Booked an ABD but now need Travel Insurance advice

[pxlbarrel]

We booked an ABD through Dreams Unlimited today...but now I need to find some travel insurance. Normally, we don't do travel insurance except medical but this trip is so terribly pricey, I'd hate to cancel the trip because somebody was ill or worse.

My parents are coming along on this trip so the trip insurance has to be able to accomodate a 77 and 79 year old. As you know, this is not an easy proposition ... or cheap either.

So, I'm looking for advice on travel and medical insurance. An all encompassing one would be the best. Anybody have any experience in this area? I was referred to a site where I could compare insurance companies and their quotes and I'll go there too but nothing beats first hand experience.

 

[stefan s]

What is the site that compares the travel and medical insurances? Is it like Kayak where it will do side by sides of all the different companies? I know that our travel agent usually has a working relationship with a local insurance agent who sets us up for our needs based on our trip. Since you are traveling somewhat internationally, and this is a pricey trip, you want to probably get a policy that will cover travel/medical and everything in between. We got an all encompassing plan when we went to London. Our car was rear-ended and our insurance actually covered the new rental costs as well as our medical needs over there. I am no expert, so it is best to start with your travel company and see if they have a relationship with an outside company. They may be able to get you a better rate.

 

[pxlbarrel]

What is the site that compares the travel and medical insurances? Is it like Kayak where it will do side by sides of all the different companies? I know that our travel agent usually has a working relationship with a local insurance agent who sets us up for our needs based on our trip. Since you are traveling somewhat internationally, and this is a pricey trip, you want to probably get a policy that will cover travel/medical and everything in between. We got an all encompassing plan when we went to London. Our car was rear-ended and our insurance actually covered the new rental costs as well as our medical needs over there. I am no expert, so it is best to start with your travel company and see if they have a relationship with an outside company. They may be able to get you a better rate.

Kevin from Dreams Unlimited suggested this site: http://www.insuremytrip.com/

Unfortunately, because we're Canadians, he can't offer us travel insurance so I need to find that myself. Our biggest obstacle is probably the age of my parents. My brother and I are no problem but my parents .... nobody seems to want to insure senior seniors.

 

[SaraMc]

Check with Royal Bank that's where I got my travel insurance. I went on the Podcast ABD trip in August.
While we were on the trip someone had to have emergency surgery. Insurance made the trip ok, and all the added expense they had that week.
What ever you do, get insurance.

 

[fivebyfive]

Unfortunately, because we're Canadians, he can't offer us travel insurance so I need to find that myself.

Ergo yet another one of my reasons I'll only ever use a Canadian TA.

Try your local bank.

 

[pxlbarrel]

Ergo yet another one of my reasons I'll only ever use a Canadian TA.

Try your local bank.

Well, if a Canadian TA was as knowledge about ABD AND offering the incentives that Dreams Unlimited were offering, then I'd agree with you. Insurance can be gotten in Canada .... just need to do research. Deals and experience, that's harder to find.

 

[tone.def]

Well, if a Canadian TA was as knowledge about ABD AND offering the incentives that Dreams Unlimited were offering, then I'd agree with you. Insurance can be gotten in Canada .... just need to do research. Deals and experience, that's harder to find.

You're looking for a deal on insurance? That's one place I'd refuse to skimp if I were you. You just got an incentive from DU, take that incentive and pay for good insurance.

 

[pxlbarrel]

You're looking for a deal on insurance? That's one place I'd refuse to skimp if I were you. You just got an incentive from DU, take that incentive and pay for good insurance.

Ummmm.... I never said I was looking for deals in insurance. I said I used Dreams Unlimited because of the deal I got with them and their experience with ABD. What I asked for in this thread was recommendations on good insurance based on experience.

 

[tone.def]

Ummmm.... I never said I was looking for deals in insurance. I said I used Dreams Unlimited because of the deal I got with them and their experience with ABD. What I asked for in this thread was recommendations on good insurance based on experience.

Excuse me, but your phrasing come off that way. I don't give a hoot that you used DU. That's for you to decide.

I use RBC for insurance, but don't think seniors are be covered. Is there not a senior specific insurance company you could deal with for them only? Like AARP in the States?

But take serious caution of Prime Link Medical Insurance or anything underwritten by Manulife:
http://www.cbc.ca/thenational/indepthanalysis/gopublic/story/2011/11/11/bc-travelclaim.html

 

[pxlbarrel]

Excuse me, but your phrasing come off that way. I don't give a hoot that you used DU. That's for you to decide.

I use RBC for insurance, but don't think seniors are be covered. Is there not a senior specific insurance company you could deal with for them only? Like AARP in the States?

But take serious caution of Prime Link Medical Insurance or anything underwritten by Manulife:
http://www.cbc.ca/thenational/indepthanalysis/gopublic/story/2011/11/11/bc-travelclaim.html

Ok... I don't really care that you don't care whether you give a hoot since I wasn't originally posting to you but answering somebody else's comment about their preference in using a Canadian travel agent as opposed to an American one. If you read the entire thread and followed the conversation, you would have understood the "phrasing".

My parents don't belong to any associations like CARP (the Canadian version of AARP) so they wouldn't qualify for insurance. And even so, once you pass a certain age, even those companies associated with them get a little iffy on the insurance.

As for that link ... well, who has ever trusted an insurance company? When my parents got insurance last year (and yes, we could go back to that company - TD Canada Trust -- again but I'm looking for alternatives just in case), they answered the questionnaire with the mindset that the insurance company would be trying to trick them. Treated for such and such? (even if the answer is no but the condition is pre-existing ... and stable, the answer should be "yes") Costs more but that's what insurance is all about.... paying for something that hopefully will never be used. It's a stupid game but we play it.

And ... for what it's worth, my portion of the trip is covered since I paid with my credit card and I have CAA medical insurance already. My brother and parents aren't covered by the credit card though.

 

[pxlbarrel]

Anybody used or heard of etfs Travel Insurance?

Looks like they're underwritten by Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Company of Canada.

 

[chimo2u]

Ok... I don't really care that you don't care whether you give a hoot since I wasn't originally posting to you but answering somebody else's comment about their preference in using a Canadian travel agent as opposed to an American one. If you read the entire thread and followed the conversation, you would have understood the "phrasing".

My parents don't belong to any associations like CARP (the Canadian version of AARP) so they wouldn't qualify for insurance. And even so, once you pass a certain age, even those companies associated with them get a little iffy on the insurance.

As for that link ... well, who has ever trusted an insurance company? When my parents got insurance last year (and yes, we could go back to that company - TD Canada Trust -- again but I'm looking for alternatives just in case), they answered the questionnaire with the mindset that the insurance company would be trying to trick them. Treated for such and such? (even if the answer is no but the condition is pre-existing ... and stable, the answer should be "yes") Costs more but that's what insurance is all about.... paying for something that hopefully will never be used. It's a stupid game but we play it.

And ... for what it's worth, my portion of the trip is covered since I paid with my credit card and I have CAA medical insurance already. My brother and parents aren't covered by the credit card though.

I was going to recommend CAA, can you buy a policy through them for your parents??

Also, Presidents Choice has insurance you can buy directly through the store called travel to go (google that with PC).....it is trip specific, just bought for the number of days you need, etc...don't know if there are age limits or not. I have medical coverage through hubby's work, so I only need cancelation/trip interuption coverage, but am beginning to think I may forgo it because West Jet is usually pretty good and has the hurricane guarantee.....at least our medical need would be covered

 

[pxlbarrel]

I was going to recommend CAA, can you buy a policy through them for your parents??

Unfortunately, no. CAA stopped being an alternative a very long time ago. I think once you pass the age of 60 or 65, the chances of being covered by CAA get slimmer and slimmer.

Not getting insurance is NOT an option so we'll spend the money to get it ... if only more than a couple companies would offer it to my parents who, other than being somewhat aged chronologically, are in relatively good health. (They traipsed all over Italy with our Med cruise excursions after all...)

President's choice, eh? My parents just started a bank account with them ... I'll tell them to take a look at them.

 

[Alderbrook]

Not true for the CAA. As long as your parents don't have pre-existing conditions that have affected them in the last 12 months, you can buy thru CAA no problem. My dad did (he's 69 with a pacemaker) & so did my mother 67 years old & it wasn't expensive at all. They just have a questionaire you have to fill out.

Have you tried Medipac? They specialize in snowbirds http://www.medipac.com/

 

[pxlbarrel]

Not true for the CAA. As long as your parents don't have pre-existing conditions that have affected them in the last 12 months, you can buy thru CAA no problem. My dad did (he's 69 with a pacemaker) & so did my mother 67 years old & it wasn't expensive at all. They just have a questionaire you have to fill out.

Have you tried Medipac? They specialize in snowbirds http://www.medipac.com/

Well, you sort of said it yourself, "as long as they don't have pre-existing conditions". They do have pre-existing conditions that, at the moment, are stable and have been for years but that little checkmark in the questionnaire disqualified them from CAA coverage. I'm suprised that your dad got coverage with a pacemaker though .... maybe it's an age PLUS condition...

All I know is I went with them to CAA a few years ago when we went to WDW to try to get them medical insurance and while my mom could get coverage, my dad couldn't. He ended up having to get Thomas Cook insurance through our travel agent at the time. And that was about 10 years ago.

Thanks for the link to Medipac... they look very promising at first glance. Will definitely give them a good once over (or tell my dad to look at it!)

 

[Alderbrook]

It's not disqualification at all, look into it further...Actually you can fill the form out online from the CAA website, my dad was put into a little more expensive catagory, that's all that happened. They don't turn your down, there are different levels of coverage once you get into that age bracket. Unless my dad had a heart attack in teh past 12 months, he was good to go. If you fill out the form correctly, it will tell you exactly where you fit in coverage & cost wise. Actually when we went to Disney, my dad had had his pacemaker 13 months & they need a 12 month stable period in order to insure you. These are the questions they ask you in order to qualify if you're over 55, if you answer yes to any of them, they won't insure you. My dad can answer no to all of them.

1 Have you had a heart bypass, angioplasty or heart valve surgery before 2003? Yes No
2 In the last 6 months, have you received chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy and/or received medical treatment for cancer, (other than routine follow-up), EXCEPT basal cell and squamous cell skin cancer and breast cancer treated only with hormonal therapy? Yes No
3 In the last 2 years, have you:
a) been prescribed or taken Lasix or Furosemide for any reason? Yes No
b) had congestive heart failure? Yes No
4 In the last 12 months, have you been prescribed or taken Prednisone for a lung condition or been in hospital (including emergency department) for a lung condition? Yes No
5 In the last 12 months, have you been in hospital (including emergency department) for a heart condition? Yes No

 

[pxlbarrel]

It's not disqualification at all, look into it further...Actually you can fill the form out online from the CAA website, my dad was put into a little more expensive catagory, that's all that happened. They don't turn your down, there are different levels of coverage once you get into that age bracket. Unless my dad had a heart attack in teh past 12 months, he was good to go. If you fill out the form correctly, it will tell you exactly where you fit in coverage & cost wise. Actually when we went to Disney, my dad had had his pacemaker 13 months & they need a 12 month stable period in order to insure you. These are the questions they ask you in order to qualify if you're over 55, if you answer yes to any of them, they won't insure you. My dad can answer no to all of them.

1 Have you had a heart bypass, angioplasty or heart valve surgery before 2003? Yes No
2 In the last 6 months, have you received chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy and/or received medical treatment for cancer, (other than routine follow-up), EXCEPT basal cell and squamous cell skin cancer and breast cancer treated only with hormonal therapy? Yes No
3 In the last 2 years, have you:
a) been prescribed or taken Lasix or Furosemide for any reason? Yes No
b) had congestive heart failure? Yes No
4 In the last 12 months, have you been prescribed or taken Prednisone for a lung condition or been in hospital (including emergency department) for a lung condition? Yes No
5 In the last 12 months, have you been in hospital (including emergency department) for a heart condition? Yes No

They will NOT cover my father. Without going into personal medical history, they will not cover him. As I said, we've tried CAA before and they won't sell it to him. No need to travel down that road again.

 

[Alderbrook]

You made it sound like your parents are in perfect health, sounds like that's not the case & it's not just their age, there's other reason. Good luck getting insurance for them. From my experience, if there's a reason not to insure them, they won't be able to get insurance. There's a reaon why it's called emergency medical, it's for emergencies, not pre-existing conditions if they are high risk.

 

[pxlbarrel]

You made it sound like your parents are in perfect health, sounds like that's not the case & it's not just their age, there's other reason. Good luck getting insurance for them. From my experience, if there's a reason not to insure them, they won't be able to get insurance. There's a reaon why it's called emergency medical, it's for emergencies, not pre-existing conditions if they are high risk.

I didn't say they were in perfect health. I said my father has pre-existing conditions that have been stable for years.... how many years? When did the Blue Jays last win the World Series .. 1993? That's how long ago the pre-existing condition was .... but it was enough to make CAA say "so long". LOL

Look at the first question in the "no" category. And then you'll understand. And it is age and pre-existing condition because you can be under 60, had a heart bypass or open heart surgery ... and they'd cover you because .... guess what, you didn't have to fill out the questionnaire. Now ... I often wondered if it would pay out if something happened .... but in any case, that's not our problem anyway.

There are insurance policies out there that will cover him .... and, trying not to contradict my "not looking for deals" comment, we'd rather not pay insurance that costs the same cost of the trip!!

The search continues ....

 

[pxlbarrel]

So here's what happened so far today in our quest for insurance:

My dad can get medical insurance from TD Canada Trust - no problem

Unfortunately, their maximum coverage for trip cancellation insurance does not even cover half of what this trip will cost (ABD and airfare) so separate cancellation insurance may be needed. Isn't that just a pill?

I may have to call them to see if the coverage can be upped.