On the evening of the 4th November 2015, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) changed their advice regarding Egypt, following the possibility that the plane crash last week in Egypt was caused by a bomb/missile, insinuating that there is significant evidence that this may have been a terrorist issue. They are now advising against all but essential travel to the entire country, and are making arrangements to bring any Brits currently there home.
If you’re currently in Egypt, please contact your holiday company as soon as possible as they should be able to help make arrangements for you to return home.
If you have booked a holiday to Egypt, please contact your holiday company as soon as you can as they should be able to either rearrange your holiday for another time or offer you a full refund. If you have a travel insurance policy with us, we can change this to cover your new holiday providing the new trip is within three months of your original departure date, is for the same (or no longer) duration, and is to the same geographical area. If your trip is cancelled and you are being fully refunded by your holiday company, we will also consider the cancellation and refund of your existing policy. Please note that this will only apply to single trip policies for specific trips covering the dates concerned.
We have also updated the advice regarding what cover we can offer you if you’re currently in Egypt below:
- Medical expenses – Any medical claims arising as a result of any attacks are fully covered under the policy terms and conditions
- Repatriation – Both holiday companies and the British government are looking to repatriate those in Egypt. If, for any reason, you’re unable to be repatriated by either of these then we will provide cover for this in line with your medical needs
- Cutting short your trip – If you have chosen to end your holiday and no refund is available from your holiday company then we will refund up to £1,000 per person for the cost of your lost holiday upon receipt of clarification from your holiday company as to why they will not reimburse this to you. This is extra cover that is not detailed in the policy terms and conditions, therefore the limits set out in the policy booklet do not apply in this case. If you are currently in Egypt and have made independent arrangements (i.e. do not have a holiday company who can assist you with extended accommodation costs that you need to incur after your planned return date), we will allow claims to be submitted under this section on a room-only basis, within the £1,000 limit provided, to assist you with these costs which you cannot get back from any other source
- Cancellation – If you’re cancelling a future holiday to Egypt, in the first instance, you should speak to your holiday company, as most are offering a full refund/change of destination. However, if you find that these are not available to you, we will look at these on a case-by-case basis and will, again, be subject to clarification from your holiday company being provided as to the reason why this will not be refunded
Please note that our advice remains valid until 15th November 2015, when we have been advised this restriction will be removed.
If you have any queries, please get in touch with us.