Update on P&O Insurance Issues

[howmuch!]

LV underwriters have been busy. This is the response I received this afternoon from them- 

 

Q1. Since taking out the policy, I have been trying to confirm the exact cover provided for cruise passengers, and the sections of the policy that provides this cover, when one passenger tests positive for Covid 19, and their partner tests negative, but being a close contact is also isolated on board, and then if both people are disembarked and placed into separate rooms in a quarantine hotel, as I believe the associated costs could exceed £2000 each.

 

If you need to isolate on board the ship, OR if you are ordered to quarantine on land (Section N Part 4)

1.       If you have an Essential policy: We’ll pay you £100 for each 24 hour period, up to a maximum £1,000 in total, that you have to stay in your cabin on the orders of the medical officer of the cruise vessel.

2.       If you have a Premier policy: We’ll pay you £150 for each 24 hour period, up to a maximum £1,500 in total, that you have to stay in your cabin on the orders of the medical officer of the cruise vessel.

 

Q2. I received verbal confirmation by telephone that, with an Essential policy, the negative passenger would not be covered at all, but upgrading to a Premier policy would provide £1000 cover through the ‘Additional Transport and Accommodation section of the policy, so I upgraded the policy, at a cost of £75.

 

Section N Part 4 above covers the person who has tested positive and/or a person of close contact following orders of the medical officer of the cruise vessel to isolate in the cabin or, if necessary, disembark and quarantine in a hotel on land. If an additional traveller is not ordered to isolate or quarantine, no cover is provided under Section N however Section C for Curtailment can be used. This means if you were ordered to disembark the ship for a quarantine hotel, your spouse is covered to claim for lost holiday costs if she also disembarks. This is paid for each full 24 hour period lost.

 

Section K for additional transport and accommodation provides £1,000 cover if you are forced to stay longer at your destination following a quarantine period and your pre-booked transport could not be rescheduled.  

 

I have followed this up with a couple more questions - 

1. The cost of quarantine hotels and food, exceed the £!50/day ‘confinement’ benefit by quite a margin. As Covid 19 is an illness, that could be serious for people with underlying health conditions, are all the costs expended by the ‘positive’ person, covered in full by the Medical Section D? 
2. In order to be released from quarantine, supervised PCR and/or lateral flow tests are required. Are these expenses covered by the Medical Section D?

 

[Megabear2]

I have sent the following to the UK CEO offices of Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Cunard, P&O and Fred Olsen as the cruise lines who list Holiday Extras  as their "Recommended insurer":

 

Quote

 

Dear Sir/Madam,

 

I write to you as the listed Senior Executives of the cruise lines named who are apparently commercial partners with the insurer Holiday Extras and list them as your "Preferred Insurer".  This communication is based upon questions and information received from the CEO office of Holiday Extras and the Financial Conduct Authority ("FCA").

 

Since the recommencement of international sailing of cruise ships within European waters there have been reports of negative tested passengers having to leave cruise ships to quarantine ashore, particularly in Spain and her islands but by no means limited to them.  At the time this started to occur I checked with my own and my extended family's travel insurance companies to ensure our purchased policies would cover such a scenario.  I was quite shocked to be told that none of the policies would offer cover.  As a result I extended my search as I was convinced that such a policy must exist as all the major cruise companies were insisting on full cruise travel insurance with Covid cover.  This research involved over 20 insurance companies including your recommended insurer.

 

At the time I drew this information to the attention of the two cruise lines with whom myself and my family had cruises booked.  At first they thought I was incorrect but eventually confirmed with Holiday Extras that my information was correct.  

 

On asking what was happening with these unfortunate passengers offloaded abroad into quarantine i was informed no passenger would be out of pocket.  As the number affected was minimal i accepted this information at face value and went on my first booked cruise over the Christmas period.

 

Upon return i received calls from worried relatives to say it was appearing on cruise line websites that passengers should be aware they would be required in, almost all cases but not limited to Spain, to spend quarantine in a hotel or facility of the country who asked for their removal.

 

As a result of this I revisited my insurance research and also various UK cruise forums to discuss the issue.  The former showed no change to insurance terms, still no cover.  The second showed a large increase in confusion amongst policyholders and also an apparent large increase in the number of offloading and quarantine incidents.  

 

I decided to write for written clarification from Holiday Extras as the recommended cruise line insurer and amongst others Staysure as the most frequently used insurer in the UK for those aged over 70 and anyone with medical conditions not insured by mainstream insurers.

 

It is very clear that these two companies along with many others do not insure this event, nor do they include them within their exclusions leaving the unsuspecting cruise passenger with a totally uninsurable risk, albeit small.

 

I attach a selection of emails sent to me by Holiday Extras which have resulted from my questions.  I would add that I have now raised these issues with the FCA under misleading terms and treating customers fairly. They are treating the matter seriously and have indicated that if this cover is not available as a reasonable customer would expect, it should be listed clearly as an exclusion. Various insurers including Holiday Extras and Staysure are apparently now discussing this with their underwriters.

 

Which brings me to the role of the cruise lines in this issue.  I am fully aware from my enquiries that cruise ships are sailing under special protocols - you will see Holiday Extras did in fact direct me to the British Chamber of Shipping regulations which state the cruise line is responsible for the care and repatriation of quarantined passengers.  I have also seen sight of the following which I understand is still in force:

 

www.mitma.gob.es/recursos_mfom/paginabasica/recursos/health_measures_for_the_restoration_of_cruise_ship_activities_in_spain_def_en_20210531.pdf

 

This document appears to confirm the information from Holiday Extras that the cruise line is responsible for the care and repatriation of affected passengers. I have therefore searched in great detail your companies' websites for mention of this duty of care and comfort and there is none, not on any one.

 

Clearly the reliance on the passengers' insurance for this eventuality is not an option and is basically just passing fear and worry back on those travelling on a cruise.  This, I am sure you will agree, is totally unacceptable, particularly with the Spring European sailings imminent.  I would therefore appreciate a reply from you detailing how you intend to deal with this issue and also whether it is your intention going forward to offer a buyer beware or comfort clause to your passengers.

 

I look forward to an early reply.

 

Unquote

 

Let's see if any replies are forthcoming.

 

[Bin man]

Wish I could compose a letter like that I think is so clear when read they must give a clear response to you and I thankyou for your continued efforts on all our behalfs 

[lujaha]

Megabear, this letter is your best yet!  Pure genius.  Please God something good comes from it.  We go on Saturday Spain and Portugal.  

[clearblueseas]

Thank you so much for such a well written letter. Glad to see you mentioned the Spanish directives for cruise ships which I think is so important.

[lindyloo22]

Great letter Megabear thanks for all your time and help with this, let’s hope for a good response.

 

[MX-Drew]

Having read all 10 pages of this thread over two days, I would first like to thank Megabear for all the time and effort you have put into this issue and thanks to all those who have contacted their own insurance companies to add "fuel to the fire".

 

This may have been answered in the thread but my memory is not what it used to be, whilst reading Megabears recent letter to the cruise companies it crossed my mind that Spain is mentioned a lot but has anyone heard anything about "forced" offloading in countries such as Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands?

[howmuch!]

I haven't heard anything, but as none of their economies rely heavily on tourism (unlike Spain), they have sometimes denied docking full stop, to avoid spreading the virus.

[MX-Drew]

6 minutes ago, howmuch! said:

I haven't heard anything, but as none of their economies rely heavily on tourism (unlike Spain), they have sometimes denied docking full stop, to avoid spreading the virus.

Maybe if they are taking that approach they may insist the people in question are quarantined on the ship, but then maybe not.

[Megabear2]

It will probably  be all European countries as the sailing is governed under EU rules. Just not many UK departures there yet. Definitely offloading in Italy, Greece as well.

[howmuch!]

I have just received a response to my second set of questions from LV insurance - 

 

Dear *****

 

Answers for your additional questions

 

 Q1.The cost of quarantine hotels and food, exceed the £!50/day ‘confinement’ benefit by quite a margin. As Covid 19 is an illness, that could be serious for people with underlying health conditions, are all the costs expended by the ‘positive’ person, covered in full by the Medical Section D?

1. The £150 Cabin Confinement is per person. It is a benefit aimed at compensating Cruise customers should they need to stay in their cabin for a period of time due to illness. In the circumstance where this confinement is carried out “off shore” we would still look to pay this benefit.  It is not therefore a benefit aimed at covering costs of quarantine hotel. There is no specific provision for Quarantine Hotel costs under our policies. For customers who are ill and require medical treatment (either whilst in the Quarantine Hotel or in a medical facility) medical expenses are covered by Section D.  E.g medicines, consultation with a doctor, or hospital treatment

 

Q2. In order to be released from quarantine, supervised PCR and/or lateral flow tests are required. Are these expenses covered by the Medical Section D?

 

2. There is no provision for the costs of testing within the Travel policy. Costs of testing (pre-departure, post departure or during a period of isolation) are not covered.

 

Edited January 28, 2022 by howmuch!

[Teddy123]

18 minutes ago, howmuch! said:

I have just received a response to my second set of questions from LV insurance - 

 

Dear *****

 

Answers for your additional questions

 

 Q1.The cost of quarantine hotels and food, exceed the £!50/day ‘confinement’ benefit by quite a margin. As Covid 19 is an illness, that could be serious for people with underlying health conditions, are all the costs expended by the ‘positive’ person, covered in full by the Medical Section D?

1. The £150 Cabin Confinement is per person. It is a benefit aimed at compensating Cruise customers should they need to stay in their cabin for a period of time due to illness. In the circumstance where this confinement is carried out “off shore” we would still look to pay this benefit.  It is not therefore a benefit aimed at covering costs of quarantine hotel. There is no specific provision for Quarantine Hotel costs under our policies. For customers who are ill and require medical treatment (either whilst in the Quarantine Hotel or in a medical facility) medical expenses are covered by Section D.  E.g medicines, consultation with a doctor, or hospital treatment

 

Q2. In order to be released from quarantine, supervised PCR and/or lateral flow tests are required. Are these expenses covered by the Medical Section D?

 

2. There is no provision for the costs of testing within the Travel policy. Costs of testing (pre-departure, post departure or during a period of isolation) are not covered.

 

In this reply, LV say "there is no specific provision for Quarantine Hotel costs under our policies." Yet para 9 of section K of the policy says there is cover "for you to stay longer at your destination because of a quarantine period that has been ordered by a government or public authority for you specifically whilst you are at your destination".  While there is scope for debate about the word "destination" - not defined in the policy - this seems another example of contradictory statements. 

[Megabear2]

1 hour ago, howmuch! said:

I have just received a response to my second set of questions from LV insurance - 

 

Dear *****

 

Answers for your additional questions

 

 Q1.The cost of quarantine hotels and food, exceed the £!50/day ‘confinement’ benefit by quite a margin. As Covid 19 is an illness, that could be serious for people with underlying health conditions, are all the costs expended by the ‘positive’ person, covered in full by the Medical Section D?

1. The £150 Cabin Confinement is per person. It is a benefit aimed at compensating Cruise customers should they need to stay in their cabin for a period of time due to illness. In the circumstance where this confinement is carried out “off shore” we would still look to pay this benefit.  It is not therefore a benefit aimed at covering costs of quarantine hotel. There is no specific provision for Quarantine Hotel costs under our policies. For customers who are ill and require medical treatment (either whilst in the Quarantine Hotel or in a medical facility) medical expenses are covered by Section D.  E.g medicines, consultation with a doctor, or hospital treatment

 

Q2. In order to be released from quarantine, supervised PCR and/or lateral flow tests are required. Are these expenses covered by the Medical Section D?

 

2. There is no provision for the costs of testing within the Travel policy. Costs of testing (pre-departure, post departure or during a period of isolation) are not covered.

 

How much! I will forward this to FCA as an additional reply about LV confusion.  I've also included the text of Teddy123's next post as it seems very relevant.

 

It would appear LV have a rather difficult policy to understand and also their customer service doesn't understand it fully in light of three different individuals receiving three different takes on the policy.

Edited January 28, 2022 by Megabear2

[howmuch!]

1 hour ago, Megabear2 said:

How much! I will forward this to FCA as an additional reply about LV confusion.  I've also included the text of Teddy123's next post as it seems very relevant.

 

It would appear LV have a rather difficult policy to understand and also their customer service doesn't understand it fully in light of three different individuals receiving three different takes on the policy.

Thank you Megabear your efforts are really appreciated. 

[Megabear2]

Well the new protocols are out. No change there.

 

"In situations where guests are required to disembark the ship, we shall always work with the local authorities to secure the most appropriate accommodation to continue the period of isolation. In most instances, these will be pre-determined hotels which have been identified as ones able to accommodate positive cases of COVID-19. The guest’s travel insurance provider will handle all matters in relation to their isolation stay and repatriation home, providing they took adequate COVID-19 coverage on their policy. Guests will be able to make a complimentary call from the ship to their insurance provider to advise of their disembarkation and should email their positive test result to them as soon possible. Our dedicated support team will provide ongoing support to any guests in these circumstances."

[Bin man]

Thank you for your email. I understand you're raising concerns that insurance firms are not clearly stating whether their travel insurance policy either includes or excludes the following: 'cover costs of quarantine including but not limited to accommodation, food and sustenance, sundries such as internet and telephone access, transportation to and from the quarantine premises, covid testing while in quarantine, nursing/doctors' costs for administering and documenting these required tests and repatriation to the United Kingdom.'

I can appreciate the concerns this has caused you and thank you for bringing this matter to our attention.
 
Our remit
 
We're responsible for authorising firms offering financial services and products to consumers in the UK. For example, a firm dealing in insurance would have to comply with our rules and whilst what issues a firm's cover either includes or excludes is a commercial decision of the firms, we do expect firms to pay due regard to the information needs of its clients, and communicate information to them in a way which is clear, fair and not misleading, so we'd expect exclusions to be clearly stated the terms and conditions of an agreement.

Complaints

If you're unhappy with your insurer then you may wish to formally complain to them directly on the details on our Financial Services Register, this is a public register of the firms authorised by us and warning pages for unauthorised firms. Based on the information you've provided, I've located a firm called Avanti Insurance a trading name of TICORP Ltd. If this isnt the firm youre referring to please let me know. I strongly recommend you contact the firm using the details on the link to ensure you're dealing with the genuine firm.

As this firm is regulated in Gibraltar, you may also wish to provide this intelligence to The Financial Services Commissioner for Gibraltar.
 
Under UK law, the Financial Ombudsman Service  unlike the FCA has the power to adjudicate in relation to individual complaints. The Ombudsman Service is operationally independent from the FCA, and we do not have the power to overrule or interfere in its investigations and decisions. While you must give the firm a statutory eight weeks in which to respond with a final response. Once you have received this, or it has been over the eight weeks and you have not received a response, you can make your complaint to The Financial Ombudsman Service. Click here to take you to our How to complain web page for further guidance. You should contact The Ombudsman Service directly to ensure you meet the criteria of an eligible complainant.

What I have done with your information 
 
I have shared the information you provided with my colleagues in our General Insurance policy team for their intelligence. Please be aware that I wont be able to provide you with any feedback on how we have followed up the information you have given us. I appreciate this can be frustrating, this is because much of our work is covered by legal and policy restrictions and you can read more about information we can share here. We may, however, contact you if we need further information.

Thank you once again for taking the time to bring this matter to our attention. If you need to speak to us further on this matter, have any other questions for the FCA, or have more information to share with us then please dont hesitate to contact us again and please quote the following number, to ensure we can link all your correspondence to the correct reference number. Your reference number is [208038151].
 
I trust this information is helpful and wish you the best going forward.
 
To help us improve our service, Im interested in finding out about your experience with the Supervision Hub today. Ill send you a link to a survey and Id appreciate it if you could take a few moments to share your feedback on the service youve received from me. 

Kind regards 

Leigh Genery (Mr) 

 

Received today don't know if this is any use to you Megabear a bit beyond me to take in 

[Megabear2]

Yes Binman it's good. They're passing it to the team who look at unfair terms. 

[Cristaltips]

13 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

Yes Binman it's good. They're passing it to the team who look at unfair terms. 

I had the same response today  to my e Mail complaint regarding the Civil Service Insurance Society.

Edited January 28, 2022 by Cristaltips

[Megabear2]

I have received my first reply from the cruise lines, an email on behalf of the Carnival Group companies stating they are investigating and will reply as soon as the investigation is complete.  I am acknowledging this.

 

FCA have acknowledged and thanked me for the emails from myself and those on here.  They have been forwarded to the relevant people whoever they may be!

 

Meanwhile nothing from any other line.  I am considering contacting my MP to discuss all this and will inform the cruise lines accordingly.  

[ohnonotmeagain]

1 hour ago, Megabear2 said:

I have received my first reply from the cruise lines, an email on behalf of the Carnival Group companies stating they are investigating and will reply as soon as the investigation is complete.  I am acknowledging this.

 

FCA have acknowledged and thanked me for the emails from myself and those on here.  They have been forwarded to the relevant people whoever they may be!

 

Meanwhile nothing from any other line.  I am considering contacting my MP to discuss all this and will inform the cruise lines accordingly.  

Actually, my MP was REALLY good in helping me with a difficult problem. One letter from him and the problem was resolved.I also wrote to the minister for Transport Grant Shapps and had a positive response from him as well.

[Megabear2]

Yes, my MP is very good on sorting things.  I also had contact with him on trains.  I've replied to Carnival saying I will give them a week to respond.

[Megabear2]

FYI: As sent

 

Dear xxxxxx,

 

Thank you for your reply and confirmation of investigation of the matters raised.  However this issue and my discussions with your office go back considerably further than my email of 27 January.  I first entered correspondence on this issue on 8th October 2021 with a very large amount of correspondence passing between your office and myself as a result.

 

Whilst I am fully aware the new statements in your protocols and frequently asked questions only appeared in January 2022, your companies have been more than aware of the lack of availability to purchase insurance for the scenario under discussion for more than three months and despite various updates on your websites and communications to passengers you have made no attempt whatsoever to include information for either booked or prospective passengers on what may happen to them as a close contact of a Covid positive person when they themselves are testing negative.

 

In light of this, I would respectfully suggest that your companies have had ample time to investigate and consider a full response to the issue.  That being the case I feel that it is reasonable to expect a far earlier reply than indicated in your latest communication.

 

My own booked and fully paid for cruise to the Canaries on 1 April is closing fast and the lack of information or insurance protection has already caused 4 of the 10 members of my family group to cancel their cruise.  The remaining 6 are keen to travel but we are beginning to believe that your companies are looking to "fudge" this issue in the hope Covid and all the restrictions currently in force throughout Europe will simply fade away.  I remain desperately disappointed by the attitude and disregard being shown to all planning a voyage with your companies.

 

You have statemens on your P&O website (and almost identical wording on the Cunard one) as follows:

 

"When travelling with us, your insurance must include medical cover of £2 million minimum and cover for emergency evacuations and medical expenses related to COVID-19

 

Ensure your policy includes cover for repatriation, cancellation and curtailment including in the event of you contracting COVID-19 as certified by a Medical Practitioner and possibly, if deemed medically necessary, have to leave the ship due to a medical emergency"

 

And

 

"In situations where guests are required to disembark the ship, we shall always work with the local authorities to secure the most appropriate accommodation to continue the period of isolation. In most instances, these will be pre-determined hotels which have been identified as ones able to accommodate positive cases of COVID-19. The guest’s travel insurance provider will handle all matters in relation to their isolation stay and repatriation home, providing they took adequate COVID-19 coverage on their policy. Guests will be able to make a complimentary call from the ship to their insurance provider to advise of their disembarkation and should email their positive test result to them as soon possible. Our dedicated support team will provide ongoing support to any guests in these circumstances." 

 

You are in the first quote stating a minimum requirement for any policy your passengers purchase including repatriation, curtailment and cancellation.  The second quote states that the purchased travel insurance will handle all matters in relation to isolation and repatriation home.  In light of our knowledge and confirmation from the majority of the UK insurance industry that they do not offer any cover for a scenario of a close contact with a negative test being quarantined ashore could you please explain in full how you expect a booked passenger or prospective purchaser of your product to meet these requirements?  It is surely a simple question to answer, what is your passenger supposed to do in the circumstances where they test negative but are offloaded as a close contact of a person testing positive for Covid?

 

I am not in any way being difficult when asking yet again for an answer in simple terms that any individual may understand and take comfort from and that it should be an agreed policy communicated in writing to your passengers.  It has been stated to me previously that your companies do not wish to do this as you hope your insurer can put pressure on an individual's insurer to pay out.  If, as expected, the insurance companies are going to be made to put clearly in their policies that such events are exclusions, then this is clearly something which will fail.

 

In light of the amount of time your companies have now been aware of this "grey area" I do not think it unreasonable to expect a full reply within the next 7 days.  If I do not hear from your offices within that time I intend to raise the matter with my MP and the Transport Minister's office.

 

Thank you for your assistance.

[cruising.mark.uk]

Another great letter, MegaBear.  I can't help feeling though that this is now going off on something of a tangent.  As I've said before, I think the issue of insurance is one to have out with insurance companies, not cruise companies except for the one key topic of cruise-company recommended insurance that is not fit for purpose.  I know that the work you and others have already done has prompted the insurance companies and the cruise companies to look at this.  I am confident that this will be a non-issue in a year: Coronavirus will have become endemic and the insurance market will have evolved so that cover is available.

 

But I do worry about the short-term.  So far as we know, P&O and Cunard are making sure that their passengers in Spain etc are not out of pocket.  I haven't seen any solid evidence to suggest anyone has had to meet their own costs without reimbursement.  And I understand there were more debarkations in Spain from the latest Iona cruise.  So, the cruise line is covering it, but I can see why (no doubt for commercial reasons) they are very unwilling to say anything more definitive on the subject than what they say in their latest protocols.  They are doing it quietly, under the radar.  It might not be possible / they might not be willing to do that if this situation hits the public domain, e.g. by being brought to the attention of MPs.  Easier in that case for them to stick to the letter of their regulations rather than employing the flexibility they have done to date.  They could justifiably take the line that insurance is a matter for individual customers and, while they will continue to engage with insurers on behalf of passengers,  the responsibility for obtaining suitable insurance lies with the passenger.  When I buy a car, the garage will probably tell me I need insurance.  It's not their problem if I can't get suitable insurance or do not cover all of the risks.  

 

Personally, I think the issues on which MPs or others might best be focused should be these two:

(a) Why are cruise lines recommending insurance that does not provide suitable cover?

(b) How quickly is the UK insurance market going to evolve to provide the required cover.

 

For me, pursuing those would focus all of the splendid efforts on here (and those in the head offices of CCL and insurance companies) towards the correct bodies finding rapid resolution to the most pressing issues.  And taking this approach should minimise the risk that those who are travelling in the short-term (like you! (and me)) will no longer be able to benefit should the worst happen from the considerable goodwill that CCL appears to have been showing to its UK customers since this problem first arose. 

 

I hope this comes across in the constructive way it was written....

[Megabear2]

36 minutes ago, cruising.mark.uk said:

Another great letter, MegaBear.  I can't help feeling though that this is now going off on something of a tangent.  As I've said before, I think the issue of insurance is one to have out with insurance companies, not cruise companies except for the one key topic of cruise-company recommended insurance that is not fit for purpose.  I know that the work you and others have already done has prompted the insurance companies and the cruise companies to look at this.  I am confident that this will be a non-issue in a year: Coronavirus will have become endemic and the insurance market will have evolved so that cover is available.

 

But I do worry about the short-term.  So far as we know, P&O and Cunard are making sure that their passengers in Spain etc are not out of pocket.  I haven't seen any solid evidence to suggest anyone has had to meet their own costs without reimbursement.  And I understand there were more debarkations in Spain from the latest Iona cruise.  So, the cruise line is covering it, but I can see why (no doubt for commercial reasons) they are very unwilling to say anything more definitive on the subject than what they say in their latest protocols.  They are doing it quietly, under the radar.  It might not be possible / they might not be willing to do that if this situation hits the public domain, e.g. by being brought to the attention of MPs.  Easier in that case for them to stick to the letter of their regulations rather than employing the flexibility they have done to date.  They could justifiably take the line that insurance is a matter for individual customers and, while they will continue to engage with insurers on behalf of passengers,  the responsibility for obtaining suitable insurance lies with the passenger.  When I buy a car, the garage will probably tell me I need insurance.  It's not their problem if I can't get suitable insurance or do not cover all of the risks.  

 

Personally, I think the issues on which MPs or others might best be focused should be these two:

(a) Why are cruise lines recommending insurance that does not provide suitable cover?

(b) How quickly is the UK insurance market going to evolve to provide the required cover.

 

For me, pursuing those would focus all of the splendid efforts on here (and those in the head offices of CCL and insurance companies) towards the correct bodies finding rapid resolution to the most pressing issues.  And taking this approach should minimise the risk that those who are travelling in the short-term (like you! (and me)) will no longer be able to benefit should the worst happen from the considerable goodwill that CCL appears to have been showing to its UK customers since this problem first arose. 

 

I hope this comes across in the constructive way it was written....

I am sure it is intended as constructive however as far as my conversations with Holiday Extras are concerned they are not as far as I am aware actively engaging with the cruise lines at this point choosing instead to park the issue with their underwriters.  The FCA are "monitoring" the responses.  In light of watching my family lose several thousand pounds in cancellation after full payment I would say they are not alone.  My actual target for complaint has always been the cruise lines, not the insurance companies as I was pretty sure they would mot move on the issue as they had been let off the hook from the start.  I introduced them late in the day because quite simply there are too many to tackle.

 

You are correct about what i intend to discuss with my MP if I go that route.  I am not unfamiliar with dealing with MPs and if i choose to go that route it will be in private as an individual.

[howmuch!]

If I am reading this correctly. the section below, taken from the Spanish Protocol - Health Measures for restarting Cruises appears to confirm, that all cruise lines should provide full care costs including repatriation, via an insurance policy purchased by the cruise company, not the passenger - 

 

HEALTH CARE COVERAGE GUARANTEE

 

In case of an event on board, all the derived costs must be covered by the shipping company by subscribing an insurance policy that includes agreements with health centers and other established establishments in which to accommodate the people who need it.

 

Before the start of the cruise, operators should ensure that this requirement can be met in all the Spanish ports on the itinerary. At least:

1. Agreements with healthcare facilities and other establishments on land, including:

a. All the needs of patients diagnosed with COVID-19, as well as their adequate treatment and follow-up: • In health centers (both conventional health care facilities and intensive care with mechanical ventilation if necessary). • In establishments (hotel rooms or apartments for single / double use with their own bathroom on a full board basis).

b. The quarantine of contacts in suitable arranged facilities on a full board basis, including maintenance, follow-up and medical assistance if necessary.

The healthcare facilities and accommodation arranged for health care and isolation of cases, as well as for the quarantine of close contacts, must be adequate for this purpose, having planned a sufficient number depending on the number of people on board.

2. Carrying out confirmatory tests on the cases and contacts that are necessary.

3. All possible transfers that may occur, including those made from the ship to the health care center or to the agreed establishment, from the accommodation or hospital to the ship, from the ship to the airport and air transfers.

4. The repatriation of patients / corpses, as well as any necessary crew changes.