AA offers travel insurance advice

Insurance provider the AA has offered some advice and guidance to holiday makers who have been affected by the recent security alert at UK airports.

Firstly the company tells anyone who has been directly caught up in the situation not to panic and follow the instructions of police, authorities and airlines.

If customers had already booked their destination but been told by the Foreign Office not to travel, the AA states that cancellations will normally be covered by insurers.

However, if an individual chooses not to travel through their own will, this will never be covered, the company warns.

Many insurance policies do not have total exclusion on terrorism and will only restrict particular benefits, allowing cover for some situations to still be paid.

Some will also cover delays in departure from 12 hours upwards and will also allow cancellations if delays exceed 12 hours, although this may be excluded on policies which have total terrorism exclusion.

One of the conditions of air travel in the current situation is that personal possessions are packed in baggage rather than carried on the plane. It should therefore be checked, the AA advises, whether insurers still cover personal valuables if they are in the aircraft hold.