Holiday cover for countries on virus blacklist… but at a cost

The travel insurance industry is in disarray as providers scramble to start selling policies in an uncertain Covid-19 landscape.

Most will not cover you for travel to anywhere not on the Foreign & Commonwealth Office’s so-called “green list” of countries. Travel restrictions could void policies if a country was added to the FCO’s “blacklist”.

Insurance provider Battleface is an outlier: it now sells a new Covid-19 travel package that includes cover for countries to which the FCO advises against travelling.

But the added protection against potential changes in travel restrictions comes at a cost.

Cover for an 11-day trip to France for a family of four with children under 18 would cost £137 with Battleface. This means you would still have cover if FCO advice changed before the trip, warning against travel to the country.

The cost is more than eight times that of the cheapest cover in the market, according to the price comparison website GoCompare. Family cover for the same trip costs just £15.56 with Direct Travel. The cheapest policy to include cover for cancellation if you fall ill with Covid-19 and are unable to travel, subject to medical certification, costs £19.50 with Cedar Tree. A 17-day holiday to Portugal, which is currently classed as “essential travel only” by the FCO, would set you back £173 with Battleface. Any travel to the country would void most common insurance policies. There are many different degrees of cover and you could be left exposed whatever you buy. The Battleface policy includes cover for medical expenses caused by Covid-19, although it can only be bought by travellers aged 59 or under. But unlike some other policies, it will not include cover for any expenses incurred if the trip is cancelled or curtailed because of coronavirus.

Insurance for an 11-day trip to France will cost eight times more for added cover for a change in restrictions