Cruise Insurance: When to Purchase has Changed

[DebbieandJerry]

Cruise TA is now telling me that if I want pre-existing to be covered for me and my family members, I need to purchase cruise insurance within xx amount of days of putting down a deposit. So my question to her was, is there insurance that I can purchase xx amount of days before making final payment that will cover me and Jerry should we have to cancel after final payment or if something should happen while we are on the cruise?

Jerry and I purchase the insurance to protect our money. We cannot afford to walk away from a couple of thousands if we make final payment and cannot take the trip. Knock on wood a zillion times, I have only made two claims in all of our trips and they have been related to broken equipment that had to be replaced due to mishandling of our luggage.

Do any of you have any suggestions on the type of trip insurance I would purchase and how I purchase it?

[seabreeze]

I would just go to insuremytrip. com & see who has the best pricing to cover the cost of your trip. I have insured before close to final payment. It just doesn't cover pre-existing conditions but it will cover flight delays, lost luggage etc.... Check them out as they have a variety of insurance plans for you to choose what works best for you. Hope this helps

[Joanandjoe]

Based on research on Insuremytrip dot com, there are at least 2 companies that allow you to purchase insurance withing 24 hours of final payment. We use one of them, CSA. We're not familiar with the other one.

There are two caveats to this. First, the insurance is more expensive than if bought within X days of the deposit. Second, our TA's parent company believes that there have been some problems with clains, and no longer sells it (so we had to purchase it on our own). Our only claim, for a trip cancelled due to illness, was with another company, so I have no vews on whether there is a problem with claims.

[bowlcoach]

Be sure and check out Itravelinsured.com. We use their insurance for all our trips and cruises. They may offer something that you will like.

[DebbieandJerry]

Thanks for all of your input. I will check out all of the sites mentioned. I knew I could count on your opinions.

[JohnG]

A good insurance policy is needed for multiple reasons.

It is not just because you might have to cancel after final payment. If you are on the cruise and a family emergency at home, illness or death, causes you to have to fly back from the cruise, the insurance reimburses you under travel interruption.

Most US medical insurance does not pay for services provided outside the US. The travel insurance reimburses you.

If they lose your luggage, it will reimburse you for things you have to buy. If luggage is delayed getting to you a couple days or until the first port, the insurance company rides herd on the airline/cruiseline to get it to you and provides some reimbursement for minor purchases

It covers you if you arrive at the pier late and have to fly to the next port to catch the ship.

And finally, it covers emergency air evacuation/transportation.

The one we use, Travel Guard's Travel Companion, waives pre-existing conditions if you buy it any time before final payment. And you can purchase it, without a pre-existing conditions exclusions waiver, right up till you leave.

[DebbieandJerry]

John G: Thank you for the thorough explanation and recommendation.

[DebbieandJerry]

Just to give a quick rap-up:

I did a Travel Guard search on the computer. Their premium insurance was hundreds of dollars less than what the TA quoted me. I called the 1-800 number for Travel Guard. The woman on the phone explained to me that TA's have certain policies that they sell and that is it (sorry if you are a TA. I'm not slamming anyone. Just presenting what I was told.)

She answered all my questions about purchasing the policy now vs. closer to cruise time. And, she explained to me how I can add on the value of my air once that is booked (and the timeframe in which to do this).

I ended up buying the travel insurance and saved hundreds of dollars per person for the same policy that was quoted to me. So, thank you all for your advise. Next time we get together, the first round is on me!

[insubuy]

Different travel insurance plans have a different rule regarding the coverage for pre-existing conditions. Some make their decision based on the initial trip deposit date, while others based on the final trip deposit date. Shopping around for the right travel insurance and comparing them side by side can be a challenge.

That is why, it is the best to visit the travel insurance aggregator web site such as Insubuy at http://www.insubuy.com/trip-cancellation-insurance/ where you can compare the plans side by side, find exactly what you want and make an instant purchase online. Licensed insurance agent support is available 7 days a week at toll-free (866) INSU-BUY.

You may also want to look into 'Cancel for any reason' insurance at http://www.insubuy.com/cancel-for-any-reason-travel-insurance/