Thread: Free cruises for job losers?

The Cruise Examiner Mark Tre for Cybercruises.com - March 2 2009

Job loss insurance has been around in some form or another for many years, but some interesting moves have come about in the past week.
First, Norwegian Cruise Line announced its "BookSafe" program, which can be bought from $29 per person depending on cruise fare paid and the US's largest cruise retailer Cruiseone and Cruises Inc. announced its own "Cruise Assurance" program, which is offering job loss insurance free of charge (although guests must buy their insurance package).

While in some ways similar to "cancel for any reason" plans that have been available at small extra cost in the past, let's have a look at these two plans as more are likely to follow.


NCL's BookSafe

On Wednesday last week, Norwegian Cruise Line introduced its "BookSafe" travel protection program, which offers a full refund to passengers having to cancel because of losing their job prior to their cruise. Andy Stuart, executive vice president of global sales and passenger services, in outlining this program, said that "In this challenging economic environment, we are offering a safety net for guests who want to book a cruise, but are uncertain about what the future holds in terms of their employment."

Administered by BerkleyCare and underwritten by the National Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh, BookSafe will cover bookings made on any departure after May 1, 2009, and will cover any cancellation fees that might be incurred. The main requirement is that the person who booked had held his or her present job for a minimum of one year.

As far as the cost goes, the $29 quoted by NCL is the cheapest available for a 3-day cruise and the cost per person could be between $150 and $200 per person depending on the cruise and the fare paid.


Cruiseone and Cruises Inc's CruiseAssurance

No sooner had NCL done that than on the Friday Cruiseone and Cruises Inc., with more than 1,000 outlets, announced "CruiseAssurance," a program that will apply on any cruise on any line, even if that line is not offering similar cover to NCL's.

Dwain Wall, Cruiseone and Cruises Inc general manager said "Our 'CruiseAssurance' policy takes the concept of job loss insurance to a new level, easing the concerns of consumers at no charge and on any cruise line of their choice."

Clients booking with Cruiseone and Cruises Inc. can cancel their cruise any time up to departure or even during the cruise itself. However, clients are required to buy basic "Travel Guard" travel and cancellation insurance from Cruiseone, who will add the job loss cover free of charge. A minimum of one year's employment and a termination letter are all that is required to collect a full refund and the offer is time limited as it only applies from today until May 2.

Again, there is a cost to the Travel Guard insurance but the peculiar thing about both the NCL and the Cruiseone and Cruises Inc web sites is that it is difficult to find out what the premiums are, whereas NCL's UK site actually has a travel insurance calculator that will give you a quote.

Insurance Packages
In fact, what both these programs offer is a complete travel insurance package, on which the job loss is a free add-on. NCL say you have to pay and Cruiseone and Cruises Inc's claim to be offering the extra cover free is only true if you buy their complete insurance package, to which they will add the job loss cover. Depending on the premiums, this really amounts to pretty well the same thing. The customer must still buy the cover, whatever bit is free.

While both companies should be commended for taking some of the uncertainty out of booking a cruise for many people in these uncertain times, we should remember that commissions paid on the sale of travel insurance packages can often be in the order of 50%. While not saying that this is an extra money-maker, on the other hand, it is probably costing neither company anything out of pocket to offer these products.


To Look at it Another Way


The interesting point here is that if someone loses their job then surely they have all the time in the world to take the cruise that they had planned anyway. This might even be a way to reinvigorate oneself in anticipation of that big job hunt!

What we are suggesting is that for those where the insurance company refunds the full fare (and that really means those after final payment as deposits are usually refundable before then), the cruise line keeps the money that has already been paid anyway. And if that is the case, and the cruise line has been paid for the cruise, why not reward the job loser and his or her family by giving them that cruise free of charge? This may sound a bit like a bet or a lottery but why not give the unfortunate the opportunity in times that may well be getting harder?

For those unlucky enough to lose their jobs, cruise lines could even organise on board courses in how to cope with job loss, how to network, how to go about career change, how to write a good resume, how to impress in a job interview and how to find that new job?

There might even be a reason here for the unemployed to go cruising, especially if their redundancy packages mean they can still afford it!

(Source: By Mark Tré - Cybercruises.com)

Originally Posted by *Lars*

The Cruise Examiner Mark Tre for Cybercruises.com - March 2 2009

What we are suggesting is that for those where the insurance company refunds the full fare (and that really means those after final payment as deposits are usually refundable before then), the cruise line keeps the money that has already been paid anyway. And if that is the case, and the cruise line has been paid for the cruise, why not reward the job loser and his or her family by giving them that cruise free of charge? This may sound a bit like a bet or a lottery but why not give the unfortunate the opportunity in times that may well be getting harder?

For those unlucky enough to lose their jobs, cruise lines could even organise on board courses in how to cope with job loss, how to network, how to go about career change, how to write a good resume, how to impress in a job interview and how to find that new job?

There might even be a reason here for the unemployed to go cruising, especially if their redundancy packages mean they can still afford it!

(Source: By Mark Tré - Cybercruises.com)

I feel bad for people who have lost their job and unfortunately I know quite a few of them. But I think this guys idea is totally ridiculous.

People who lose their job are not thinking about a vacation. They are thinking about how to pay their monthly bills. Even if they go a free cruise, there is still airfare, hotel cost, onboard expenses, and excursions. And I don't think the cruiseline is going to pop for any of these expenses, so where is the passenger suppose to get that money from?

And if the insurance company refunds the customers money, why doesn't the insurance company get to go back after the cruiseline for reimbursement?

I would think it should be no different than if you are in your car and get hit by another insured motorist. If your insurance company has to pay any money out, then they go after the other persons insurance company for reimbursement.

So why does the cruiseline get to keep the money???

Janice brings up some very good points!

Also, I'm concerned that folks living" pay check to check" without enough set aside to live normally for a year without one are even considering cruising rather than trying to save for a rainy day....

It would be an interesting situation except, how relaxed can a person really be if they know that they have all the financial outgo but absolutely no income for an unforeseeable duration? One should be more in the mode of saving money rather than using it on non-essential items.

Now, I can think of a few exceptions to this. First, if a person is in an industry where it is easy to get a job (registered nurses in the Dallas area, for example) and where the loss of income is not a big deal (CEOs who get fired and get 6 month to several years worth of pay in compensation) then I can see taking a cruise. But most of the time people do not have the safety net of a new job or a lot of money. In these cases I would consider a cruise to be a dumb idea.

Besides, no cruise is free. How about all the incidental expenses that come up like drinks, tips, and the like?

Seriously, Mark, it would be a great idea if it were not for all those complications of life getting in the way!

BTW, can you see people actually wanting to get fired just to get a free cruise? Puts a whole different spin on things..... Like the people who want their cruise canceled due to a hurricane or the like.....

Yes, all very true but if you loose your job after final payment is made you dont get your money back. You might as well just go on the cruise your have been looking forward to and saved for.
If you need airfare I would think those are paid for already and I would also think some money has been saved up for the cruise.
You are not saving any money by not going?? You will loose lots more by not going.
The extras you can keep down to a minimum and still have a great cruise

Lars, excellent post Onboard spending can be very linmited, When we first cruise we had a tiny bill, now, But if necessary it can be done

Originally Posted by stanford's girl

And if the insurance company refunds the customers money, why doesn't the insurance company get to go back after the cruiseline for reimbursement?


So why does the cruiseline get to keep the money???

Does anyone or a TA know the answer to either of these questions???

Because they can. It is in the contract that you signed when you bought the ticket that if you don't use it, you lose it.

The insurance company is just gambling that you won't miss the cruise. The rate that they charge is enough for them to make a profit when you subtract all their payouts.

Originally Posted by stanford's girl

Does anyone or a TA know the answer to either of these questions???

If it was after final payment the insurance company would only be able to get part of the money back based one the cruise line's cancellation policy. If it was close to sailing they would get nothing.