Coronavirus and your travel insurance...
What should I do?
The Government has announced changes to the current UK travel restrictions effective from 10 July 2020.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has updated its advice for some countries and territories. You should check and follow any government or local advice before you book a new trip or travel.
Destinations will have different entry requirements or travel restrictions, so it’s important you consider these in your travel plans.
In light of the impact that coronavirus (COVID-19) is having globally, we’ve made the difficult decision to pause the sale of travel insurance to new customers.
Don’t worry – if you’re an existing customer, we’re still here for you!
We've put together some FAQs below, which should help.
What can we help you with?
We've split our FAQs into four sections, just click on the topic you'd like...
Hot topics
Most airlines and tour providers are offering a range of options including refunds, vouchers or new trip dates. It’s a tough time for the travel industry at the moment, so as long as you’re able to use the voucher, then you can accept it but if not, you're entitled to a full refund. The CAA website provides guidance on what you are entitled to https://www.caa.co.uk/Our-work/Newsroom/COVID-19-guidance-for-passengers/
If your flight has been delayed or cancelled, you’re protected by a European regulation, referred to as EC261.
Under EC261, your airline has a duty of care for you if you were flying out of a UK airport or if you were flying back to a UK airport with a UK or EU airline. If you faced a delay of more than two hours, you may be entitled to assistance, including food and drink, as well as accommodation if a delay continues overnight.
If your flight has been cancelled, your airline should offer you the choice of a full refund or alternative flights. Under the current situation, alternative flights may not be practical to organise, for example where government advice is to avoid travel to particular destinations. A refund may be the only option available for you.
Speak to your airline for further assistance. Please be aware that airlines will likely be dealing with more queries than usual and some may be prioritising consumers who are currently abroad or due to travel imminently.
If the Government has advised against all but essential travel to your destination, your airline will likely cancel your flight and offer a full refund. If you’re due to travel imminently and your flight hasn’t been cancelled, check the airline website before contacting the airline. If the airline has confirmed your flight will go ahead, they may still be able to offer a refund or allow you to change your booking to a later date.
Check the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) website for the latest updates.
Yes you can, as long as you haven't made a claim during this policy year. With the current FCO restrictions and health concerns you may want to postpone your travel plans, so won’t need your travel insurance policy. Before you cancel your policy please note:
- You won’t have cover for any future trips you have already booked but not cancelled yet
- We will provide cover for COVID-19 for existing customers with continuous cover but you may not be able to get COVID-19 cover in the future
- Any credit note or voucher won’t be covered even if they go into administration
- You won’t be able to make a claim even if it was a trip before your cancellation date, so any pending claims you have with a trip provider or airline won’t be covered
Making a claim
When can I make a claim?
Here’s a step by step guide for you:
- Check the current FCO advice, are they advising against travel or not allowing travel to your destination?
- Did you book your holiday and get your travel insurance policy before the FCO changed their advice to not travel
- Contact your provider (airline, travel agents, tour operators and accommodation) for a refund
- Contact your relevant payment provider:
- Credit cards can be refunded under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Card Act to bookings over £100
- Debit cards may be able to refund you through the chargeback scheme
- Paypal may be able to refund you through their buyers protection scheme
If you still haven’t been able to get a refund you can make a claim. It may be easier for you to log your claim online
How do I make a claim?
As the FCO can change at any time and airlines and tour providers need to be contacted first we are only looking at trips which are due to depart within the next 14 days. In the meantime check out our step by step make a claim guide.
How long do I have to send you the documents for my claim as my tour operator/flight provider has not got back to me yet?
Don’t worry – we understand some tour operators and flight providers are experiencing delays in processing requests, so we’ll keep your claim open. Once you’ve submitted your claim, there’s no need to let us know about any delays in getting the documents to support your claim.
Most airlines and tour providers are offering a range of options including refunds, vouchers or new trip dates. It’s a tough time for the travel industry at the moment, so as long as you’re able to use the voucher, then you can accept it but if not, you're entitled to a full refund. The CAA website provides guidance on what you are entitled to https://www.caa.co.uk/Our-work/Newsroom/COVID-19-guidance-for-passengers/
My flight has been cancelled or delayed. What are my rights?
If your flight has been delayed or cancelled, you’re protected by a European regulation, referred to as EC261.
Under EC261, your airline has a duty of care for you if you were flying out of a UK airport or if you were flying back to a UK airport with a UK or EU airline. If you faced a delay of more than two hours, you may be entitled to assistance, including food and drink, as well as accommodation if a delay continues overnight.
If your flight has been cancelled, your airline should offer you the choice of a full refund or alternative flights. Under the current situation, alternative flights may not be practical to organise, for example where government advice is to avoid travel to particular destinations. A refund may be the only option available for you.
Speak to your airline for further assistance. Please be aware that airlines will likely be dealing with more queries than usual and some may be prioritising consumers who are currently abroad or due to travel imminently.
If the Government has advised against all but essential travel to your destination, your airline will likely cancel your flight and offer a full refund. If you’re due to travel imminently and your flight hasn’t been cancelled, check the airline website before contacting the airline. If the airline has confirmed your flight will go ahead, they may still be able to offer a refund or allow you to change your booking to a later date.
Check the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) website for the latest updates.
I've been refunded for my flights and accommodation by my tour provider. Can I claim back any other costs I organised separately (e.g. hire car, transfers and excursion tickets)?
If you have an LV= Premier policy, you may be able to claim back additional costs you've paid that can't be claimed back from anywhere else.
I have a UK trip booked. Am I covered for cancellation due to COVID-19?
Due to the current government lockdown, all hotels, holiday parks and tourist attractions are closed. While the lockdown remains, you’re unable to go on any UK trips. If you’re due to travel shortly, you should contact your provider – they may offer you a credit note or allow you to rebook. Our other FAQ’s also apply to UK trips.
The FCO advice is to now avoid travel – can I cancel and claim on my travel policy if I booked before this change in advice?
If you took out your travel policy before the FCO advice changed to advise against travel, you should first contact your travel provider to see if you can get a refund or rearrange your booking. Alternatively, you may be able to claim a refund from your credit card provider. If you’re not able to reclaim your costs, your travel policy will cover you for the costs of cancelling your trip.
My trip is later this year but I need to pay the final balance of my holiday now. If I need to cancel later, will I be covered?
As long as your trip was booked, and insurance was in place, before the FCO advice against travel was issued, you will be covered for cancellation if you’ve paid the full balance or a deposit and need to cancel.
If my doctor or GP says I fall into a high-risk group and mustn't travel, will my policy cover me for cancellation?
If you have an underlying health condition that puts you at additional risk from coronavirus, we will cover your cancellation if you’ve been screened for the condition and we have agreed to cover it. We will also need you to provide evidence of the condition, such as prescription or medical notes. This applies to respiratory conditions, heart conditions and any condition with requires you to take immune suppressing medication.
I booked my trip to go to a theme park / resort. It’s still closed and I don’t want travel, can I cancel the trip?
When the FCO lifts the current travel restrictions there may be theme parks or resorts that remain closed. If the FCO advice is that it is safe to travel to the country you were planning to visit, not wanting to travel due to the theme park / resort closure isn’t a reason for cancelling and you won’t be able to make a cancellation claim.
I’m stuck abroad in a country that has imposed a ‘lockdown’ so I can't get back, can my trip dates be extended to cover this?
Yes, we will extend your policy so the same cover will continue until you return home.If I’m quarantined, and am asked to pay for food, can I make a claim?
If you have LV= Premier cover, you can make a claim for additional costs that can’t be recovered from elsewhere.If I’m quarantined at the airport for my return flight and can’t fly as a result of a medical assessment, will I be covered for a full refund of my trip? Will the policy cover the cost of another flight home?
If you are quarantined at the airport for your return flight, we will extend the policy to include any additional period. We will work with the authorities to provide assistance to return you back home.Cover, amendments and my renewal
My provider has offered me a rescheduled trip, am I covered for coronavirus related issues?
Yes, up to the value of the original trip and as long as the original trip was booked before FCO advice changed against travel.I have a medical condition that’s not covered by my insurance. Am I still covered for coronavirus?
Yes, you would be covered for medical claims. You won’t be covered for cancellation claims if the reason is due to your medical condition.Am I covered if I have an annual policy that auto-renewed after the FCO advice changed?
Yes you would be covered as long as you booked the trip before the FCO advised against travelling and your cover was continuous due to auto renew. But, if your travel plans are disrupted, you should contact your travel provider. They may be able to rearrange your trip or give you a refund. Alternatively, you may be able to claim a refund from your credit or debit card provider. If you're unable to get an alternative trip or refund, you're covered for cancellation.How can I be sure that I’m covered?
If you bought your policy after the FCO advised against travel, you won't be covered if you cancel your trip due to the coronavirus. If you booked before the advice changed, and your travel plans are affected, contact your travel provider.They may be able to rearrange your trip or give you a refund. Alternatively, you may be able to claim a refund from your credit or debit card provider. If you're unable to get an alternative trip or refund, you're covered for cancellation.
Do I have to renew my policy if my trip is after my renewal date?
Yes, you'll need to renew your policy if you need to make a claim after your renewal date.If I already have a policy, can I make changes?
Yes, if you already have travel insurance with us, you can make changes to your policy. Just give us a call and we’ll be happy to help.If I can reschedule my trip with my travel provider, will you be able to change my travel policy to cover me for the new dates?
Yes, if you originally had a single trip policy, we can cancel your policy and set you up with a new one. As long as the destination and duration are the same, your premium won't change.If I need to make a change, will you increase my price?
If you need to extend your cover to other countries, for example changing your policy from European cover to worldwide, then it’s likely the premium will increase because you’ll have more extensive cover. However, the reason we’ve taken the decision to stop selling travel insurance to new customers is to ensure we don’t have to pass on large price increases to our existing customers.Something else
During February and March the number of travel insurance policies we sold doubled. As we’re a very small provider of travel insurance, it was important for the long-term benefit of all our customers that our exposure remained at a sustainable level of the overall business.
We considered a number of options, such as excluding cover or increasing prices for new customers, but we believed temporarily pausing the sale of new policies and focusing on our existing customers was the right decision.
This is only a temporary move given the exceptional circumstances and we’ll continue to monitor and review the situation on an ongoing basis.