Help me decide what travel insur. co. to use!!!

[disfamily3]

Our trip is Nov/2013....we have made the deposit,but have not paid for the trip in full.

1. What travel insurance company is the most reliable to use?

2. If we have to cancel....do any of them give you ALL of the money back
you've paid in already?

3. How many of you have ever filed a claim and what were the results
good or bad?

Thanks for the help!!

 

[Cheshire Figment]

1. How many people are traveling?

2. Where are you traveling from?

3. Is Air Fare involved, if so how much.

4. Does anyone in the group have major pre-existing medical conditions?

5. Are you renting from Disney or some other source; if so, what?

6. Why do you think you need travel insurance?

Note that if you are taking a Disney package and not flying and you have to cancel within 45 days you basically will only be out $200.

 

[disfamily3]

There are two familes going with a total of 4 adults and 3 children

We live in the US....but airfare will be needed and will cost each family about 600-800.00

This will be a cruise with Disney and then some time in the parks after we get back.

I am just worried with more people the odds will increase of anything coming up that may effect the trip.

I was wondering how well the insurances' out there paid...I have read that most of them only give you a percentage back. Also, when is it too late to buy travel insurance. I mean since I have already put the down payment down with Disney....can I still purchase insurance from an outside source?

 

[QueenElinor]

Most insurance companies require you to get the insurance within fourteen days of your first trip payment. They are particularly strict about pre-existing medical conditions. So it may already be too late to add coverage for that, though you might still be able to get it for weather and other causes of cancellations. This site is the best place to go to comparison shop, and to find out the deadlines: http://www.insuremytrip.com/

I personally do not know of anyone who has used trip insurance, but in the past I've used TravelGuard and they seem very reasonable to work with considering I cobbled together a rather unique package on a very expensive trip to Europe.

 

[tarak]

I used a company through my homeowners and car insurance company (USAA). The price was very reasonable and pre-existing conditions are covered because I purchased within 21 days of making my first payment. My daughter has a pacemaker for a congenital heart defect, so the pre-existing conditions part was very important.

Our trip will cost approximately $4200 (that's for everything), and the trip insurance was around $115. I'm hoping I don't have to file a claim. It is through a third party company, not USAA itself. My experiences with USAA hve always been phenomenal, so I'm hopeful that if we did need to file a claim, it would be processed with no trouble.

100% reimbursement for the cost of the trip if it's cancelled or interrupted. I know it provides medical coverage, but I'm not especially worried about that because we're only going to Florida and our health insurance is very solid. If I were going to be out of the country, I'd have looked more into that side of things. A few other niceties, like money for baggage delays, a few hundred more if they're lost completely. Missing connections because of a delay. That sort of thing.

 

[SuzanneSLO]

If you booked through Costco, they have reasonably priced travel insurance that covers pre-existing conditions as long as you purchase as soon as you are PIF.

Otherwise, check out CSA through tripinsurancestore.com. Again, you can get coverage for pre-existing conditions as long as you purchase as soon as you pay in full.

Unless you recently put your deposit down, you are too late to also get coverage if you decide to cancel for a non-covered reason, such as not wanting to miss the season finale of your favorite TV show. The cancel for a non-covered reason is the kind of coverage that only pays a portion of your non-refundable costs.

Best of luck in making your decision -- Suzanne

 

[msmayor]

Others have given you good information, but the fact remains that your specific situation and what you want to insure against should dictate the carrier and policy you opt for.

People have had good experiences with many different companies...but that doesn't mean one of them is the right company for you. You need to first decide how much $$ you are risking, and then what you want to be insured for...job related reasons? Health reasons of someone in your travel group? Health reasons of a family member NOT traveling with you? Trip Interruption?

Also understand that every insurer sets different terms for how their coverage works. For example, when it comes to a trip delay (say, your flight is running late/cancelled) one carrier may require you to be delayed 6 hours or more, another 24 hours or more.

 

[Neelloc]

What I've done in the past when I have bought travel insurance is gone online and gotten my quotes from www.insuremytrip.com Then I call them and speak to a representitive and ask a list of questions about different scenarios. The rep is always able to help narrow down the choices for me and then I make my decision.

My main proirity has always been trip interruption[/b} as opposed to cancellation. I know what $$$ I am out if we cannot go. But if something were to happen mid trip, the change fees and changed plans are what concern me the most. So those are the questions I ask.

Good luck!

 

[a1tinkfans]

you can get insurance up until the day your trip begins. That being said, it is usually more costly (but not too significant IMho).
The MOST important part of any insurance policy are the Excluions (if its NOT in the inclusion, its covered)
I have used insuremytripdotcom, I have used disney (first time)...we had to use the insurance once (thru insure) and we collected thousands for a pre paid trip, it was medical related, and not disney related.
You can call them to speak to a rep and explain what you are concerned with so that They can aid you in your decision. You can also go online and get an idea of the costs and compare carriers, they each have caveats.
each person/family want ins for different reasons, cancellation, interruption, medical fly out, pre exist...so you may want to have a list of qs to ask and seek answers too.
Good Luck....

 

[Belle & Ariel]

We do not get insurance when we go to Disney. I have heard of situations where they let you rebook your trip and you do not lose money--excellent customer service philosophy.
We do get insurance from Travelguard when we cruise. We started when my dad had several recurrences of cancer. We did cancel once 2 days prior and got a full refund. They sent us several forms which his doctor filled out stating he suggested we not cruise.
Once I got a jury duty notice and did get out but it would have covered us if I couldn't. There is also coverage for job reasons.
We get it when we cruise because of the medical coverage you lose when you leave the US. Our son is diabetic so we pay within 14 days of deposit to get prexisting condition waived.
You can pay extra to get cancel for any reason but your refund is only half of your cost. For our cruise the policy is $115 and to add cancel for any reason was $43. We did not feel it worth it to only get half our cruise back.
Travel Guard has a few plans. We get the gold which is the middle priced plan. If you have kids under 18, one is free for each adult on the gold but not the silver.
For your cruise portion, do not figure port charges as part of your trip cost. If you cancel, the line will refund them.
Every so often I compare companies on insuremytrip and TravelGuard is always the best coverage for the price.
If you are past the 14 days since deposit, I would wait until you make final payment to get insurance. Travel guard allows this and your coverage will be the same other than preexisting coverage. That way if you cancel the cruise or change sailings, you have not wasted the insurance. I have not sailed Disney but the lines I have allow you to cancel up to 76 days prior with a full refund of deposits. Longer cruises (15+ nights and holiday sailings) have earlier cancellation dates. A travel agent might charge a fee for cancelling.

 

[kritter]