Travel insurance

[grapau27]

As we prepare for further lockdown restrictions tonight this message came from a Newcastle contact.

Apologies for the language.

[Aulanis]

I appear to have fallen into a catch 22 situation got over most of the hurdles

Found a cruise we like. 

 cost nothing - all FCCs

Remembered insurance

Found an insurer that did cruises

Found an insurer that does over 70s - annual policy or single 

31 days or more  as additional

Will cover  existing - At a Price!

Only to find it was all a total waste of time and effort as .gov

indicates "The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office advises against cruise ship travel at this time. "

 

The policy I had found  was therefore invalidated.   and whilst I think it

may have said for over 70s  it would apply to all !  ( I think the over 70 bit was

on a March release of the .Gov guidance.

Bit silly really as in the dummy application you have to give your age and

say it is for a cruise so if it will be invalid due to .GOV  why are they selling it?

Also begs the question why are  cruise lines  even selling cruises to UK

people against.gov advice.  

 

So has anyone found an insurance that is valid despite .Gov guidance.

Perhaps cruise lines will have to follow MSC  and issue a per cruise

policy -  Princess do it BUT only for US & Can.  

 

 

[kalos]

40 minutes ago, Aulanis said:

So has anyone found an insurance that is valid despite .Gov guidance.

Perhaps cruise lines will have to follow MSC  and issue a per cruise

policy -  Princess do it BUT only for US & Can.  

 

 

Just my opinion but not only have you got your catch 22 but when it comes 

to UK insurance who work off UK law you have hit a brick wall.

When trying to buy Insurance you are asked ...

The assumption that you or anyone on the policy is

a permanent resident of, and is travelling from and returning to, the United Kingdom.

registered with a Medical Practitioner in the United Kingdom.

unaware of any reason why the trip would be cancelled or cut short.

As you are fully aware you are going against known guidance, they will not sell it to you .

I suspect that is why Princess would sell to the US and Canada but not the UK.

Good luck in finding one that will cover you though , everything has it's price they say .

 

 

[wowzz]

1 hour ago, Aulanis said:

So has anyone found an insurance that is valid despite .Gov guidance.

Not really relevant in your case, but Battkeaxe do insurance for travel against FCO advice, but only if you are under 60, and only for two weeks.

I can't imagine any insurance company offering long term cover against FCO at present.

And cruise lines are no different to other holiday companies in selling future vacations. The assumption is that the government advice will have changed by the time of the holiday. 

[terrierjohn]

9 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Not really relevant in your case, but Battkeaxe do insurance for travel against FCO advice, but only if you are under 60, and only for two weeks.

I can't imagine any insurance company offering long term cover against FCO at present.

And cruise lines are no different to other holiday companies in selling future vacations. The assumption is that the government advice will have changed by the time of the holiday. 

As I commented earlier, my broker agrees that the wording of this clause is rather pointless, because when the govt advice is lifted from a ban on cruising, all insurers will be quite keen to recover lost business and will be jumping through hoops to offer cover.

[Aulanis]

38 minutes ago, wowzz said:

The assumption is that the government advice will have changed by the time of the holiday. 

 

Well that is what we all hope but if it doesnt  we will be left with

a cruise we cant go on as we have no insurance.

P&O says "We continue to work in partnership with public health agencies at the highest level as well as Department for Transport, EU Healthy Gateways and Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), the industry governing body, and have recently announced our new health protocols. 

So  how is cruising any different to  travelling on a train & staying in a hotel?        

Not that we can do that at the moment. 🙂

Are the cruise lines trying to get the .gov to  change given that

they have now upgraded  onboard health and safety  working with

"public health agencies at the highest level as well as Department for Transport"

Edited October 21, 2020 by Aulanis

[wowzz]

24 minutes ago, Aulanis said:

So  how is cruising any different to  travelling on a train & staying in a hotel?      

I assume your question is rhetorical.

There are hundreds of people booking cruises currently, taking the view that all be will well by the time the cruise takes place. If the cruise is cancelled, you get a refund or FCC. Only you can decide if making such a booking is sensible.  

Your comment about insurance is irrelevant.  No cruise from UK ports will take place whilst the current FOC advice is in place, so not having insurance is irrelevant. 

[Dermotsgirl]

34 minutes ago, wowzz said:

I assume your question is rhetorical.

There are hundreds of people booking cruises currently, taking the view that all be will well by the time the cruise takes place. If the cruise is cancelled, you get a refund or FCC. Only you can decide if making such a booking is sensible.  

Your comment about insurance is irrelevant.  No cruise from UK ports will take place whilst the current FOC advice is in place, so not having insurance is irrelevant. 

With the announcement of today’s new infections, I think it’s safe to say that the FCO advice is not going to be lifted any time soon 

[Eddie99]

... and, very sadly, cruising cannot return in anything like its previous iteration for the foreseeable future 😢 

[Aulanis]

33 minutes ago, wowzz said:

No cruise from UK ports will take place whilst the current FOC advice is in place, so not having insurance is irrelevant. 

That sounds good to me,    Probably wasnt  too sensible making a booking but  it

beats not doing anything and if it doesnt go we might get it back, if the cruiseline is

still in business.  Next august is a long time off.

[terrierjohn]

2 hours ago, Aulanis said:

 

Well that is what we all hope but if it doesnt  we will be left with

a cruise we cant go on as we have no insurance.

P&O says "We continue to work in partnership with public health agencies at the highest level as well as Department for Transport, EU Healthy Gateways and Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), the industry governing body, and have recently announced our new health protocols. 

So  how is cruising any different to  travelling on a train & staying in a hotel?        

Not that we can do that at the moment. 🙂

Are the cruise lines trying to get the .gov to  change given that

they have now upgraded  onboard health and safety  working with

"public health agencies at the highest level as well as Department for Transport"

I suppose the answer will be not to pay any balance until the govt advice has been lifted and a cruise start has been announced, and if P&O want to try and retain as many bookings as possible they will need to reduce the final balance period.

[ann141]

4 hours ago, Aulanis said:

That sounds good to me,    Probably wasnt  too sensible making a booking but  it

beats not doing anything and if it doesnt go we might get it back, if the cruiseline is

still in business.  Next august is a long time off.

I notice that the cruise you are booked on is to Greenland.We are interested in that cruise but will probably wait until next year before deciding whether to book, though I'm sure the prices will shoot up once FCO advice changes

[wowzz]

5 hours ago, Dermotsgirl said:

With the announcement of today’s new infections, I think it’s safe to say that the FCO advice is not going to be lifted any time soon 

The FCO advice is related to infection rates abroad. Nothing at all to do with infection rates in the UK. 

[terrierjohn]

11 minutes ago, wowzz said:

The FCO advice is related to infection rates abroad. Nothing at all to do with infection rates in the UK. 

I would have thought the advice not to cruise was because of the concern that someone might take the infection on board from the UK.  Although I also think the unfounded petri dish slur might have had something to do with it as well, and before everyone leaps on me can I just say, could that same slur not apply to Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield etc, as well?

[wowzz]

5 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

I would have thought the advice not to cruise was because of the concern that someone might take the infection on board from the UK.  Although I also think the unfounded petri dish slur might have had something to do with it as well, and before everyone leaps on me can I just say, could that same slur not apply to Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield etc, as well?

The FCO advice is given purely on the infection rate per 100,000 in foreign countries. 

Nothing whatsoever to do with the UK,  as might be inferred from the F in the title "Foreign". 

 

[Dermotsgirl]

21 minutes ago, wowzz said:

The FCO advice is related to infection rates abroad. Nothing at all to do with infection rates in the UK. 

The virus is currently surging in the U.K.

 

They aren’t  going to allow people from all over the U.K. to form a closed community at sea while the infection rates are at their current level, protocols or not. We have already learned how the virus can spread in communities where people live closely together, like in care homes and university halls of residence 

 

I believe the advice relates to the type of environment 

[Dermotsgirl]

6 minutes ago, wowzz said:

The FCO advice is given purely on the infection rate per 100,000 in foreign countries. 

Nothing whatsoever to do with the UK,  as might be inferred from the F in the title "Foreign". 

 

I’ve looked at the advice. It’s blanket advice for all cruise ship travel, not just to named countries with a high infection rate and is based on medical advice from PHE. Which tells me that it at least relates to England 

 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/cruise-ship-travel

[wowzz]

5 minutes ago, Dermotsgirl said:

The virus is currently surging in the U.K.

 

They aren’t  going to allow people from all over the U.K. to form a closed community at sea while the infection rates are at their current level, protocols or not. We have already learned how the virus can spread in communities where people live closely together, like in care homes and university halls of residence 

 

I believe the advice relates to the type of environment 

I apologise,  as I may have got this wrong, and you are probably right.

The government has advised against cruising.

The FCO has warned against visiting certain (indeed most) countries. 

So the situation at the monent is clear - no one goes anywhere. 

But, if in due course, the government says cruising is OK, but the FCO says you can't go to France, Spain, Italy etc, what happens then? 

Cruising is still out of the question.

[wowzz]

10 minutes ago, Dermotsgirl said:

I’ve looked at the advice. It’s blanket advice for all cruise ship travel, not just to named countries with a high infection rate and is based on medical advice from PHE. Which tells me that it at least relates to England 

 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/cruise-ship-travel

Agreed - sorry. 

[Dermotsgirl]

10 hours ago, wowzz said:

I apologise,  as I may have got this wrong, and you are probably right.

The government has advised against cruising.

The FCO has warned against visiting certain (indeed most) countries. 

So the situation at the monent is clear - no one goes anywhere. 

But, if in due course, the government says cruising is OK, but the FCO says you can't go to France, Spain, Italy etc, what happens then? 

Cruising is still out of the question.

It’s just one of the huge problems surrounding cruises.

 

they can plan all the itineraries that they like, but could be subject to change at a moments notice

[davecttr]

I see that Seadream One picked up 19 passengers at Portsmouth before heading to the Caribbean. Nobody allowed off the ship and I wonder how the passengers insurance worked? Maybe they were filthy rich and self insured.

[Aulanis]

14 hours ago, ann141 said:

I notice that the cruise you are booked on is to Greenland.We are interested in that cruise but will probably wait until next year before deciding whether to book, though I'm sure the prices will shoot up once FCO advice changes

Hi -yes we looked last year, not sure why but we couldnt decide on

the cruises on offer, didnt really want to do one going TA nor one

fly NY cruise Greenland and back to NY . I am sure there must have been others but with some noting that  when they got there it was too rough for the tenders. we went to OZ instead. We only managed 8 days of the 26  before we were cancelled. We took  our refund half cash half FCC  and this cruise was all FCC.    Figured  Norway Iceland  might get cruising back first and were happy to go again, then spotted this which used up almost all our FCCs . I would have liked visit to the Faroes  on the way instead of 3 Iceland ports that we have seen already.   

After insurance my next concern is getting off the ship. It will be a pity to go all that way and not get off but I am disinclined to pay $100 each for a 1.5hr chaperoned walk  round a village at 0730 to 0930 am. will just wait and see on that ,though guess all places (25!!) will soon get filled. 

 There is a roll call the americans seem pretty Gung Ho about it all - organising M&G slot Pull  etc etc - and booking it as part of a B2B or even B2B2B of course they have the  cancel at the drop of a hat  system  to fall back on  if it looks iffy -still dont know why we dont (its one of my soapbox subjects along with price drops.)

 

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Aulanis

[ann141]

2 hours ago, Aulanis said:

Hi -yes we looked last year, not sure why but we couldnt decide on

the cruises on offer, didnt really want to do one going TA nor one

fly NY cruise Greenland and back to NY . I am sure there must have been others but with some noting that  when they got there it was too rough for the tenders. we went to OZ instead. We only managed 8 days of the 26  before we were cancelled. We took  our refund half cash half FCC  and this cruise was all FCC.    Figured  Norway Iceland  might get cruising back first and were happy to go again, then spotted this which used up almost all our FCCs . I would have liked visit to the Faroes  on the way instead of 3 Iceland ports that we have seen already.   

After insurance my next concern is getting off the ship. It will be a pity to go all that way and not get off but I am disinclined to pay $100 each for a 1.5hr chaperoned walk  round a village at 0730 to 0930 am. will just wait and see on that ,though guess all places (25!!) will soon get filled. 

 There is a roll call the americans seem pretty Gung Ho about it all - organising M&G slot Pull  etc etc - and booking it as part of a B2B or even B2B2B of course they have the  cancel at the drop of a hat  system  to fall back on  if it looks iffy -still dont know why we dont (its one of my soapbox subjects along with price drops.)

 

 

There are 3 Princess cruises that we are interested in booking and the prices seem reasonable at the moment.Just have to hope they stay that way! I am hoping that when cruising properly resumes, that cruise lines will either offer some free excursions or reduced prices (as I think MSC have done) if we have to book an excursion in order to get off the ship.

[terrierjohn]

15 hours ago, wowzz said:

Agreed - sorry. 

Hmmm where is my apology?😥

[wowzz]

25 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

Hmmm where is my apology?😥

Sorry John.