What kind of travel insurance do you need to get your money back in case of flight cancellation?
The oil crisis has led more and more airlines to announce the cancellation of flights, which will create great difficulties for passengers who booked them in advance. Many of them will not be able to get their money back without special travel insurance.
What kind of travel insurance do you need to get the money in case of flight cancellation?
To be compensated in the event of a flight cancellation, not just any travel insurance policy is sufficient, but one that explicitly includes the clause of “trip cancellation or interruption” (also known as “trip cancellation”).
This covers the situations in which you can no longer make the trip for reasons well defined in the contract – sometimes including the cancellation of the flight by the airline, but especially the cases in which you have to give up. It is important to understand that in many situations airlines are legally required to offer a refund or rerouting, but in today's environment, where cancellations can be frequent and sometimes difficult to manage quickly, insurance becomes an additional layer of financial protection.
When should you buy the policy and what are the benefits?
The policy must be purchased as close as possible to the time of booking the plane ticket or tourist package. As a rule, insurers require that this be concluded within a few days at the most of the purchase of the travel services for the cancellation cover to be valid. If you buy it too late, there is a risk that certain foreseeable events (such as already announced strikes or disruptions) will no longer be covered.
The advantages of such insurance are multiple. First of all, you can get your money back for unused flight tickets, accommodation or other tourist services, depending on the policy conditions. Second, some insurances also provide compensation for additional costs generated by delay or rescheduling, such as unanticipated nights' accommodation or meals. In addition, more comprehensive policies also include assistance in the event of medical emergencies, lost luggage or other common travel incidents, making them useful even beyond the flight cancellation situation.
The validity period depends on the type of policy. There are specific insurances, valid strictly for the period of a trip (from the date of departure until the return), but also annual insurances, useful for those who travel frequently. In the case of a cancellation clause, cover usually starts immediately after the policy is taken out and lasts until the time of departure, after which the other insurance benefits come into effect.
How much does the insurance policy cost?
The cost varies depending on the value of the trip, the destination, the duration of the trip and the level of coverage chosen. In general, for a basic policy, the price can start from a few tens of lei for a short trip in Europe and can reach several hundred lei for more expensive holidays or for complete packages that include extensive coverage. Although it may seem like an additional expense, in today's environment where instability in the aviation industry is increasing due to high fuel costs, such insurance can make the difference between significant financial losses and a manageable situation.
Specifically, the cost of a policy directly depends on the value of the trip and how extensive the coverage is. As a concrete idea, there are offers where you pay around 30 euros for a trip of around 1000 euros, that is, somewhere around 3% of the total value. For simpler options or for short trips in Europe, policies can even start from a few tens of lei, and for more complex packages or large insured sums they can reach several hundred lei.
An important detail, especially in the current context of flight cancellations for economic reasons (such as the fuel crisis), is that not all insurances cover flight cancellation by the airline. Some cancellation insurance policies only cover situations where the passenger is no longer able to travel (illness, accident, family events, etc.) and in case of cancellation by the company you must normally request reimbursement directly from them.
But there are more extensive options, of the “all risk” type, which allow you to cancel the trip for almost any reason and recover up to 90% of the money, if you respect the contractual conditions.
