Your thoughts on Travel Insurance

[HELENPSL]

We always buy insurance but the type of insurance depends on where we are going. If we cruise to the Caribbean we usually buy the ship's platinum policy. Since we live in Florida we felt it should be enough to get us back to West Palm Beach in an emergency.

 

Our our longer trips (24-30 days) are usually quite far away. For that type of trip the ship's coverage would never work. We have used Global Alert, purchased thru Squaremouth.com, for our trips to the Med, Asia and South America. The coverage we chose is $250,000 for medical and $250,000 for evacuation. We haven't had to use it but hopefully it would be enough.

 

Helen

[Projunior]

About to sail on our 29th cruise on the Eurodam at the end of the month. Never bough cruise insurance, never will. Do the math 29 x ~$200= almost $6,000. That's like 3 cruises for a couple. I'm playing with house money at this point. Life itself is a gamble. As General George Patton said, "Take calculated risks. This is quite different from being rash."

[Takes Notes]

For another minority point of view........

 

I never purchase Travel Insurance. I do about 12-14 trips a year (4-5 of these are cruises), and if the cost of the insurance is about 8% of the trip value, I would have to make a claim once a year to "break even".

 

I know that there is a "peace of mind" factor. Also, a medical emergency abroad can be a huge cost. Having said that, I do use my Chase Sapphire Card for cruise payments because of the coverage they offer. Remember, Insurance Companies thrive by taking in more in premiums than they pay out in claims. If you purchase insurance, you are "betting" that you will use it and the insurance company is "betting" that you won't. And whoever wins.....you lose.

 

My attitude may change as I age and trips become more of a challenge. Of course I am open to change.

[xlxo]

Thoughts....

• You never want to use insurance... but when things go wrong... you'll be glad you did.
  
• ask for the highest deductible, you will see savings as you will be considered high risk. I hate paperwork for trivial stuff.
  
• I always get medical insurance when I'm out of country
  
• you need to research and weigh the inconvenience if there is an interruption in service. I think HAL wanted to charge me something ridiculous on travel insurance for a 1 day cruise between Vancouver and Seattle. I told them the Greyhound ticket was like $20 if I miss the boat.... I'll take my chances.
  

[Mrs. Nic]

A long story short.....I was sitting on the beach in Punta Cana on the first day of vacation. A large steel sign blew down and hit me. It took two men to pull it off of me. Was transported through the Dominican by ambulance to get to the "hospital". I had 4 fractured vertebrae and 4 broken ribs. They wanted to do the lumbar fusion in Punta Cana, in a hospital where they didn't even wear gloves to put an IV line in. The medical evac service required $15,000.00 cash or credit card to transport me safely to the US for medical care, or I wasn't going anywhere. Didn't matter if I sued or whose fault it was...they wanted cash to move me.

 

Could I have avoided this accident? No. Has it changed my life? Irrevocably. But at least I had the travel insurance to cover the medical, and the evacuation costs. You will never know how great our hospitals are in this country until you are faced with a situation like that. We were reimbursed for the cost of the trip but that amount paled in comparison to the medical bills we would have had to pay to get the care I needed at the time that I needed it.

 

My travel insurance was less than $300.00. Never EVER travel without it. EVER.

[PSR]

ARRGGHHH!!! Darned Apple, did it again. Guess i need to be more careful and proofread my comments. What I meant--lost money on a house in Kauai--not a hose. And obviously meant we did NOT have insurance on this trip. Ouch!

 

Just a tip...you can edit a post if you can see "edit" on the bottom of that post. There is a time limit, something like 10 or 15 minutes.

[Keith1010]

Insurance comes down to how much risk you want to take but think about it as two distinct coverages.

 

First one is to protect your investment should you have to cancel your cruise prior to boarding the ship but close enough to the sailing date that you lose all or a good portion of your payment. For some people they are willing to take that risk.

 

Then there is the issue of getting sick on the cruise but having something that is very expensive. Things can happen no matter what your age. Even accidents. Some of these can cost tens of thousands of dollars.

 

If you want protection for both situations then you could book the cruise lines policy or find one on your own. We look at both but over they years have found that we can find a more comprehensive plan from a third party insurer and one that costs less then the cruise line. Should you wish to just have health insurance and not one that protect the value of the cruise then you want to book that on your own. Many companies let you just purchase the medical part of the policy either requiring no insurance for the actual trip or a modest amount such as $50.00.

 

Keith

[Arrowinc]

My rather perverse theory (proven wrong by those who above who have actually needed the coverage), is that the existence of the insurance is a good assurance that you won't need it!

[grest]

with dh's pre-existing conditions, we cannot afford to go without. Money well spent in our case

[summersigh]

with dh's pre-existing conditions, we cannot afford to go without. Money well spent in our case

Us too :D ... also the "Cancel for any reason" or total reimbursement for medical cancellation is normally part of any policies we get that has pre-existing condition with high ceilings for medical and evacuation.

[Hlitner]

This is an interesting thread with some great information. But, there are some folks who are not big fans of so-called "Travel Insurance" and I would fall into that category :). Having spent most of my adult life working in the government health care insurance industry I have a somewhat different point of view. Let me explain.

 

I believe that everyone should do their utmost to have adequate health insurance. Many Trip or Travel insurance policies do not offer adequate health insurance...especially for those who many not have any (or limited) international coverage through their other health insurance. A majority of the various Medicare Supplemental Plans provide no coverage outside the USA or its Territories. Some policies do provide some degree of world-wide emergency coverage.....but many on Medicare have no clue as to their coverage.

 

DW and I travel (internationally) 6-7 months a year. For us, trip insurance would be ridiculously expensive. We do purchase an ANNUAL Travel Medical policy that provides us with $250,000 of medical coverage and $500,000 of medical evacuation coverage. Compare this with many trip policies (especially those sold by cruise lines) that only provide $10 - $20,000 of medical coverage. IMHO, any medical coverage less than $100,000 is inadequate! $10,000 of coverage (which is what many cruise line's provide in their policies) might be barely enough to handle a single day in a hospital!

 

We do not purchase trip cancellation insurance. One of our credit cards does cover up to $10,000 (or $20,000 if both parties have and use a card) of cancellation insurance. This is not "cancel for any reason" but insurance that covers real reasons other then a whim :). While purchasing cancellation insurance is a wise move for many...it is not something that is best for all. Consider that DW and I have saved far in excess of $100,000 by NOT having purchased trip insurance over the past thirty or so years. In other words, we simply choose to "Self Insure" our cancellation risk, and over insure our health risk. A major healthcare incident can bankrupt all but the wealthiest families! But having the bear the burden of cancellation will leave folks no worse off then if they had taken their trip. The loss would be having missed the trip (i.e. you were going to spend that money anyway).

 

Folks toss around the insurance issue without talking about the cost of obtaining insurance. My point is that each person/family needs to carefully assess their own situation, needs, and "risk tolerance" and do what is best for yourselves. Sales folks, travel agents and cruise agents and cruise lines certainly want to sell you various trip policies....because it is very profitable! For many these policies are a good thing....but for many others they are NOT.

 

Hank

[Hlitner]

This is an interesting thread with some great information. But, there are some folks who are not big fans of so-called "Travel Insurance" and I would fall into that category :). Having spent most of my adult life working in the government health care insurance industry I have a somewhat different point of view. Let me explain.

 

I believe that everyone should do their utmost to have adequate health insurance. Many Trip or Travel insurance policies do not offer adequate health insurance...especially for those who may not have any (or limited) international coverage through their other health insurance. A majority of the various Medicare Supplemental Plans provide no coverage outside the USA or its Territories. Some policies do provide some degree of world-wide emergency coverage.....but many on Medicare have no clue as to their coverage. Other policies (not Medicare) may or may not provide coverage...all under their own terms.

 

DW and I travel (internationally) 6-7 months a year. For us, trip insurance would be ridiculously expensive. We do purchase an ANNUAL Travel Medical policy that provides us with $250,000 of medical coverage and $500,000 of medical evacuation coverage. This annual policy covers the first 70 days of every trip (throughout the policy year) and costs us less than $500 per year (total cost for a couple). Compare this with many trip policies (especially those sold by cruise lines) that only provide $10 - $20,000 of medical coverage. IMHO, any medical coverage less than $100,000 is inadequate! $10,000 of coverage (which is what many cruise line's provide in their policies) might be barely enough to handle a single day in a hospital!

 

We do not purchase trip cancellation insurance. One of our credit cards does cover up to $10,000 (or $20,000 if both parties have and use a card) of cancellation insurance. This is not "cancel for any reason" but insurance that covers real reasons other then a whim :). While purchasing cancellation insurance is a wise move for many...it is not something that is best for all. Consider that DW and I have saved far in excess of $100,000 by NOT having purchased trip insurance over the past thirty or so years. In other words, we simply choose to "Self Insure" our cancellation risk, and over insure our health risk. A major healthcare incident can bankrupt all but the wealthiest families! But having the bear the burden of cancellation will leave folks no worse off then if they had taken their trip. The loss would be having missed the trip (i.e. you were going to spend that money anyway).

 

Folks toss around the insurance issue without talking about the cost of obtaining insurance. My point is that each person/family needs to carefully assess their own situation, needs, and "risk tolerance" and do what is best for yourselves. Sales folks, travel agents and cruise agents and cruise lines certainly want to sell you various trip policies....because it is very profitable! For many these policies are a good thing....but for many others they are NOT.

 

Hank

[donaldsc]

Just wondering if Travel Insurance is really a necessity. Do you buy it thru HAL or thru something Travel Guard or Insuremytrip? We are doing a short Caribbean Cruise and thought it may be worthwhile having in case of an accident or injury.

 

No. It is not necessary - unless something happens and then it is too late.

 

Same thing as asking do I really need home owners insurance or fire insurance. You don't until you are broken into or your home burns down.

 

DON

[mustgo]

The problem gets bigger as you age. DH is turning 82. We can still buy the GeoBlue annual policy for a couple of years but at age 70, the max medical benefit drops to $100,000. That is one might need the $250000 mentioned by Hlitner. Have not yet found a good solution for the old guys

[Hlitner]

The problem gets bigger as you age. DH is turning 82. We can still buy the GeoBlue annual policy for a couple of years but at age 70, the max medical benefit drops to $100,000. That is one might need the $250000 mentioned by Hlitner. Have not yet found a good solution for the old guys

 

You are right and it is a big concern :(. The "old guys/gals" must often rely on the policies sold through the cruise lines because its all they can reasonably buy. And GeoBlue becomes useless at 85! We have also been looking for a good solution (to help others) but have yet to find anything worth mentioning.

 

Hank

[Irish Eyes Are Sailing]

Just wondering if Travel Insurance is really a necessity. Do you buy it thru HAL or thru something Travel Guard or Insuremytrip? We are doing a short Caribbean Cruise and thought it may be worthwhile having in case of an accident or injury.

 

My Advice: Don't go on a cruise/tour or other costly trip without it. Spend the money for the insurance. It may be the best money you ever spent.

[Islabeachbum]

Hlitner...you stated...DW and I travel (internationally) 6-7 months a year. For us, trip insurance would be ridiculously expensive. We do purchase an ANNUAL Travel Medical policy that provides us with $250,000 of medical coverage and $500,000 of medical evacuation coverage

 

 

 

 

I am wondering where you get this annual policy. Thanks...

[shipgeeks]

I am one who chooses not to buy insurance except when we do a transatlantic.

When we started cruising, our TA said it was required. So we got it.

After a few cruises, I realized this was not the case, and I calculated that I was spending money that could go towards a cruise.

We are seniors, so have had our share of medical issues each year. On the other hand, we are conservative in putting ourselves in harm's way -- no scooter or car rentals, no extreme excursions.

We have no elderly parents to be concerned about while away.

We've never cancelled a cruise after booking it.

We've never regretted not having insurance.

Each person has to make their choice based on personal peace of mind. Just putting in my opinion, since you asked.

[freestyling]

Hlitner...you stated...DW and I travel (internationally) 6-7 months a year. For us, trip insurance would be ridiculously expensive. We do purchase an ANNUAL Travel Medical policy that provides us with $250,000 of medical coverage and $500,000 of medical evacuation coverage

 

 

 

 

I am wondering where you get this annual policy. Thanks...

Not Hlitner but we also purchase multi trip annual medical insurance. These plans are offered by a number of insure my trip companies. ;) And are quite reasonable. It is driven by age and the state of insurers. Believe we paid 425.00 this year for 3/1/18- 2/28/19 for the coverage mentioned by Hlitner. It’s does go from 1st Trip then 12 months out.

[iancal]

We recommend that people spend as much time buying medical travel insurance/understanding the policy as they do buying an automobile.

 

In our first year of retirement we did an extended sis/seven month trip. We bought insurance however it was a very interesting process. Three things stick out from that process.

 

The first was the price of the policy had no bearing on how comprehensive the insurance was or what the upper limit was.

 

The second was that the easier it was to buy it, the more expensive and less comprehensive it was. By that I mean it was easy to purchase from our bank, auto club on line etc. but not one of the policies were a scratch on what we could, and did, obtain from a carrier. Also, buying from a carrier enabled us to get a 30 percent premium discount simply by going with a 2 or 3K deductable. We would have increased the deductable had further discounts made it worthwhile. We want coverage for the big items. We are happy to absorb the risk for the smaller dollar claims.

 

The third was the huge variation in the questions and in the number of questions asked by the insurer. From our perspective more questions translate into more risk, ie more potential 'outs' for the insurer.

[mustgo]

You never know when you might need to cancel a cruise. We always thought we would need it for ourselves. However, the one time we cancelled a cruise, it was because our son had a critical injury 3 days before our cruise. No way were we going to cruise across the Atlantic with him critical. Fortunately, all turned out well. The money paid by the insurance company that one time has paid for almost all of our trip insurance premiums. Now we use a credit card for the actual trip but do need the medical and evacuation for ourselves.

[Herfnerd]

Haven't read each post but we always buy Travel Insurance - for every trip we take, not just cruises

[KirkNC]

No. It is not necessary - unless something happens and then it is too late.

 

Same thing as asking do I really need home owners insurance or fire insurance. You don't until you are broken into or your home burns down.

 

DON

 

Hard to compare the risk of loss between a $10,000 cruise and. $500,000 house.

[KirkNC]

Hlitner...you stated...DW and I travel (internationally) 6-7 months a year. For us, trip insurance would be ridiculously expensive. We do purchase an ANNUAL Travel Medical policy that provides us with $250,000 of medical coverage and $500,000 of medical evacuation coverage

 

 

 

 

I am wondering where you get this annual policy. Thanks...

 

I am not Hank but we do the same thing. We get ours through Geoblue. They have several different varieties to choose from depending on your needs.

[txskier]

I always thought that the insurance I was buying I would need for travel delay, lost baggage and that sort of thing. Little did I realize that I would have a heart attack while docked in Bonaire back on May 31, 2016.

Remember that most of the medical facilities throughout the Caribbean are in 3rd world countries. I would not consider Bonaire 3rd world but they do not have a trauma center to handle a heart attack, along with Aruba and Curacao.

I am glad I had travel insurance, my wife was on the phone with the 3rd party administrator along with the cruiseline while I was in the emergency room.

There are a lot of interesting details to this ordeal.....bottom line, get your insurance.

A jet ambulance was secured from the Dominican Republic. We were jetting off at 2am June 1 for Fort Lauderdale and made it to Broward Medical at 530am where a heart cath lab team was waiting on me. Two stints later and cardio rehab afterwords and I feel great.