Enhanced Covid-19 insurance launched for travel in Europe
The British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA) Holiday Travel+ and Sports Travel+ schemes now include an enhanced Covid-19 extension
The BIBA scheme provides cancellation cover and medical expenses costs for those who have been vaccinated and wish to travel to places that the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) advise against ‘all but essential travel’ where this advice is solely because of Covid-19.
In addition, it covers several other scenarios that are not covered in the majority of travel insurance products such as cancellation due to the failure to complete your vaccine course due to illness, adverse reaction to Covid-19 vaccine within 14 days of the scheduled departure date, and cancellation due to being told to self-isolate by the UK Government’s Test and Trace service.
This is in addition to the standard cover for Covid-19 emergency medical treatment, repatriation costs and any extra travel and accommodation expenses abroad if the policyholder catches Covid-19. Children who have not been vaccinated will also be covered under the policy as long as they are under 18, have not refused a vaccine when offered one and the government hasn’t announced the vaccine roll out to under 18s.
Graeme Trudgill, BIBA Executive Director, commented: “This welcome new additional cover from the BIBA Holiday Travel scheme with Jackson Lee Underwriting (JLU) can give vaccinated holidaymakers improved peace of mind when booking a holiday. It allows them to enjoy their trip with the confidence they have protection from comprehensive travel insurance that provides a great deal of insurance protection for Covid risks and even track and trace self-isolation.”
Insurance brokers increasingly busy
Dipesh Patel, Senior Underwriter for JLU, added: “The traffic light system announced by the government in a bid to open up our borders again means insurance brokers can expect to be increasingly busy with international travel quotations. Many insurance policies will now have elements of cover relating to Covid, but there is a huge difference between the wordings currently on offer.
“Clearly the pandemic has been a worrying and challenging time for many, but as we begin to look to the future and open our borders again, we’re in an excellent position to make sure we equip brokers and their customers with first class coverage, to give them the added reassurance and protection they need to get moving again.”
The key eligibility requirement for the extension is that policyholders must have, or have booked, the Covid-19 vaccinations offered at the earliest opportunity.
Meanwhile, as a leading issue within its 2021 manifesto, BIBA is calling on the industry to embed signposting to help customers better access insurance.