Why do YOU buy insurance for your cruise?

[Andrew DEREK UK]

But...but...but...he didn't miss the boat, you took your cruise and if you had bought the insurance, it would have been money wasted. OTOH, maybe you'd not of stressed as much knowing that had he not made the boat, you'd of been compensated.

It's my experience that most of the things people worry about never come to pass anyway.

~Mike

Can I say that whilst you are making points against the purchase of insurance, the last point actually *makes* the case. You say ''that most of the things people worry about never come to pass anyway'', -Most things do not happen, BUT....that leaves the unlucky opportunity that 'some' do.

You cannot say 'everything we worry about will never come to pass'.

That's insurance you cover the possible risk however small. We insure our homes, our cars, often because we are told to, but we all think nothing will happen to us.

I post this as, I have seen too many times bad fate fall on nice people, Cruises have so many potential risks and possibilities, I posted some before.

Not recommending any insurance in particular, but against the cruise fare the small cost, is nothing, gives peace of mind, and I hope, no one ever uses it!

 

[Rogillio]

Can I say that whilst you are making points against the purchase of insurance, the last point actually *makes* the case. You say ''that most of the things people worry about never come to pass anyway'', -Most things do not happen, BUT....that leaves the unlucky opportunity that 'some' do.

You cannot say 'everything we worry about will never come to pass'.

That's insurance you cover the possible risk however small. We insure our homes, our cars, often because we are told to, but we all think nothing will happen to us.

I post this as, I have seen too many times bad fate fall on nice people, Cruises have so many potential risks and possibilities, I posted some before.

Not recommending any insurance in particular, but against the cruise fare the small cost, is nothing, gives peace of mind, and I hope, no one ever uses it!

The reason insurance is optional is becuase some people are more comfortable living with risks and uncertainly than others. Trip insurance does NOT insure your trip! it merely compensates you IF something goes wrong. It's all about the money.

If one of my family members has to evacuated off the ship, money is the least of my worries. For 99% of people, this is not gonna happen. If the airlines lose my luggage, so what, I'll go buy some clothes....with the $700 I saved not buying trip insurance.

It all comes down to money and the cost/risk. The overwhelming majory of people who buy trip insurance will never file a claim! Think about it...how many trip insurane policies does the insurer have to sell to offset having to pay out $20,000 for a helicopter airlift off the boat and ER services? If they get $200 per policy, that means only 1 person out of 100 came out ahead financially...the other 99 got nothing. And that's just the break even point.

Oh well, people buy lottery tickets even when the odds are 235 million to 1 that they are not gonna win. Go figure.

BTW, I'm not emotional about this....I'm just an engineer and consider the cost/risk equation. If you sleep better knowing you will be compensated if your vaction goes awry, then by all means, buy insurance! But keep in mind that trip insurance only protects your money, not your vacation.

~Mike

 

[sayhello]

The reason insurance is optional is becuase some people are more comfortable living with risks and uncertainly than others. Trip insurance does NOT insure your trip! it merely compensates you IF something goes wrong. It's all about the money.

If one of my family members has to evacuated off the ship, money is the least of my worries. For 99% of people, this is not gonna happen. If the airlines lose my luggage, so what, I'll go buy some clothes....with the $700 I saved not buying trip insurance.

It all comes down to money and the cost/risk. The overwhelming majory of people who buy trip insurance will never file a claim! Think about it...how many trip insurane policies does the insurer have to sell to offset having to pay out $20,000 for a helicopter airlift off the boat and ER services? If they get $200 per policy, that means only 1 person out of 100 came out ahead financially...the other 99 got nothing. And that's just the break even point.

Oh well, people buy lottery tickets even when the odds are 235 million to 1 that they are not gonna win. Go figure.

BTW, I'm not emotional about this....I'm just an engineer and consider the cost/risk equation. If you sleep better knowing you will be compensated if your vaction goes awry, then by all means, buy insurance! But keep in mind that trip insurance only protects your money, not your vacation.

~Mike

It is absolutely NOT "all about the money". It's about a service I got with the insurance who acted as my advocate when I missed my flight home, because I'd tripped and fallen, and spent the morning in the ER. They got the airlines to book me on a "full" flight out the next morning. They booked me into a hotel for that night. They dealt directly with the ER, so that I didn't have to spend ages filling out fininancial paperwork. They spoke to the airlines, along with the doctors, and helped assure the airlines I was fit to fly. In other words, they helped make it so that all *I* had to worry about was getting patched up, and getting to the airport the next morning.

And yes, they did reimburse me for the changes to the plane ticket, and the extra night at the hotel. And I never saw the bill from the ER. All taken care of.

I was SO GRATEFUL to have an advocate working on my behalf. It made a yucky situation SO much easier to deal with, and so much simpler. And yes, I was grateful NOT to have to worry about the $600 Alaska Airlines charged me for changing my tickets. And the money for the Marriott. And to not even WORRY about the humongous bills for the ER. Have I bought trip insurance and not used it? Absolutely! Have I bought trip insurance and had it pay for itself many times over? Three times! The first time you need it, you see the wisdom in buying it. At least some of us do.

Sayhello

 

[Rogillio]

It is absolutely NOT "all about the money". It's about a service I got with the insurance who acted as my advocate when I missed my flight home, because I'd tripped and fallen, and spent the morning in the ER. They got the airlines to book me on a "full" flight out the next morning. They booked me into a hotel for that night. They dealt directly with the ER, so that I didn't have to spend ages filling out fininancial paperwork. They spoke to the airlines, along with the doctors, and helped assure the airlines I was fit to fly. In other words, they helped make it so that all *I* had to worry about was getting patched up, and getting to the airport the next morning.

And yes, they did reimburse me for the changes to the plane ticket, and the extra night at the hotel. And I never saw the bill from the ER. All taken care of.

I was SO GRATEFUL to have an advocate working on my behalf. It made a yucky situation SO much easier to deal with, and so much simpler. And yes, I was grateful NOT to have to worry about the $600 Alaska Airlines charged me for changing my tickets. And the money for the Marriott. And to not even WORRY about the humongous bills for the ER. Have I bought trip insurance and not used it? Absolutely! Have I bought trip insurance and had it pay for itself many times over? Three times! The first time you need it, you see the wisdom in buying it. At least some of us do.

Sayhello

I have medical insurance that covers my medical bills and I have no issue dealing with airlines and booking hotels and such. I certainly understand some people would rather not do the things you mentioned above but personally, I have no issues talking to airlines and doctors.

It still all comes down to money.....your are willing to spend money in case something happens to get someone to do these things for you.

Look, I'm not trying dissuade anyone from buying insurance. I'm just offering up a different poiint of view. Not everyone has the same issues and concerns...and that's ok. That's the reason trip insurance is optional! If we all agreed on everthing, the world would a pretty boring place.

~Mike

 

[joksten2000]

You buy insurance to protect your investment in your vacation, who would ever think it would replace the lost vacation experience. With two inlaws in there 90's we would never plan a family vacation and not have insurance. We have used it twice.

I don't bother if the vacation is just for the two of us, it doesn't bother me to lose $5k but it's all relative. At some point in my life $5K would have been everything.

Our 2011 family vacation will be about $22K and I wouldn't risk losing that investment. If something happened I'd be able to reschedule. I think insurance is a waste for me but when 9 people are involved I'm not stupid enough to think nothing can go wrong.

 

[Rogillio]

You buy insurance to protect your investment in your vacation, who would ever think it would replace the lost vacation experience. With two inlaws in there 90's we would never plan a family vacation and not have insurance. We have used it twice.

I don't bother if the vacation is just for the two of us, it doesn't bother me to lose $5k but it's all relative. At some point in my life $5K would have been everything.

Our 2011 family vacation will be about $22K and I wouldn't risk losing that investment. If something happened I'd be able to reschedule. I think insurance is a waste for me but when 9 people are involved I'm not stupid enough to think nothing can go wrong.

Just cursious what the insurance cost is for 9 people, $22k trip with passengers in their 90s? Our Baltic trip is costing 4 of us about $23k and the insurance is $600+ for the cheapest policy and goes up to about $3500 for the delux package. That is for passenger ages 47, 52, 19 and 17.

You talk about protecting your investment of $22k but your cruise is totally refunable up until a couple of months before you sail and you can still get some money back right up until the time you sail or maybe a week or two before. So if something goes wrong and you have to cancel, you are really betting something in gonna happen inside the 30 day window before your cruise, right? I think even "non refundable" airline tickets can be changed for a fee.

I'm not arguing against your getting insurance, I'm truly just trying to see the logic of me paying $600++ for the remote possibility that 'something catastrophic' is gonna happen to make us cancel a week before the trip.

~Mike

 

[LoveTheEars]

Sometimes you can find the policies a bit cheaper by purchasing them directly thru the insurance company (as is the case for me with travelex). This seems to happen more often if some in your party are under 18 as insuremytrip will charge for each individual regardless of age and some companies will discount under 18.

The travelex plans on insuremytrip do not charge for children under 18 either. The children would be listed on the policy but there is no fee for them. I have 2 children and buy travel insurance from insuremytrip each time we travel.. I am not sure why the price was different.. unless a different plan was offered on travelex that insuremytrip did not have at the time..

Either way - congrats on buying travel insurance.. it is necessary when planning a vacation

I buy travel insurance because i have 2 kids and if they get sick and cannot travel i would like to get my $$ back. Also, i have parents and grandparents... if something happens to them or anyone else in my family, i would like the option to come home or to cancel my trip altogether. With my kids being free the insurance does not cost that much $$.

 

[tvguy]

It is absolutely NOT "all about the money". It's about a service I got with the insurance who acted as my advocate when I missed my flight home, because I'd tripped and fallen, and spent the morning in the ER. They got the airlines to book me on a "full" flight out the next morning. They booked me into a hotel for that night. They dealt directly with the ER, so that I didn't have to spend ages filling out fininancial paperwork. They spoke to the airlines, along with the doctors, and helped assure the airlines I was fit to fly. In other words, they helped make it so that all *I* had to worry about was getting patched up, and getting to the airport the next morning.

Wow. What company did you go with? I've never heard of a travel insurance company doing anything other than reimbursing you after the fact for covered losses.

 

[Disneyholic]

Wow. What company did you go with? I've never heard of a travel insurance company doing anything other than reimbursing you after the fact for covered losses.

I don't know about "sayhello", but AAA gives me a special number to call if there are any problems with the trip. I buy the insurance thru them and was told that things would be taken care of by calling this number. It's kind of like and insurance concierge service.

 

[sayhello]

Wow. What company did you go with? I've never heard of a travel insurance company doing anything other than reimbursing you after the fact for covered losses.

Travelex. As Disneyholic says, they give you a phone number you can call (800 or call collect) for 24x7 emergency assistance. Travelex calls it "Travelex Travel Assistance & Concierge". I got TruTravel for my current cruise, and they just call it "24 hour emergency assistance". It's always been on the travel policies I've bought.

Sayhello

 

[melnag26]

What about the travel insurance provided by your credit card? I know my Citibank and Amex cards say that they provide travel insurance if you paid with that card. Does the Disney CC provide travel insurance?

 

[tvguy]

Travelex. As Disneyholic says, they give you a phone number you can call (800 or call collect) for 24x7 emergency assistance. Travelex calls it "Travelex Travel Assistance & Concierge". I got TruTravel for my current cruise, and they just call it "24 hour emergency assistance". It's always been on the travel policies I've bought.

Sayhello

Thanks. My Travel Agency doesn't even offer Travel Insurance anymore (other than what the cruise lines include as part of their cruise package) . Too many angry customers who had troubles getting claims paid, or folks who in hindsight thought it was a waste of time.
They do have a display of brouchures from Travel Insurnace companies, but it has a big sign on it that "Travel Insurnance is a Personal Choice, ------Travel does not endorse any of these companies and does not sell Travel Insurance". I had to book my own.
From the issues my agent has had, I can see why for less than $10 commission they wouldn't want to mess with it.

 

[QVCshopper]

My cruises are 2/4 & 2/7--is it too late to add insurance through Travelex? We leave 4 days before that for DW. The quarantine thing really got me interested, but the trip itself is costing less than $2K plus airfare/food. Thanks!

 

[sayhello]

My cruises are 2/4 & 2/7--is it too late to add insurance through Travelex? We leave 4 days before that for DW. The quarantine thing really got me interested, but the trip itself is costing less than $2K plus airfare/food. Thanks!

I don't think it's too late, but some things might not be covered (for example, unless you bought the cruises within the last 3 weeks you can't get pre-existing conditions covered). I highly recommend you go to insuremytrip.com or travelex-insurance.com and check it out. Both sites have tools that will allow you to cost out exactly how much the insurance will cost and will let you read through all the coverage before you decide if you want to buy.

Food is not a covered cost under normal circumstances, unless you buy some sort of non-refundable food plan. But the cruise and the airfare is covered. Your luggage is covered. The trip to DW can also be covered (you select the date the trip starts & ends -- this is one advantage of buying the insurance independently rather than through DCL). And once you are on the trip, there is coverage for trip interruption (such as being confined to your room due to illness), delays, etc.

The price is calculated based on where the trip is going to, the number of people and their ages, the length of the trip, the cost of the trip and the type of coverage you want (most insurance companies have multiple tiers of coverage).

Sayhello

 

[QVCshopper]

Thanks, Sayhello. I'm going to talk to my hubby. Probably won't insure the DW trip, since the room is DVC. Will look into the cruises, though.

 

[tvguy]

Ironically I talked to my former co-worker (he has since retired) this morning who was airlifted off HAL'S Amsterdam halfway between Hawaii and San Diego when his appendix nearly burst. Coast Guard San Diego sent 2 choppers and a refusing tanker 750 miles out into the Pacific to airlift him back to San Diego.
I got some more details about the incident. He confirmed the airliftt cost him nothing. He was hospitalized on the ship for 3 days. That bill came to $2,000. Now that travel insurance would cover this, but his non-covered expenses in San Diego totaled $1,000.
He lives now in Puerto Vallarta. He says every few weeks he sees a Coast Guard chopper at the cruise ship docks there, airlifting U.S. citizens back. He socializes with several folks who work on cruise ships, and they say this isn't uncommon in Mexico.
He's been on 35 cruises, (most expensive 2 or 3 week cruises )and has never purchased insurance, figures he's saved close to $20,000 in premiums, and so far, has only had this one, $2,000 out of pocket incident.