Total Believer in Travel Insurance

[Sammigar]

After our last cruise, we were sitting in the Fort Lauderdale airport, waiting and waiting and waiting for our plane to take off in Atlanta - they already boarded the plane when power to the airport was lost. We watched as flights leaving after ours were canceled - ours, still delayed, ever later. Eventually though, they came to the realization that nothing was flying into or out of Atlanta for the remainder of the day and cancelled our flight too.

 

By this time so many flights had been cancelled that the earliest we could get a flight back to Atlanta was 2 days later. We had to, on the fly, basically put together a 2 day stay in Ft. Lauderdale. I called my travel agent and she explained we were experiencing trip interruption and that our insurance covered that. She recommended I call the travel insurance company before attempting to do anything else. Best advice ever!

 

They were very helpful immediately advising us and sent the reimbursement form so that it was waiting for me when we got home. Easily filled out, mailed it in and got a reimbursement check for the full amount of the unexpected expense of those two days - in time to pay the bill for the credit card we put it all on.

 

It's so freaky that the Atlanta airport came to a full ground stop for the rest of that day and prevented us from getting home for two days, but I am so glad we had travel insurance to cover that unexpected expense! I will always purchase travel insurance. The peace of mind is totally worth it to me.

[warmwinds]

Yes, besides having to cancel for both covered and non-covered reasons, we experienced something similar. Our connection into Seattle was late, so we missed the last flight of the night home to our town. The airline said it was weather related (the delay of our incoming flight) and we were on our own. Of course we had to book a last minute hotel, and then the light bulb went off - I wonder if the cruise insurance would pay for that hotel? Yes they did!

[phoenix_dream]

Insurance is all about considering the risk you want to bear. Now that I am on Medicare, I buy insurance that will cover my medical overseas as well as transportation back home should that be necessary (God forbid I ever need it) as Medicare does not provide coverage overseas.

 

That said, I am very glad we did not purchase travel insurance before. We have cruised more than 40 times in the past 25+ years. Had we bought decent travel insurance each time we would have spent WAY more than what a couple days in a hotel or a changed airfare would have cost us, particularly since most major credit cards provide some amount of travel insurance coverage. Even if we had to miss a cruise at the last minute we likely would have broken even over the years, or lost little.

 

I am not against insurance - in fact I worked in the insurance industry for 30 years before retiring. I just wanted to present a counter perspective. It is a decision that everyone needs to evaluate based on their own risk factor, and their comfort in assuming that risk. There is no right or wrong answer.

[crash3x]

My cousin booked an island trip to Dominican, they enjoyed their first afternoon and then Hurricane Irma hit and they were evacuated the next day. Sunwing offered them $75 for their trouble and he has been arguing with them since then ..He is out $3600. He had no insurance.

 

I always get insurance ..I would rather be out a couple hundred dollars then out thousands.....Flights, hotels, cruise ...and what if I needed medical care ..........very , very expensive. ALWAYS get insurance

[volk904]

We booked a Southern Cruise out of San Juan on Jan 13 in early December

The only way we could do it was same day travel in Jan. We purchased travel insurance because of the weather risk. Sure enough days before we leave snowstorm on the way. Very worried about the flight out 6am but the travel insurance gave me peace of mind.

 

Funny how it worked. Our airport never closed and our flight to changed planes in Orlando was early. I thought we were home free. Then I started getting texts from SWA saying delay, delay and another delay. Over 2 hours of delays and I was really worried. Our plane to San Juan got stuck in Albany Ny by snow for 2 hours. We did make the ship with 90 minutes to spare but had I not had the insurance it would have been a full panic moment.

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[neverbeenhere]

I would not tell everyone to buy travel insurance. Travel insurance is a big money maker in the insurance industry and everyone needs to measure their own risk tolerance and ability to pay. We carry an emergency evacuation policy, though we can afford to write a check for $ 200,000, we measured our own risk and decided the cost for an annual policy was worth it to us. But, covering the cost of the hotel, cruise, and air flights for additional dollars is not worth it to us. To each his/her own.

 

This belongs on the travel insurance board, not Celebrity cruises board.

[AnOnymously]

In the Uk it is almost taken for granted that one will take out travel insurance. When booking one is often asked for the policy number. I have only ever claimed twice, once was for a holiday some years ago when my father died, the other more recently when a pet of ours was seriously ill and expected to die, though it did not. The money we received for the last claim more than covered the cost of insurance for the rest of our lives.

 

Experience with others has also shown that insurance companies will also often help when one is in distress and either arrange or point one in the right direction when a loved one has needed serious hospital treatment and the partner accommodation.

 

Does depend on who insures you, check it out carefully, the insurance I have is one of the very few that covers for cancellation in relation to a pet. Also read up on what happens for say cabin confinement. I assumed our policy covered all that, but looks as though that is missing. Don't assume they are all the same, do the research, but I would always say don't travel without cover, especially if you are travelling to the US.

[Keith1010]

Thanks for sharing your experience.

 

Keith

[chemmo]

Thanks for relating your experience.

 

To me.....Travel insurance = peace of mind, priceless!

[waterbug123]

I am very glad we did not purchase travel insurance before. We have cruised more than 40 times in the past 25+ years. Had we bought decent travel insurance each time we would have spent WAY more than what a couple days in a hotel or a changed airfare would have cost us, particularly since most major credit cards provide some amount of travel insurance coverage.

 

I have similar feelings. In the last 10 years we've cruised nearly 30 times, and taken at least as many land-based trips. We've never yet had a situation in which we would have made a claim on travel insurance, but if we'd purchased it each time, we would have spent thousands on it. We have an emergency evacuation policy but that's it.

 

 

ALWAYS get insurance

 

It's not that simple. Some have a higher risk tolerance than others. Some can easily manage the cost of a surprise couple of nights in a hotel if a flight is canceled. Some have some insurance benefits through various credit cards. Some even have elite level frequent flyer benefits that allow much more liberal changes and cancellations to airline tickets than are typically allowed. Everyone has to look at their own situation and consider their own level of risk tolerance to decide if insurance is worth it for them, be it for a given trip or for every trip.

[sippican]

My only problem with people who elect not to purchase travel insurance is the bellyaching they do on this forum if something of an emergency nature DOES happen during their travels.

[SEA DOGY]

I have similar feelings. In the last 10 years we've cruised nearly 30 times, and taken at least as many land-based trips. We've never yet had a situation in which we would have made a claim on travel insurance, but if we'd purchased it each time, we would have spent thousands on it. We have an emergency evacuation policy but that's it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's not that simple. Some have a higher risk tolerance than others. Some can easily manage the cost of a surprise couple of nights in a hotel if a flight is canceled. Some have some insurance benefits through various credit cards. Some even have elite level frequent flyer benefits that allow much more liberal changes and cancellations to airline tickets than are typically allowed. Everyone has to look at their own situation and consider their own level of risk tolerance to decide if insurance is worth it for them, be it for a given trip or for every trip.

 

 

 

In my opinion

Don’t leave home without it

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[shippmates]

My biggest concern about traveling without insurance is covering the medical evacuation if needed. We can cover the cruise fare, hotel, flights if needed but can not afford the cost of the evacuation. If you are on medicare, I would think twice with traveling without travel insurance. Happy Travels

[Cruise Raider]

My cousin booked an island trip to Dominican, they enjoyed their first afternoon and then Hurricane Irma hit and they were evacuated the next day. Sunwing offered them $75 for their trouble and he has been arguing with them since then ..He is out $3600. He had no insurance.

 

I always get insurance ..I would rather be out a couple hundred dollars then out thousands.....Flights, hotels, cruise ...and what if I needed medical care ..........very , very expensive. ALWAYS get insurance

 

I always get it as well ... it covers so much more than a couple of nights hotel and cancellation costs. My sister was just out on the San Juan Islands once when the vehicle she was in got in a bad accident. Airlifting her over to Seattle's trauma center was outrageous ... more than she'd ever pay for insurance policies for a hundred cruises. And ... that was just the airlift across the Puget Sound. I always think about this when I plunk a couple hundred dollars down for travel insurance ... well, that and the one time I had to use it to cancel a cruise when hospitalized just days before the sail date.

[George C]

Never had insurance for about first 50 cruises, now we always get it for cruises and vacations. In general, luckily we have never had a issue where we needed it

[cheeseheads4ever]

I guess weve never traveled without insurance. I guess does anyone have tips as to a good travel insurance company for cruises. We buy it through Celebrity maybe not the best insurance but any help would be appreciated as far as recommendations. As far as affording insurance. If i can afford to cruise I can afford insurance.

[baz48]

Yes, besides having to cancel for both covered and non-covered reasons, we experienced something similar. Our connection into Seattle was late, so we missed the last flight of the night home to our town. The airline said it was weather related (the delay of our incoming flight) and we were on our own. Of course we had to book a last minute hotel, and then the light bulb went off - I wonder if the cruise insurance would pay for that hotel? Yes they did!

 

This happened to us in Seattle also. Did you buy your flights through the cruise line? We didn't so I'm thinking they won't pay for our hotel.

[Banjo]

My biggest concern about traveling without insurance is covering the medical evacuation if needed. We can cover the cruise fare, hotel, flights if needed but can not afford the cost of the evacuation. If you are on medicare, I would think twice with traveling without travel insurance. Happy Travels

 

I also get the travel insurance that just covers the medical expenses. My Medicare & supplement covers no out-of-country expenses. If you have to evacuated by special transport, your looking at major expenses. It is not that expensive. If you include trip cancellation insurance, depending on the cost, that could be significant.

[GerScot]

Have a friend who had to be evacuated from ship and underwent heart surgery in France. Spent 6 weeks in hospital as too ill to travel. Total cost was £40000. Insurance covered the lot. I take cruise insurance which covers things like missed ports,excursions cabin confinement nad missed departures. Costs a few £ extra but well worth it for peace of mind. For most in UK its a no brainer!

[dodger1964]

Never had insurance for about first 50 cruises, now we always get it for cruises and vacations. In general, luckily we have never had a issue where we needed it

What would you guess it would have cost to have insurance for those 50 cruises?

[waterbug123]

My only problem with people who elect not to purchase travel insurance is the bellyaching they do on this forum if something of an emergency nature DOES happen during their travels.

 

Not sure if you're replying specifically to me or not, but while we don't typically buy travel insurance, I've never bellyached on this forum and wouldn't. We go into every trip eyes wide open. We accept the risks, and are prepared to deal with them on our own, without whining about how our flight was cancelled and we had to pay for a hotel, or whatever. I realize this may not be true of others. ;)

 

 

My biggest concern about traveling without insurance is covering the medical evacuation if needed. We can cover the cruise fare, hotel, flights if needed but can not afford the cost of the evacuation. If you are on medicare, I would think twice with traveling without travel insurance. Happy Travels

 

One can get a medical evacuation policy without getting an all-inclusive trip insurance policy.

[George C]

What would you guess it would have cost to have insurance for those 50 cruises?

 

Have no idea, started cruising in the 70’s

[Saturngrl]

I always buy travel insurance. On my very first cruise in 2013, I tripped and fractured my left foot. What a blessing to have that insurance in my back pocket!

[Hlitner]

Whenever this issue comes up here on CC we like to present a different point of view to show that it is not a "one size fits all" issue. DW and I cruise 70-100 days a year and have not purchased any kind of trip insurance except for 1 cruise (out of over 100 cruises). The one time we made the purchase was when my Mother in Law was experiencing some serious health issues (we did cancel that cruise).

 

So why would somebody, such as me, be so stupid as to not get Trip Insurance? Because, over a period of about forty years as cruisers (and travelers) we are ahead of the game by well over $100,000 which is all the money we have saved by NOT paying for Trip Insurance. In industry terms we choose to "self-insure" cancellation and interruption. We do purchase an ANNUAL Travel Medical Policy (GeoBlue) which gives us $250,000 or medical coverage (and $500,000 of evacuation coverage). This single policy costs us about $450 a year (total cost for a couple) and covers the first 70 days of every trip we take throughout an entire year.

 

However, last year we did obtain a Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa....which provided up to $10,000 (per card) of cancellation and interruption protection. The card was actually free for the first year...and then only $90 a year. Their more expensive Sapphire Reserve card also provided this coverage (to the extent that you charge the trip on the card).

 

We have a friend that got stranded (ironically it was in Atlanta) on the way home from a 10 day cruise. That night in Atlanta cost them about $100 for the motel and a meal. Consider that if they had bought trip interruption insurance the policy would have covered that $100. But that insurance policy would have cost them far more then $100! Just saying :).

 

My point is that some folks are more "risk adverse" then others. We are willing to accept a reasonable risk in order to save money. Gambling with no health insurance (or limited health insurance) is not ever a good idea since your personal liability for a major health issue can be virtually unlimited. But gambling on losing the cost of a trip is a reasonable risk (for some folks) when one considers the cost of insurance.

 

And finally my pet peeve. Many Trip Insurance Policies ONLY insure $10,000 - $20,000 or medical! Having worked most of life in the medical insurance industry I have always thought that $100,000 of Medical coverage should be considered a minimum for most folks. That cancellation policy might well cover a few thousand dollars of lots trip cost...but what happens if you have a major medical emergency that gets you a $75.000 hospital bill?

 

Hank

[fshagan]

My point is that some folks are more "risk adverse" then others. We are willing to accept a reasonable risk in order to save money. Gambling with no health insurance (or limited health insurance) is not ever a good idea since your personal liability for a major health issue can be virtually unlimited. But gambling on losing the cost of a trip is a reasonable risk (for some folks) when one considers the cost of insurance.

 

Very good point. I always look at "medical only" and insurance that includes trip cancellation and usually find adding the trip cancellation / interruption insurance is a low cost add-on. Sometimes as low as $20 more to include what I consider an extra. So I usually go for it. When we retire, and have more travel time, I'm considering the annual medical plans for traveling and will take my chances with trip cancellations.

 

 

Usually, full on trip insurance with sufficient medical coverage will run 5 to 8% of the cost of the trip cost. But that's a rough guideline. Still, you can use it to estimate your savings by not buying insurance for past trips.

 

 

 

And finally my pet peeve. Many Trip Insurance Policies ONLY insure $10,000 - $20,000 or medical! Having worked most of life in the medical insurance industry I have always thought that $100,000 of Medical coverage should be considered a minimum for most folks. That cancellation policy might well cover a few thousand dollars of lots trip cost...but what happens if you have a major medical emergency that gets you a $75.000 hospital bill?

 

We always go much, much higher for our medical coverage. And we make sure that there's $50,000 to $100,000 medical evacuation (depending on itinerary), and somewhere in the neighborhood of $50,000 repatriation of remains.