DCL insurance - Has anyone had to cancel their cruise and claim insurance?

[disneyholic family]

Has anyone had to cancel their cruise and then claim the cost of the cruise from the insurance company - specifically the DCL trip insurance (that you can add on to the cost of the cruise).

With the cost of the cruise as high as it is, i'd like to know that i'm actually covered by the DCL insurance in the event we have to cancel.

..

 

[SnowWhite2]

If you cancel for one of the reasons that is covered under the insurance, then yes it will pay. If you cancel because you decided not to take the cruise, then no it will not cover that scenario. But you have until 75 days prior to sail date to cancel without penalty (for most cruises, specialty cruises have different rules).

 

[disneyholic family]

my question is regarding cancelling for health reasons..

in what i've been able to read about the DCL trip insurance, there is a "pre-existing condition" clause.
But who decides what's pre-existing? I would imagine you could pretty much define anything as pre-existing, so couldn't the insurance company just use it as a catch all to not pay out if you're too sick to travel?

it's very difficult to get a straight answer from anyone.

 

[TinksDH]

it's very difficult to get a straight answer from anyone.

Have you called the actual insurance company that supplies Disney Cruise Vacations Protection Plan, World Access Service Corporation, with your question? I'd suspect that they could answer what is considered pre-existing and what is not. They can be reached at 877-593-4988

 

[disneyholic family]

Have you called the actual insurance company that supplies Disney Cruise Vacations Protection Plan, World Access Service Corporation, with your question? I'd suspect that they could answer what is considered pre-existing and what is not. They can be reached at 877-593-4988

thanks for the number - i'll try calling them.

 

[insureman]

Here is a key provision in the the DCL policy that other policies don't have.

"If you purchase the Vacation Protection Plan and cancel your
vacation for any reason not covered by the insurance plan,
Disney Cruise Line will credit 100% of the non-refundable
cancellation fee toward a future Disney Cruise Line vacation."


Here's a link to a pdf of the file.
http://media.disneywebcontent.com/StaticFiles/DTA-Domestic/pdf/DCLVacProtectPlan.pdf

 

[kcashner]

The definition of "pre-existing condition" is covered in the insurance contract. It can vary considerably. Generally a condition for which the individual has not seen a physician or changed medications for a specified period of time is not considered pre-existing, even though it may ultimately change in status and be the cause of the claim. The key is the time period. I've seen everything from 60 days to 1 year! It's one of those "read the fine print" situations.

The one advantage to purchasing insurance thru DCL is that if the insurance company refuses to cover some or all of the cost of a canceled cruise, the balance can be applied to a future cruise.

The down side to DCL insurance is typically cost (unless the traveling guest is elderly) and the fact that you really don't have anyone to battle on your behalf should it be needed.

 

[Mommb]

I used the Disney insurance for a Med cruise last summer, and was able to get a full refund (minus the cost of insurance, of course) for myself, my husband, and our kids when my doctor advised that I not travel. This was due to a sudden health crisis that arose after we made our final payment, so it was clearly not a pre-existing condition. It took around 30-45 days from the time I called to see how to file for reimbursement to the time we received a credit on the credit card we had used for the final payment.

So, the insurance worked just as expected. That said, there are certainly similar policies that are less expensive, so you don't need to go with Disney's plan, but if you do, and if the problem is not from anything from which you've seen a doctor previously, the Disney plan should work.

 

[disneyholic family]

Here is a key provision in the the DCL policy that other policies don't have.

"If you purchase the Vacation Protection Plan and cancel your
vacation for any reason not covered by the insurance plan,
Disney Cruise Line will credit 100% of the non-refundable
cancellation fee toward a future Disney Cruise Line vacation."


Here's a link to a pdf of the file.
http://media.disneywebcontent.com/StaticFiles/DTA-Domestic/pdf/DCLVacProtectPlan.pdf

thanks for looking that up!!!

The definition of "pre-existing condition" is covered in the insurance contract. It can vary considerably. Generally a condition for which the individual has not seen a physician or changed medications for a specified period of time is not considered pre-existing, even though it may ultimately change in status and be the cause of the claim. The key is the time period. I've seen everything from 60 days to 1 year! It's one of those "read the fine print" situations.

The one advantage to purchasing insurance thru DCL is that if the insurance company refuses to cover some or all of the cost of a canceled cruise, the balance can be applied to a future cruise.

The down side to DCL insurance is typically cost (unless the traveling guest is elderly) and the fact that you really don't have anyone to battle on your behalf should it be needed.

yes, i was looking at other plans and the DCL plan is definitely cheaper for older guests - i guess they average the risk across passengers.....so older passengers pay the same as younger ones...

as for fine print - exactly...that's what i'm trying to find...the fine print regarding pre-existing conditions..
i remember reading through the entire insurance plan the last time we cruised...but that was in the cruise documents - only 2 weeks before our cruise....so it was pretty much at a point of no return.....when i read it, i figured it didn't really cover us for anything....but it was too late by then..
i'd like to try to found out way before that this time.

 

[disneyholic family]

I used the Disney insurance for a Med cruise last summer, and was able to get a full refund (minus the cost of insurance, of course) for myself, my husband, and our kids when my doctor advised that I not travel. This was due to a sudden health crisis that arose after we made our final payment, so it was clearly not a pre-existing condition. It took around 30-45 days from the time I called to see how to file for reimbursement to the time we received a credit on the credit card we had used for the final payment.

So, the insurance worked just as expected. That said, there are certainly similar policies that are less expensive, so you don't need to go with Disney's plan, but if you do, and if the problem is not from anything from which you've seen a doctor previously, the Disney plan should work.

thanks for responding!! it's good to hear it actually works as they say it will.
The cruise is so expensive, and you just never know - we're not exactly spring chickens.....hopefully all will be well, but there's always the possibility...so it's good to know that the insurance came through in your case!!