Does travel insurance cover strikes?

In short, yes, but different travel insurance brands may cover strikes in a different way. Read on to find out how.

A travel ban is in place for all Australians effective 25 March 2020. Most travel insurance brands will not cover you if you travel against a government warning. If you already have a policy, please contact your insurer directly for more information. We are currently updating our site to reflect the Australian government’s advice. Some travel insurance policies will be temporarily unavailable.

You can be covered by travel insurance if your flight is delayed or cancelled due to a strike, but cover will depend on when you purchased your travel insurance. If you bought your policy after an industrial strike becomes a 'known event', it's unlikely that your insurer will cover you for associated costs. Here is an example of how a PDS explains a known event;

Losses, liability or expenses are not covered if you did not take all necessary precautions to avoid a claim after there was a warning in the mass media of a strike...

This is one of the reasons why getting travel insurance earlier rather than later is a good idea.

How do Finder travel insurance partners deal with strikes?

Brand	Conditions for travel insurance for strikes	Apply
1cover	1Cover will pay for your additional accommodation and travel expenses on all levels of cover (other than essential and basics) for your reasonable additional travel and accommodation expenses if a disruption to your journey arises from your scheduled or connecting transport is cancelled, delayed, shortened or diverted due to a strike.
AIG	Under the "cancellation fees and lost deposits" section of your policy, you will have cover for emergency expenses incurred due to unforeseen circumstances outside your control, including strikes. You will not be covered for losses, liability or expenses that you incur because you did not take precaution to avoid a claim after there was a warning in the mass media about a strike.
American Express	Under the "additional hotels, accommodation and transport expenses" section of your policy, you're covered for claims resulting from disruption of your scheduled transport because of a strike. Any lost deposits or cancellation charges will not be covered if they arose from a strike which had occurred without warning prior to you buying a single trip policy or planning a journey on an annual policy.
Australia Post	Under the "other circumstances" section of your policy, you're covered for claims resulting from disruption of your scheduled transport because of a strike.
Boomers	Boomers will reimburse your reasonable additional travel and accommodation expenses resulting from your transport being cancelled, delayed, rescheduled or diverted because of a strike.	Get quote
Budget Direct	Budget Direct will pay claims as follows: Additional expenses. You will be reimbursed for additional expenses if the cancellation, delay or diversion of your scheduled transport is caused by a strike and you are unable to have your losses reimbursed by someone else. Travel delay expenses. You will be paid travel delay expenses if during you trip, your final international (or internal if you have domestic cover) departure from or returning to Australia by aircraft or sea vessel, is delayed due to a strike. You will not have any cover under any section if the claim arises from a strike or industrial action that was public knowledge when you booked your trip.
Columbus Direct	Travel delay and abandonment of trip. You are covered in the event that the departure of the carrier with which you have arranged to travel is delayed by at least six (6) hours due to strike, or twelve (12) hours if related to abandonment. Missed Departure/Connection. You are covered for reasonable additional travel and accommodation expenses if a disruption to your trip arises because of a strike.
fastcover	You will be covered for cancellation fees and lost deposits for pre-paid travel if your trip is impacted by a strike. You will also be reimbursed any reasonable expenses you incurred. You will not be covered under any section of the policy if you did not follow advice in the mass media or any government or other official body’s warning of a strike.
Insureandgo	InsureandGo will pay claims as follows: Additional expenses. The additional expenses if the cancellation, delay or diversion of your scheduled transport is caused by a strike and you are unable to have your losses reimbursed by someone else. Travel delay expenses. Travel delay expenses if during you trip, your final international (internal if Domestic Cover) departure from or returning to Australia by aircraft or sea vessel, is delayed due to a strike. You will not have any cover under any section if the claim arises from a strike or industrial action that was public knowledge when you booked your trip.
Insure4less	Travel delay and abandonment of trip. You are covered in the event that the departure of the carrier with which you have arranged to travel is delayed by at least six (6) hours due to strike. Missed departure/connection. You are covered for reasonable additional travel and accommodation expenses if a disruption to your trip arises because of a strike.
iTrek	Missed departure/connection. You are covered for reasonable additional travel and accommodation expenses if a disruption to your trip arises because of a strike. You will not be covered under any section of the policy if the mass media has indicated the existence or potential existence of circumstances that may affect your travel including strike or industrial action.
Online Travel Insurance	Online travel will reimburse your reasonable additional travel and accommodation expenses resulting from scheduled or connecting transport is cancelled, delayed, rescheduled or diverted because of a strike.	Get quote
Ski-insurance	Under the "additional accommodation & travel expenses" section, you will be covered for your scheduled or connecting transport is cancelled, delayed, shortened or diverted because of strike.
Tick Travel	Tick Travel Insurance will pay claims as follows: Additional expenses. The additional expenses if the cancellation, delay or diversion of your scheduled transport is caused by a strike and you are unable to have your losses reimbursed by someone else. Travel delay expenses. Travel delay expenses sections of its policies if during your trip, your final international (internal if Domestic Cover) departure from or returning to Australia by aircraft or sea vessel, is delayed due to a strike. You will not have any cover under any section if the claim arises from a strike or industrial action that were public knowledge when you booked your trip.
Travel Insurance Saver	You will be covered for cancellation and additional accommodation and transportation expenses that are the result of a strike. You will not be covered under any section of the policy if you did not follow advice in the mass media or any government or other official body’s warning of a strike.
Travel Insuranz	Missed departure/connection. You are covered for reasonable additional travel and accommodation expenses if a disruption to your Trip arises because of a strike. You will not be covered under any section of the policy if the mass media has indicated the existence or potential existence of circumstances that may affect your travel including strike or industrial action.
Virgin Money	You will be covered for cancellation fees and lost deposits for pre-paid travel if your trip is impacted by a strike. You will also be reimbursed any reasonable expenses you incurred. You will not be covered under any section of the policy if you did not follow advice in the mass media or any government or other official body’s warning of a strike.
Webjet	Webjet will reimburse your reasonable additional travel and accommodation expenses if a disruption to your journey arises from your scheduled or connecting transport is cancelled, delayed, rescheduled or diverted because of a strike.
Worldcare	You will be covered for cancellation fees and lost deposits for pre-paid travel if your trip is impacted by a strike. You will also be reimbursed any reasonable expenses you incurred. You will not be covered under any section of the policy if you did not follow advice in the mass media or any government or other official body’s warning of a strike.
youGo	You will be covered for cancellation and additional accommodation and transportation expenses that are the result of a strike.

What does cancellation insurance normally cover?

If your trip is affected by a strike, you'll most likely need to claim your expenses under the cancellation and amendment benefits if you're eligible. Cancellation and amendment benefits cover a number of events and situations that result in you having to cancel, reschedule or amend your holiday plans depending on whether or not your policy covers cancellation. Below are some common questions we get asked:

When am I covered?

Am I covered if my flight is cancelled? Yes, generally if your flight is cancelled due to an insured event such as a strike, your policy will provide you with cover.

Am I covered if my flight is delayed? Generally your flight will need to be delayed more than six (6) hours if you are going to be eligible to make a claim.

What happens if my passport is stolen overseas? If your passport or other travel documents are stolen, your policy will generally cover the cost of replacing them. You will need to provide your insurer with supporting evidence such as a police report.
Am I covered if have an accident on the way to the airport? Yes, generally you will be covered if you have an accident means you're unable to make a prebooked flight. You will need to provide your evidence of the accident.
What happens to my prepaid accommodation expenses if my trip is cancelled? If an insured event such as adverse weather conditions results in you having to cancel your prepaid accommodation, your policy should reimburse you up to the policy limit.
What happens if I get injured overseas? If during your trip you are forced to cut your trip short due to an illness or injury, your policy will provide you with a benefit for any prepaid expenses you will not be using up to the policy limit.
If I paid with my frequent flyer points and have to cancel my trip, will my insurer cover me? Yes, your travel insurer will generally reimburse you for your lost frequent flyer points as long as you are not able to recover your loss via any other means.

When might I be covered?

I'm too sick to travel, is that covered? It will depend on when you took out your policy. If you are unable to travel due to a pre-existing condition that you knew about prior to taking out your policy, you will not have cover.
Am I covered if I have to cancel my trip due to a death in the family? Depending on your policy you will have cover for your return trip to Australia and for any unused portions of your journey. However, there are various conditions that apply including whether or not the death was the result of a pre-existing condition and the age of the deceased.

When won't I be covered?

Am I covered if my flight is cancelled for any other reason than strike or weather? No, this is a common misconception about cancellation cover. It is up to the airline to reimburse your losses for the actual missed flight.

My employer cancelled my leave and I have to cancel my trip, am I covered? No, you will not have cover in this situation.

I was late to the airport and missed my flight, am I covered? No, if you didn't leave enough time to get to the airport your insurer won't pay out your claim. This also goes for the flow on affect if you incur roll-on affects such as missed accommodation due to your missed flight.

I've changed my mind and I don't want to go any more, can I make a claim? Unfortunately, the only type of policy that would cover you in the event is "cancellation for any reason" travel insurance, which is not offered in Australia.

Compare policies that provide cover for strikes

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2 Responses

DavidMarch 17, 2016

We typically use a bank credit card to be eligible for their card insurance which lists cover for overseas and interstate travel, domestic hotel burglary, transport accident, extended warranty, purchase protection and price protection. The rules state that cover is under a Master Policy issued by Chubb.

Are we in safe hands here please?

Reply
- finder Customer Care
  
  RichardMarch 17, 2016Staff
  
  Hi David,
  
  Thanks for your question. finder.com.au is a comparison service and we are not permitted to provide our users with personalised financial advice or make specific product recommendations. Not knowing the bank that policy was issued through I can’t speak to how and when it would cover strikes but generally if the strike is planned and known in the media, you won’t be covered for costs associated with cancellation etc.
  
  I hope this was helpful,
  Richard
  
  Reply

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Does travel insurance cover strikes?

In short, yes, but different travel insurance brands may cover strikes in a different way. Read on to find out how.

How do Finder travel insurance partners deal with strikes?