HAL Cruise Insurance Rip-Off

[lov2sailtoo]

Why would I think it refundable? Having cruised 6 times with RCCl and 3 times with Celebrity, 2 x's with Carnival, I have not had this experience. There are 4 other times I have needed to cancel booked cruises, (my husband and I are both physicians, and our schedules change) well before final or even half payments have been made and in NO CASE has the cruise insurance not been refunded with my deposit. I repeat HAL is really practicing usury practices

 

RCCL is so wonderful, my five year old son had a laceration on his nasal bridge which required a couple of stitches. It was of no fault on RCCL part. They took very good and fast care of him. I expected a bill we never received one. Also their surgical facility was excellent and the physician on call and nursing staff was excellent.

[jtl513]

The point being missed here, is ...

The point you're missing is that you made an assumption based on your past experience without, in fact, understanding that you were buying something different than you have before. Sorry, no sympathy from me.

[hammybee]

I will maintain my position that HAL is completely unreasonable and that other lines do not do this even when the insurance is billed with intial deposit. It certainly creates ill will

 

And other cruise line policies are not going to allow you to cancel for any reason up to 24 hours before sail date. This is an incredible benefit and as such the condition is that the policy is non-refundable, once purchased.

 

I am sorry that you assumed all policies were alike and that Amex chose not to inform you of the difference. This is a potentially expensive lesson and your post has served to educate many. Not all policies are alike in terms of benefits and conditions. The devil is in the details.

[localady]

Very early in my cruising career, my Sis and I booked a cruise onboard a HAL ship for the following year and without really thinking, I indicated I wanted the insurance. Well within 3 weeks of returning home we had to cancel and we also lost out $750 worth of insurance. I then went back and read the documents, discovered that they were well within their rights per their literature, but we'd missed it.

Did I stop cruising with HAL? No, I sure didn't. But I did get online to learn the ins and outs of cruising on HAL as well as other lines. I never pursued transferring the insurance (I was a newbie, I'd never have thought about it:rolleyes: ).

I have learned a great deal from these boards and the members of CC. I now know that I need to really review a trip to decide whether we need insurance and when we need to purchase it. Today I've learned that there is a policy that can be purchased closer to cruise time that actually covers previous conditions!! (Thanks S7S!)

[kdowneymd]

Yes, I hope that all will learn from my mistake and what I do believe is not a fair practice from HAL. I will either just accept my $800 loss or work it out with AMEX. However, I have never not had an insurance premium refunded when it was not used for the specified time of the policy. Given that I cancelled my cruise well before the time the policy would need to be invoked for a refund; ie I did not need to use the insurance policy to receive any refund, I believe that the policy of not refunding the fee paid for the policy is nothing but greed on HAL's part. Others do not need to agree, I am not asking them to. However, if you should cancel an auto insurance policy, a health insurance policy, a life insurance policy prior to the term of the policy you are, by law, entitled to a refund of your premium for the unused period of time. Merced Mike, the insurance companies must love you. You cancel a policy and think it is reasonable they keep your payment for any unused period of coverage. That is terrific news for the stock holders of that insurance company.

[happy cruzer]

CSA and HTH cover pre existing conditions with purchased within a short time of final payment. check them out on insure my trip com.

 

and most third party insurance is transferrable to any other travel booked in place of the cancelled travel.

 

cruiseco always has good posts on insurance. I searched on their username to get an education. Thanks!

[Bilyeu5]

HAL has the best policy in the business in that you can cancel for any reason, up to 24 hours before sail date. I do not believe that other cruise lines offer a policy with the same benefits. That the policy is non-refundable, once issued, and rather costly is the rub. It's up to the individual to determine if the benefits balance the cost/risk.

 

Of several cruise lines I've been considering for Alaska, HAL is the only line that offers a refund for "any reason" cancellations; others offer a cruise credit with their "cancel for any reason" coverage. I've read all the fine print trying to make the best decision for us. Some lines have 2 levels of "any reason" coverage. Princess's top coverage gives a 90% cruise credit. HAL's top coverage gives a 90% refund. Celebrity just has one level, and it gives a 75% cruise credit. RCCL and NCL have similar cruise credit policies. HAL is the only line that REQUIRES insurance purchase at the time of booking for their best coverage. I think this is justifiable as they are assuming more financial risk with their offer of a refund. My concern is that circumstances might prevent us from ever using a cruise credit. We are not die-hard cruisers who go every few months...or even every few years (this will be our 3rd cruise in 20 years!). Because the cruise line coverage is based on cost of the cruise it can be more affordable than private insurance for older cruisers. I still can't make up my mind, but if I make what turns out to be a bad decision I'll have no one to blame but myself!

[hammybee]

. HAL's top coverage gives a 90% refund.

 

Hal's top coverage provides for 100% refund if you cancel, for any reason up to 24 hours before sailing. Of course the refund from any cruise line does not include the cost of insurance. In HAl's case, the top coverage runs 10% of the cost of the cruise and therefore the end result is 90%.

 

I think there is something funky with port charges and taxes with cruise line refunds that fall outside of insurance.

 

I have self insured most 7 day sails. Flying in a day or more before the cruise and having evacuation insurance as a part of my health care, I accepted the risk, especially when sailing in the cheap seats. Over time it has paid for itself.

[jtl513]

Yes, I hope that all will learn from my mistake and what I do believe is not a fair practice from HAL.

Whether you think it is fair or not is irrelevant. The terms were spelled out clearly in the contract you signed. If you did not understand those terms you should not have signed the contract. I KNOW when I buy HAL insurance (and I have) what the terms are. Why didn't you?

[Jade13]

I recently booked a 12 day HAL cruise Venice to Venice through AMEX. At the time of booking I chose the HAL cruise insurance giving a $2000 deposit, $800 ($400 each) which was the insurance. Ten days later I needed to cancel. I received a 1200 refund. AMEX and HAL stated that the insurance was non-refundable, this is the HAL policy not AMEX! For all of a 10 day booking, they keep my $800. Yes the cruise documents state at the very bottom of the insurance document, it is non-refundable but I had already given my deposit at the point the document was sent. I will NOT book with HAL again I consider this gross over-charging and ripping off the customer at best. I have never experienced this with Celebrity or RCCL. Yes, Let the buyer beware! HAL is out of line

 

HAL has the best insurance in the business (my opinion) for anyone who has to Cancel for Any Reason, especially for doctors and other professionals who may have to cancel at the last minute, and also those with teenagers and pets. It sounds like AMEX made a mistake and did not go over this with you. If you had to cancel 24 hours before the cruise, they would have given you 90% back in CASH (95% back at 31 days). Their insurance has double the amount of air evacuation vs Celebrity. It also covers pre-existing conditions, and is piece of mind if you have children and teenagers and/or taking other peoples children along with you (if they just decide not to go on some of the other cruiselines, the person not going under the Cancel for Any Reason Clause gets a 75% cruise credit to use within 1 year, not the person who paid.), Given your profession, HAL is probably the best insurance for you, especially as you get closer to the cruise date and may have to cancel because of a professional commitment.

 

What AMEX failed to tell you is that you could transfer the insurance to a future cruise with HAL and not loose it. You needed to pick something out at the time and that $800 could go to insurance for another cruise. No outside travel insurance is refundable, but they allow the transfer at the time.

 

HAL made an exception recently and let someone in your situation who had just canceled and was not given good info from their TA reinstate the insurance and use it towards another cruise (it was done a day or two later). You wanted to cruise with HAL in the first place, so I would suggest trying to get the amount transfered to another cruise.

 

If they initially say no, let them know you read on Cruise Critic an exception made for someone else in your situation who was not given good information from their TA. Good Luck.

[Jade13]

I think it was Jade that investigated HAL's insurance in depth. I believe she was able to get them to agree to transfer her insurance from one HAL booking to another.

 

Definitely a great idea for OP to look into. What is there to lose???!

 

I suggested that other OP call, tell them it was their first time with HAL, and make an exception and transfer to another cruise. They transfered to the same cruise in 2008.

 

I had to use the insurance this year when my teenage stepdaughter decided a month (31 days) before we were to head to Rome that she was not going with us. My cancelation fee on the $899.00 third pax rate was $44.95. I got back 95% (minus the insurance cost) that late.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Sorry to read about OP. But it has always been my understanding that the indirance that you buy through the cruise line is never refundable.

 

Thus we always choose to book third party insurance and don't buy it until around final payment.

[Krazy Kruizers]

I also agree that OP should not give up on HAL.

 

But it may be too late to book another HAL cruise and TRY and have the insurance move over to cover that cruise. From what I read, OP already cancelled first cruise.

[TnTom]

When I booked my up-coming cruise (Zuiderdam, Nov 10) through my TA, he kept stressing that I wouldn't purchase the insurance (or need it) until my final payment. I never really thought about why that was such a good deal (or why he kept stressing it) until I read this thread. Of course, if you make that payment well in advance of the "pay in full" deadline, you could end up in the same boat as the OP if you eventually have to cancel for some reason.

 

The first cruise I took was with a group of about 10 people. On the first night of that trip, the teenaged son of one of the couples in our group had an acute appendecitis (sp?) attack, and he ultimately had to be evacuated from the ship and flown back to Fort Lauderdale for emergency surgery.

 

My friends had purchased their insurance from their TA, and it ultimately paid very well... and there was some BIG expenses. However, since it wasn't HAL's insurance, my friends had to pay "up front" costs for his medical treatment on the ship- and I am not sure what else. I am relatively sure they didn't have to pay that way for the lear jet that flew him from the Bahamas back to FLL, but I do remember them dealing with pulling the money together while they were also stressing over their son's condition.

 

The benefit to purchasing through HAL is that you won't end up possibly scrambling to arrange payment if you have a medical emergency on the ship- and those expenses add up quickly. The insurance automatically kicks in and covers the costs. As other posters have said, though, HAL's insurance is more expensive... and now there it the OP's issue to consider.

 

It seems like purchasing cruise insurance is a crap shoot... kind of like most other kinds of insurance transactions.

[ginagirl]

Will be going on a 14 day Summit from San Diego to Hawaii. After reading this thread, does anyone know what would be done if a passenger has a heart attack on board, requires hospitalization asap, but is already 2 or 3 days from any port??? We always take thrid party insurance and wondered if they pay to have a helicopter transport you to a hospital from way out at sea. Any knowledgeable feedback would be greatly appreciated.

[Crazy]

While I understand your disappointment, your TA (it looks like AMEX in your case) should have disclosed this to you at the time. I suppose one could look at all insurance as being a ripoff ... as long as you don't need it. It would be nice if there was an initial window in which you could cancel with a refund. You have coverage/protection once you obtain the insurance, so there is a benefit given. But maybe two weeks leeway would be reasonable.

 

For future reference, third party travel insurance is almost always the better way to go.

 

Agree completely.

[gizmo]

Will be going on a 14 day Summit from San Diego to Hawaii. After reading this thread, does anyone know what would be done if a passenger has a heart attack on board, requires hospitalization asap, but is already 2 or 3 days from any port??? We always take thrid party insurance and wondered if they pay to have a helicopter transport you to a hospital from way out at sea. Any knowledgeable feedback would be greatly appreciated.

 

Hi ginagirl,

 

You will have to check your insurance policy to see if air vac is included and if it is what the dollar amount is. You can always call the insurance company if you have any questions.

[sail7seas]

 

We were off the coast of Virginia when a guest suffered a heart attack. Helicopter came to remove him from the ship and it is a very delicate process. Our first port was St. Thomas and it was two days until we got there. The victim's wife could not accompany him (weight/space on chopper) so she was aboard until we got to St. Thomas. (Long story but she joined my husband and myself for dinner those nights.)

 

So, yes......depending upon conditions, distance, wind etc, helicopters do come to ships to remove guests/crew suffering a medical emergency. We have seen at least 3 or 4 such evacuations done.

 

[MercedMike]

Will be going on a 14 day Summit from San Diego to Hawaii. After reading this thread, does anyone know what would be done if a passenger has a heart attack on board, requires hospitalization asap, but is already 2 or 3 days from any port??? We always take thrid party insurance and wondered if they pay to have a helicopter transport you to a hospital from way out at sea. Any knowledgeable feedback would be greatly appreciated.

 

The Hawaii cruise is one of the longest without any available ports. However, I am sure that there must be some sort of MedEvac available. I don't even know if a chopper can make it that far. I hope it can. Most ships have a helipad available someplace, especially the big ones. I have often read of medevacs being made while the ship is at sea.

 

The cost, of course, would be tremendous. This is another reason for having the cruise insurance. Many people only think of cancellation coverage, but the medical evacuation provision is extremely important.

[MercedMike]

Merced Mike, the insurance companies must love you. You cancel a policy and think it is reasonable they keep your payment for any unused period of coverage. That is terrific news for the stock holders of that insurance company.

 

Don't know why some people feel the need to take personal shots in a discussion. Better to stick to the topic and not personalities, IMHO.

 

Actually, the insurance companies DON'T like me, because I do my homework very thoroughly for each individual cruise and choose the insurance that best fits my needs for the best price -- just as I do for homeowners, auto, life or medical insurance.

[ginagirl]

We were on our cruise back to San Diego and the ship had to stop and anchor off Cabo San Lucas because a passenger needed immediate medical attention. A boat came from the Mexican coastline to evaculate a passenger who had to be rushed to a hospital. But when it comes to the middle of the Pacific Ocean, I would guess that could be a totally different scenario. I also question if a helicopter could even make it to the ship and back when the ship is halfway from San Diego to Honolulu. Kind of scary.....

[mr green]

I believe that the problem is this. On Princess, and HAL insurance is booked at the time when the Down Payment is made. At this point the companies differ.

On Princess you may cancel at any time before final payment is made, at no cost to you, since on Princess, insurance is not billed UNTIL final payment is made.

HAL on the other hand takes your money, at time of down payment, says "Thank you very much, regardless of when you cancel this money is now ours"

To me HAL's policy is very very one sided!

 

john

[cnvh]

I can see why the OP is frustrated-- $800 is no small pocket change after all, at least not for me-- but the policy is clear regarding the payment being nonrefundable.

 

What's the saying about ignorance of the law is no excuse... ??? It's unfortunate, but when it comes to stuff like this, it really is up to the buyer to know what they're signing and paying for... :(

[jtl513]

To me HAL's policy is very very one sided!

You don't like their terms? Fine - don't buy it!

 

HAL's policy is that not the only one that is not good for the buyer before final payment time. I recently paid $398 to buy NON-HAL insurance to protect a $200 deposit that I made on-board a cruise. But, if I didn't buy the insurance within 7 days of the deposit it would not cover my pre-existing condition.

 

The OP didn't pay attention to the details of what she was buying, and now is sore at HAL for enforcing what she agreed to. Too bad!

[novice99]

I recently booked a 12 day HAL cruise Venice to Venice through AMEX. At the time of booking I chose the HAL cruise insurance giving a $2000 deposit, $800 ($400 each) which was the insurance. Ten days later I needed to cancel. I received a 1200 refund. AMEX and HAL stated that the insurance was non-refundable, this is the HAL policy not AMEX! For all of a 10 day booking, they keep my $800. Yes the cruise documents state at the very bottom of the insurance document, it is non-refundable but I had already given my deposit at the point the document was sent. I will NOT book with HAL again I consider this gross over-charging and ripping off the customer at best. I have never experienced this with Celebrity or RCCL. Yes, Let the buyer beware! HAL is out of line

 

Thank you for your post. This very easily could have happened to me. I recently booked a NCL Panama cruise for April 2008 with a local TA. The TA recommended buying Insurance from RBC. We did. I found the same cruise for a lot less money with . When the TA could not get us better pricing we cancelled the booking and were refunded the full amount for the deposit and the insurance. I never took the insurance offered through NCL. I am looking at getting 3rd party insurance and I definitely will make sure I pay attention if it’s refundable or not.

 

I fully agree with kdowneymd. Insurance or no insurance – the deposit was refundable anyway. In my mind the insurance coverage starts at the time when the insurance runs the risk of having to pay out funds. This is not the case until full payment is made.

This is how it works with house or car insurance. Why should it be different with travel insurance?? Getting the ‘fine print’ after booking does not really help.