Please be advised that in light of the coronavirus pademic and the global impact currently being experienced, Post Office has taken the difficult decision to temporarily suspend all new Travel Insurance sales.
Existing Travel Insurance policies are unaffected and will remain valid. If you need to make a claim, please follow the claims process in your policy terms and conditions.
Please be aware we are receiving unprecedented volumes of calls to our contact centre and are doing everything we can to answer your queries. We are asking customers who are not travelling in the next 5 days to use our digital channels for support so that we serve customers with imminent travel dates.
We at Post Office remain dedicated to supporting our customers and will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates.
As of 31 December 2019 the World Health Organisation (WHO) was alerted to several cases of pneumonia in Wuhan City in the Hubei province of China. Due to the spread of this coronavirus the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), as of the 29 January 2020, have advised against all travel to Wuhan City and the Hubei province. They have also advised against all but essential travel to mainland China.
Due to the spread of the virus the travel advice is changing every day. Areas of risk are now listed on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website. To keep up to date with current travel advice please see the special FCO Travel Advice Page on coronavirus.
At Post Office Travel Insurance, our policies do not provide any cover for customers who travel to countries or areas where the FCO have advised limited or no travel. Where possible you should try to avoid travel to these areas. We will not sell Travel Insurance policies to customers who state that they intend to travel to China or Italy, this will be in force until further notice.
However please note that the advice from the FCO is constantly changing. Please ensure to check the FCO Travel Advice Page for the latest advice on where you can and cannot travel to.
Please also refer to our FAQs for further information on your policy and what cover you have for coronavirus.
There is no cover provided if the FCO have already advised against all but essential travel to your destination prior to you purchasing your policy.
In the first instance the customer should be advised to contact their airline/travel provider/tour operator/accommodation provider to enquire if they can change their travel dates.
All travellers should follow the instructions of the authorities and maintain good hand, respiratory and personal hygiene and should avoid visiting animal and bird markets or people who are ill with respiratory symptoms.
If you have a Post Office Travel Insurance policy please check the details below.
If your policy number starts with TC
Existing customers:
For Travel Insurance policies sold on or after the 24 February 2020, additional cover has now been added as standard. Should the FCO change their advice to all but essential travel or to not travel to a certain area/country, you will now be able to submit a claim for cancellation. Please ensure that the cover was purchased prior to any announcement on or after the 24 February 2020.
For customers who have purchased the additional Natural Catastrophe and Terrorism or Enhanced Trip Disruption cover, this is now activated as the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the Coronavirus outbreak as a ‘pandemic’.
We will accept travel date changes within 6 months of the initial purchased policy. Where the level of cover has increased the relevant additional premium will be charged. If you have purchased a Single Trip policy and no longer wish to travel, we will happily cancel the policy and provide you with a full refund. This is subject to you not currently travelling, in the process of making a claim or intending to make a claim.
New customers:
Any new customer wishing to purchase the additional cover of Natural Catastrophe and Terrorism or Enhanced Trip Disruption cover please be advised there is no cover provided for any claims related to Covid-19 for policies purchased after the 11 March 2020.
If your policy number starts with TE
Existing customers:
Customers are covered to submit a cancellation claim if the FCO change their advice to all but essential travel or not to travel to a certain are or country, providing the cover was in place before any announcement was made.
We will accept travel date changes within 6 months of the initial purchased policy. Where the level of cover is increased the relevant additional premium will be charged. If you have purchased a Single Trip policy and no longer wish to travel, we will happily cancel the policy and provide you with a full refund. This is subject to you not currently travelling, in the process of making a claim or intending to make a claim.
For customers who have purchased the Enhanced Travel Disruption cover please refer to the terms of the policy. Cover will apply for cancelation claims related to the coronavirus pandemic and the World Health Organisation (WHO), or FCO advice not to travel, up to the maximum insured shown in the policy wording.
Customers will also be able to claim for curtailment, alternative accommodation costs, repatriation costs and other costs due to ‘enforced stay’ – ie if you are not allowed to leave due to restrictions on travel.
New customers:
Any new customer wishing to purchase the additional cover of Extended Travel Disruption please be advised there is no cover provided.
If your policy number starts with TT
For Classic, Superior and Superior Plus customers there is no cover for customers who wish to cancel their trip due to the risk posed by coronavirus. We therefore advise these customers to contact their travel agent or tour operator in the first instance.
Travel Money
Post Office is closely monitoring the coronavirus pandemic, following advice from Public Health England (PHE) and travel alerts the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). These developments may have an impact on your travel plans, and we’re here to help.
Refund guarantee
We guarantee to buy back any unused foreign currency you have purchased from us at its original sale value.
To do this, you will need to sell your currency back in a branch and send both of your receipts and evidence of your cancelled holiday to customercare@postoffice.co.uk. Unfortunately, we cannot give full refunds over the counter, but we will post a cheque with the difference once your refund has been processed. For more information, visit our refund guarantee page.
There will be no disruption to our Travel Money services. You can continue to use our app, website, branches and your Travel Money Card.
International Money Transfer
In times of stress such as the one we’re experiencing, you may have a greater need to send money abroad. There will be no disruption to our International Money Transfer service, whether in-branch or using the web or mobile.
To learn more about sending money abroad, you can visit our page for cash transfers or our page for online transfers.
