Virgin Atlantic announced on Monday that all existing and new bookings will automatically be covered by global COVID-19 insurance. The coverage, which is underwritten by Allianz Assistance, offers up to £500,000 in medical and associated expenses.
Virgin Atlantic customers can now travel with additional peace of mind as the carrier announced on Monday that all existing and new bookings will be covered by global COVID-19 insurance. The insurance policy with Allianz Assistance will provide comprehensive coverage if a Virgin Atlantic customer or travel companion becomes ill with COVID-19 during their trip. The coverage includes emergency medical expenses, transport, accommodations and repatriation expenses up to £500,000 – the highest value policy offered by an airline to date, with no excess payment required. Additionally, the policy covers up to £3,000 in expenses if a customer is denied boarding at departure or in destination, or must quarantine, due to a positive or suspected case of COVID-19. The coverage is automatically applied to all Virgin Atlantic bookings for travel from August 24, 2020 through March 31, 2021 and is meant to complement existing travel insurance. In Monday’s announcement, Virgin Atlantic’s Chief Commercial Officer, Juha Jarvinen said,
“Our priority is always the health and safety of our people and customers and this industry-leading Virgin Atlantic COVID-19 Cover ensures customers can continue to fly safe and fly well with us. Following our return to the skies to much-loved destinations like Barbados, we’re planning more services in the autumn, as travel restrictions continue to ease, including London Heathrow to Montego Bay, Antigua, Lagos and Tel Aviv. Whether it’s to visit friends and relatives or take a well-deserved break, we believe this complimentary cover will provide some added reassurance for our customers as they start to plan trips further afield. It applies in parallel to existing insurance policies which may now exclude COVID-19, and provides comprehensive cover for coronavirus, recognizing the needs of our customers as we restart services.”
Virgin Atlantic’s new COVID-19 Cover applies to pandemic related expenses, regardless of the length of the customer’s journey, and even while visiting another destination on the same overseas trip. Providing a customer is traveling on a Virgin Atlantic ticket, coverage will also apply to flights on the carrier’s Joint Venture partners Delta Air Lines and Air France-KLM. The airline’s new coverage complements their flexible booking policy which allows two date changes without fees, with rebooking available through September 30, 2022. Fare differences may apply for travel after November 30, 2020.
Source: Virgin Atlantic