Individual, group and family travel insurance policies are essential if you are planning to travel. They are especially useful if external events force you to cancel your trip or if you find yourself needing medical attention while abroad.
However, Ebola presents a whole new football game—especially since it has become widespread enough to warrant government intervention. Not surprisingly, service providers react in different ways. However, the question is how much Ebola will affect your family’s basic travel insurance policy. Here are some of the more notable aspects to keep in mind.
Aversion is not a reasonable cause
Some family travel insurance providers offer packages that will reimburse you if you decide to cancel your trip for any reason at all. Others will not reimburse you for your travel fee unless there is a reasonable reason to cancel your flight. Fear of contracting Ebola is not a reasonable cause, especially if you are traveling to destinations where the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has not issued any travel advisories for your planned destinations. However, if your destination is determined by the FCO to be unsafe after arrangements have been made while it was still safe, your cancellation is expected to be covered by your service provider. This also applies if your airline decides to cancel services to your planned destination due to Ebola or some other disease outbreak.
Contracting Ebola within and outside countries through travel advisories
If you ignore the State Department’s warnings and enter countries you’ve identified as unsafe for Ebola — Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, for now — don’t expect your provider to bail you out if you catch the dreaded disease. Simply put, you should be responsible for your own well-being if you travel against the advice of the State Department.
However, if you contract the virus in any other country, your service provider is expected to cover the expenses involved. This is very unlikely to happen outside of the above countries, but it is reassuring to know that the Foreign and Commonwealth Office will act in the best interest of the consumer if it does happen.
Delays due to Ebola testing
Service providers are less likely to reimburse you if you are unable to make your flight on time due to enhanced airport checks that test for the Ebola virus. However, such a situation is rare, as the most frequent checks are of incoming airline passengers arriving from West African countries. However, it’s a good idea to arrive a few hours before departure in case these delays extend and begin to affect departing flights as well.
Contact local embassies or ministries of health
The effects of infectious diseases evolve over time, with warnings issued whenever needed. This is why it is always a good idea to contact the embassies or health ministries of the countries you are visiting – especially those in West Africa where the risk of contracting Ebola is highest. The information you can gather from doing this will help you determine if the virus will come up as a risk factor when applying for your family travel insurance.
Keep these habits in mind and you’ll be able to rest easy knowing how to work better with your provider when it comes to Ebola and other infectious diseases.
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