Expensive Liveaboard Trip - Travel Insurance, what can it do?

[RFurey]

A number of things could ruin a liveaboard dive trip. What exactly does trip insurance cover?

1. Your flight got screwed up and the boat left without you.
2. Your luggage (and dive gear) end up elsewhere.
3. The day before your trip, you come down with a serious case of the sniffles and there is no way your ears will clear.
4. You get sick on the boat and you can't dive.
5. The boat breaks down.
6. Severe weather either causes a cancelation, or the boat goes out and the seas are too rough to dive.
7. Customs finds a 10 year old 22 caliber round jammed in the corner of your suitcase, covered in lint.

In each of these instances, the entire trip is most likely shot. Would any trip insurance 100% cover the cost of a ruined vacation?
With less expensive dive trips, I tend to roll the dice and let the chips fall where they may. (So far, so good ... knock on wood)
But, I'm contemplating a rather pricey dive trip this year, and I'm wondering what steps I can take to minimize the risk of things going completely tits up.

Thx!

 

[also_anon_dc]

You should buy trip insurance because it would likely cover your rental gear in scenario 2 and the trip cost in scenario 3 (if you find a doctor willing to put in writing that you shouldn't travel and can't dive).

I suspect all of the other scenarios wouldn't be covered (maybe 1 would be if it was 100% the airlines fault but I always arrive a day or two in advance).

For scenarios 4 and 5 I'm confident a trip insurance company wouldn't view number of dives as factoring into the cost of the trip. From their perspective you're on the boat you paid for so the trip happened.

You'll never be 100% covered for all scenarios, you need to do what you can on your end to minimize risk. I arrive to the area a day or two early which leaves a buffer for lost luggage and delayed flights. Before a big trip I mostly stay home for the 2 weeks before and avoid crowds so I minimize risk of not getting sick.

 

[living4experiences]

There's a lot of discussion on this topic here, and I've commented at various times about it. In my experience, having had a diver death on a liveaboard last year, I can tell you there is no travel insurance policy that will cover your losses when it comes to scuba diving. Even though I had what I thought was adequate coverage for my losses, all my claims were denied and I lost a lot of money. The only thing you can do is to prepare for your trip as if you're going to have a loss. It's a sad way to think, but travel these days is anything but easy and predictable. Spread out your packing amongst different bags so not all your clothing or scuba gear is in one bag in case of delay or loss.

Arrive at the destination a couple of days early to allow for any mishaps with the airlines and to recover from jet lag.

As the trip date gets closer, keep in contact with the liveaboard company for updates about the trip going forward. Any mechanical problems? Any adverse weather coming in? Any staffing problems? Verify your transfer details if they're picking you up from the airport or hotel. In a foreign country, communication between the liveaboard main office and the actual driver picking you up is often poor.

If you do have an incident, document everything from the moment it happens. Get receipts and use your credit card for everything related to the incident for reimbursement purposes. If you have to take taxis or other transportation that only takes cash, take a picture of the vehicle and the meter. If the incident happens on the liveaboard, get something in writing from the cruise director about the cause, the dates of being out of service or lost dives. You can't get too much information when it comes to an insurance claim.

Plan to spend about 10% of your nonrefundable trip cost for an insurance policy.

 

[Trilobite]

A number of things could ruin a liveaboard dive trip. What exactly does trip insurance cover?

1. Your flight got screwed up and the boat left without you.
2. Your luggage (and dive gear) end up elsewhere.
3. The day before your trip, you come down with a serious case of the sniffles and there is no way your ears will clear.
4. You get sick on the boat and you can't dive.
5. The boat breaks down.
6. Severe weather either causes a cancelation, or the boat goes out and the seas are too rough to dive.
7. Customs finds a 10 year old 22 caliber round jammed in the corner of your suitcase, covered in lint.

In each of these instances, the entire trip is most likely shot. Would any trip insurance 100% cover the cost of a ruined vacation?
With less expensive dive trips, I tend to roll the dice and let the chips fall where they may. (So far, so good ... knock on wood)
But, I'm contemplating a rather pricey dive trip this year, and I'm wondering what steps I can take to minimize the risk of things going completely tits up.

Thx!

I'm not a fan of travel insurance, but I will note that some companies offer a "cancel for any reason" benefit at additional cost. One company describes the benefit as follows:

Optional Cancel for Any Reason coverage allows you to cancel your trip for any reason you wish, not just those listed in your plan document. This includes fear of travel or simply changing your mind. CFAR can reimburse you up to 75% of your prepaid, nonrefundable trip cost if you cancel two or more days before your scheduled departure date. You must purchase this add-on benefit within 20 days of your initial trip payment and insure the cost of subsequent travel arrangements within 15 days of the date you pay for them.​

This Cancel for Any Reason Benefit does not cover the failure of the Travel Supplier to provide the bargained-for Travel Arrangements due to cessation of operations for any reason.​

​

(Bold emphasis added).

There is also an "interruption for any reason" benefit at additional cost, which the same company describes as:

Optional Interruption for Any Reason coverage reimburses you up to 75% of your unused prepaid, nonrefundable trip cost and additional transportation expenses if you interrupt your trip 48 hours or more after your scheduled departure date. You must purchase this add-on benefit within 20 days of your initial trip payment and insure the cost of subsequent travel arrangements within 15 days of the date you pay for them. Trip interruption allows you to join your trip if you started it late, rejoin your trip after an interruption, or end your trip early for any reason you wish, not just those listed in your plan document.​

This benefit does not cover penalties associated with Travel Arrangements not provided by the Travel Supplier for this Trip and failure of the Travel Supplier to provide the agreed upon arrangements for Your Trip for any reason.​

 

[OctopusLover]

"This Cancel for Any Reason Benefit does not cover the failure of the Travel Supplier to provide the bargained-for Travel Arrangements due to cessation of operations for any reason"

Well then, not for any reason anymore. I swear insurance is a scam, most people have no idea what they are actually covered for and modern insurance is design to provide the maximum delta between what you feel you are insured for and what your actual insurance is.

I'm being offered a 20% discount if I pay for a liveaboard trip 6 months in advance vs 30% now 70% 2 months before the trip. I'd gladly put the money down now, but I'm basically gambling on the risk of this particular operator/boat going bust in the next 4 months, as no insurance I can find covers this. I thought I was covered for this scenario on my last liveabaord, but now when reviewing the policy documents, I discovered that

• any nights spent in a boat at sea are classified as "a cruise"
• The cruise cover extra is required not just to get the cruise-specific covers (missing boat departure and so on) but to make the trip itself covered. They will deny any claims relating to a trip in which "a cruise happened" if you don't get this extra, which means I unknowingly didn't even have medical cover nor diving insurance during my last trip
• Even if you get this extra cover, there is a general exclusion whereby they'll deny any claims relating to suppliers failing to deliver purchased good no matter the reason (bankruptcy, boat sinks, be my guest)

Mind you, I have pre-existing conditions (asthma, though well controlled and cleared by doctors) which makes me ineligible for DAN and most other diving specific insurances.

TL;DR: the only purpose of insurance is to lull you into thinking you are safe, it's better not to read the fine print because you'll go insane

 

[also_anon_dc]

I booked a non-diving trip many years ago with my Chase Sapphire Reserve card (a premium travel card). The tour operator went out of business. I tried to file a trip insurance claim (the CSR card comes with free insurance for trips booked using the card) and the claim was denied but the agent I spoke with said I could dispute the charge on my card for services not rendered. That's the approach I would take in the future if needed. But also, I recently booked a trip on the Bahamas Master through Bluewater Dive Travel. The Bahamas Master went out of business and my deposit was credited back to Bluewater and applied to a future trip. So, booking through a travel agent may provide additional protection.

Anyway, here is language from Chase about what is covered and what isn't for their trip cancellation coverage.

Coverage Amount/Period​

Up to $10,000 per covered person and a maximum limit of $20,000 per trip and a maximum benefit amount of $40,000 per 12-month period
Examples:

• A family of four charges a covered trip to their Chase card or pays with rewards earned on a Chase card account for a covered trip that costs $6,000/person. If the family experiences a loss of $24,000 for the entire trip, the reimbursement would be $20,000, as that is the maximum limit per trip.
• A Cardholder charges a covered trip to their Chase card or pays with rewards earned on a Chase card account for a covered trip that costs $8,000. If the Cardholder experiences a loss of $8,000 for the trip, the reimbursement would be $8,000, as that is less than the maximum limit of $10,000 per covered person.

What’s Covered
This is not an exhaustive list. Examples include:

• Accidental bodily injury, loss of life, or sickness experienced by the Cardholder, a Traveling Companion or an Immediate Family Member of the Cardholder or a Traveling Companion
• Severe weather that prevents the start or continuation of a covered trip
• A change in military orders of the Cardholder or Cardholder’s Spouse
• Jury duty or a court subpoena that cannot be postponed or waived
• Quarantine of the Cardholder, or Traveling Companion imposed by a physician or by a competent governmental authority having jurisdiction, due to health reasons

What’s Not Covered​

This is not an exhaustive list. Examples include:

• Travel arrangements canceled or changed by a common carrier, tour operator, or any travel agency unless the cancellation is the result of severe weather or an organized strike affecting public transportation
• Change in plans or financial circumstances of the Cardholder or a Traveling Companion
• A pre-existing condition
• Disinclination to travel, a country closing its borders, or a travel supplier cancelling or changing travel arrangements due to an epidemic or pandemic
• A declared or undeclared war
• Trips that exceed 60 days in duration are not covered
• Failure of You or Your Traveling Companion to obtain necessary visas, passports, or other documents required for travel
• Financial insolvency of the Cardholder’s travel agency, tour operator, or travel supplier (please visit chase.com/disputes or call Chase Disputes at 1-888-489-8452 if your trip has been canceled due to financial insolvency)

 

[ontdiver]

My travel insurance has trip interruption/cancellation coverage in addition to the usual medical coverage. I have had several claims over the last 10 years and have yet to run into any exclusions. Fortunately, the reasons have been clear cut and in the one case involving illness I was able to get a doctor's note in Egypt that satisfied the insurer. But I also had Dan coverage to ensure that there were no "risk gaps".

Ultimately, it is not what the insurer says it will cover, but what in fact they will cover if you have an incident. These days pre-existing conditions are excluding all kinds of things, but on balance folks have to be transparent and forthcoming if they know they are not going to meet the "stability" clause that is present in most policies. And as already noted, bad weather is not going to be covered for missed dives.

Paying a bit more for a 5 star policy is probably not a bad idea for a pricey dive trip. But due diligence is important.

 

[aquabluegreg]

Like all insurance, homeowners, auto, etc.... there is always an escape hatch. I offer Travelex and they have a "cancel for any reason" adder. I had a couple who filed a claim and were paid 100% in about 3 weeks. You will not be covered for mmissed dives due to bad weather but most travel impacts are covered.