No way out of this one is there.....extended family

[Petoonya]

My son and wife asked that we join them on a cruise that we aren't wild about in the first place....not the cruise line or the itinerary. We're going because it's a big anniversary for them...and they asked us to.

My son's wife's parents are also booked. All are in separate reservations and separate insurance policies. The wife's father recently had a stroke and don't know if that will preclude his going. My son and wife say they'll go regardless. But I'm guessing not so much if the father should pass away in the next 3 months before the cruise. (That sounds callous but it's within the realm of strong possibilities).

 

If the cruise goes bust because of the dad's death, and son and DIL drop out, we're holding the bag aren't we? Any chance that under  trip cancellation my son and wife and their parents would be considered traveling companions? Same itinerary, same cruise?

 

 

Edited January 4, 2020 by Petoonya

[Jersey42]

30 minutes ago, Petoonya said:

My son and wife asked that we join them on a cruise that we aren't wild about in the first place....not the cruise line or the itinerary. We're going because it's a big anniversary for them...and they asked us to.

My son's wife's parents are also booked. All are in separate reservations and separate insurance policies. The wife's father recently had a stroke and don't know if that will preclude his going. My son and wife say they'll go regardless. But I'm guessing not so much if the father should pass away in the next 3 months before the cruise. (That sounds callous but it's within the realm of strong possibilities).

 

If the cruise goes bust because of the dad's death, and son and DIL drop out, we're holding the bag aren't we? Any chance that under  trip cancellation my son and wife and their parents would be considered traveling companions? Same itinerary, same cruise?

I'm sorry for your situation.  Hopefully everything works out.

 

As far as the insurance question goes, you should probably read the policy and specifically look at the definitions for "Family Member" and "Traveling Companion". Most likely your daughter-in-law's father is not considered a family member to you, but he would be to your son and his wife.  "Traveling Companion" typically refers to people on the same "travel arrangements". If all three couples have separate reservations, are you out of luck? What if all of  reservations are linked together by the cruise line, will this help?  

 

Ideally, you should talk to whoever sold you the policy and see if they can help, or offer advice.  If that is not possible, you could talk directly with the insurance company and ask some hypothetical questions about the policy.. 

 

Another thing to be careful of is pre-existing conditions.  If the policy did not have a waiver of pre-existing conditions, check each policy's pre-existing conditions language to see if the stroke could be due to a pre-existing condition.  Hopefully, this is a non issue, but if it is, then it may effect all six of you.  Good luck, and let us know what you find out.

[Petoonya]

38 minutes ago, Jersey42 said:

As far as the insurance question goes, you should probably read the policy and specifically look at the definitions for "Family Member" and "Traveling Companion". Most likely your daughter-in-law's father is not considered a family member to you, but he would be to your son and his wife.  "Traveling Companion" typically refers to people on the same "travel arrangements". If all three couples have separate reservations, are you out of luck? What if all of  reservations are linked together by the cruise line, will this help?  

 

Ideally, you should talk to whoever sold you the policy and see if they can help, or offer advice.  If that is not possible, you could talk directly with the insurance company and ask some hypothetical questions about the policy..

 

No, no and no! We are really screwed as I thought. Have checked into it all as you suggested. I don't know how we could have protected ourselves as we always purchase travel insurance. But in this instance we could not have known what we didn't know. Other than I had a bad feeling about the whole thing. Arrangements made independently.

Spoiler alert.

The parents of the DIL are very wealthy Nepalese, hold green cards and get all their medical care gratis. As much of a bleeding heart liberal as I am, I'm resentful. And only more so if we get left holding the bag. Keeping fingers crossed that any changes will only be because we caused them.

 

Thanks very much for your helpful knowledge. And sorry to explode.

Edited January 4, 2020 by Petoonya

[Bo1953]

16 hours ago, Petoonya said:

 

No, no and no! We are really screwed as I thought. Have checked into it all as you suggested. I don't know how we could have protected ourselves as we always purchase travel insurance. But in this instance we could not have known what we didn't know. Other than I had a bad feeling about the whole thing. Arrangements made independently.

Spoiler alert.

The parents of the DIL are very wealthy Nepalese, hold green cards and get all their medical care gratis. As much of a bleeding heart liberal as I am, I'm resentful. And only more so if we get left holding the bag. Keeping fingers crossed that any changes will only be because we caused them.

 

Thanks very much for your helpful knowledge. And sorry to explode.

????

 

Good luck and I trust that all will turn out for the best for all anticipating on traveling together or not.

 

bon voyage

[Petoonya]

Thanks for your thoughts Bo. I have a good feeling the dad will be well and everything else too.

Best wishes to you!

PS. Have a nice long Oceania Tahiti cruise booked right before this one (that we have insurance for!) to look forward to too 🙂

[fasmustang]

What if you have a minor car crash the day you are leaving? Enough to go to the ER with neck/back pain? Or if you wake up having flu symptoms - they won't let you on the ship if you feel pukey or have been running a fever.🤮