Cunard Cruise Line Travel Insurance - 2024 Review

Cunard has been in business for over 150 years. They are known for cruising the Transatlantic and for 6 consecutive years have been awarded Best Large-Ship Cruise Line by the Global Traveler Leisure Lifestyle Awards. Cunard Cruise Line offers a travel insurance program called CunardCare which includes Any Reason Cruise Credits (Reimbursement provided in the form of future travel credits if cancellation reason doesn't qualify for a cash refund) and Cancellation Fee Waiver (Reimbursement if you need to cancel your trip for illness, injury, death and more).

The program is underwritten by Nationwide and can be added at the checkout screen for an additional 11% of your trip cost once ready to finalize purchase. The program has limited Medical and Evacuation Insurance, with maximum medical benefits of $20,000;and an evacuation maximum of $50,000. CunardCare does not offer a Pre-Existing Medical Condition Exclusion Waiver.

Sample Cruise Itinerary

For our example, we chose an Eastern Caribbean cruise for 15 nights which embarks and disembarks in Fort Lauderdale, FL. The cruise dates chosen were 03/30/2022 - 04/14/2022 for two adults. The cruise price is $1,817 per person for a total of $3,634.

As airfare is purchased separately and pricing can greatly vary, this review includes only the cost of the cruise, instead of total trip cost including airfare.

Comparison Quotes

Based on our sample couple, ages 55 and 60, we created comparison quotes using TravelDefenders travel insurance marketplace engine. The trip cost used for the comparison is the cruise cost for both travelers $1,817 per person for a total of $3,634.

When traveling outside the United States, we recommend a minimum coverage of $100,000 in Medical Insurance, $250,000 in Medical Evacuation, and a Pre-existing Medical Condition Waiver. We used these criteria to choose the selected quotes.

The least expensive plan with adequate coverage on our quote from TravelDefenders is the Trawick First Class. This plan would be comparable to the CunardCare Plan.

The Trawick International First Class Policy includes $150,000 for Medical Insurance and $1,000,000 for Medical Evacuation. A Pre-Existing Medical Condition Exclusion Waiver is included if you purchase the policy within 14 days.

For a Cancel For Any Reason policy, we chose the Trawick First Class (CFAR75%), because it is the least expensive plan with Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) benefits and would be comparable to the CunardCare Plan. With it however, you will receive 75% of your trip cost back in the form of a cash refund rather than Cruise Credits.

Next, we broke down the benefits of each policy in a side-by-side comparison.

Benefit	Cunard Cruise Protection Plan	Trawick First Class	Trawick First Class (CFAR 75%)
Trip Cancellation	Trip cost up to $50,000	100% of trip cost	100% of trip cost
Trip Interruption	Trip cost up to $50,000	150% of trip cost	150% of trip cost
Medical Insurance	$20,000	$150,000	$150,000
Medical Evacuation	$50,000	$1,000,000	$1,000,000
Baggage Loss/Damage	$3,000	$500/article up to $2,000 per person	$500/article up to $2,000 per person
Baggage Delay	$500	$400	$400
Travel Delay (Incl quarantine)	$1,000	$1000 per person	$1000 per person
Missed Connection	No	$1,000 per person	$1000 per person
Cover Pre-existing Medical Conditions	No	Yes, if purchased within 14 days of deposit	Yes, if purchased within 21 days of deposit
Cancel For Work Reason	No	No	100% of trip cost
Interrupt For Any Reason	No	No	No
Cancel For Any Reason	No	No	Yes 75% of trip cost
Accidental Death & Dismemberment	$25,000	$25,000	$25,000
Cost of Policy	$399.74 (11% of trip cost)	$182.49 (5% of trip cost)	$310.23 (8.5% of trip cost)

Cost Comparison

Overall, CunardCare has minimal coverage compared to the least expensive policy on TravelDefenders for a comparable trip.

By shopping for cruise insurance through TravelDefenders, our two travelers can save over $200 which can be applied to airfare, additional tours, or shopping.

In the following sections, we discuss know what to look for when shopping for travel insurance for your Cunard cruise.

Trip Cancellation

A significant concern for travelers is Trip Cancellation. If you became ill or had an accidental injury prior to your departure date, you may have to cancel your travel arrangements, resulting in financial losses. While disappointing, Trip Cancellation is doubly painful without cancellation insurance.

CunardCare permits cancellation for the following reasons:

1. Sickness, injury or death to yourself, a traveling companion, or members of either of your immediate families which is diagnosed and treated by a physician at the time your cruise vacation is terminated.
2. Involvement in a traffic accident en route to departure that causes you to miss your cruise.
3. Your home is made uninhabitable by a natural disaster such as flood, earthquake, hurricane, volcano, tornado, wildfires, or blizzard.
4. Being called to serve jury duty or subpoena

Unfortunately, Cunard’s list of cancellation reasons lacks some important coverages.

We recommend policies that also include:

• Strikes
• Default or bankruptcy of the common carrier or travel supplier
• Cancel For Work Reason (traveler required to work during the trip)
• Employer-initiated transfer of 250 miles or more
• Destination uninhabitable or unreachable by fire, flood, or natural disaster
• Mechanical breakdown of a common carrier
• Traveler involved in accident en route to departure
• Mandatory evacuation
• Hurricanes
• Documented theft of passports or visas.

Trip Interruption

A Trip Interruption is a situation during your trip that causes you to miss some or the rest of your vacation. It’s like Trip Cancellation but happens during your travels.

The most common trip interruption is the injury or illness of a traveler. If you had an injury or illness on your vacation but can continue traveling after treatment, trip interruption reimburses the unused portion of the trip, and the cost to rejoin the trip in progress.

Trip interruption also includes a family member who had a sudden grave illness or passed away. If your covered situation requires curtailing the trip and going home early, Trip Interruption also reimburses for the unused portion of the trip, plus the added cost of going home early.

In the CunardCare travel insurance policy, Trip Interruption benefits share the same list of covered reasons as Trip Cancellation. Like cancellation, the CunardCare travel insurance has a $50,000 cap for Trip Interruption. That amount includes reimbursement of unused trip costs plus the added cost of transportation home.

Travel insurance plans like the Trawick First Class offer 150% of trip costs for interruption. Therefore, they cover up to 100% of the unused costs, plus up to an additional 50% to cover transportation costs to return home.

 

Cancel For Any Reason

Cancel For Any Reason cruise insurance provides the highest level of flexibility and reimbursement if you must cancel your trip for any reason not covered by the policy.

If you cancel your Cunard cruise for a reason not listed in the CunardCare policy, they grant future credits for 75% of the prepaid, non-refundable cancellation fees paid to them. When it comes to refunds, we always prefer cash since future credits may not be used.

Alternatively, travel insurance policies like Trawick First Class with Cancel for Any Reason included pay a 75% cash refund of all prepaid, non-refundable trip costs including arrangements made outside of Cunard. This could include flights, hotels, rental cars, excursions, and transfers.

Cancel For Any Reason policies have several stipulations:

1. Purchase the policy within 10 - 21 days (depending on policy), of your initial payment or deposit date and
2. Insure 100% of the prepaid trip costs subject to cancellation penalties or restrictions. For additional prepaid non-refundable payments made after the purchase of the policy, insure within 10-21 days (depending on policy), of each subsequent payment added to your trip, and
3. Cancel your trip 2 days or more before your scheduled departure date.

Medical Insurance for Emergency Treatment

One of the most important factors in selecting trip insurance is having adequate Medical Insurance when you travel. Anything can happen, including accidental injuries or sudden illness.

If you have a medical emergency when traveling and don’t have proper medical insurance coverage while overseas, you could find yourself with huge, unexpected hospital bills. Many Americans mistakenly believe countries with universal health care will treat them for free. Unfortunately, this is not the case.

Instead, Americans receive treatment at private hospitals, not public, and must pay like anyone else. Admission for inpatient care can cost $3,000-$4,000 per day, plus the cost of treatment, x-rays, surgeries, and specialists.

A common misconception is that Medicare will pay for hospitalization overseas.  Unfortunately, they won’t. Medicare does not pay providers outside the US. Some Medicare supplements do cover overseas, but have lifetime limits or reduced benefits, and pay for emergencies only. They can still require you to pay 20% of the costs. As a result, you could go on vacation and end up with medical bills in the thousands.

TravelDefenders urges overseas travelers to take travel medical insurance of at least $100,000 per person. In a medical emergency, $100,000 provides ample health care and helps protect your retirement savings from unexpected financial burdens.

CunardCare provides a $20,000 benefit for Medical Insurance. Trawick’s First Class policy includes $150,000 per person, ($130,000 MORE than CunardCare), so you can receive proper treatment without ending up in debt.

Emergency Medical Evacuation

Medical Insurance isn’t the only potentially expensive part of a trip. Emergency Medical Evacuation transports you from the place of injury or illness to the closest hospital. Once you’re stable enough for transport, Medical Evacuation brings you home via commercial flight or, if necessary, private medical jet.

Medical flights can cost up to $25,000 per hour and regular health insurance does not cover it. In addition, the US State Department does not offer any medical treatment or evacuation assistance for US citizens. TravelDefenders advises travelers to get at least $250,000 Medical Evacuation if traveling close to the US and $500k or more if traveling to further locations such as Asia or Africa, to assure there’s enough coverage to get them back home from almost anywhere if they experience a serious medical event.

CunardCare includes Medical Evacuation up to $50,000 per person. The Trawick First Class policy provides $1,000,000 per person for Medical Evacuation, so you can feel secure knowing you have adequate coverage to transport you back home if needed.

Pre-existing Medical Conditions

A significant concern for senior travelers can be pre-existing medical conditions. A Pre-Existing Medical Condition is one in which you’ve received medical treatment, testing, medication changes, added new medications, or received a recommendation for a treatment or test that hasn’t happened yet. Most travel insurance policies exclude pre-existing conditions unless you purchase the policy within the required time from your initial trip deposit date (called the Time Sensitive Period). Otherwise, the insurer will look backward 60, 90, or 180 days (depending on the policy) from the date you purchased the insurance to see if there are any pre-existing medical conditions they won’t cover. This is called the Look Back Period. Any medical conditions older than this Look Back Period, unchanged or stabilized with no medication dosage changes are covered, as are any new conditions that arise after you purchase the policy.

If you must cancel, interrupt, or seek medical treatment for a medical condition while traveling, travel insurance policies typically exclude claims related to Pre-existing Medical Conditions. However, if you purchase the policy within a few days of your Initial Trip Payment or Deposit date, many policies add a Waiver to the policy that covers Pre-existing Conditions. As a result, there is no Look Back Period and Pre-existing Conditions are covered.

CunardCare does not cover Pre-Existing Conditions.

The Trawick First Class policy does cover Pre-existing Medical Conditions as long as you purchase the policy within 14-days of the initial trip deposit or payment. 

Price and Value

CunardCare carries minimal coverage and is more expensive than other available options. It limits the maximum trip cancellation or interruption refund to $50,000 total. In addition, the medical insurance coverage is only $20,000, and only $50,000 for medical evacuation, which may not be adequate for a serious illness or injury. Cancellation reasons are limited and adding the Cancel for Any Reason option substantially increases the cost of the insurance yet only grants future cruise credits that expire after a year. Overall, the Vacation Protection Plan offers limited value for the price.

In contrast, by comparison shopping, we found the Trawick First Class policy comes in at $182.49 ($217.25 LESS than CunardCare!) It includes superior medical and evacuation benefits, 100% refund for trip costs for covered cancellation, 150% refund for covered trip interruption, and a robust list of cancellation reasons.

Conclusion

CunardCare provides travelers with a minimal insurance policy for a high cost that could leave travelers unpleasantly surprised during an emergency. Medical coverage and medical evacuation limits are low, and there are a limited number of covered cancellation and interruption reasons, as well as insufficient trip cost reimbursement. The insurance itself is rather weak. Overall, we rate it a 6 out of 10.

Travelers planning a Cunard Cruise will find the best value for their money and peace of mind when they shop for travel insurance at TravelDefenders Travel Insurance Marketplace. There, you can review dozens of options and select the best policy to fit your needs.

To help you find the best policy, TravelDefenders recommends having at least $100,000 in travel medical coverage and $250,000 emergency medical evacuation when traveling outside the US. And, if you purchase the policy within the 14-21 days of initial trip payment, please consider a travel insurance policy with the pre-existing condition waiver included to ensure the most coverage for your money.

If you are planning a Cunard cruise in 2022, be sure to pack insurance before you travel. You never know when you may need it.

Have questions? Chat with us online, send us an email at agent@TravelDefenders.com; or alternatively call us at +1(786) 321 3723. We would love to hear from you.

Safe Travels!