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Annual travel insurance


twangster

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On 1/5/2018 at 9:25 PM, Sabrinaklai said:

Honestly, this is a big cruise year for us. From August 2017-July 2018 we have/had 4 cruises booked 

Changing topics for a moment, with 4 cruises in 12 months have you considered an annual travel insurance plan?  The one I just bought isn't calendar year (Jan - Jan) but from the month coverage begins and for 12 months after.  Sure beats buying insurance each time.    

While shopping the other day I came across a Canadian version.  If you purchase with coverage starting in Aug. '17 you would be covered through Aug. '18.

EDIT - Note - This thread was split from within an unrelated thread since it was getting far off topic.

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14 hours ago, twangster said:

Changing topics for a moment, with 4 cruises in 12 months have you considered an annual travel insurance plan

@twangster. where can you get annual insurance plan? I have 7 cruises booked from May 2018 through April 2020. the cancellation insurance alone is nuts! any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

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4 minutes ago, Boston Babe said:

@twangster. where can you get annual insurance plan? I have 7 cruises booked from May 2018 through April 2020. the cancellation insurance alone is nuts! any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

Apologies in advance to the OP for getting far off topic. 

There are several companies that offer annual plans with varying options and coverage.  For example, I don't have CFAR (cancel for any reason) coverage but that isn't important to me.  You do need to dig into the details of each which can be tedious and frustrating at times (I'm not a lawyer and dislike reading coverage terms and conditions).  

For what I was looking for I went with Allianz Annual Deluxe https://www.allianztravelinsurance.com/

It certainly isn't perfect nor does it cover 100% of everything but compared to buying insurance for each cruise or buying insurance here and there it provides base coverage for the year for the unexpected.  It's a one time annual cost but like any insurance, read the coverage details and know what it will and will not cover.  My credit card company has some built in coverage as well for certain things like lost or delayed luggage so know what you might already get from them or your travel agent.

allianz.jpeg.b64d50383f238501a30b63fe4f125ef4.jpeg

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2 hours ago, Matt said:

I just bought same plan for my family

Matt, I was looking at it and it's very hard to understand. For instance $2000 per year to recover, on the odd time you have 2 bookings (like @twangster) almost back to back and within final payment, seems like you really don't get much for 2 cruises. Maybe I'm reading it wrong. No need to get into details (this was after all a VOOM discussion! LOL), but confirm I'm reading it right if you can. Thanks so much Matt!

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On 1/6/2018 at 3:20 PM, Boston Babe said:

Matt, I was looking at it and it's very hard to understand. For instance $2000 per year to recover, on the odd time you have 2 bookings (like @twangster) almost back to back and within final payment, seems like you really don't get much for 2 cruises. Maybe I'm reading it wrong. No need to get into details (this was after all a VOOM discussion! LOL), but confirm I'm reading it right if you can. Thanks so much Matt!

I think you are correct.  My primary purpose was medical and emergency transportation coverage.  The cancelation coverage secondary but nice to have something.   We each have different reasons for purchasing insurance and no one policy can satisfy everyone's needs.  

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On 1/6/2018 at 5:20 PM, Boston Babe said:

For instance $2000 per year to recover, on the odd time you have 2 bookings (like @twangster) almost back to back and within final payment

For two trips, it's not worth it.  I have 5 cruises for the year (as of now), so compared to buying individual travel insurance for each, it doesn't make sense.

We rarely bought travel insurance ever, but on our last cruise we had an incident where we instantly wish we had it.  Thus, I decided it was worth throwing down some money for the annual plan since we cruise so often.

If you have one, two or maybe even three cruises in a 365 day span, it may make better sense to buy individual travel insurance for each sailing.

59 minutes ago, princevaliantus said:

Seems to me that there are better coverages out there such as John Hancock and HTH Worldwide. How do you know which company will meet your needs and is travel insurance really needed??

What I liked about Allianz (besides its reputation among the cruise industry) is that it offered a good blend of medical and travel related coverages.

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1 hour ago, princevaliantus said:

Seems to me that there are better coverages out there such as John Hancock and HTH Worldwide. How do you know which company will meet your needs and is travel insurance really needed??

If we all could predict the future and know the uncertainties of life it would make buying insurance much easier :13_upside_down: 

Coverage options vary depending on state or country of residence too.  

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Just now, NS8VN said:

No, until it is.  The thing about insurance is that the moment you need it is also the moment you can no longer get it.

Exactly.  Like all insurance, it's all about your risk tolerance.

I went years without even thinking about it.  Seemed like a waste, and I never ran into a situation needing it.  

Now that we're (slightly) older, I feel like we've become more prone to the sort of minor medical issues that affect a lot of adults.  I decided my risk tolerance is being exceeded, and I would sleep easier knowing I could go to the medical facility if I needed to, without worrying about a gargantuan bill.  The last thing I want to do is debate if I want to get medical assistance to feel better, or suck it up and save money.  It's an agonizing decision, especially when you feel poorly.

I still firmly believe that travel insurance is not for everyone.  It really depends on your health situation, your risk tolerance, and your travel habits. There is no set answer for everyone, but that answer can also change over time.

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41 minutes ago, Matt said:

Exactly.  Like all insurance, it's all about your risk tolerance.

As a Director of Underwriting for Life Insurance, I can attest people often don't consider it till they are not eligible for the best rates, or uninsurable.  I agree Matt, I think I am older than most on this board and I'm willing to pay for the insurance at this point.

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2 minutes ago, ellcee said:

When is the latest one should buy insurance for their trip?

That varies with the type of coverage you seek.  CFAR - Can For Any Reason usually can not be purchased the week of your cruise but other forms of travel insurance can be but possibly at a higher cost compared to purchasing well in advance.   

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25 minutes ago, twangster said:

That varies with the type of coverage you seek.  CFAR - Can For Any Reason usually can not be purchased the week of your cruise but other forms of travel insurance can be but possibly at a higher cost compared to purchasing well in advance.   

Thank you!

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1 minute ago, princevaliantus said:

So what I got is that the most important aspect of the travel insurance would be for the Med Vac, which I can definitely understand, but for med coverage, $20,000.00?? Is that for the whole year, which seems minuscule, for a foreign Hospital which costs might be much higher??

For an otherwise healthy person who doesn't plan to have medical breakdowns on multiple cruises this year it suits my needs.  Not all insurance policies are appropriate for everyone.  If I slip and break a leg I am hopeful between this and my primary health insurance provider that I won't go bankrupt in an emergency.  That's not to say I won't avoid all out of pocket expenses in such an event.  

If I knew I was going to have a heart condition on one cruise and a stroke on another I would purchase different insurance.  

Given the choices of:

A) No insurance - least costly

B) Individual insurance coverage for each cruise - most costly

C) Annual policy for all cruises - in between cost

I chose option C. 

I've done 25 cruises with no insurance.  So far I've been lucky.  Every cruise there are medical situations for other guests.   Is this particular plan perfect?  No.  Does it ensure zero out of pocket costs when needed?  No. 

It is a compromise that provides a reasonable amount of coverage for my needs at a price I am willing to pay.  YMMV. 

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On 1/5/2018 at 11:46 PM, twangster said:

 

Changing topics for a moment, with 4 cruises in 12 months have you considered an annual travel insurance plan?  The one I just bought isn't calendar year (Jan - Jan) but from the month coverage begins and for 12 months after.  Sure beats buying insurance each time.    

While shopping the other day I came across a Canadian version.  If you purchase with coverage starting in Aug. '17 you would be covered through Aug. '18.

EDIT - Note - This thread was split from within an unrelated thread since it was getting far off topic.

I had no idea this was even a thing that existed.  That changes my math substantially if I don't have to buy insurance for a particular trip and can instead apply the same premium to a whole year's worth of travel.  It's FAR more appealing to cover multiple "what-ifs" than just one specific trip and watch the premium dollars go to waste.  I mean, peace of mind has value, but it's a lot more valuable when I'm not thinking so much about cost-per-trip.

36 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

What a GREAT and timely subject.  I have been toying with this for some time.  I think it really makes sense for us.  Going to do some research.

I wonder if USAA has an annual policy.  That is who we use for trip insurance (when we buy it).  I will check with them.

Let me know what you find, I happen to be a USAA member as well so it would save me a phone call!

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Just now, Orange Crush said:

I had no idea this was even a thing that existed.  That changes my math substantially if I don't have to buy insurance for a particular trip and can instead apply the same premium to a whole year's worth of travel.  It's FAR more appealing to cover multiple "what-ifs" than just one specific trip and watch the premium dollars go to waste.  I mean, peace of mind has value, but it's a lot more valuable when I'm not thinking so much about cost-per-trip.

Exactly the thought process I went through.  With five cruises booked so far in a 12 month span it changed the math enough to get me to purchase.  If I book another cruise or two even better!

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7 minutes ago, twangster said:

Exactly the thought process I went through.  With five cruises booked so far in a 12 month span it changed the math enough to get me to purchase.  If I book another cruise or two even better!

Covers non-cruise travel too, which ups the value even more.

I ran a quote from the site you linked and it came to about $500 when I entered 2 adults.  Does that mean $500 for both adults (so like $250 each), or $500 each person?

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Please people check your credit card benefits that you use to book your trip. Read through all the fine print regarding coverage. You may discover that if you have a premium card, it will cover lots of the insurance needs without having to buy any additional. I bought insurance the first time I took a cruise but nothing since I picked up this quality card.

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46 minutes ago, Steve L said:

Please people check your credit card benefits that you use to book your trip. Read through all the fine print regarding coverage. You may discover that if you have a premium card, it will cover lots of the insurance needs without having to buy any additional. I bought insurance the first time I took a cruise but nothing since I picked up this quality card.

My Amex used to offer better travel coverage but they silently eliminated some coverage.  That was a factor in my decision.

54 minutes ago, Orange Crush said:

Covers non-cruise travel too, which ups the value even more.

I ran a quote from the site you linked and it came to about $500 when I entered 2 adults.  Does that mean $500 for both adults (so like $250 each), or $500 each person?

Mine was $250 for just me so I would assume your price is total for two.  Try running a quote for one person.  

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