The Government announced a new Traffic Light Scheme for Travel from Monday 17th May. Under this scheme you will still be covered to travel to destinations on the amber and red list, providing there is no advice in place from the FCDO against all travel or all but essential travel. You can check the FCDO website for the latest updates. You may be able to claim for cancellation if your destination moves from one level of advice to another in the traffic light system, please check your terms and conditions.
You will not be covered for any event you were aware of when booking your holiday or purchasing your insurance, and there is no valid cover if you fail to provide the required tests and/or documentation required to travel e.g. a negative test result.
If you need to cancel your trip, you should first ask your airline or travel provider to postpone your trip or arrange a refund. If you have booked a package holiday, under The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018, your rights are legally protected and therefore you should liaise with the tour operator for a refund.
If your flights were not booked as part of a package, you may still be entitled to a refund under the EU Denied Boarding regulations if your transport was cancelled, and therefore you should liaise with your airline for a refund.
If the airline or travel provider won’t postpone your trip or provide a refund, then please contact our claims team as you may be covered under your policy.
For accommodation, excursions, car hire and other pre-paid charges that were not purchased as part of a package, you should contact the provider. If you paid by credit card, contact the card issuer or PayPal for advice on how to claim a refund. If you can’t obtain a refund from any other source, then please contact our claims team.
Please be aware, most of our policies have a pandemic exclusion. This means that any claim made for FCDO advice due to a pandemic would not be covered under that policy. Please check your relevant wording to see if this applicable.
Our policies have an exclusion relating to advice issued by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) advice. This means that we would not cover you if you travel against FCDO advice. The red list system has been issued by the Department for Transport (DfT), so providing that the FCDO are not advising against travel to a country which is on the red list on the DfT website, we would cover you under the normal terms and conditions of your policy.
AXA underwrites numerous insurance products in the UK and globally, so within each sales journey there will be messaging about what is covered and what is not. You can view the terms and conditions for full information before purchasing. If you have any concerns about what is covered please do not hesitate to contact the relevant customer service team for your policy.
Customers must check their local restrictions carefully, as travelling either in the UK or overseas while UK Government or Devolved Government restrictions are in place could invalidate your policy. Please see specific guidance for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Customers are covered if they, someone they are travelling with or a close relative (as defined within the policy) contracts coronavirus and/or if they or someone they are travelling with has to quarantine because they have been exposed to coronavirus or have been contacted by a doctor, track and trace, or another public health board before their trip and cannot travel, so long as they were unaffected and able to travel at the time they purchased the policy and at the time they booked their trip.
Some of our policies no longer provide cover if a government or another public authority impose restrictions on movement or isolation, this includes lockdowns, either in your home country or at your destination.
In terms of cover, all AXA policies, irrespective of purchase date, include cover for emergency medical expenses due to coronavirus or if you have to cancel because you or a close relative become ill with coronavirus. However, a number of our policies no longer cover cancellation or curtailment if the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) or another regulatory body advises against travel due to a pandemic.
New and existing customers will also be covered for emergency medical claims related to coronavirus in countries which are exempt from the FCDO's or another regulatory body’s advice against all but essential travel.
AXA underwrites numerous insurance products in the UK and globally, so within each sales journey there will be messaging about what is covered and what is not. You can also view the policy terms for full information before purchasing. If you have any worries about what is covered please do not hesitate to contact the customer service team.
Customers must check their local restrictions carefully, as travelling either in the UK or overseas while UK Government or Devolved Government restrictions are in place could invalidate your policy. Please see specific guidance for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Customers are covered to cancel their trip if they, someone they are travelling with or a close relative (as defined within the policy) contracts coronavirus and/or if they or someone they are travelling with has to quarantine because they have been exposed to coronavirus or have been contacted by a doctor, track and trace, or another public health board before their trip, so long as they were unaffected and able to travel at the time they purchased the policy and at the time they booked their trip.
Some of our policies no longer provide cover if a government or another public authority impose restrictions on movement or isolation, this includes lockdowns, either in your home country or at your destination.
In terms of cover, all AXA policies, irrespective of purchase date, include cover for emergency medical expenses due to coronavirus or if you have to cancel because you or a close relative become ill with coronavirus. However, a number of our policies no longer cover cancellation or curtailment if the FCDO or another regulatory body advises against travel due to a pandemic.
New and existing customers will also be covered for emergency medical claims related to coronavirus in countries which are exempt from the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office’s (FCDO) or another regulatory body’s advice against all but essential travel.
AXA underwrites numerous insurance products in the UK and globally, so within each sales journey there will be messaging about what is covered and what is not. You can also view the policy terms for full information before purchasing. If you have any worries about what is covered please do not hesitate to contact the customer service team.
If your flight or holiday been cancelled, then you are due a full refund, however we understand some companies are providing these through rescheduling or vouchers or credit notes.
If you are unhappy with these alternatives, then you will need to discuss this with your operator or airline.
You need to go back to your provider as your contract of payment is with them – only they can advise.
If your transport provider or tour operator moves your trip destination or dates due to the outbreak, then we will class your original booking date as your booking date, therefore the exclusion for new trips booked will not apply. You will need to amend your insurance to reflect your new dates/destination and there may be an additional premium for doing this. If your trip is cancelled and you book a new/alternative trip, then your policy will not cover cancellations due to FCDO advice or some curtailments relating to coronavirus. General rules regarding FCDO advice and travel restrictions will continue to apply.
If you are due to go on a package holiday, then your booking should be financially protected by a scheme such as ATOL. You should have been given an ATOL certificate (or similar) when you booked your holiday, which includes details of what to do if the company goes into liquidation. If the company does go into liquidation, customers should visit the Civil Aviation Authority’s (CAA) website for guidance.
If you only booked flights, these may also be protected by a system such as ATOL, although it is less common. If you do have protection you would have been given a certificate (or similar) when you booked your flights, which includes details of what to do if the company goes into liquidation.
If you purchased some or all of your flights or booked your accommodation separately using a credit card, you may be able to arrange a refund from your credit card provider or PayPal. You may also be able to claim on your insurance, but this will depend on the level of cover you have in place and usually your excess will be deducted from the amount to be repaid.
You should first ask your airline or travel provider to postpone your trip or arrange a refund. Once you have done this please log your claim online if you are a Lloyds, Halifax or AXA Direct customer, or contact our customer service team for any unrecovered costs subject to standard terms and conditions.
Customers must check their local restrictions carefully, as travelling either in the UK or overseas while UK Government or Devolved Government restrictions are in place could invalidate your policy. Please see specific guidance for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
AXA will cover emergency medical claims if you contract coronavirus abroad, provided you didn’t travel against FCDO or any other government’s advice, your pre-existing medical conditions have been declared and you were unaffected and able to travel at the time you purchased the policy and your trip.
It’s important you check the insurance policy your tour operator, airline or destination provides, to make sure it covers everything you need. In some cases, it will only provide limited cover if you contract coronavirus while on your trip. Therefore, if you require cover for other issues, such as medical incidents abroad not relating to coronavirus, lost baggage, travel disruption etc. you are likely to still need a traditional insurance policy.
Our policies don’t cover this, you should speak to tour airline or travel provider as they may be able to postpone your trip or arrange a refund.
Our policies don’t cover this, you should speak to tour airline or travel provider as they may be able to postpone your trip or arrange a refund.
Our policies don’t cover this, you should speak to tour airline or travel provider as they may be able to help.
You are covered for overseas medical expenses after contracting COVID-19 even if you are not vaccinated as this is covered under our policies medical section.
However, please be aware, you may not be covered if you have travelled against FCDO advice and your reason for claiming is the same reason for the FCDO advice. For example, if you travel to a country which the FCDO advises against travel due to a COVID outbreak and then you contract COVID and need to claim.
Please check your relevant wording for full terms, conditions and coverage limits.
Coronavirus travel guidance
Following identification of new variants of the virus, international travel from your area may be restricted because of domestic regulations. Different rules apply in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Follow all the rules that apply to you.
Other countries have closed borders, and may restrict movement or bring in new quarantine rules with little warning. Check our advice on things to consider and be prepared to stay overseas longer than planned.
Customers must check their local restrictions carefully, as travelling either in the UK or overseas while UK Government or Devolved Government restrictions are in place could invalidate your policy. Please see specific guidance for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
For any cancellation claims for overseas bookings, you should first ask your airline or travel provider to postpone your trip or arrange a refund. If you have booked a package holiday, under The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018, your rights are legally protected and therefore you should liaise with the tour operator for a refund.
If your flights were not booked as part of a package, you may still legally be entitled to a refund under the EU Denied Boarding regulations if your transport was cancelled, and therefore you should liaise with your airline for a refund.
If the airline or travel provider won’t postpone your trip or provide a refund, then please contact our claims team.
For accommodation, excursions, car hire and other pre-paid charges that were not purchased as part of a package, you should contact the provider. If you paid by credit card, contact the card issuer or PayPal for advice on how to claim a refund. If you can’t obtain a refund from any other source, then please contact our claims team.
Customers must check their local restrictions carefully, as travelling either in the UK or overseas while UK Government or Devolved Government restrictions are in place could invalidate your policy. Please see specific guidance for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
If your accommodation is in an area of the UK which the UK Government or a Devolved Government have imposed stricter restrictions (such as tier 4), then the accommodation owner or booking agent must provide a refund. If you have any other unrecoverable costs, please contact our claims team.
If the accommodation is an area where travel is allowed, however you are in a restricted area, you should first contact the accommodation provider to postpone your trip or arrange a refund. If you paid by credit card contact the card issuer or PayPal for advice on how to claim a refund, if you can’t obtain a refund from any other source then please register a claim with us.
Depending on where you live, you may not be restricted from travelling outside of your home, therefore your trip may be able to go ahead. If you no longer wish to travel, please contact your accommodation owner or booking agent to postpone your trip or arrange a refund, there is no cover to cancel if your trip is able to go ahead.
For your claim to be dealt with as quickly as possible, you need to contact your travel provider or tour operator first. They may be able to move your trip to different dates or provide you with a refund. By doing this first, it will speed up the processing of your claim should you have any out of pocket expenses.
Only once you have exhausted all options can you make a claim online if you are a Lloyds, Halifax or AXA Direct customer, or contact our customer service team.
Once you have contacted all providers for any refunds or options available to you via tour operators or flight/accommodation providers, you can register your claim online if you are a Lloyds, Halifax or AXA Direct customer, or contact our customer service team.
Our teams are working hard to deal with your claim, but please note that we are often receiving an unprecedented volume of calls. One of our team will contact you as soon as they have assessed your existing claim.
The time it takes for us to resolve your claim will depend on the nature of the claim and the information we require to process it.
Our team are working extremely hard to be available for our customers and resolve claims in a timely fashion, but please bear with us as the volume of claims being made is unprecedented.
Please ensure you read our required documents laid out in your claim pack to help evidence your claim. Sending these in together will help us to reduce requests for further documentation. Requests for further documentation could result in a delay to your claim.
Submitting your claim
Once you've read the information above and are ready to make a claim under your travel insurance, please use the following links depending on who you purchased the policy through.
Customers must check their local restrictions carefully, as travelling either in the UK or overseas while UK Government or Devolved Government restrictions are in place could invalidate your policy. Please see specific guidance for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) currently advise that some countries have closed borders, and any country may further restrict travel or bring in new social distancing rules with little warning. Additionally, they may also advise against all or all but essential to some countries or territories. You should check their advice for each country you will visit or transit through.
Their advice is being kept under constant review. Travel disruption is still possible and national control measures may be brought in with little notice, so check the FCDO’stravel guidance for more information.
AXA underwrites numerous insurance products in the UK and globally, so within each sales journey there will be messaging about what is covered and what is not. You can view the terms and conditions for full information before purchasing. If you have any concerns about what is covered please do not hesitate to contact the relevant customer service team for your policy.
Please follow the FCDO advice above and first check if there are commercial routes available by contacting your airline or tour operator and checking the FCDO travel advice pages for the country you are in and the local British embassy social media.
If you booked a package holiday, your provider should arrange alternative transport.
If you’re an independent traveller, you should contact your airline to reschedule your flight or arrange a refund. You may be able to claim on your travel insurance to recover some of the costs you incur if you have travel disruption cover. Cover will depend on your policy, its limits, and the refund from your providers.
If you become ill while on holiday, your travel insurance will cover your medical expenses abroad as long as you have a valid claim and you have not travelled to a destination which is not exempt from the FCDO's advice against all but essential travel.
If you are confined to your hotel under doctor’s orders for at least 48 hours, we will pay for the room, up to the policy limit. And if you paid in advance for excursions or activities that you can’t do because of your quarantine, we will cover that, up to a certain amount.
If your airline or travel provider cannot book you on a later flight, we will cover an alternate flight subject to a valid claim.
