So... what's "wrong" with Princess' New Platinum Travel Insurance

[ManhattanCruiser]

Okay, I'm as loyal a Princess passenger as any... but there has just GOT to be a reason that helps the Sea Witch's profits benefit from the new travel insurance plans.

 

At first glance it appears that there's a huge advantage of 100% for a canceled cruise (either a refund or future credit), but what's the downside of the new insurance.

 

I heard that the OLD insurance covered minor's staying with a parent ... but the new insurance does not. Can anyone confirm that?

 

I'm one of those people who buys Princess' insurance for every cruise... and now I'm curious... is it a BETTER deal now... or WORSE?

[Stevesan]

The policies for both "before" and "starting" Summer 2009 are accessed here:

 

http://www.princess.com/learn/answer/before_you_leave/vacation_protection.jsp

[coiran]

Better coverage and a little more costly.

 

Ron

[PescadoAmarillo]

I just looked over the schedule of benefits of both the old and the new policies, and, without looking at the fine print, the only change I see is the voluntary cancellation penalty coverage increase to 100%

 

But, as to what's wrong with the new insurance...it's the same thing that was wrong with the old insurance: very restrictive pre-existing condition coverage. Ironically, the people for whom PTC might make financial sense (those over 65 or so, since the price is not contingent on passenger age) is the same group most likely to have pre-existing conditions which greatly reduce their coverage.

[Lynda90]

It's also quite a bit more expensive. If you look at the old rate, a cruise costing $2000 has an insurance rate of $129 pp and the new rate would be $2000 x 8% or $160 pp. If you're doing a b2b, that would cost you double the amount. If you go to insuremytrip.com or one of the other comparison websites, you can pick and choose what you need and can combine the two cruises (since they are consecutive) into one trip, which is much more cost effective. But, then again, you do lose the "cancel for any reason" benefit. I guess some companies offer that by paying a higher rate. So, it's just a matter of what's important to each individual.

[skt4cruise]

Buying insurance is always the worst part of my planning, I guess we'll take the new Princess coverage, but I will be 69 by the time we cruise, everything thats wrong or could go wrong is already wrong:(

but still not stopping me from cruising so far..........

[ginagirl]

Personally, when we cruise, the most important factor for me is that my policy waive the pre-existing condition requirement to cover a medical need for cancellation. Another very important factor is medical evacuation. If I am way out at sea, and have a major attack of illness that requires hospitalization, I don't want to have to be concerned about the cost of a medivac helicopter trip. We have personally seen a passenger who had a heart attack and had to be taken off the ship while at sea by a helicopter. Anyone care to estimate the approximate cost of such transportation???? ;)

[ManhattanCruiser]

Personally, when we cruise, the most important factor for me is that my policy waive the pre-existing condition requirement to cover a medical need for cancellation. Another very important factor is medical evacuation. If I am way out at sea, and have a major attack of illness that requires hospitalization, I don't want to have to be concerned about the cost of a medivac helicopter trip. We have personally seen a passenger who had a heart attack and had to be taken off the ship while at sea by a helicopter. Anyone care to estimate the approximate cost of such transportation???? ;)

 

I would estimate a MediVac helicopter ride from halfway to Hawaii as being: $25,000.

 

Just a guess.

[Murphey]

A medivac from Chicago to Portland in 1993 was $50,000.

[ccrain]

To my knowledge there is only one insurance company out there that will cover pre-existing conditions at final payment, at a premium price. All the others are 10, 12, 15 days of deposit, and with no refund if you cancel the trip prior to final payment. This kind of defeats the purpose of FCC flexibility.

 

So I see the ability to wait until final payment as being a big plus, as is the lack of age factor.

 

One of the biggest minuses is the non-coverage of non-Princess Air arrangements. A third party insurance will cover your air travel arrangements. But, on the other hand, with air fares going sky high, cruise air is much more competitive.

 

Not being a Lawyer, thank goodness, I have read and re-read the pre-existing condition parts and still don't understand it.

 

Does anyone have any real experience with it?

[SkystheLimit]

We no longer buy the Princess insurance. The payment for "cancellation for any reason" is a future cruise credit with an expiration date. There are policies that can be purchased independently that refund in cash. We are at the stage in life with aging parents, aging pets,business issues, etc. that have caused us to cancel after final payment. The reasons may not qualify for cancellation and a full refund. Therefore, we choose the refund for any reason in cash. It's a little more costly to purchase independently but the EXPIRATION DATE for the FCC is a problem for us.

[iancal]

I would not buy insurance that only gave me a credit towards a future cruise and with a timeframe to boot. If this is the case, when we buy insurance it will be from a private carrier, not Princess. This is what we did last time. It provided better coverage and the premium was about 30 percent less than Princess.

[FritzG]

What is the date for Summer 2009 cruises? Is it anything in the Summer '09 book? Our TA is in April--is it considered Summer '09?

[cactusrose]

I just looked over the schedule of benefits of both the old and the new policies, and, without looking at the fine print, the only change I see is the voluntary cancellation penalty coverage increase to 100%

 

But, as to what's wrong with the new insurance...it's the same thing that was wrong with the old insurance: very restrictive pre-existing condition coverage. Ironically, the people for whom PTC might make financial sense (those over 65 or so, since the price is not contingent on passenger age) is the same group most likely to have pre-existing conditions which greatly reduce their coverage.

 

We didn't find the pre-existing condition clause all that restrictive. The Princess insurance has a 60 look back period so as long as your condition has been stable for the 60 days prior to purchasing the insurance you're covered. Many other policies have 90 or 120 day look back. Some will waive that as long as you purchase it within 14 days of your initial deposit but I don't want to shell out money for insurance up to 18 months in advance of final payment. I usually know by final payment if I have a pre-existing condition exception and can cancel without paying for insurance if it is an issue.

 

Now that being said. . .the biggest drawback for me with the new insurance is that you are getting little more for a lot more premium. We have always purchased the Princess insurance in the past but since we tend to take longer more expensive cruises the new insurance is much more expensive than the old so we will be going with another insurance in the future.

[Stevesan]

Buying insurance is always the worst part of my planning, I guess we'll take the new Princess coverage, but I will be 69 by the time we cruise, everything thats wrong or could go wrong is already wrong:(

but still not stopping me from cruising so far..........

 

The PTC, along with health insurance as primary, is usually the best for us seniors. You should consider enrolling w/MEDJET for a possible air evac.

It's an annual policy with a discount for AARP members:

 

 

http://www.medjetassist.com/

 

Besure to read the coverage. It's very comprehensive.

[ginagirl]

We were holding insurance with Access America for 2 different cruises. WE decided to change our 1 cruise to a land vacation and the other cruise to another cruise line. Access America altered each of the policies to reflect the new dates and destination and costs of trips. In one case, they refunded us the difference in premium. In the other case, we had to pay additional because the trip was more expensive. It was no problem doing any of this; and because we bought the insurance within 10 days of booking, we also had, and still have the benefit of the pre-existing waiver. Couldn't have been easier.

[whale-watcher]

I would not buy insurance that only gave me a credit towards a future cruise and with a timeframe to boot. If this is the case, when we buy insurance it will be from a private carrier, not Princess. This is what we did last time. It provided better coverage and the premium was about 30 percent less than Princess.

This is only if you cancel for a non-covered reason (ie change your mind). If you cancel for a covered reason, you are reimbursed in cash (I think)

[mascara]

I have never used Princess insurance, but for those doing the price comparisons, are you comparing with coverage that offers cancel for any reason? It's stated above that the Princess insurance covers this. Other policies will, if you purchase it, also. However, the price will go up. Just make sure you compare apples to apples.

 

I have always been insured through TravelSafe and I have also moved, changed, altered, etc., my plans throughout the period from booking and buying the policy to taking the trip. I am always quoted a new premium, and I either pay or am refunded, as appropriate. As long as I make my changes to the policy within the 15-day of booking/changing period as clearly required, I do not lose my "cancel for any reason" benefit.

[tequilasunrise]

I'm thinking that by "adding" it as a benefit (upgraded insurance already was, actually, it's just a little changed), they are trying to put it in view, get people talking about it, hoping more people will buy it.

 

For many people, especially young healthy people, it is more expensive than buying travel insurance elsewhere. It's incredibly expensive for families buying more than one cabin compared to comparables.

 

Not that I'm scoffing at Princess, they don't make you buy it. And it's probably a good deal for those who have unpredictable lives and may have to cancel with little notice, because the "100% no questions asked" is unusually good. jmho.

[CQG67]

Well, I looked into all of this insurance stuff quite thoroughly and this is what I came up with. Normally, we buy insurance through TravelGuard as it is quite reasonable and has good coverage. The only problem with this insurance and others like it is the "travel for no reason" coverage. You pay a much higher premium for this and it only refunds you 50% of your money. For our New England cruise we purchased the Princess gold coverage (got if for less because we are Platinum) because it will give us 90% of our money back on a future cruise - which we will be doing next year anyway. We got this insurance because we live in Florida and if we are hit with a hurricane or pending hurricane at time of our cruise then we would cancel and that would be "for no reason."