Senior with medical conditions...insurance question?

[soohoo]

Our extended family of 10 will be cruising in 14 months and I always purchase insurance. I am familiar with the site [url]www.insuremytrip.com[/url] but not familiar with the "fine print" and how well a company may pay.

Is there a company that you have found not easy to work with or one that was wonderful?

I want to make sure I purchase a good policy for my grandmother.

Thank you all for your help!

Stacy

[curiousx]

I purchased emergency medical for an 80+ year-old with Global a few years ago...we had an emergency (broken kneecap) and the response and service were terrific.

Lately, I have purchased trip cancellation and emergency medical for an 85+ year old from Travel Insurance Select. They are pretty relaxed...for example, requesting only 2 months stable meds instead of the usual six.

[BJS]

Princess bases their fee on the cost of the cruise which many seniors find considerably cheaper. A medical condition has to be stable for 60 days before the premium is paid which can be any time from deposit to final payment.

[CruiseFever]

When comparing insurance companies I have found the Princess Travel Care Gold to be the most approrpiate for our particular situation and the easiest for me to understand.

That's saying a lot for somebody who never ever used to buy insurance and condsidered it a complete waste of money before a being involved with a complete, logical and thoughtful discussion here on Cruise Critic which changed my mind.

[jerwick]

I used to use Princess, especially since I get upgraded at no charge. However, previous conditions are not covered, so if I have to cancel due to an illness etc that had manifested itself in previous 60 days, all I could do is get a 90% credit.

These previous conditions also apply to the other covered relatives at home. If you cancel due to say a brothers illness that had been being treated during that 60 day period, too bad. Only option is the 90% credit.

I now use travel guard because if purchased within 7 or 10 days of first deposit, you get a wavier for previous conditions.

Never used to buy insurance. Got burnt once. Now I always do.

[imsulin]

To cover pre-existing medical conditions, most trip insurance companies require you to purchase their policy within 10-15 days of making your DEPOSIT. Does your grandmother have a pre-existing medical condition? (Not trying to be nosey...)

[soohoo]

She takes multiple medications for common things such as blood pressure, thyriod, cholesterol and has had a previous heart attack. You just never know when you book a cruise 14 months out. I want to make sure i have my basis covered. I should have started looking for this already. Our deposit was made 8 days ago. I plan to purchase something this week for her. The rest of the family has no medical conditions, but I will look at a policy for us too!

Thanks for all your help.
Stacy

[rbslos18]

Be sure to consider the following:

Is this primary or secondary coverage? Secondary coverage pays after your homeowners, medical ins... thus a biggger headache

For families with young children, some plans do not charge for children.

Be careful to know the preexisting illness clause.

Princess' plan is not primary insurance and does not have a waiver period of preexisting illnesses.

Check the AM Best rating of the companies. Not all of the companies selling this product are in great financial shape.

I suaually use Travel Guard's Cruise Guard policy or Travelex Plus. Note insuremytrip.com is a great site but does not include Cruise Guard--Travel Guard's policy which is designed specifically for cruises!

[GloriaF]

I learned from these boards that Access America and Travel Guard were the favorites of those that posted. Both have pre-existing condition clauses and must be purchased within 15 days of deposit. (BTW, for onboard bookings, the date is counted from the day you make an actual reservation with a TA). The people that recommended them say they pay claims easily and quickly.

Princess Gold does not have a pre-existing condition clause, but you can cancel for any reason and receive a 90% credit toward a future cruise.

I failed to buy insurance within the 15 days because we had to wait to be sure we both had time off, then change the date of the cruise, work it out with being off again --- I just let the time slip by without realizing it. So, Princess Gold is next best for us. We have 85+ parents, and even if we have to cancel this cruise, we know we will be sailing with Princess again & will use the credit.

[Coral]

Princess does have a pre-existing condition clause but it is very complicated and I would be afraid to use it. It is something like if someone's condition or medication had not changed within 60 days of paying (not adding) Princess insurance - it would be covered. From what I understand it - if my mom has one medicine changed or increased within 60 days before I buy the insurance - she wouldn't be covered.

If I had no pre-existing conditions in my family - I would be buying Princess insurance. But since I do - I stick with Access America.

Whatever you buy - just read the fine print. It is so confusing.

[soohoo]

Again, thanks to all that responded and the advice. Question...if I cancel the cruise prior to payment, do I then cancel the insurance and get a partial refund or is that money gone? This plays no part in making the decision to purchase, just curious on how it all works.

rbslos18 - how do you purchase or look into the details of the cruiseguard?

Thanks so much!

[rbslos18]

It is available at the Travel Guard Website. It seems to be similar to the Princess coverage so I will stick with either TravelEx or TravelGuard- Cruise Tour and Travel. Note that the Cruise Guard is slightly more restrictive than the Cruise, Tour and Travel in that "Reimbursements paid in cash or 100% cruise credit, depending on reason for cancellation."

[soohoo]

Thank you for the info. I went ahead with Travelex as the coverage amounts were greater and just pricing was just a little cheaper. I pray for a wonderful family cruise and that we won't need to use this policy.
Stacy

[curiousx]

One thing I just learned is that some insurance covers the cost of the single supplement that your travelling companion will have to pay if you cancel for medical reasons and he/she decides to cruise without you. This is worth checking out.