DCL travel insurance?

[JJZMgailey]

We published a DCL Show earlier this week about this very thing!

 

[SL6827]

We published a DCL Show earlier this week about this very thing!

Thanks!!!!

 

[lanejudy]

This- a good bit of the cruise has been paid in Disney gift cards. Would I be better off with Disney insurance since I used gift cards? Would I get more resistance in another company paying out with me, since I used gifts cards for the cruise?

If you have paid/will pay in gift cards it is always best to specifically ask before buying insurance. It seems some can be challenging to get reimbursed if you don’t have the receipts from purchasing the gift cards.

And be aware that any reimbursement from DCL will go back to the gift cards so don’t throw them away!

 

[SL6827]

If you have paid/will pay in gift cards it is always best to specifically ask before buying insurance. It seems some can be challenging to get reimbursed if you don’t have the receipts from purchasing the gift cards.

And be aware that any reimbursement from DCL will go back to the gift cards so don’t throw them away!

Right. I know to keep hold of the gift cards and place no more than $1,000 on each.

 

[SL6827]

Elaine mentioned on the recent Disney Cruise Line Show that with DCL insurance, you need to add it before 80% of the cruise is paid off. I didn't know that. I think I have that correct, right? If not, please correct me.

 

[Girl of the South]

FROM AARP:

Medicare doesn’t pay for medical services outside the United States or its territories, except in very limited circumstances, including if:

• You experience a medical emergency while traveling between Alaska and another state and a Canadian hospital is closest to your location.
• You face a medical emergency while you’re in the United States or one of its territories, but the nearest hospital is across the border, for example in Canada or Mexico.
• You live in the United States or one of its territories and need hospital care, regardless of whether it’s an emergency, but the nearest hospital is in a foreign country.
• You need medical attention and you’re on a ship within six hours of a U.S. port.

Medicare covers all 50 states and the District of Columbia as well as U.S. territories American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

 

[Steelers0854]

I take travel insurance very seriously, especially on a cruise. I would NEVER get the cruise line policy (or rely on a credit card for that matter) as their coverages are woefully inadequate. I don’t even look at policies that have less than $500,000 in medical evacuation coverage and $100,000 in medical but ideally closer to $250,000. People dont realize how insanely expensive it can be and, as well as how important it is to have a high limit credit card. My brother was on a recent cruise with his family and in-laws. His mother in law fell ill while onboard and required treatment onboard and was in the medical facility for 2 days. Before they left the ship they were asked to pay the bill, $47,000. It still took a month or so for the insurance to reimburse him and many dont plan for that part of process, almost all insurances are secondary, which means you have to pay everything up front and get reimbursed, which is very different than what we are used to int he US. If he was on a DCL cruise, with DCL insurance he would have been on the hook for $27,000 as the DCL medical coverage is only $20,000. Im not risking bankruptcy over paying and extra $400. I hope I never need it, but I bake this cost into my vacation and I will never travel without it. If you travel more than once a year then an annual policy is also a great, very affordable option as well.

 

[VGCgroupie]

I am back and needing to decide what to do for my insurance asap. My PIF date is coming. I booked a short 3 day cruise via board sponsor/advertiser TA. We are going to the Disney island and also Nassau but we have desired to not get off the ship in Nassau. We are flying into FL 6 days before our cruise ail date and staying DVC going to the parks. We are flying out 4 days after the cruise. So our flights are not solely for the cruise. The cost of the cruise was like $3600 IIRC and DCL insurance is $247.

Based off my somewhat unique plans should I forgo insurance? Look into 3rd party? Get DCL?

 

[Mommb]

Based off my somewhat unique plans should I forgo insurance? Look into 3rd party? Get DCL?

This answer depends on what you want to insure.

If you are concerned about health or employment issues that may make you cancel the cruise, then you should look for insurance that would cover those issues.

Your medical insurance will probably cover issues before and after your cruise. If you want coverage while on the ship and in the Bahamas, you would need to purchase insurance. DCL insurance would probably be sufficient for a short Bahamas cruise when the need for medical transportation would be minimal.

Insurance purchased through DCL will cover only the time you are on the cruise and may not reimburse you for any charges you incur before or after the cruise. The advantage of flying in and back several days before and after the cruise is that even if your flight to Florida is delayed by over a full day, you can still make it to the cruise. Similarly, if the ship is late returning to port, you can still make your flight home, so you probably don't need coverage for airfare changes. If you have non-refundable costs before and after the cruise, such as for hotels and activities, you need to decide whether you could just view those as a sunk cost if you need to cancel, or whether you would like those charges covered by insurance. (You should also check whether you already have insurance for those charges, such as through a credit card.)

If you want to get insurance, it would be worthwhile to get a cost quote on 3rd party insurance and compare it to the cost for insurance through DCL. You can do this online at sites that compare several policies -- just search for "cruise insurance comparison". If the 3rd party insurance is much less expensive, go with that. If it's close, you may want to stick with the DCL insurance because of the "cancel for any reason" feature, discussed above, that provides a credit for up to 75% of the non-reimbursed fare on another cruise within a year if you need to cancel the cruise for a reason not covered by insurance.

 

[VGCgroupie]

This answer depends on what you want to insure.

If you are concerned about health or employment issues that may make you cancel the cruise, then you should look for insurance that would cover those issues.

Your medical insurance will probably cover issues before and after your cruise. If you want coverage while on the ship and in the Bahamas, you would need to purchase insurance. DCL insurance would probably be sufficient for a short Bahamas cruise when the need for medical transportation would be minimal.

Insurance purchased through DCL will cover only the time you are on the cruise and may not reimburse you for any charges you incur before or after the cruise. The advantage of flying in and back several days before and after the cruise is that even if your flight to Florida is delayed by over a full day, you can still make it to the cruise. Similarly, if the ship is late returning to port, you can still make your flight home, so you probably don't need coverage for airfare changes. If you have non-refundable costs before and after the cruise, such as for hotels and activities, you need to decide whether you could just view those as a sunk cost if you need to cancel, or whether you would like those charges covered by insurance. (You should also check whether you already have insurance for those charges, such as through a credit card.)

If you want to get insurance, it would be worthwhile to get a cost quote on 3rd party insurance and compare it to the cost for insurance through DCL. You can do this online at sites that compare several policies -- just search for "cruise insurance comparison". If the 3rd party insurance is much less expensive, go with that. If it's close, you may want to stick with the DCL insurance because of the "cancel for any reason" feature, discussed above, that provides a credit for up to 75% of the non-reimbursed fare on another cruise within a year if you need to cancel the cruise for a reason not covered by insurance.

I think I am really only concerned about if we become sick and cant go on the cruise. Not the flights or lodging.

Seems like since its a short 3 day maybe the DCL insurance is all I need. I will check out some 3rd party pricing though just to be sure DCL isnt very overpriced.

 

[cruisehopeful]

I think I am really only concerned about if we become sick and cant go on the cruise. Not the flights or lodging.

Seems like since its a short 3 day maybe the DCL insurance is all I need. I will check out some 3rd party pricing though just to be sure DCL isnt very overpriced.

You might want to look at annual policies, too. Those would cover the cruise, any flights you take in that year and if you do anything else like rent cars, pay for hotels, etc. For me, it was worth getting an annual, but that's mostly because I am cruising twice.

If you are only worried about missing the cruise due to illness and you don't have any non- DVC trips planned for a year, the DCL insurance is fine.

 

[VGCgroupie]

You might want to look at annual policies, too. Those would cover the cruise, any flights you take in that year and if you do anything else like rent cars, pay for hotels, etc. For me, it was worth getting an annual, but that's mostly because I am cruising twice.

If you are only worried about missing the cruise due to illness and you don't have any non- DVC trips planned for a year, the DCL insurance is fine.

Non DVC trips are a rare thing for me since we joined DVC.