Coronavirus: Travel insurance update
12 March 2020
UPDATE: 06 May 2020
Update from George Burrows – Travel Insurance
06/05/2020
Dear members
At this uncertain time, I have been working hard with George Burrows to ensure that I am able to get you all the very latest information in respect of travel insurance claims.
Myself and the office managers have been trying to deal with the individual queries that you have all been raising with us and we have been able to resolve many of these for you. I am sorry if we have not been able to resolve some of them fully, but we are working hard to get the right information from both George Burrows and the Insurer Ageas.
Please continue to raise concerns with us as you need to and we will endeavour to resolve as many as we can as swiftly as we can.
At this time the federation staff are like many other employees having to work remotely and therefore the best way to contact the office is by email on suffolk@polfed.org
Please see below the latest information from George Burrows.
For members whose holiday has been cancelled
Customers whose holidays have been cancelled due to the current travel restrictions are entitled to a full refund from their travel provider. We are aware that many providers are in the first instance offering either to rearrange travel or to provide travel vouchers but if this is not an acceptable option then customers should insist on being fully refunded. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) are investigating this issue and have stated that they will take appropriate enforcement action against any company failing to comply with the law.
There is access to an online form via the below link for consumers to report any such cases to assist the CMA with their investigation.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-to-investigate-concerns-about-cancellation-policies
There is also an article on the BBC regarding the CMA investigation.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-52483453
For members who need to cancel their holiday due to lockdown restrictions
Where the holiday itself has not been cancelled by the travel provider but the customer is still unable to go due to lockdown measures, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has advised that for most consumer contracts, they would expect a full refund to be issued by the travel provider where “a consumer cancels or is prevented from receiving the service, due to the restrictions that apply during the current lockdown”. Members should therefore still approach their travel providers to seek a refund even if the holiday is still going ahead. If this is refused then they should consider reporting the travel provider to the CMA using the online form via the below link.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-to-investigate-concerns-about-cancellation-policies
Consumer Credit Act
For any member who has been denied a refund or only received a partial refund from their travel provider and who purchased any part of their trip using a credit card then their transaction was deemed to have been “financed” by the card issuer. In these circumstances they should contact the credit card provider to instigate a claim under the Consumer Credit Act; Section 75.
Policy cover for trips booked before 14/03/2020
For trips booked prior to the World Health Organisation declaring the COVID-19 outbreak as a Pandemic, the policy will provide cover under Cancellation for any remaining irrecoverable costs for members who have been advised not to travel by their GP or where they have received a letter from the NHS advising them to self-isolate. They will be asked to demonstrate that they have explored all other avenues to pursue a refund i.e. via the Travel Provider and Credit card company.
The policy also provides cover under the Medical section should a member contract Coronavirus whilst travelling and under Catastrophe section for travellers already abroad who are having to return home early due to Government advice.
For anyone currently abroad who is unable to return to the UK, the policy will automatically extend for up to 60 days. This is on the understanding that the member is following Government advice which is that all UK Citizens should attempt to return to the UK as soon as possible. There is help available on the Foreign & Commonwealth website.
NB: If a trip was originally booked before 14th March 2020 but has since been rearranged after this date, this would still be considered to have been booked prior to 14th March as long as the travel provider is retaining the money and simply changing dates and/or destination. It would only be if the holiday was fully cancelled and refunded and they then book a new holiday altogether that this would constitute a new booking.
Policy cover for trips booked after 14/03/2020
The policy does not provide cover for claims relating to incidents known to members at the time of booking a trip. Any claims relating to the COVID-19 Pandemic will therefore not be covered for any trips booked after 14/03/2020.
Kindest regards
Ben Hudson
General Secretary
UPDATE: 21 April
Travel Insurance Queries relating to COVID-19
It is an industry standard policy that the tour operator, airline or accommodation provider are responsible for any holidays that will not be taking place due to current situation following the government advice not to travel.
We recommend before travelling members follow the advice from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) – this will be kept up to date. If you travel against this advice then any cover which may otherwise be available will be invalidated. This is a standard exclusion on the policy.
If as a result of the FCO advice you need to cancel your trip or the airline / travel provider cancels your trip then in the first instance you should contact them to discuss your options. These options could be: postponing fights / offering a voucher or alternative travel dates / re-arranging to a different destination / refund. Most airlines will only refund the money once they have actually had to cancel the flight usually up to 28 days prior to departure, until then most are offering vouchers or a change of date.
If you have booked a hotel directly with the company or via a portal such as Booking.com you may wish to contact the hotel in the first instance to see what options they will provided.
If the hotel will not offer alternative travel dates or a refund you could discuss reimbursement from your credit card company if the cost of the trip was over £100. If a debit card was used members can check with the individual terms and conditions of the issuing Bank or Building Society.
If you are not able to recover your costs by any of the above means and are not offered an alternative date / trip, then we will ask the insurers to consider a claim. In accordance with the Governments travel advice and they will request an audit trail of what efforts you have made to secure your money from the airlines, tour operators and hotels.
We appreciate that members may find it difficult to contact their travel operator due to the unprecedented number of calls, however their website usually provides a fact sheet detailing their policy for cancelled trips. In addition, Martin Lewis has put together some guidance that also details the company policy and procedures that may assist your members with the information they require.
UPDATE: 18 MARCH
IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19 including mutations) AND AGEAS TRAVEL INSURANCE
Because the World Health Organisation declared the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak a pandemic on 11th March 2020 this is now a known event. This affects the cover provided by Ageas Travel Insurance policies.
Any policies purchased on or after 14/03/2020 will not include cover under any section whatsoever for claims directly or indirectly caused by the Coronavirus. This includes any preventative containment or delay measures.
For any policies issued before 14/03/2020 cover remains as per the policy terms and conditions for any trips already booked. Any trips booked on or after 14/03/2020 will not include cover under any section whatsoever for claims directly or indirectly caused by the Coronavirus. This includes any preventative containment or delay measures.”
12 MARCH
If you have a travel insurance policy through the group insurance George Burrows, please read the below declaration regarding the coronavirus.
Medical Cover
If you travel to a destination where the Foreign & Commonwealth Office has not advised against all, or all but essential travel then you would be covered for medical costs if you were to catch the virus during your trip. If you travelled and then during your trip the FCO amended their decision to advise against all, or all but essential travel then cover would still remain as your trip began prior to the change in advice.
You will not be covered under any section if you decide to travel against the advice of the FCO.
Curtailment
If you become ill whilst on your trip, you will be covered for unused travel and accommodation costs if you have to return home early as long as you did not travel against FCO advice.
Cancellation cover
If you become ill before your trip and you are unable to travel, you will be covered for unused travel and accommodation costs which you do not use.
If you choose to cancel and not go on your trip when the government have not advised against all, or all but essential travel to your destination then there won't be any cover for cancelling your trip.
If the Foreign and Commonwealth Office have advised against all, or all but essential travel to your destination, you should contact the airline and / or travel agent to seek a refund or to rebook your trip for a later date.
The insurers have advised to that you should continue to monitor the FCO website and government advice for regularly updated information.
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