Questions about travel insurance (does this price sound reasonable? Is it necessary?)

[katie01]

Mainly pertaining to a Disney trip, but I suppose this could apply to any traveling. My husband has a medical condition that sometimes lands him in the ER for surgical removal of food. He hasn't needed an emergency surgery in about 5 years, but does still have the episodes when eating (it's hard to explain) that have in the past led up to the surgeries. Medication is helping to manage it but it's scary when it happens and I feel like trip insurance might be good to have in case he would need surgery out of state, although I should check with our health insurance too (HMO) to see what would be covered and what would not. I also feel like travel insurance might be good for peace of mind in case anyone gets sick prior to travel and we have to cancel inside the 30 day window, because we are going to be traveling with my parents, they are in their mid-70s.

I received a quote from our TA for travel insurance, she recommends purchasing with a company outside of Disney. It looks like it will cost a total of $621 for our group of 7 to get travel insurance. That seems high to me, but maybe not? Granted, our trip is going to cost at least $10,000, so paying $600 is better than losing that whole 10K, but now I'm wondering how necessary it is. If, for instance, DH gets sick on the trip maybe our health insurance will cover it. If we have to cancel the trip last minute due to serious illness with one of our family members, maybe Disney would allow it to be rescheduled? Trying to think of any other scenarios we'd want to have travel insurance for. I know it covers lost luggage, but I think the airline already covers that anyway, and our luggage and the stuff in it is barely going to be worth $600 to begin with.

 

[powellrj]

read the terms of your policy and see what it covers. Many times it will pay to have a family member airlifted and that is really expensive. DH and I are getting to an age where that is possible. My dad is also at an age where his health can change instantly and we would need to cancel our trip so we always get the insurance. I thought yours was high until I saw it was for 7 people. For less than $100 a person I would say yes. I always pick our insurance from insurmytrip.com.

 

[katie01]

read the terms of your policy and see what it covers. Many times it will pay to have a family member airlifted and that is really expensive. DH and I are getting to an age where that is possible. My dad is also at an age where his health can change instantly and we would need to cancel our trip so we always get the insurance. I thought yours was high until I saw it was for 7 people. For less than $100 a person I would say yes. I always pick our insurance from insurmytrip.com.

Thank you, I also just found out it's actually only going to cost $450 because the kids will be covered under us. $450 sounds reasonable, I'm still open to replies though if there is something else I'm not thinking of or that I should check into re: DH's medical condition and being fully covered for emergencies

 

[barkley]

I should check with our health insurance too (HMO)

IF they will cover check to see what coverage would look like.

my old hmo would only cover emergent care outside of my hmo network-and they decided if it was emergent, not us or the treating doctors. the next hurdle was to find emergency care IN their network when we were away from home b/c they paid different amounts for covered emergent in and out of network. out of network you have to consider all the expenses of deductibles, copay's....... just b/c an hmo operates in multiple states it doesn't mean that one state's providers are in your network (as an example-healthnet california doesn't have the same providers as heatlhnet washington state so someone traveling has to figure out providers that will cover them).

for $450 you can have piece of mind for coverage. heck-when my kids were little both got ear infections while at wdw. it's not considered an emergency per my hmo despite the danger of flying home untreated. 2 kids-2 urgent care visits...it ran over $400 but we only paid the something like $25 travel insurance deductible and called it a day.

 

[Poohforyou]

Travel insurance is typically priced according to the cost of the vacation and the number of people. I don't think $621 is high but we paid a lot more when we've bought it. I've only done it for international travel. Our medical insurance covers the entire US. I didn't realize that isn't the case for all insurance. How do you deal with going to another state for care? Where we live in NJ we could easily go to PA, NY, or DE for medical care.

 

[TipsyTraveler]

The one and only time I bought travel insurance I paid about 1k more than that for two people. I think there’s too many variables involved to say if you’re getting a good price compared to what someone else paid for their trip. This is one of those “you’ll have to shop around before you decide” situations.

 

[Wishing on a star]

Your TA is right...
You need good, third-party (non vacation vendor) insurance.
This will kick in and cover everything, what I call door-to-door, from the time you pack and leave home, until you and your luggage are home safe and sound.
Less than $100.00pp does not sound super high, I don't think.

There are a couple of sites online where they will help you to insure your trip. They will give you quotes and you can compare policies from most of the major travel insurance carriers.

Here is the ONE big thing....
Your husband's condition could, and might probably be, considered a non-covered pre-existing condition.
One can get policies that will waive any pre-existing conditions... But, they often come with conditions... And, yes, they probably cost more.
You need to make very sure that the policy that you get will cover all of this, if needed.

PS: I am assuming that you also have your own, decent, medical insurance coverage.
There might be some limitations and conditions. But, this too should probably cover any medical occurance. Even out of the state.
I would call the 1-800 number, and double check your policy on how out-of state medical care is handled.

 

[tvguy]

Your TA is right...
You need good, third-party (non vacation vendor) insurance.
This will kick in and cover everything, what I call door-to-door, from the time you pack and leave home, until you and your luggage are home safe and sound.
Less than $100.00pp does not sound super high, I don't think.

There are a couple of sites online where they will help you to insure your trip. They will give you quotes and you can compare policies from most of the major travel insurance carriers.

Here is the ONE big thing....
Your husband's condition could, and might probably be, considered a non-covered pre-existing condition.
One can get policies that will waive any pre-existing conditions... But, they often come with conditions... And, yes, they probably cost more.
You need to make very sure that the policy that you get will cover all of this, if needed.

PS: I am assuming that you also have your own, decent, medical insurance coverage.
There might be some limitations and conditions. But, this too should probably cover any medical occurance. Even out of the state.
I would call the 1-800 number, and double check your policy on how out-of state medical care is handled.

Yes, the pre-existing condition clause should be checked before you buy anything.

I have only purchased travel insurance once, for a $9,000 Disney cruise, 2 adults, 2 children, but that was 2003-04 and it cost $125. The current price seems high despite inflation given it is one of the most profitable types of insurance sold because few claims are filed.

 

[tvguy]

read the terms of your policy and see what it covers. Many times it will pay to have a family member airlifted and that is really expensive. DH and I are getting to an age where that is possible. My dad is also at an age where his health can change instantly and we would need to cancel our trip so we always get the insurance. I thought yours was high until I saw it was for 7 people. For less than $100 a person I would say yes. I always pick our insurance from insurmytrip.com.

I don't know if this is a park trip or a cruise.
If it is a WDW trip, the closest trauma center is 17 miles away. Not knowing the EMS protocol in Orlando, I can't say for certain, but here that would be a ground ambulance transport. Given how many people are in the parks, I suspect there are ambulances at the parks, and they could have you to the trauma center by ground before the helicopter got there.
If a cruise, it depends where, and if OP's family are U.S. citizens. I have been on 7 Caribbean cruises, 2 had medi-vacs. Both were handled by the U.S. Coast Guard because they were U.S. Citizens, and that means there was no charge. And a retired co-worker had an appendicitis 800 miles west of San Diego on the way to Hawaii, and the Coast Guard sent 2 choppers and a refueling tanker to airlift him, all at no charge.
But yes, if you are in a situation where you have to pay for an air evacuation, it can be expensive.

 

[katie01]

I don't know if this is a park trip or a cruise.
If it is a WDW trip, the closest trauma center is 17 miles away. Not knowing the EMS protocol in Orlando, I can't say for certain, but here that would be a ground ambulance transport. Given how many people are in the parks, I suspect there are ambulances at the parks, and they could have you to the trauma center by ground before the helicopter got there.
If a cruise, it depends where, and if OP's family are U.S. citizens. I have been on 7 Caribbean cruises, 2 had medi-vacs. Both were handled by the U.S. Coast Guard because they were U.S. Citizens, and that means there was no charge. And a retired co-worker had an appendicitis 800 miles west of San Diego on the way to Hawaii, and the Coast Guard sent 2 choppers and a refueling tanker to airlift him, all at no charge.
But yes, if you are in a situation where you have to pay for an air evacuation, it can be expensive.

this will be a park trip, no cruising involved

 

[mjkacmom]

The older you are, the more expensive it is.

 

[joyjanet]

My daughter’s in laws paid $4,500.00 for their trip insurance. It would have cost them over $250,000 in medical expenses had they not gotten this insurance. He suffered a stroke on the cruise they were on and had to be taken off by helicopter and flown to Singapore. His wife had to continue to the next stop and take a flight to Singapore where she had to stay for 4 weeks. They had to get a medical team to fly with them back to Wisconsin when the doctor said he could fly. They also paid for me to fly over to help her out. Luckily he is doing well now. Better safe than sorry. Since your husband has issues already, I would recommend it (and make sure it will cover him).

 

[tvguy]

My daughter’s in laws paid $4,500.00 for their trip insurance. It would have cost them over $250,000 in medical expenses had they not gotten this insurance. He suffered a stroke on the cruise they were on and had to be taken off by helicopter and flown to Singapore. His wife had to continue to the next stop and take a flight to Singapore where she had to stay for 4 weeks. They had to get a medical team to fly with them back to Wisconsin when the doctor said he could fly. They also paid for me to fly over to help her out. Luckily he is doing well now. Better safe than sorry. Since your husband has issues already, I would recommend it (and make sure it will cover him).

Like all insurance, you have to weigh the risk you might be exposing yourself to and make a decision that is right for you.

 

[rwdavis2]

Go check AIG Travelguard and you can purchase the level of coverage you need. The terms are well laid out and available before you buy. It covers pre-existing conditions if you buy within about 2 weeks of making the first travel booking. We used it before and it covered the co-pay at the hospital when my wife spent 3 days there. Also covered increased cots fo the flight and additional hotel days.

My wife, a CRNA, said the care ate Celebration Hospital was excellent. This was in 2008.

 

[katie01]

Go check AIG Travelguard and you can purchase the level of coverage you need. The terms are well laid out and available before you buy. It covers pre-existing conditions if you buy within about 2 weeks of making the first travel booking. We used it before and it covered the co-pay at the hospital when my wife spent 3 days there. Also covered increased cots fo the flight and additional hotel days.

My wife, a CRNA, said the care ate Celebration Hospital was excellent. This was in 2008.

Thank you, this is the insurance our TA recommended. I trust her judgement too, but it does help to also post here to get the extra feedback. I’m glad it was helpful to you when your wife had a hospital stay

 

[katie01]

My daughter’s in laws paid $4,500.00 for their trip insurance. It would have cost them over $250,000 in medical expenses had they not gotten this insurance. He suffered a stroke on the cruise they were on and had to be taken off by helicopter and flown to Singapore. His wife had to continue to the next stop and take a flight to Singapore where she had to stay for 4 weeks. They had to get a medical team to fly with them back to Wisconsin when the doctor said he could fly. They also paid for me to fly over to help her out. Luckily he is doing well now. Better safe than sorry. Since your husband has issues already, I would recommend it (and make sure it will cover him).

Oh wow, I am so sorry that happened, but glad they had the insurance

 

[fla4fun]

I have only purchased trip insurance for international trips, but even though I haven’t had to use it I still consider it money well spent. Check your medical insurance first, so you will know if they cover anything at all when you’re away from home, so you know what coverage you need for a worst case scenario. The peace of mind will be worth it.

For what it’s worth, I also purchased Travelguard, after a lot of comparison shopping.

 

[barkley]

How do you deal with going to another state for care? Where we live in NJ we could easily go to PA, NY, or DE for medical care.

you don't go to another state for care-unless it's pre-authorized by the provider.

i remember when i was pregnant w/ each of my kids. as soon as my then hmo got the first pregnancy related claim they sent me paperwork that told me i had zero labor and delivery coverage if w/in so many weeks of my documented due date i traveled outside a certain number of miles radius from my existing preferred provider network and had to deliver the baby at another hospital. their position was that a woman going into labor and delivering her child w/in that time frame wasn't an emergency and the woman should plan during those last few weeks to stay w/in the geographical location of her previously selected doctor and hospital.

 

[Poohforyou]

you don't go to another state for care-unless it's pre-authorized by the provider.

i remember when i was pregnant w/ each of my kids. as soon as my then hmo got the first pregnancy related claim they sent me paperwork that told me i had zero labor and delivery coverage if w/in so many weeks of my documented due date i traveled outside a certain number of miles radius from my existing preferred provider network and had to deliver the baby at another hospital. their position was that a woman going into labor and delivering her child w/in that time frame wasn't an emergency and the woman should plan during those last few weeks to stay w/in the geographical location of her previously selected doctor and hospital.

Our insurance doesn't require pre-authorization and hasn't in about 15-20 years. I've gone to specialists out of state multiple times and have had MrRIs and CAT scans with just a script. I actually thought that was a thing of the past.

 

[maxaroni]

We started taking trip insurance when my mom got sick, even if Disney and they may work with you. Our thoughts were not only the airfare but peace of mind that was covered...we looked at all the scenarios that may occur and picked the right one. Also, when we flew to Caribbean...#1 if something happened to my mom and #2 needing insurance out of country. I wound up needing it in Barbados as I fell and brok my wrist. Even if my home insurance were to cover it, the facility would not take it, nor would they take the travel insurance. We had to pay upfront, submit to our regular insurance and whatever wasn’t covered travel insurance picked up. That was AIG Travel Guard.

Now, when we travel to Jamaica or any other island, we make sure we can get air lifted out of the country. However, never knew about the Coast Guard and being US citizens. We are in our 60s with heart issues on DH’s side, so want to make sure we can get to a hospital we can trust.