Travel Safety Hub - WorldNomads.com

Travel Advice And Travel Safety. Stay informed on the road.

Travel Warnings & Terrorism – Am I covered?

WORLDWIDE | Thursday, 4 December 2008 | Views [1504]

WorldNomads.com's Insurance Director, Graham Kingaby, recently wrote a post on Travel Insurance & Terrorism to better explain when a policy would cover you and when it would not.

It sparked many questions from WorldNomads.com policy holders asking for clarification on their specific situation. We've decided to publish below details from our various Policy Disclosure Documents pertaining specifically to terrorism and Government issued Travel Warnings clauses.

As our name implies, World Nomads offers travel insurance to people in over 150 countries across the globe. Our product, underwriter and cover varies according to your country of residence. Please ensure you read the details that apply to your specified Country of Residence and before purchasing any insurance policy, be sure to read the full terms and conditions outlined within the policy wording.

For residents of Australia and New Zealand

Underwriter: Mondial Australia / New Zealand

Travel warnings:
If there was known civil commotion / unrest in an area you were travelling to and this was reported by the government or mass media prior to your policy purchase and the problems then escalate, the claims department may deny a claim based on the grounds that you knew there was unrest in an area you were travelling to, prior to purchasing a policy.

Terrorism:
We will not pay for a loss that arises directly or indirectly from an act or threat of terrorism. This exclusion only relates to section 2A Cancellation Costs.

There is a provision for cover for injuries sustained due to a terrorist attack as long as there was not advice in the mass media of a government or other official bodies warning against all travel to a particular country or of an intended strike.
You must also have taken appropriate action to avoid or minimise any potential claim under your policy.

The assistance team can be contacted as per below:
+61 7 3305 7499

For residents of Canada

Underwriter: Mondial Assistance Canada

Terrorism - cancellation before traveling:
As per the policy wording, we will cover trip cancellation or interruption due to "An act of terrorism committed by an organized terrorist group (recognized as such by the Canadian Government), occurring after you have booked your trip and in the city and country of your destination:
* within the 30 days prior to your scheduled departure date (for Trip Cancellation benefits);
* during your trip (for Trip Interruption benefits)."

Please also keep in mind that "A loss that arises from war (whether declared or not), acts of war, active service in the military of any country, civil disorder or unrest, terrorism or act of terrorism (unless as specifically covered under section 2 – Trip Cancellation/Interruption Costs), or from any rebellion, revolution, insurrection or taking of power by the military" is not covered by our policy.

Terrorism - medical and cancellation while traveling:
As per the policy wording, we will not cover any medical expenses or cancellation costs that arise directly or indirectly from an act of terrorism committed by an organized terrorist group (recognized as such by the Canadian Government), occurring in the city and country of your destination if at the time of booking your trip the Canadian Government had issued a travel advisory regarding terrorist activity.

Travel warnings - cancellation coverage:
As per Section 2 of the policy wording, we will pay if you cancel or interrupt your trip due to "A travel advisory issued after your trip has been booked with respect to travel to your destination country during all or part of your trip." For more information on this coverage, please see the policy wording, available for download from the INSURANCE page of the World Nomads website.

The assistance team can be contacted as per below:
+1 519 342 4947

For residents of Ireland

Underwriter: Millstream Ireland

Is Terrorism covered?
This policy will not cover any consequence, whether direct or indirect, of terrorist activity.

Travel advice / warnings:
You will not be covered if you choose to travel to a country or specific area or event to which the Travel Advice Section of the Department of Foreign Affairs* or the World Health Organisation has advised the public not to travel.
* Contact details are: 80 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2. Telephone: (01) 4780822 or refer to: www.dfa.ie

The assistance team can be contacted as per below
+44 (0)20 7902 7403

For residents of the UK

Underwriter: Millstream UK

Is Terrorism covered?
This policy will not cover any consequence, whether direct or indirect, of terrorist activity.

Travel advice / warnings:
You will not be covered if You choose to travel to a specific area that the Foreign & Commonwealth Office advises 'against all travel' or 'all but essential travel'. Please contact the FCO before travelling to find out if the area you are travelling to is safe.
Telephone: +44 (0) 845 850 2829 Website: www.fco.gov.uk

Travelling to one of these areas does not invalidate your policy. We are unable to provide cover whilst you are in the area.

Please bear in mind that travel to these areas can change at anytime.

The assistance team can be contacted as per below:
+44 (0)845 643 2628 (UK)

For residents of USA

Underwriter: BCS / JEFFERSON USA

Travel warnings and terrorism:
There is a provision of cover for a terrorist act committed by an organized terrorist group (recognized as such by the U.S. State Department) that results in property damage, Injury or loss of life.

The incident must take place in a domestic or foreign city in which You are scheduled to arrive within 30 days following the incident and Your tour operator (if applicable) must not have offered a substitute itinerary.

For foreign terrorism coverage only, coverage for travel to or through countries in which such a documented or reported incident has occurred during the 30 days prior to purchase of the insurance is excluded.

Losses resulting due to the issuance of travel advisories, bulletin or alerts; war or acts thereof; civil disorder, riot or unrest; bomb scares or threats of terrorist activity; or terrorist acts against any Common Carrier (e.g., airline or cruise line) are not covered.
Terrorism, for this policy, is defined as the unsanctioned and illegal use of force that caused destruction of property, Injury, or death by an individual or group for the express or implied purpose of achieving a political, ethnic, or religious goal or result.

Terrorism does not include general civil protest, unrest, rioting, or an act of war.
The policy does not cover war (whether declared or undeclared), acts of war, military duty (unless as covered herein), civil disorder, or unrest.

For Travel Warning advice please visit the below website:
http://travel.state.gov/index.html

or call:
1-888-407-4747 toll-free in the United States or Canada
or from overseas 1-202-501-4444

For residents of everywhere else!

(Andorra, Antarctica, Argentina, Armenia, Aruba, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Bermuda, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Cambodia,, Cameroon, Cayman Islands, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Estonia, Falkland Islands, Fiji, Finland, France, French Polynesia, Georgia, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Greenland, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Nepal, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Reunion, Romania, Russian Federation, Samoa, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Tahiti, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tonga, Trinidad & Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Virgin Islands). Phew!

Underwriter: IHI

Terrorism:
We will not pay for compensation for expenses which concern, are due to or are incurred as a result of:

treatment for sickness or injuries directly or indirectly caused while actively engaging in: war, invasion, acts of a foreign enemy, hostilities (whether war has been declared or not), civil war, terrorist acts, rebellion, revolution, insurrection, civil commotion, military or usurped power, martial law, riots or the acts of any lawfully constituted authority, or army, naval or air service operations (whether war has been declared or not).

You are covered for medical expenses incurred as long as you are not actively involved (soldier / terrorist) in the above.

Travel warnings:
World Nomads clients are free to travel anywhere irrespective of government warnings and be covered as per the policy terms and conditions.

Be aware you will not be covered for expenses which concern, are due to or are incurred as a result of treatment for sickness or injuries directly or indirectly caused while ACTIVELY engaging in: war, invasion, acts of a foreign enemy, hostilities (whether war has been declared or not), civil war, terrorist acts, rebellion, revolution, insurrection, civil commotion, military or usurped power, martial law, riots or the acts of any lawfully constituted authority, or army, naval or air service operations (whether war has been declared or not).

At this time travel to Iraq and Afghanistan must be reported to the underwriter directly to have cover approved. They can be contacted as per below:

Tel.: +45 33 15 30 99
Fax: +45 33 32 25 60
E-mail: ihi@ihi.com

War:
We will not pay for compensation for expenses which concern, are due to or are incurred as a result of:

1. treatment for sickness or injuries directly or indirectly caused while actively engaging in: war, invasion, acts of a foreign enemy, hostilities (whether war has been declared or not), civil war, terrorist acts, rebellion, revolution, insurrection, civil commotion, military or usurped power, martial law, riots or the acts of any lawfully constituted authority, or army, naval or air service operations (whether war has been declared or not).

You are covered for medical expenses incurred as long as you are not actively involved (soldier / terrorist) in the above.

I have a question...

As the SafetyHub blog you are reading is a public forum, we cannot always answer your personal questions right here - this is for the saftey and protection of your personal details.

If you're looking at your World Nomads policy and are concerned or have questions about your cover, please contact Phil Marks at phil [at] worldnomads.com who'll be happy to answer any questions. Remember to include your Policy number and your country of residence.