responses).

[berylde]

GEOGRAN:

 

No apologizes needed. Have found all the Q & A's very informative----------------

[njmomof2]

They had ONE exception-- interesting that ONE thing would be listed with a number.

 

Not sure what you are implying with this comment, but the poster is correct.

 

Policies are going to exclude pre existing conditions UNLESS you meet their guidelines. With Allianz, the policy must be purchased on or before final payment and the traveler must be "fit to travel" on the day the insurance is purchased. I don't see why that makes you suspicious.

 

I buy it as a traveler and sell it as an agent. It has a much higher medical evacuation coverage than cruise line insurance, which is important when traveling with my mom, who is older.

[mistshar]

They had ONE exception-- interesting that ONE thing would be listed with a number.

 

There were other exceptions but this is the one that applied to the subject that we were referring to.

 

Not sure what you are implying with this comment, but the poster is correct.

 

Policies are going to exclude pre existing conditions UNLESS you meet their guidelines. With Allianz, the policy must be purchased on or before final payment and the traveler must be "fit to travel" on the day the insurance is purchased. I don't see why that makes you suspicious.

 

I buy it as a traveler and sell it as an agent. It has a much higher medical evacuation coverage than cruise line insurance, which is important when traveling with my mom, who is older.

 

Thank you so much for responding. I do not appreciate someone implying that I do not know how to read a policy or understand it. However they probably won't believe you either. They apparently know everything about every policy.

[rudeney]

It is Allianz.

 

 

 

I am not being mislead because I am able to read the policies and I know what it says. I have seen several people on here say that they have insurance which is the same way. Just because you haven't seen one does not mean it does not exist.

 

This is a direct quote from the insurance policy. "Coverage for an Existing Medical Condition is excluded unless: 1. You purchased your plan on or before making your final trip payment;"

 

In researching insurance, I compared about 20 different policies. I found a variations in how they handle pre-existing conditions. It seems the most common/popular verbiage was for a 60-day lookback period and a waiver if insurance is purchased within 15 days of initial payment (i.e. deposit) of the cruise. I did see a few policies that had less restrictive limitations, such as a 30-day waiver from initial payment.

 

I do wonder about this Allianz policy. What is their definition of an "Existing Medical Condition"? Most policies claimed it to be anything you have been treated for within 60 days of buying coverage. For example, my policy's verbiage is:

 

“Pre-Existing Condition” means any injury, sickness or

condition of You, a Traveling Companion, or Your or Your

Traveling Companion’s Family Member booked to travel with

You for which medical advice, diagnosis, care or treatment

was recommended or received within the 60 day period

ending on the Effective Date. Sicknesses or conditions are not

considered pre-existing if the sickness or condition for which

prescribed drugs or medicine is taken remains controlled

without any change in the required prescription.

 

And the waiver is:

 

Pre-Existing Conditions, as defined in the General

Definitions section (except Emergency Evacuation

and Repatriation of Remains) unless: a) the policy is

purchased within 15 days of the initial deposit for Your

Covered Trip; b) the booking for the Covered Trip must

be the first and only booking for this travel period and

destination; and c) You are not disabled from travel at

the time You pay the premium;

[MS52]

My sister had to use her insurance policy purchased from RCL. She was hospitalized. It was not a pre existing condition. Don't know the entire story but she received 75% of was she paid in a future cruise credit. Get you insurance elsewhere.

[TheGinBoy]

Having worked with various insurance firms over the years I would NEVER EVER recommend buying insurance from the same firm that is providing you the goods/services.

 

You cannot rely on a goods/service provider to adequate and fairly advocate against themselves on your behalf.

 

Always use a third party insurer.

Edited September 28, 2015 by TheGinBoy

[Clarea]

My sister had to use her insurance policy purchased from RCL. She was hospitalized. It was not a pre existing condition. Don't know the entire story but she received 75% of was she paid in a future cruise credit. Get you insurance elsewhere.

That sounds like the condition was not a covered condition, because Royal will refund 100% in cash if it's a covered condition. They only do the 75% future cruise credit if the cancel reason is not covered.

[rudeney]

That sounds like the condition was not a covered condition, because Royal will refund 100% in cash if it's a covered condition. They only do the 75% future cruise credit if the cancel reason is not covered.

 

I assume that 75% future cruise credit for cancelations is not "general" RCCL policy, but only available to those who purchased cruise insurance through RCCL? It sounds like a form of the CFAR rider that many insurers offer, except in this case, it's not a cash benefit, but future credit. For people who cruise often on RCCL, that could end up being a better deal than paying for a 3rd party policy with CFAR.

[Clarea]

I assume that 75% future cruise credit for cancelations is not "general" RCCL policy, but only available to those who purchased cruise insurance through RCCL? It sounds like a form of the CFAR rider that many insurers offer, except in this case, it's not a cash benefit, but future credit. For people who cruise often on RCCL, that could end up being a better deal than paying for a 3rd party policy with CFAR.

That's correct, the 75% future cruise credit is Royal's "cancel for any reason" payout.

[jdbmga]

I have read the policy and it definitely covers pre-existing plus my TA says it covers. It has great coverage and it is not very expensive. We are older people (67 & 65) and are glad that we don't have to pay a lot for it.

 

We actually had to use it this past April because my DH got very sick 4 days before we were to leave on our cruise and it covered everything that it was supposed to.

 

What insurance co is the policy through?

[2CatsInFlorida]

Having worked with various insurance firms over the years I would NEVER EVER recommend buying insurance from the same firm that is providing you the goods/services.

 

You cannot rely on a goods/service provider to adequate and fairly advocate against themselves on your behalf.

 

Always use a third party insurer.

 

 

There are economies of scale going through a group insurance purchaser like RCI. They do not underwrite the policy, so there is no reason for them to deny a claim. The only reason not to use Cruise Care is if you need higher limits.

[2CatsInFlorida]

Looking back at our 2007 cruise, we paid $218 for RCCL's insurance on a $4200 booking for two people. This year, we paid $487 for insurance on a $6900 booking for three people through Global Alert Travel including "cancel for any reason" which was an extra $160. Based on percentages, RCCL's was about 5.2% of travel cost, Global Alert was 4.75% without CFAR, or 7% with CFAR. Note that we are now it in higher-risk age bracket compared to 8 years ago.

 

 

 

Based on these numbers, I'd say the cruise line's insurance is way overpriced. And that's even assuming their percentage has not increased over time.

 

 

For our December 2015 cruise, we compared Cruise Care to several other insurers and Cruise Care was far less expensive. This has been true for every cruise we booked. I will say, that Cruise Care policy limits are often less, though completely adequate.

[mistshar]

What insurance co is the policy through?

 

It is Allianz and we get it through our TA.

[chermilo]

Has anyone bought Allianz Annual Travel Plan? Seems like it is a pretty good deal to me.

[denatravels]

Not sure what you are implying with this comment, but the poster is correct.

 

 

 

Policies are going to exclude pre existing conditions UNLESS you meet their guidelines. With Allianz, the policy must be purchased on or before final payment and the traveler must be "fit to travel" on the day the insurance is purchased. I don't see why that makes you suspicious.

 

 

 

I buy it as a traveler and sell it as an agent. It has a much higher medical evacuation coverage than cruise line insurance, which is important when traveling with my mom, who is older.

 

 

I was not implying anything-- I said straight out that I found the verbiage "interesting"

[berylde]

I am the original poster and thanking all for advice

 

When I put a down payment on our cruise, I signed on for RCL travel insurance. I called AON ( RCL travel agency) and found out not covered for pre-existing conditions. Just because I signed up for it (and they are on our booking confirmation), doesn't mean the insurance was paid for. So, I can opt out of that on final payment.($177 for 3)

I called Trip Insurance Store and they quoted a price of $492, which included trip cancellation for pre-existing conditions.

 

So, we are talking it over and make our decision later today---------------

[Clarea]

I am the original poster and thanking all for advice

 

When I put a down payment on our cruise, I signed on for RCL travel insurance. I called AON ( RCL travel agency) and found out not covered for pre-existing conditions. Just because I signed up for it (and they are on our booking confirmation), doesn't mean the insurance was paid for. So, I can opt out of that on final payment.($177 for 3)

I called Trip Insurance Store and they quoted a price of $492, which included trip cancellation for pre-existing conditions.

 

So, we are talking it over and make our decision later today---------------

That's one of my biggest complaints about Royal's insurance. They are not up front about when the insurance is in force. Just because it's on the invoice does not mean it is paid for. Someone could spend thousands of dollars on non-refundable Choice Air flights, and have to cancel for a covered medical reason before final payment, and Royal's insurance won't pay the flight cost because their insurance was not in force. You have to know to specifically call them and request to pay the insurance before it's in force.

Edited September 29, 2015 by clarea

[LuvBNatC]

Having worked with various insurance firms over the years I would NEVER EVER recommend buying insurance from the same firm that is providing you the goods/services.

 

You cannot rely on a goods/service provider to adequate and fairly advocate against themselves on your behalf.

 

Always use a third party insurer.

 

Agree 100%.

[geogran]

That's one of my biggest complaints about Royal's insurance. They are not up front about when the insurance is in force. Just because it's on the invoice does not mean it is paid for. Someone could spend thousands of dollars on non-refundable Choice Air flights, and have to cancel for a covered medical reason before final payment, and Royal's insurance won't pay the flight cost because their insurance was not in force. You have to know to specifically call them and request to pay the insurance before it's in force.

 

I did not know that...really could make a difference.

In a case where the entire cruise charges (cruise, fees, insurance, gratuities), are paid in full at initial purchase (no final payment due), would the insurance go into effect at that time and in force at the time of purchase, or does one always need to request that the insurance be paid at time of purchase?

 

For sure, will research a third party for future cruises, using the many sites posted in these threads.

Thanks for this helpful information.

[Clarea]

I did not know that...really could make a difference.

In a case where the entire cruise charges (cruise, fees, insurance, gratuities), are paid in full at initial purchase (no final payment due), would the insurance go into effect at that time and in force at the time of purchase, or does one always need to request that the insurance be paid at time of purchase?

 

For sure, will research a third party for future cruises, using the many sites posted in these threads.

Thanks for this helpful information.

If the insurance is on the invoice, and you pay in full, then the insurance is in force as of the time you paid in full.

[marci22]

Your pre existing condition look back period only starts once you have paid your policy premium.

 

Some policies agree to waive this look back period if you purchase within a certain period of time from initial deposit. Other policies, like CSA, will allow you to purchase a waiver for pre existing conditions up until 24 hours of final payment, but you are paying extra for this waiver.

 

A lot of people on this thread are explaining things wrong.

 

Read your policy. Do not expect a Royal rep or your TA be correct.