Can I claim compensation from my airline?
All airlines are required to offer a refund, a promise to put the passenger on the next available flight or alternative routing. But, as most flights are extremely heavily booked at this time of the year, travellers may find that the next flight available is several days away. Compensation is not payable in this instance because the drone situation will be deemed to be beyond the airline’s control.
I’m sitting in the airport. Does the airline have to give me meals or overnight accommodation?
Passengers experiencing severe delays lasting more than two hours should qualify for meals, refreshments, hotel accommodation or transfers. Experts at Which? said: “If your flight’s delayed for at least two hours your airline has to give you two free phone calls, faxes or emails; free meals and refreshments appropriate to the delay; and free hotel accommodation and hotel transfers if an overnight stay is required.”
Will my travel insurer pay out?
A decent travel insurance policy should cover the cost of travellers having to abandon their Christmas plans because of the drone situation at Gatwick – including hotel and car hire cancellation at their destination – but as always with insurance the devil is in the detail. According to GoCompare.com, 90% of policies offer some cover for abandoning a holiday after an extended delay (typically 12 to 24 hours). Maximum payouts range from £250 to £12,500, with most bunched around £3,000 to £5,000.
My insurance is through my bank account. Am I covered?
Many travellers rely on the insurance that comes with their bank account. One popular policy is Nationwide’s Flex Plus account, whose terms and conditions say it will pay up to £5,000 if you decide to abandon the journey and return home, but only if the delay to the flight is for at least six hours on journeys of four nights or fewer, or 12 hours on journeys of five nights or more.
That said, it is often a battle to make claims against insurers in these circumstances, and the very cheap policies bought on comparison sites are likely to reject claims. Nearly all policies include an excess, which is usually at least £100. That means the first £100 of the claim will not be paid.
Do insurers pay out if this is a terrorist incident?
If Thursday’s drone attack is declared a terrorist incident, then the insurers will not pay out. A standard condition in insurance policies is that “cancellation on the grounds of war or terrorism isn’t covered by your policy”.
