subject: Iceland Volcano Leads To Confusion Over Travel Insurance Policies [print this page] Travellers affected by the volcanic ash that spread after an active volcano erupted in the south of Iceland face insurance confusion when their holiday plans were ruined due to grounded flights across the whole of the UK.
Airlines have pledged that flights will either be refunded or customers will be able to rebook flights, however many passengers will be left to foot the bills for hotel rooms and car hire.
Some travel insurance policies have confirmed they will cover these losses but many others will not.
People are being urged to check the terms and conditions of their policies and contact insurers.
Nick Starling, of the Association of British Insurers (ABI), said: "Travel insurance policies will differ in this situation,"
"There is no standard set of conditions which applies to a situation of this kind. Therefore customers should check their travel insurance policy, and speak to their travel insurer to understand what their individual policy covers them for in this situation."
Further updates this morning confirmed that the majority of flights in the UK will remain grounded until early tomorrow morning as the clouds of ash continue to drift across Europe.
The Met office issued warnings that the ash could be harmful to the engines in planes and lead to failure, which has resulted in thousands of flights being cancelled.
Airlines have said they will refund or rebook passengers to alternative flights. They also hold a duty of care to provide hotel rooms and food to stranded passengers.
However, the situation is expected to affect flights for a number of days, so more and more people are likely to opt for the refund, rather than taking an undetermined later flight arriving late at their holiday destinations.
It is generally the case that low cost insurance deals provide lower levels of cover which don't pay out on losses, such as cancelled hotels.
Others insurers said they would treat the incident as 'a case of bad weather' a situation that would provide cover to policy holders.
"Not all insurance policies are the same and travellers are urged to contact their insurance provider to clarify their specific policy coverage as not all insurers will necessarily cover this," said Steve Foulsham, of the British Insurance Brokers' Association.
People that had planned to fly in the coming days could also face insurance problems.
If travellers booked holidays but left the purchasing of an insurance policy after Thursday, they may not be covered for losses caused by the disruption.
"As with all insurance policies, you are unable to insure for an event or incident after it has happened," said Jennifer Thomas, spokeswoman for Direct Line Travel Insurance.
"Therefore, customers wishing to buy travel insurance today will not be covered for travel delay or missed departure arising from the volcanic ash as they are buying cover in the knowledge that there is a problem.
"This highlights the importance of buying travel insurance as soon as you book your holiday or flight."
by: Sam Gooch
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