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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Travel
Daisy Naylor

What happens if you ignore FCO travel advice and go on holiday?

While countries around the world are starting to reopen to tourists, Brits are still banned from going abroad.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is still advising against all but essential foreign travel for the foreseeable future - meaning holidays are off limits for now.

While there's no date for when this advice will change, UK airlines are planning for a return to normal.

Ryanair flights will resume on 1 July, and Jet2 will follow on 15 July.

But what happens if the FCO advice has not changed by then?

What happens if you ignore the FCO advice?

FCO travel advice is advisory, based on the latest situation on the ground. The decision to travel is a personal one that you should take with the advice in mind.

However, if you decide to ignore the advice and go on holiday anyway, your insurance will not be valid.

This is because the FCO advises against all but essential travel, and holidays are not considered 'essential'.

If you went abroad without insurance you would not be able to make any claims, even if they had nothing to do with the coronavirus pandemic.

If you think your trip is essential, you should still contact your travel insurance provider before travelling to check that you'll be covered.

They may have a different definition of 'essential'.

Travelling without insurance puts you and your family in an extremely vulnerable position, so you should not go on holiday until the FCO deems it safe.

Can you get a refund if the FCO advice hasn't changed?

Before booking any flights or holidays for later this year, you should check the cancellation policy.

You should find out whether you'll be able to rebook your trip if the FCO advice has not changed. Many airlines and holiday providers are offering customers a lot of flexibility.

It's vitally important that you check before booking, as different companies have different policies, and you don't want to be caught out.

What happens if you break the quarantine rules?

If you've been out of the country on an essential trip, you must quarantine for 14 days upon your return.

Failure to do this can result in a £1,000 fine.

You are only exempt from these rules if you are a road haulage or freight worker, a medical professional providing essential healthcare, arriving for pre-arranged medical treatment, a UK resident who travels overseas at least once a week for work, or a seasonal agricultural worker who will be self-isolating at your place of work.

Those making a connection flight in the UK but not passing through border control will not need to quarantine.

And those arriving from the Common Travel Area (Ireland, Isle of Man or Channel Islands) will not need to quarantine either.

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