Cruise/Travel insurance and BOS 10/15/05 Med Cruise

[dougp26364]

At this point, some of us are getting the results of our travel insurance from the trip delay/interuption at the end of this cruise. Many of us missed our flights and were cruise only passengers. Those that where air/sea were supposed to be taken care of by RCI and from what I understand, where not out of pocket anything.

 

However, those of us that were cruise only and had travel insurance had to rely on the insurance to cover our out of pocket expenses to get home.

 

What I want to know is, which insurance companies paid and which ones did not pay.

 

To date, I have seen posts that CSA did pay the claim and that TravelEx did not pay the claim. I myself had Travelsafe and they have denied my claim.

 

So anyone who was on this cruise, was a cruise only passenger and had travel insurance, please post who you had you insurance through and if you claim has been processed and either paid or denied.

 

I'm sure those who buy insurance would like to know who the companies you can rely on and who those can't be relied on are.

 

Travle Ex -denied

Travelsafe - denied

CSA - paid

[truffles2]

doug, we once had to file a claim because of a missed cruise and the insurance company denied it. I suggest that you go over your policy very carefully and see if you can file under another clause (i.e. trip interruption, etc). After several denials, and subsequent re-filings, we were finally paid.

[dougp26364]

doug, we once had to file a claim because of a missed cruise and the insurance company denied it. I suggest that you go over your policy very carefully and see if you can file under another clause (i.e. trip interruption, etc). After several denials, and subsequent re-filings, we were finally paid.

 

I received my official denial letter today. This weekend I'll file my appeal along with a complaint letter to our states insurance commissioner. Personally, I don't plan fighting a long fight. I plan on cutting through as much red tape using the resources of the commissioners office.

 

I used to sell insurance and manage a sales staff. I understand that there are rules to how a policy pays out. The travel insurance policies I read are written in such a way that they can be difficult, if not impossible, to understand. I've called and talked with them three times and I'm still confused when I go back and read the policy.

 

Still, what I really want is to hear from people who were on the BOS 10/15 sailing about who was paid and who was denied. This is an excellent opportunity to find out which companies came through and which ones fell flat. There were so many people who missed flights home and all missed their flights under the same circumstances. It allows for a pretty good company to company comparison for this incident instead of many different incidents and circumstances.

 

We had a pretty decent sized M&M list so I know there were several Cruise Critic members on this cruise. I've heard from 2 of them on the RCI forum and on the Roll Call forum. So I'm aware of three companies and what they did.

 

What would be most interesting is to find people with the same company, same policy but different results. To some degree this has already happened. While Travelsafe and CSA are different agencies, both are underwritten by the SAME insurance company. That company is Stonebridge. Without a CSA policy in hand, I can't comment on if there is different language in the policies or not. Perhaps I'll go ahead an purchase CSA for our upcoming Alaska cruise, just to get a look at the wording of that policy. If it's the same as the Travelsafe policy, then one has to wonder about the claims process of Stonebridge. Stonebridge is the underwritting insurance company for CSA, Tavelsafe and Global Alert.

[wrp96]

Doug, what you are going through is just wrong in every way. I hope you can get some satisfaction and I'm sorry that you are having to go through all these hassles.

[dougp26364]

So far I only know of one claim that has been paid. There has got to be more people on these forums who have had a claim paid or denied. It can't just be the three I know of. This should be a great oportunity to see what companies pay and which one don't.

[jerseygirl3]

Our ship was once delayed getting back to Tampa because of fog. Most on the cruise missed their flights. We couldn't get a flight out til the next day and incurred approx. $400 in add'l expenses (airline fee to change flights, hotel, meals, etc.). We had Access America at the time, and they paid with no problem.

[midwestsunshine]

Doug,

Our claim with Travelex was approved (just found out yesterday). I think it was Travelguard that had denied a claim. Now I can officially close that chapter. Despite all the travel difficulties the cruise itself is my favorite to date.

[dougp26364]

Doug,

Our claim with Travelex was approved (just found out yesterday). I think it was Travelguard that had denied a claim. Now I can officially close that chapter. Despite all the travel difficulties the cruise itself is my favorite to date.

 

You're right. I just went back to find the post saying their claim was denied and it was Travelguard. The reason for their denial was the the strike was not a "legal" strike.

 

In my case, they're saying that the interuption had to be caused by "Air carrier delays resulting from inclement weather, mechanical breakdown of the aircraft on which you are scheduled to travel or organized labor strikes that affect public transportation......" Travelsafe is saying that because this wasn't an "air carrier delay", I have no claim.

 

So, to correct my list

 

Travelex - paid

CSA - paid

Travelsafe - denied

Tavelguard - denied

[JaneStarr]

I am trying really hard to comprehend all this info enough to make an informed insurance decision for our 1 July 06 Jewel OTS Baltics trip (with airfare and 3 night London pre-stay all booked through RCI).

 

If I were to choose to insure through RCI, which company do they use? I would not go for RCI insurance if they self-insured. I did not purchase insurance at deposit, so I would need to choose policy that is available at time of final payment. Would prefer pre-existing conditions be included, even though none of us are sick. Reason being that BP meds are likely to be started for DH and our Cholesterol meds are often being adjusted.

 

You'd think I'd be able to figure this out, considering that I was in Individua Health and Disabilty insurance underwriting, research, and marketing (although it *was* almost 20 years ago).

 

2 more questions:

I love my travel agent and wouldn't mind going through her to purchase insurance. Is the price the same as if I buy direct? How much commission is involved,?

 

I appreciate any direction you can give me.

 

Jane

[NancyIL]

I am trying really hard to comprehend all this info enough to make an informed insurance decision for our 1 July 06 Jewel OTS Baltics trip (with airfare and 3 night London pre-stay all booked through RCI).

 

If I were to choose to insure through RCI, which company do they use? I would not go for RCI insurance if they self-insured. I did not purchase insurance at deposit, so I would need to choose policy that is available at time of final payment. Would prefer pre-existing conditions be included, even though none of us are sick. Reason being that BP meds are likely to be started for DH and our Cholesterol meds are often being adjusted.

 

You'd think I'd be able to figure this out, considering that I was in Individua Health and Disabilty insurance underwriting, research, and marketing (although it *was* almost 20 years ago).

 

2 more questions:

I love my travel agent and wouldn't mind going through her to purchase insurance. Is the price the same as if I buy direct? How much commission is involved,?

 

I appreciate any direction you can give me.

 

Jane

 

CSA is the only company I'm aware of (from those that http://www.insuremytrip.com uses) that covers pre-existing conditions if purchased within 24 hours of final payment, rather than x number of days from initial deposit.

 

By the way, I was on the July 2, 2005 Baltic cruise on Jewel! What a wonderful ship and itinerary!

[cruisin granny]

Doug,

I may have a suggestion that hopefully helps you. If you booked with a credit card, call them & explain your suggestion. A few years ago my parents were within days of sailing on a Hawaiin cruise line that went bankrupt. Neither the cruise line nor insurance would refund their money but Master Card refunded every penny. Your story was told on another thread about insurance, & I mentioned this so sorry if you hear the advice again. I sure hope it works.

[dougp26364]

I am trying really hard to comprehend all this info enough to make an informed insurance decision for our 1 July 06 Jewel OTS Baltics trip (with airfare and 3 night London pre-stay all booked through RCI).

 

If I were to choose to insure through RCI, which company do they use? I would not go for RCI insurance if they self-insured. I did not purchase insurance at deposit, so I would need to choose policy that is available at time of final payment. Would prefer pre-existing conditions be included, even though none of us are sick. Reason being that BP meds are likely to be started for DH and our Cholesterol meds are often being adjusted.

 

You'd think I'd be able to figure this out, considering that I was in Individua Health and Disabilty insurance underwriting, research, and marketing (although it *was* almost 20 years ago).

 

2 more questions:

I love my travel agent and wouldn't mind going through her to purchase insurance. Is the price the same as if I buy direct? How much commission is involved,?

 

I appreciate any direction you can give me.

 

Jane

 

As mentioned, CSA is the only company I'm aware of that covers pre-existing condition if purchased before or within 24 hours of final payment. All others will only cover pre-existing conditions only if purchased within a few days of your initial deposit, if they cover them at all.

 

As for understanding these policies, they are confusing. At one point in my life I was an insurance agent and eventually a staff manager. My father was a staff manager and district manager most of his life. So I've been around insurance for a good number of years and can generally work my way through the workings of a policy. But travel insurance requires very special attention since most are named peril policies and those named perils are both specific but vague. It's enough to drive a person nuts trying to figure out which policy is the best for them.

 

I'm not sure about comissions for these policies. I'm sure there are some but, I haven't seen a different price for a policy purchased from an agent or direct from the company.

[dougp26364]

Doug,

I may have a suggestion that hopefully helps you. If you booked with a credit card, call them & explain your suggestion. A few years ago my parents were within days of sailing on a Hawaiin cruise line that went bankrupt. Neither the cruise line nor insurance would refund their money but Master Card refunded every penny. Your story was told on another thread about insurance, & I mentioned this so sorry if you hear the advice again. I sure hope it works.

 

I doubt that there is any protection afforded from my credit card company but I'll check. I had forgotten that some provide a low amount of protection. I believe that ours provides minimal coverage for hotels and lost luggage but not much more. In our case, the loss was the additional cost of the flight and the lost benefit of the return flight portion of our tickets. If we had called Delta prior to our flight leaving, we would have retained some of the value of those tickets. Approx. $600 worth of value. The last time something like this happened it was with America West and I was only given a credit that could be used if I purchased another flight with AW within a one year time frame. AW also deducted a $100 change fee from each ticket. If Delta has the change fee, and I'm sure they do, then the net loss is really only $400.

 

RCI had told us THEY were notifying our airlines. We were repeatedly told not to worry, they were taking care of it and we believed them. Of course we now know that RCI did NOTHING. Because there was no notification, we were considered no-shows and lost the value for the return portion of our ticket.

 

As for the $1,400 to get home, that was cheaper than what Delta would have charged us and we arrived home 2 days earlier than what Delta would have been able to do unless we got lucky by sitting in the airport and trying to fly standby.

 

At this point I'm mostly upset at myself. I purchased the insurance looking mostly at the health care limits and medivac limits, ignoring the more likely cause of a loss such as trip interuption/delay. From now on I'll pay a little closer attention before I purchase a policy. I've read a few of them now and I believe CSA will become my prefered carrier.

[AFT_LOVER]

Tony in Claims is the greatest person to deal with. When he heard about my gangway accident, leaving me laid up for 10 days on Summit, he had me sign claim paperwork he drew up to pay me for my loss. Even my suitcase the CO obviously put a steel rod through since I have 2 4" holes in my $100 hardcase we got on sale.

 

When I cancelled my Summit cruise for May, he moved my insurance over to the new cruise on Jewel in May. They are the best!!!!

[sumguy1]

Is Tony 'Mr Incredible' in real? :)