Where do I stand if holiday cancelled due to Swine Flu?

billykeats

I know this is a long way off but who knows what can happen.

Me & my wife are going on holiday to a greek island at the beginning of July and I was wondering where we stood if all flights were cancelled to avoid the Swine Flu spreading?

My wife read that we may not be entitled to any refund or can claim as this would be a natural disaster. Is she correct?

We didn't pay for any part of the holiday with a credit card but the company is ATOL protect and ABTA bonded.

Any help or advice would be much appreciated

RachelW1987

I really don't think it will come to that.

If it did I would have thought they would have to compensate. Im going to the Greek Isles in June and i'm not worried. If all else fails im rowing there :beer:

mobby-2554

I don't think it will either.


If flights are canceled due to advice from the FCO (Foreign and Commonwealth Office) then you should be able to claim the money back from your insurers anyway but make sure you read the policy first.

thomasmazur

Hello; i am in a similar situation.
Booked a multi leg trip through an atol, abta, iata protected company.
We'll be going to Japan, australia and south east asia in mid june for 4 weeks.
I just called my travel insurance that confirmed that I would not be covered for any flights cancellations, changes of plans etc due to the virus, or in fact any virus or government issued warnings against going to a country.
The woman also said that most of the insurers would not cover, and she advised to contact the travel agent to check with them. I am email them now.
Does anyone know exactly if anything would be covered at all by anyone, or of an insurer that would do it?
Thanks, Thomas

Nordictat2

I just talked to a friend of mine (soon to a Dr.) in Mexico and he said alot of people are thinking the Govt. created all this hype about the flu to keep peoples minds OFF the fact that Mexico just passed a law (around the same time this "flu" came about) that lets you have possession of small amounts of marijuana, ecstasy, cocaine and heroin for personal use!

I have to say it's weird timing and wouldn't surprise me as we all know how our Govt.'s can be so sneaky!

dacouch

The Fortis Travel Policy through BROKERS should cover it, although the Fortis Policy through the Post Office does not strictly cover it.

Please note that if you take out cover for a trip now, there is no guarantee that Fortis would pay the claim as they may say that it is now a "Known Event" and as such they could say its not covered.

It is worth checking with your own Insurer (Make sure you take a note of the name and date / time of the call)

What tends to happen in these types of unusual situations is the Government leans on the ABI (A trade organisation for Insurers) and they ask their members to deal with claims "sympathetically". As a result some Insurers will pay the claims even though they are not technically covered and some will just refuse. This when you will see the benefit on not buying Travel Cover on price alone.

http://www.abi.org.uk/Newsreleases/viewNewsRelease.asp?nrid=17666

deegee999

Rachel i'm off to a greek island in june to, so book a boat with more oars:D

thomasmazur

I have a year worldwide Fortis policy, upgraded from the european one that comes with alliance & leicester.
Shame they don't cover it, I guess I'll have to look for another one.

Voyager2002

I'm planning an outing to Dawlish (Devon). If Devon gets closed due to swine 'flu, do you think the government would pay me compensation?

Jokaty82

It feels a bit too early for these 'What If's'. All you will end up doing is stressing yourself out.

At the moment, not even all flights to Mexico in and out have been cancelled, so dont worry about flights to Greece in June and July.

Sometimes we do ourselves more harm than good, by worrying about things. I have 2 holidays this year, one to Lanzarote in 4 weeks, and 1 to Sharm El Sheikh in September. The thought has not even crossed my mind.

For those people flying to Mexico with FC and Thomson in the next week have had a refund or free holiday change, but after that its a 'wait and see', these things can change daily. So try not to worry.

RachelW1987

Lol Deegee I have one with extra oars on order!!