Do I have journey protection for my Missed flight?

Journey protection for a missed flight really helps your peace of mind if you get delayed and its not your fault. It’s a familiar scenario. You are scheduled to fly out at 21:05 to London Heathrow and then catch a connection to Scotland and 2 hours later you still have not boarded the plane.  Finally, you get on the plane, only to sit there for another 2 hours because of strikes at the airport.

Missed Flight

This is what happened to Jan who was visiting Anguilla Island in the Carribean and was planning to meet his sister for a ski trip in Canada after.  “It’s bad enough if you are getting off at your end destination but when you know you have to catch a connecting flight, you start sweating and not just from the hot plane” says Jan. 

“When the wind was too strong for take-off on Anguilla, I knew I was heading for a missed flight for my connection in St Martin to Canda and so phoned my sister. She had already bought her accommodation and ski pass and we knew we would not get that back and my sister does not take kindly to that.  I hope the girl next to me could not hear her swearing”, laughs Jan.

So, do you have journey protection in this scenario?  Essentially, it covers you for the extra cost of economy class transportation for the most direct route to continue with your original itinerary, if you miss your connecting scheduled transportation due to a delay in the arrival of the scheduled incoming transportation. However, if your carrier is responsible for the delay and are obligated to compensate you, your insurance will insist that the carrier fulfils this obligation.

2 Essential tips for ensuring your journey protection when you book flights

1. Missed flight due to Industrial strike action known to the public

You will not be covered if the delay is due to industrial or strike action that was common knowledge before the scheduled flight was booked. “Whilst we were sitting on the plane I read about the exclusion for strike action by looking up the email that Travelinsure sent me when I purchased my Economy travel insurance policy on my laptop. I did not know if the strike in Heathrow was common knowledge at the time I booked my flight, but when I checked on BBC I realised that it was a sudden walk out by baggage handlers and considered illegal” Jan wipes his brow in mock relief.

2. Schedule 4 hours between connecting flights or you will not have journey protection for your missed flight

“Something useful to remember”, continues Jan, “was that you need to schedule your connection flight at least 4 hours after landing otherwise you will not be covered.  I had no idea about this but l reckon my travel agent did because she had given me a 4 hour gap, something I moaned about at the time when she sent my schedule. I have to remember to thank her, next time I book something else, and I would definitely get my journey protected through Travelinsure again”.

The other more obvious exclusion is that if you miss your connection flight because you do not turn up in time due to your own fault.

Happy Ending for Jan

Jan did miss his connection flight to Canada but his airline got him on another flight the next day and the top up fee required was paid for by his insurance. He was also reimbursed for 1 night accommodation that was missed and 1 day ski pass that he had booked and paid for in advance for his ski trip.