Travel insurance against holiday cancellation ...
Discussion
... due to possible fuel shortages.
I am, or was, planning a weeks holiday in Cornwall at the end of June. As it's now less than 8 weeks before the date I was planning on heading down there, I need to pay the full price upon booking the holiday let.
My concern is, that in 8 weeks time fuel, both diesel and petrol, may be in short supply/very short supply, and/or we may have travel restrictions imposed.
If that was the case, and I had to cancel, I wanted to insure against such an eventuality.
I've just wasted 20 minutes on the phone to Aviva trying to establish whether I can get cover for such a scenario.
The individual asked me if I would be using my car and fuelling the car myself. This seemed a strange line of questioning ...
So I said, the fuel shortage isn't the issue, it's the government imposing travel restrictions because of fuel shortages I'm concerned about.
The individual said he'd speak to the underwriters, and came back 5 minutes later saying that if the holiday was cancelled due to a jet fuel shortage, which meant a flight was cancelled, I could insure against it, but as I was using my car and fuelling it myself, I couldn't insure against it.
I said that wasn't the issue, the issue may be the government introducing travel restrictions which would cause me to have to cancel the holiday booking because of fuel restrictions.
The individual seemed to be struggling with this concept, so I said thanks and hung up.
So
1. Am over thinking this?
2. Should I try and insure against this eventuality ?
I am, or was, planning a weeks holiday in Cornwall at the end of June. As it's now less than 8 weeks before the date I was planning on heading down there, I need to pay the full price upon booking the holiday let.
My concern is, that in 8 weeks time fuel, both diesel and petrol, may be in short supply/very short supply, and/or we may have travel restrictions imposed.
If that was the case, and I had to cancel, I wanted to insure against such an eventuality.
I've just wasted 20 minutes on the phone to Aviva trying to establish whether I can get cover for such a scenario.
The individual asked me if I would be using my car and fuelling the car myself. This seemed a strange line of questioning ...
So I said, the fuel shortage isn't the issue, it's the government imposing travel restrictions because of fuel shortages I'm concerned about.
The individual said he'd speak to the underwriters, and came back 5 minutes later saying that if the holiday was cancelled due to a jet fuel shortage, which meant a flight was cancelled, I could insure against it, but as I was using my car and fuelling it myself, I couldn't insure against it.
I said that wasn't the issue, the issue may be the government introducing travel restrictions which would cause me to have to cancel the holiday booking because of fuel restrictions.
The individual seemed to be struggling with this concept, so I said thanks and hung up.
So
1. Am over thinking this?
2. Should I try and insure against this eventuality ?
IIRC there was an article about this in The Independent and the advice from Simon Calder was "no" I "think" there was no insurance because
1. If the holiday was cancelled beforehand you'd get your money back.
2. If the return flight was cancelled the Airline was responsible for re-routing you.
Apologies, not sure if that helps.
1. If the holiday was cancelled beforehand you'd get your money back.
2. If the return flight was cancelled the Airline was responsible for re-routing you.
Apologies, not sure if that helps.
The Aviva travel insurance policy will be available online for you to review prior to any purchase
In essence all non-essential travel would have to be banned for you not to be able to make the holiday
I don't think travel insurers paid claims due to the lockdown restrictions but I'm not entirely sure.
In essence all non-essential travel would have to be banned for you not to be able to make the holiday
I don't think travel insurers paid claims due to the lockdown restrictions but I'm not entirely sure.
omniflow said:
You're very definitely overthinking this.
The scenario you have painted is really very very unlikely. If you spend your life worrying about this kind of thing to the extent that you appear to be worrying then I'd just stay in bed and not bother getting up at all.
PMSL, my thoughts exactly, it's a trip to Cornwall, keep the car topped up so you have a full tank to go. The scenario you have painted is really very very unlikely. If you spend your life worrying about this kind of thing to the extent that you appear to be worrying then I'd just stay in bed and not bother getting up at all.
How far from Cornwall?
Are we going to have another lock down? Can't see it happening, the country is broke.
I think you are indeed over thinking this but in any event you will not be able to find a Travel Insurer to accept the risk.
Maybe a specialist Lloyds of London Syndicate might offer you something bespoke but you would have to go through a Lloyds broker and for the sum insured I very much doubt they would want to even consider it.
Maybe a specialist Lloyds of London Syndicate might offer you something bespoke but you would have to go through a Lloyds broker and for the sum insured I very much doubt they would want to even consider it.
Wife and I have just spent 4 days in Falmouth, travelling from mid Surrey. Before I set off I was concerned about the supply of diesel. Every fuel station had petrol and diesel, expensive but available. A good website for fuel station locations, prices, and availability that I have on my mobile phone is this:
https://checkfuelprices.co.uk/
R.
https://checkfuelprices.co.uk/
R.
I agree with the other posters that a prohibition on non-essential travel is unlikely though having lived through Sturgeon’s “no more than 5 miles from your local authority boundary” nonsense during the pandemic, certainly a possibility, albeit a remote one.
Personally, I’d probably be more concerned about difficulties in filling the car up either prior to your trip or for your return. If you want to mitigate against that, a couple of 20 litre Jerry cans from ECP would set you back £18 each and you could always use the stockpiled fuel at a later date. Your biggest issue isn’t likely to be a real fuel shortage, more likely a localised social media driven panic meaning you can’t refuel when you need it.
Personally, I’d probably be more concerned about difficulties in filling the car up either prior to your trip or for your return. If you want to mitigate against that, a couple of 20 litre Jerry cans from ECP would set you back £18 each and you could always use the stockpiled fuel at a later date. Your biggest issue isn’t likely to be a real fuel shortage, more likely a localised social media driven panic meaning you can’t refuel when you need it.
Slippydiff said:
... due to possible fuel shortages.
I am, or was, planning a weeks holiday in Cornwall at the end of June. As it's now less than 8 weeks before the date I was planning on heading down there, I need to pay the full price upon booking the holiday let.
I opened this thread, wondering where the location is but Cornwall, come on! Slippy! I am, or was, planning a weeks holiday in Cornwall at the end of June. As it's now less than 8 weeks before the date I was planning on heading down there, I need to pay the full price upon booking the holiday let.
My only worry for travelling to Cornwall would be the weather to be honest so enjoy your break, the worst * worst case scenario, you will park the car somewhere and get a bus or train.
omniflow said:
You're very definitely overthinking this.
The scenario you have painted is really very very unlikely. If you spend your life worrying about this kind of thing to the extent that you appear to be worrying then I'd just stay in bed and not bother getting up at all.
Yup!The scenario you have painted is really very very unlikely. If you spend your life worrying about this kind of thing to the extent that you appear to be worrying then I'd just stay in bed and not bother getting up at all.
I deal with this kind of overthinking once in a while with one of my customers. Wastes a lot of peoples' time. Goes some way to explaining why I wait solong when calling Aviva for a regular enquiry :-)
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