InsureMyTrip Blog

As people book cruise travel, often they’re confronted with a series of options to “add on” products and services to their bookings.  Airfare deal sites, hotel sites, and cruise lines themselves may offer travelers the chance to quickly purchase a travel insurance policy along with their bookings — usually, this involves not much more effort than checking a box to accept the insurance and paying the additional fee, which is generally quite low.  It seems like a quick and easy way to purchase your insurance, without the hassle of doing research on various policies or having to shop around for coverage.

Of course, as with most things in life, if it seems too easy, it probably is.  Buying travel insurance isn’t meant to be a frustrating, convoluted process; but it IS supposed to be a process that involves a little bit of thought and self-evaluation.  No one insurance policy is guaranteed to offer the perfect amount of coverage, the right mix of benefits, and the best value for every single passenger on a cruise ship — but that’s what the “add-on” insurance is supposed to do.  You’re supposed to believe, when you check that box, that the cruise line or other supplier offering the insurance has somehow evaluated your needs and is going to give you the right kind of travel insurance coverage for your trip.  In reality, you’re going to get exactly the same policy every other person who checks that box is going to get — and it may not be right for you at all.

When travel suppliers offer insurance policies as an “add-on,” they usually have one standard type of insurance that is offered to everyone, regardless of specific individual needs.  These policies are generally crafted to offer a minimum baseline of coverage at a very low price, which makes them seem appealing to the average traveler who just wants to get his booking completed.  They also tend to favor the cruise line or travel supplier by not offering any coverage against financial default, and sometimes having a more narrowly defined set of criteria as to what constitutes a legitimate claim.

“Add-on” policies offered by travel suppliers are also nearly certain to be devoid of some of the more desirable, time-sensitive benefits many travelers look for in an insurance policy; things like Cancel for Any Reason coverage or Pre-Existing Conditions Waivers are rarely going to be included in the “one-size-fits-all” approach to travel insurance.  To get those specialized benefits, you would likely have to buy ANOTHER travel insurance policy on top of the standard-issue cruise line policy — one which would certainly offer all the benefits the cruise line is giving you, along with many other potential coverage options that could be very valuable to you.  Of course, the only way you’d be able to figure out which types of coverage you might want or need would be to look at all of the choices available — and checking the box doesn’t give you any choices.  Only by going to a third-party insurance provider, preferably an unbiased comparison company offering plans from a wide range of providers (like, ahem, maybe InsureMyTrip?), can you see what’s really available to you.

Might the cruise line’s insurance policy be just fine for some travelers?  It might.  Is there any way to know for sure whether or not you’re one of those travelers?  Only if you do your homework.  The bottom line is, you need to compare the options that are available out there and know what you want and need before you make any insurance purchase.  If you need help, our Customer Care Center is open 365 days a year to offer guidance and answer questions.  They’ll even help evaluate a travel insurance policy you purchased from someone else, to see if it’s the best fit for you.

Travel isn’t always meticulously planned.  While many of us like to take the scrupulous approach of scheduling things months in advance, making sure each hotel is booked, each flight secured, each detail firmly in place well ahead of our anticipated departure, there’s no denying that some trips just don’t work that way.  Sometimes travel opportunities sneak up on us quite unexpectedly — whether from sheer spontaneity or something more serious that requires us to make hasty arrangements — and just because the planning phase has to be shortened considerably, doesn’t mean that travelers should be any less proactive about buying a travel insurance policy to cover them in the event something goes awry.  We’re fond of reminding travelers to purchase their travel insurance immediately after making their first trip deposit, so they’ll have access to all the potential benefits and options available.  But what happens if the initial trip deposit and the trip itself go practically hand-in-hand?

If you’re in a time crunch and need travel insurance quickly, here are some tips to help you make an informed, though snappy, decision:

Don’t worry about fancy benefits. While Cancel for Any Reason (CFAR) policies are extremely popular with many travelers, for good reason, they’re probably not where you want to focus your search if you’re about to depart.  CFAR is intended to help you out if you choose to cancel your trip for any reason that’s not stated as being covered on your travel insurance policy.  However, if you’re putting together a last-minute itinerary, chances are you won’t be changing your mind.  Also, since CFAR policies require you to cancel — and notify all of your travel suppliers of your decision — a minimum of two days prior to your departure, last-minute travelers may not have time on their sides.

Do keep up with the news.  If you’re planning to depart quickly, you should scan the news and weather for any events that may disrupt your trip.  It’s likely that anything you find will not be covered by your travel insurance policy; since travel insurance is only for unforeseen events, any hurricane threats, possible airline strikes, or other threats to your travel experience that are already being discussed in the media will more often than not be considered “known perils” and won’t be covered.  Obviously, if you’re determined to travel, you should still purchase a travel insurance policy to protect you against any and all other disruptions, but it’s best to enter into your travel insurance purchase having a realistic expectation about what benefits are truly available to you.

Take advantage of time-sensitive benefits.  The good news about being in a hurry is that, since you’ll be purchasing your travel insurance soon after you’ve made your first payment on the trip, you’ll probably be eligible for some very helpful benefits that aren’t offered to travelers who wait.  Items like pre-existing conditions waivers offer valuable coverage, but are only available if you buy travel insurance within 10-30 days of your initial trip payment.  That’s good news for last-minute travelers.

Use resources wisely.  While it’s our goal to make it easy for travelers to buy their travel insurance from us online, we also offer personalized Customer Care assistance 365 days a year.  If you’re stumped, it may help you come to a more timely decision if you contact our licensed experts via phone or live chat.  You might also find that our Ratings and Reviews forum is a good resource to help you narrow down your options, so you can check “travel insurance” off your to-do list and get on with your last-minute trip.