Is Your UK Family Staycation Covered?

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Family holidays look like they are going to be a little different in 2021 – again! As things stand, with the latest COVID-19 restrictions telling people they cannot travel abroad unless it is essential, that means overseas trips are off the list for now.

And no one can be sure how long that will last.

Are you confident about booking a summer holiday for your family abroad this year? Plenty of people don’t want to take the risk.

On the positive side, that could mean a bumper year for the UK tourist sector. And why not? We are blessed with a beautiful country just waiting to be explored, not to mention the much – needed financial boost it will give to hard-hit hotels, restaurants and other businesses.

However, you shouldn’t assume that booking a holiday in the UK is risk-free. There’s no telling what the COVID restrictions might be in several months. Even if things are looking like getting back to ‘normal’, we know by now that the situation can change quickly.

There are all sorts of reasons why your trip might be cancelled, perhaps at very short notice – changes to COVID restrictions, an outbreak at your destination, you or one of your family testing positive or coming into contact with someone who has tested positive, so you have to self-isolate.

In all of these situations, the big question you should be asking yourself is – am I covered to get my money back if my holiday is cancelled?

Doing your research

It is very important to read the cancellation and refund policy for any accommodation provider before you book. The difficulty here is that no blanket rules are saying when hotels and so on have to offer refunds and when they don’t. Some providers are offering full refunds for COVID-related cancellations, but it’s important to understand they don’t have to. You also need to look carefully at the terms and conditions.

Some will offer refunds if cancellation happens because of lockdown rules, for example, but not if you cancel the trip yourself because of illness or because you don’t want to take the risk.

You will also find different approaches with different types of accommodation, for example, hotels versus Airbnb hosts.

Websites like Booking.com are useful for quickly seeing which providers are offering refunds, free cancellations or reservations without deposits. But it is still important to read the details carefully.

Ultimately, the only way to be completely sure of covering your costs if your staycation does get cancelled is by taking out travel insurance. Yes, travel insurance is important even if you are not going abroad, especially in the times we are living in.

Again, not all UK travel insurance will protect you for COVID cancellations – some insurers don’t want to take the risk. But if you do your research and find a policy that does include

COVID cover, you can book your holiday safe in the knowledge that you will be able to claim your money back, whatever happens.

Thank you for being our guest today.

& Thank you for reading.