Viking River Cruise Protection Program vs other travel insurance plans.   Is their Protection Program Adequate?

A Review of Viking Rivers Cruise Insurance Plan

A quick review of Viking Rivers current travel protection program shows several areas of weakness that should be considered when reviewing their plan:

Part A - Cancel for any reason Waiver.  You must purchase their plan within the required time period and if you do and you have to cancel for a reason that is not otherwise covered by the trip cancellation coverage than Viking Cruises will "..will waive Our corresponding cancellation penalties and reimburse You in travel vouchers for the nonrefundable portion of the Trip Cost."  That good if you plan on going on a Viking cruise in the future but if not...  Also this benefit is funded by Viking Cruise and is not considered part of the insurance plan.

Medical Protection:  only $100,000 of protection for medical expenses incurred while on your trip.  It's excess over any other insurance that might apply however, many medical plans in the USA either don't provide coverage outside the USA or they restrict coverage because it's out of network.  In addition if you're covered by Medicare you should also know that they don't cover you outside the USA.  $100,000 of coverage  might be adequate however, a traveler should check with their primary insurance coverage to find out what they cover and whether they will even cover them overseas.  However, knowing your own primary coverage will help you evaluate the risk.  Also, as already mentioned, this coverage is secondary to any other insurance that you might have - this means you first have to submit any claim to your own insurance before the travel insurance company will evaluate your claim.

Emergency Evacuation:  only $250,000 of protection.  That level of coverage might be appropriate for most medical evacuations however, in a worse case scenario it might not be enough coverage to get you home depending on where you are..

Pre-existing conditions not covered:  there is no coverage if a pre-existing medical condition causes a medical expense loss or a trip cancellation or interruption claim unless you purchase the their insurance within 15 days of your initial cruise payment.  While pre-existing medical condition exclusions are common place, many travel insurance plans offer a "waiver of pre-existing conditions" if you buy the insurance within 21 days following your first trip payment and you are physically fit to travel on the day you're buying the insurance, and you insure your trip to value.

Special note:  It does not appear that coverage extends to pre and or post travel that is not paid thru Viking Cruise.  If you are doing a pre or post tour and if it's not part of the Viking Cruise than it's probably not going to be covered.

Better coverage is available.  The earlier you shop for alternative coverage the better off you'll be because most travel insurance plans offer time-sensitive benefits that enhance coverage if purchased early.

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