TRAVELLERS due to fly out of UK airports are being warned to check their travel insurance policies to make sure they’re covered as chaos continues to plague getaways.
Any airline cancelling your flight within two weeks is legally obliged to give you compensation as well as either a refund or alternative flight as well as food, drink and even accommodation if you’re delayed overnight.
Even lengthy delays mean compensation – if you’re delayed more than three hours on or short and mid haul flights and four hours on long haul flights.
But holidaymakers caught up in the chaos over half term and the Jubilee weekend have found themselves out of pocket if they miss out on car hire, accommodation or are forced to splash out on extra costs like taxis or meals.
And with horror stories about bags missing flights or failing to be delivered when families head home, it’s never been more important to check your travel insurance has cover so you won’t be spending precious holiday money on unnecessary expenses.
Neil Wright, boss of travel insurer CoverForYou says: “While insurance policies are likely to cover strikes, industrial action, adverse weather and mechanical failure, most policies won’t cover the airline just cancelling flights due to operational reasons.
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“If you’re after a bit more protection, I’d advise adding Travel Disruption cover to a standard policy.
"This type of cover starts from as little as 65p on a CoverForYou policy and since the pandemic we’ve seen this add-on surge in popularity.
“Travel Disruption includes things like paying for additional travel and accommodation costs if you have to make alternative arrangements to reach your destination.
"If the airline offers you another flight which is 12 hours later and you decide it’s not worth travelling, Travel Disruption will also cover certain unused travel, accommodation and other pre-paid charges.
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And Katie Crowe from Battleface warns to check the small print on your insurance policy.
She says: “Travel insurance can protect travellers from financial risks such as trip cancellation or curtailment as well as loss of baggage and personal belongings.
"Every travel insurance policy is different so make sure you check the small print so you know what you’re protected for and under what circumstances you can make a claim.”
Helen Rolph, travel insurance comparison expert at Quotezone.co.uk comments: “If you haven’t set off yet, make sure to protect yourself with an appropriate travel insurance policy – it can help with cancellations, delays and lost baggage.
“Travel insurance doesn’t have to be expensive and can cover you for holidays within the UK. Save by only paying what you need to, for example, if it’s only for one trip don’t buy annual coverage and if it’s a holiday in Europe then you don’t need full worldwide cover – plus use a comparison site to compare the deals.”
For those looking to cover all bases – and protect themselves should their airline go bust, it’s possible to add Scheduled Airline Failure to some policies.
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"The level of protection varies but providers could cover up to £2,500 for the loss of air tickets and the extra cost of replacing flights.
Connor Campbell from NerdWallet says: "It can also cover other additional purchases such as a villa deposit or car hire, which you may lose if you can’t travel because of the airline’s failure.”
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