Q – 11.9.25 – We are sailing to the Caribbean aboard one of the new Explora Cruise ships in a nice Suite. The Travelex insurance for this trip is a 20% premium. I believe this is really excessive. I am curious, what percentage of your customers actually purchase this high-cost insurance?
A –The vast majority of our guests traveling overseas take out insurance – 90% use Travelex. There are several companies with in-house, flat-rate insurance that we are currently recommending. These include:
Tauck – AMA Waterways – Abercrombie & Kent – Silversea
Most supplier-provided insurance is outsourced to firms we do not highly recommend. The advantage of Travelex is they permit advocacy meaning we can, sometimes, get them to re-open a claim that had been rejected.
The average cost for insurance bought directly from the supplier is currently in the range of 12.5%. But age-based policies, as you know, can go much higher. Supplier-provided insurance is less expensive but it does not offer the same coverage including the coverage of pre-existing conditions..
To receive the waiver for Pre-Existing conditions you would need to take out Travelex within 15 days of deposit. If you don’t, pre-existing conditions are not covered.
The better consortium groups carefully screen insurance companies that want to be part certified “partners” with access to their members. Few qualify. As of now, Travelex remains our highest-rated provider which is the sole reason we recommend them.
If you feel that the quote is too high (that will happen with age-based policies which Travelex is) one alternative is to visit the website www.squaremouth.com This site includes most of the insurance carriers including some with lower rates. It tries to describe the coverage in detail. My concern is that you would be working with a website. But it might answer some of your questions.
In summary:
If an age-based policy recommended by your adviser seems too high, compare it to the actual coverage offered by the supplier’s insurance which is, almost always, a flat fee and not age-based. If the coverage is similar, you will save a considerable amount of money going with the fixed-price cruise line or tour operator policy.
From a practical “what if something goes wrong” perspective, look at the issue of “advocacy” carefully. If the person who sold you the insurance policy cannot speak directly to top-level management in a case where a claim is rejected, shop somewhere else. If you are entitled to coverage and no one is going to fight for you by demanding your file by re-opened by a new adjuster, you may regret your insurance decision. Normally, the higher-priced policies offer significantly better coverage. But once you approach seventy years of age, the rates can skyrocket as you have noted.
This is a really excellent question and we understand it is on the minds of many travelers. We wish it was on even more “traveling” minds.
