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Give Me Liberty, or ...not. An Insurance Claim Live Blog


twangster

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11 hours ago, twangster said:

Text message received just now with a status update:

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I'm happily surprised how quickly this has progressed.  Once my bank account receives this direct deposit I'll update again.  

 

This is a great success story recommendation for Allianz Global.

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Well, not so fast.  The news above was too good to be true.  My claim was approved for just $80.  

 

Good news! We have processed a payment on the claim you recently filed with Allianz Global Assistance.  

If your financial institution is unable to process the electronic payment, a check will be sent to your address on file.  

Please contact us if you have any questions about your claim or payment.

Based on the claim documents you submitted and your policy coverage, we are unfortunately unable to issue payment for the full amount of your claim.  Please see details below: 

Your claimed expense amount of $1,XXX.XX was adjusted according to the terms of your policy, and we are issuing an $80.00 approved claim payment.  The following Travel Delay benefit coverage features guided the adjustment:

Reason: This is for the Travel Delay benefit of your claim.

You also have a claim XXXXXXXX  for a Trip Interruption.  For that claim, we need the following documents:

•    Proof of payment for the unused cruise.
•    Refund information for the unused cruise.
•    A statement from the common carrier indicating that they were not able to accommodate you on a flight to Cozumel on 04/09/2019 arriving in Cozumel prior to 4:00 pm.
    

Other coverage may be available under this plan or other insurance. Review your policies for details, or contact us for more information.

We’re glad we could be there for you and would like to know about your experience.  Your feedback is very important to us and will help us improve our services for the millions of people who use Allianz Global Assistance each year. 
 

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My claim has been converted from Trip Cancellation to Trip Interruption and Trip Delay. 

In the second screen shot of my claim you can I see I filed it for Trip Cancellation.  Someone at Allianz changed it to two claims, one for Trip Delay and one for Trip Cancellation.  

When I called them today they are now stating I filed it wrong.  In their words "You should not have filed two claims, one for trip delay and the second for trip interruption".

I didn't file two claims and I filed for Trip Cancellation.

I am waiting for a call back from my claim examiner.

It's a good thing I took screen shots of my claim as I filed it  Lesson learned, take screen shots of everything you file with your insurance provider.

 

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That was one of the most confusing things to discern when my family had to file a claim -- picking what type of a claim was it.  Having worked in insurance claims, I'm used to this decision being dictated by what caused the loss.  Trip cancellation was obvious in your situation.

I'm interested in how they are deriving an $80 figure for travel delay at all based on your situation.

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When I called Allianz from the airport as this was unfolding right after Southwest cancelled my flight the agent I spoke with suggested a claim for Trip Cancelation so that is how I proceeded.

After submitting my claim I was presented a summary screen which clearly shows I filed for Trip Cancellation.

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Yet now the claim has been changed to require copies of records I don't have because I didn't fly to Cozumel based on Trip Interruption and Trip Delay.  

We'll see how this plays out once I can talk to the claims examiner tomorrow.  

This is exactly how I wanted this live blog to work.  You get to see and feel what it is like working through a insurance claim, live as I work through this process and hopefully learn as I do.  

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I love this live experience concept...our claim submission was due to a canceled flight home after a cruise because of an impending hurricane.  My claims submission documentation was 78 pages as I tried to dot all the Is and cross all the Ts that they asked for.  

I'm guessing the $80 is just for the non-refundable shuttle and you're going to have to document, document, document like crazy for the rest.  

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It's interesting they think you can land at an airport at 4pm when the ship departure time in Cozumel is 4:30pm.  

If I landed in Cozumel and arrived at my gate at 3:59pm there is no way I would be able to board the ship in Cozumel.  I might get a pretty picture of it sailing away though.

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So glad you are doing this live blog for us.  This is seriously crazy as the first agent didn't even suggest that you look at flights to the first port of call.  Would Allianz have paid what I would imagine to be a very expensive last minute airline ticket to Cozumel?   

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Thank you for posting updates on this process.  

Question:  you mentioned that you have an annual policy with Alianz.  Do you know if the coverage is similar to a "cancel for any reason" plan?  THat's what I have purchased the last few times but luckily have never had to use it.   

Good luck, I hope the news gets better.

 

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37 minutes ago, melski94 said:

So glad you are doing this live blog for us.  This is seriously crazy as the first agent didn't even suggest that you look at flights to the first port of call.  Would Allianz have paid what I would imagine to be a very expensive last minute airline ticket to Cozumel?   

My policy includes Trip Delay coverage to catch up to the ship.  Coverage is $2,000 but only $300 per day which is likely why they are trying to switch away from Trip Cancellation.    

 

7 minutes ago, mbk999 said:

Question:  you mentioned that you have an annual policy with Alianz.  Do you know if the coverage is similar to a "cancel for any reason" plan?  THat's what I have purchased the last few times but luckily have never had to use it.   

Good luck, I hope the news gets better.

 

I don't think Allianz offers CFAR, at least not with annual plans.  

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7 hours ago, twangster said:

Yet now the claim has been changed to require copies of records I don't have because I didn't fly to Cozumel based on Trip Interruption and Trip Delay.  

We'll see how this plays out once I can talk to the claims examiner tomorrow.  

 

 

Obviously you'll want to continue to attempt to use the travel insurance policy you have paid for, and it will take some time for your claim to be escalated, but if it ends up being denied have you looked into what other coverage you might have?  Did you use one specific credit card for the entire cruise and airfare purchase?

 

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13 minutes ago, karl_nj said:

 

Obviously you'll want to continue to attempt to use the travel insurance policy you have paid for, and it will take some time for your claim to be escalated, but if it ends up being denied have you looked into what other coverage you might have?  Did you use one specific credit card for the entire cruise and airfare purchase?

 

My credit card has luggage delay and lost luggage coverage but no trip cancellation or interruption coverage. 

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41 minutes ago, twangster said:
1 hour ago, mbk999 said:

Question:  you mentioned that you have an annual policy with Alianz.  Do you know if the coverage is similar to a "cancel for any reason" plan?  THat's what I have purchased the last few times but luckily have never had to use it.   

Good luck, I hope the news gets better.

 

I don't think Allianz offers CFAR, at least not with annual plans.  

Thanks.  Definitely something I will  look at more closely going forward.  

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Status update:  

My claim examiner did not call yesterday.  They were supposed to call between the hours we agreed to so that I didn't have to wait all day for a call.  I had my phone with me all day and while other people called me, Allianz did not.  

I just called Allianz and spoke with a contact center person.  I was placed on hold several times as the contact center person went back and forth with a claims examiner.  I once again explained I did not file for Trip Delay or Trip Interruption.   The english language appears to be a challenge when dealing with Allianz and it is proving difficult to achieve basic comprehension.  

I *think* I have conveyed that I filed for Trip Cancellation.  I *think* they are now proceeding with a claim for Trip Cancellation.

I need to provide a letter from Royal Caribbean stating that they did not refund me for my cancelled cruise. 

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24 minutes ago, twangster said:

Status update:  

My claim examiner did not call yesterday.  They were supposed to call between the hours we agreed to so that I didn't have to wait all day for a call.  I had my phone with me all day and while other people called me, Allianz did not.  

I just called Allianz and spoke with a contact center person.  I was placed on hold several times as the contact center person went back and forth with a claims examiner.  I once again explained I did not file for Trip Delay or Trip Interruption.   The english language appears to be a challenge when dealing with Allianz and it is proving difficult to achieve basic comprehension.  

I *think* I have conveyed that I filed for Trip Cancellation.  I *think* they are now proceeding with a claim for Trip Cancellation.

I need to provide a letter from Royal Caribbean stating that they did not refund me for my cancelled cruise. 

It will be interesting at the end of all of this to see how much time you spent both directly and indirectly (waiting) to get the insurance coverage payout you paid for.  

 

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5 hours ago, Sweety said:

Well, SWA cancelled my 5:40am flight this evening. There is no other flights for us. Here I go calling my insurance. I have a family cruise in June. We will see.

So very sorry to hear this.  Document - everything.  Screen shots, emails, keep a log of your phone calls and names.  

I hope you can find an alternate flight. 

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Since I booked this cruise through a travel agent I had to request the cancellation letter through my travel agent. That email has come through.

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The STAR department is the group that travel agents use when they interact with Royal Caribbean.

My next task was to submit this document to Allianz.

I've discovered their online tool to access your claim is broken.  You can try to find your claim using your policy number or claim number.  Neither work.

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A call to customer service led to me receiving an email from them with different methods to submit supporting documents.

 

  • We're sorry to hear that things didn't go as planned. So that we may expedite the processing of your claim, please complete and return the attached Preferred Payment Information form and the required documentation at your earliest convenience.
  • For the fastest processing please upload the documentation on our website at the link below:
  • Online: Upload the Preferred Payment Information form and documents and check the status of your claim. (Sorry, we can't accept shared files, such as Google Docs.)
  • You can also choose one of these methods:
  • Email: [email protected]. Please include your reference number in the subject line or the body of the email.
  • Mail: Allianz Global Assistance, Attn: Claims Department, P.O. Box 72031, Richmond, VA 23255-2031. Please include your reference number on all documents
  • Fax: (804) 673-1469. Please include your reference number on all documents.
  • Once we receive the completed form and documentation, please allow 5–7 business days for review.
  • As a reminder, here is a list of all your benefits and maximum coverage limits—you can find detailed descriptions in your Certificate of Insurance/Policy.
  • Benefit*
  • Limit
  • Baggage Coverage
  • $2,000.00
  • Baggage Delay Coverage
  • $2,000.00
  • Emergency Medical and Dental
  • $50,000.00
  • Rental Car Damage and Theft Coverage
  • $45,000.00
  • Trip Cancellation Protection
  • $2,000.00
  • Travel Delay
  • $1,500.00
  • Trip Interruption Protection
  • $2,000.00
  • Travel Accident Coverage
  • $50,000.00
  • Emergency Transportation
  • $500,000.00
  •  
  • Thank you for choosing Allianz Global Assistance, and please contact our Customer Support Team if you have any questions. We're here for you anytime, anywhere.
  • Sincerely,
  • Claims Department
  • Allianz Global Assistance

 

Since the upload method is broken (can't find my claim)  I emailed the letter from Royal Caribbean and a copy of my credit card charge showing that I had in fact paid for this cruise using a credit card.

I did receive automated responses to indicate documents were received.  I received a text message and an email.  The text message response was good because my phone number is unique to my policy and confirms both documents were associated with my claim, otherwise their would be no way for the system to send me a text message.   

The response indicated to wait 7 - 10 business days for a claims examiner to review the documents.

 

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9 hours ago, Sweety said:

Well, SWA cancelled my 5:40am flight this evening. There is no other flights for us. Here I go calling my insurance. I have a family cruise in June. We will see.

Oh no !  Is this a Boeing fiasco issue ?  They probably didn’t tell you...

So very sorry to hear this.  It strikes fear in all of our hearts to hear about something like this so suddenly.

At least you have something coming up relatively soon.  ???

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8 minutes ago, Sweety said:

Yes. We still have icy roads. They are cancelling flights this morning. There are over 10 major accidents today. O'Hare cancelled 1000 flights.

In my case weather had to be a factor for my insurance to kick in.  I took the time to document the cancellations and notes because it can be hard to go back several days later and capture all that.  Here is the FAA stating "No routes available" so no airline was flying.  

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5 hours ago, twangster said:

In my case weather had to be a factor for my insurance to kick in.  I took the time to document the cancellations and notes because it can be hard to go back several days later and capture all that.  

That's what kept us in limbo for so long for our airline claim..we saw on the news that the airport was going to be closed but I wanted to make sure we had the cancellation notice from Southwest in writing.  I didn't want to book the over $2K worth of plane tickets for the new flight until I knew we had the piece that would "prove our covered loss" occurred.  We were going to be booking on a different airline and I was worried the availability of flights was going to dry up due to all the cancellations.  If we wouldn't have found a flight, we would have ended up having to file for all the costs associated being stuck in New Jersey..not to mention we'd be..stuck in New Jersey.

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9 hours ago, Sweety said:

Just found out SWA cancelled 125 flights yesterday. I am looking forward to my next cruise.

 

9 hours ago, twangster said:

Was it the weather system moving through that caused the cancellations?

Hubby was caught in Chicago too yesterday.  Same thing.  Southwest cancelled his flight home from the Star Wars convention due to weather.  Luckily, I was able to get him on a later flight last night.  He said lots of people at MDW were talking about missing their cruises ?

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10 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

 

Hubby was caught in Chicago too yesterday.  Same thing.  Southwest cancelled his flight home from the Star Wars convention due to weather.  Luckily, I was able to get him on a later flight last night.  He said lots of people at MDW were talking about missing their cruises ?

Did he like the convention? He was not to far from me. I live in Hyde Park. I heard it was crowded. My neighbor was on his bike.

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