ljj

I've booked a quick 10 day round trip to the UK in a few months and know there is a big difference in Travel Insurance small print.

Has anyone been pleased with their insurance company over the recent 'act of god' volcano ash?

I will be purchasing a 1 year multi-trip family travel Insurance pack as this is normally the best option.

Any opinions on the cover?

koalakim

I've just bought an annual policy and can't find any reference to acts of God in the policy.

It would seem we are covered for delays due to weather and also having to move accommodation however, it states all sorts of weather incidences but not volcano's!

I would think in the first instance it would be down to the goodwill of the airline to rebook or refund if your flight is cancelled. If the flight goes ahead and you choose not to fly then I think that is down to you, they may allow you to reschedule depending on the type of ticket your purchased.

I'll have to give the insurance company a ring and just get some clarification. We are going back to the UK next month for a specific reason and should we miss that date then we'd want to cancel or rebook for later on.

ljj

Yes, same here.

I'm going back for a wedding, if I'm not there that specific weekend, there's no point me going!

Luckily, I won't need to pay for accomadation as I have places to stay in the UK, but I'd want to come back home to my family as soon as possible

Swerv-o

I would be interested to see volcanic eruption argued as an act of god in court. Surely tectonic plate activity - the source of volcanic eruptions - is established scientific fact, and hence can't be argued as being an 'act of god'

A field day for the lawyers I suspect...


S

ljj

'act of god' is in the small print on some travel insurance policies.

I'm not suggesting there is or isn't any form of a god......

Swerv-o

No, nor am I, but surely an act of god would be just that - something that happens but there is no scientific reason behind it.

Documented, natural, scientific processes such as plate tectonics can't be considered an act of god, surely?


S

lonndongeek

A lot of people will give up at the first "No" from their insurance company whether or not the insurance company is right.

Cheers

Steve

koalakim

Hi lJJ, we're going back for a wedding as well and we are pretty important in the event as we're photographing it!

Actually any weather/natural related incident can't be an act of God then as they'd all have scientific back up!

Anyway, hopefully all will be well now as the volcano is now gone to the lava stage which cuts down on ash. The winds are due to change at the weekend and will blow it over to Canada. Fingers crossed nothing else happens!

DeadVim

That is a bloody good point

So what IS an Act Of God?

An inexplicable event ... let me think ... I'll plump for Gillingham FC avoiding relegation this year.

moneypenny20

Or England winning the World Cup

Swerv-o

I don't think that even God is that good...


S

DeadVim

The Hand has previously played a part in preventing that so ...

Only the second coming of a quality striker like Emile Heskey can help.

I am kidding, of course.

Swerv-o

I always thought that David Ike should help. He would have been the logical link between God and football...


S

HelenTD

We're travelling to the UK in 6 weeks and haven't yet arranged travel insurance. Yesterday I spoke to 2 major insurers, QBE and Allianz. I have also emailed Covermore, but haven't heard back yet. Allianz's reponse was that the volcano eruption was an unforeseen before it happened, but is not now, and that if we were to take out a policy with Allianz now, we would not be covered if our travel got disrupted. I put my pesky customer hat on and asked why a volcano erupting was classed as an unseen event, when volcanoes are known to erupt, as that is what volcanoes do. Her response was "I'm the one who works in the insurance industry, I think I know what an unforeseen event is". I responded that she also appeared to be the one who didn't study geography at school! Obviously, I wasn't going to get anywhere with Allianz.

When I spoke to QBE, I asked what the situation would be if the volcano stopped erupting and in the meantime we bought a travel policy from them, before the volcano re-erupted. She told me that the 2nd eruption, if it happened after a break, would be seen as a new event, and we would be covered. I will get an email address for QBE to try and get a response in writing (no emails on their website).

When countries are known to be in seismically active areas, such as on major fault lines, or have identified volcanos, why on earth are they seen as unforeseen events, or acts of God? Just a way for the insurance companies to weasle their way out of providing cover, I reckon.

DeadVim

A ex-goalkeeper too so born to save ... trying to do it for Coventry is a step too far though.