Can I travel against Foreign Office Advice?
With many parts of the world in chaos, what do business travellers need to think about and do before they embark on their holidays?
The world is now a much more open place in which to do business and we can visit and trade with countries which even only a few years ago would have been almost impossible to reach.
At the same time some countries have become more dangerous or unpredictable for the foreign business visitor.
Consider localised disputes in the Middle East, sailing near the Somali coast or being kidnapped in South America. If the worst happens then are you covered by your policy of travel insurance?
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) provides travel advice for all countries in the world. Its website is accessible at www.fco.gov.uk and the travel advice section is very easy to work around.
The FCO reviews their advice for each country once a month but it also updates the advice immediately if there is a specific requirement for it to do so.
For each country the FCO offers a wealth of advice about security and safety warnings, which is based on information received from British embassies, the British security services and local information. It also sets out details about entry requirements, health concerns and natural disasters.
The FCO sets a level of warning for each country. There are five levels of warning, one of which is that there are “no travel problems”. The other levels are combination of two factors and these factors are whether the advice covers an entire country or a specific area, and then whether the FCO advises against all travel or all but “essential travel”.
There is no absolute definition as to what is “essential travel” and this is left to the individual although the FCO gives examples of urgent business commitments.
So will your travel insurance cover you?
The advice from the FCO can affect insurance in specific ways. In many cases a travel insurance policy, which you take out before you visit the country, and which is covered by a warning against “all travel” would not pay out if you decided to go ahead and visit that country. Warnings against “non-essential travel“ may mean that the situation is different and it is always best to check with your insurer.
Sometimes problems can happen when you are already abroad. If advice is issued at that time then normally your insurance will cover you for a business trip that you began when the travel advice was not in place but you will be expected to follow any official advice as soon as a security threat begins and not doing this could well invalidate any claim.
What if you have booked your trip, taken out your insurance and then there is a problem in the country to which you were intending travelling? You decide to cancel your trip - will your insurance policy pay out?
You must read your insurance policy carefully. If you have booked with a travel operator or airline and they cancelled the trip then they will generally be responsible for refunding to you your money. If your flight is cancelled because of travel advice from the FCO then your insurance policy may pay out for any accommodation that you have already paid for. If however you choose to cancel a trip because you are worried about the state of a country, but there is no travel advice against travelling to that country from the FCO, then your policy will not pay out.
If you choose to cancel a trip which is covered by travel advice from the FCO, your insurer will not necessarily pay for all of your cancellation related costs. What matters is the specific reason for the advice and whether this is covered under the cancellation cover section for example “wars”.
Aside from the advice given by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office it is also worthwhile checking the World Health Organisation (WHO) and its advice. The WHO will advise with regard to travel to areas affected by outbreaks of communicable diseases. Some insurers include WHO advice in their policies and will not cover people who travel to countries affected by that advice even if the FCO has not issued an advice.
Please note that the guidance published in this article is for information only and does not constitute legal advice upon which you should rely. If you are in any doubt please consult your insurers.
Bronwen Courtenay-Stamp is partner and Head of Travel, Tourism and Insurance Team at Stones Solicitors LLP. Bronwen can be contacted on 01392 666777 and more information is available by logging on at www.stones-solicitors.co.uk.