Travel insurance won’t cover cancelled trips from Irish pass

People affected by the Irish passport crisis have been warned that it is unlikely that cancelled trips can be claimed on

Travel Insurance News - 25/03/2010

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Irish citizens affected by a dispute at the Passport Office have been advised that their travel insurance is unlikely to cover any trips they cancel. The failure to obtain a passport is not normally covered under travel insurance policies, which may leave many out of pocket and unable to get their money back as the passport backlog continues.

Citizens have been warned not to travel without their documents and told that their options during these times are very limited. Even travel by ferry is advised against if you don’t have a passport.

Irish citizens with a valid photo ID can, however, still travel to Britain, but the advice is to check before you leave home as some companies have different requirements. Drivers licenses, international student cards, ID cards or social security cards will be accepted by Aer Lingus, for example, while Ryan Air will still require all passengers to have a valid passport.

The Budget carrier announced that there would be no change in their passport policy, adding that it was the government’s responsibility to issue passports, not theirs. The Department of Foreign Affairs, however, are allowing Irish citizens to travel to Britain without passports.

Passports will be needed by everyone travelling to Europe and beyond, and while a passport is not always needed for ferry travel to continental Europe, an Irish Ferries spokesman warned that passengers should not to attempt to travel without one. He added that the ferry service would be acting like an airport, with strict regulations during the passport crisis.

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