Emirates to offer free Covid-19 travel insurance to all passengers

Emirates has announced it will offer all of its passengers a free Covid-19 insurance policy, covering medical expenses up to £135,000 and quarantine costs of £90 a day for up to 14 days. In a first from the international airlines, the insurance plan will automatically be applied to all passengers, regardless of ticket class, travelling to any destination within the current Emirates network.  

The cover is effective immediately and will remain in place until 31 October 2020. There are no forms to fill and no need for passengers to declare any underlying medical conditions. 

The largest airline in the Middle East has led the way when it's come to tackling the challenges coronavirus has presented to the aviation industry, from providing air crew with PPE to introducing a generous flexible booking policy. 'We are now taking it to the next level,' said Emirates Group Chairman and Chief Executive HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum in a press release issued earlier today. He added, '...by being the first in the industry to offer our customers free global cover for COVID-19 medical expenses and quarantine costs should they incur these costs during their travel. It is an investment on our part, but we are putting our customers first, and we believe they will welcome this initiative.”  

Cover commences from the moment passengers check in and is valid for 31 days from the date of departure, even if passengers move on to a different destination following the original flight. If you should fall ill at any time on holiday, all you have to do is call a free 24-hour WhatsApp hotline (+971 4270 8825) for assistance. The only exception seems to be that testing is not included. Passengers are also reminded to call the hotline immediately, as expenses will not be reimbursed after the fact.  

At the start of the pandemic almost every insurance company stopped selling travel insurance and finding a policy which includes Covid-19 cover remains a major barrier to many people travelling, particularly those with underlying medical conditions. And while it might be possible to track down a few providers offering cover if you are diagnosed with coronavirus on holiday (including Trailfinders, Nationwide, and Staysure) no insurer will entertain destinations that are not on the government's list of approved countries. 

It is also worth noting that while Emirates will cover any COVID-connected medical expenses, a regular travel policy would still be required to cover the likes of flight cancellation, lost luggage, and other medical emergencies.  

Emirates has now resumed flights to over 60 destinations, including daily operations between London to Dubai which started on 1 July. The A380 was added to the route on 15 July, flights to Glasgow also recommenced on this date, with plans to restart flights to all of its UK airports by 1 September. 

While Dubai's beaches and hotels are once again open for business, British passengers could also potentially connect, taking advantage of the Covid-19 policy, to the likes of the United States, the Maldives, the Seychelles or Egypt's Red Sea resorts, whose borders remain open to British tourists. 

While Emirates might be the first airline to offer this kind of free insurance internationally, it should be Vietnamese budget carrier Vietjet that takes the credit for coming up with the idea, having introduced a similar policy (although with a lot more red tape) at the end of March as way to encourage domestic travel within the country. The Vietjet policy also required passengers to provide a negative test before flying and discriminated against any passengers with 'epilepsy or mental illness'.  

More forward-thinking airlines are also starting to take bigger, bolder steps towards reassuring the travelling public. Lufthansa Group, which operates Lufthansa, Swiss Air and Austrian Airlines, last month introduced a 'return flight guarantee,' a promise to get passengers home should the virus close borders or restrict travel. Indonesian carrier Garuda is offering to refund the government's rapid test fee. Wearing a mask has become compulsory on most airlines, from British Airways to KLM to Cathay Pacific, with a number of American airlines now banning passengers who fail to comply. 

But it is Emirates who have taken the boldest step so far. It will now be interesting to see if other airlines follow suit.