COVID-19 & Overall Advice Level Alert – 11th August 2020 (updated 8th November 2020)

We encourage all Australians to follow the Government’s advice to urgently return home to Australia.  However, we appreciate that customers may wish to remain overseas or, due to circumstances beyond their control, may be unable to return to Australia.  

In the event you choose to remain overseas, we want to give you as much certainty as we can about your travel insurance policy so that you can make informed travel decisions for yourself and your loved ones.   

• If you choose to remain overseas, there is no cover for claims relating to the COVID-19 pandemic. Refer below for more information about applicable exclusions. This includes (but is not limited to) COVID-19 testing, hospitalisation, treatment, emergency repatriation, quarantine and amendment of your travel arrangements. 

• If you choose to remain overseas and need emergency assistance for a non-COVID-19 emergency, we may be limited in our ability to assist you due to ongoing travel restrictions and increased pressures on overseas medical facilities. This means it is riskier for you to remain overseas.

• If you choose to remain overseas and need to claim for expenses not related to the COVID-19 pandemic, we will consider your claim.  However, any payment to you may be reduced to the extent COVID-19 has contributed to the loss or increased the amount the loss otherwise would have been. Before you submit a claim, we remind that you should take all reasonable steps to minimise your loss.

Please urgently let us know if you are unable to return to Australia and require help making emergency travel arrangements.  This is a free service we offer as part of your policy.

We refer you to the Fast Cover Combined Product Disclosure Statements and Financial Services Guide (PDS) which states in part:

Pages 69-71

General Exclusions that apply to all benefits

To the extent permissible by law, we will not pay under any circumstances if 

14. Your claim arises from or is related to or is associated with:

a. an actual or likely epidemic or pandemic; or
b. the threat of an epidemic or pandemic. 

15. Your claim arises from you not following advice in the mass media or any government or other official body’s warning:

a. of a strike, riot, bad weather, civil protest or contagious disease (including an epidemic or pandemic); or

b. against travel to a particular country or parts of a country, including where an advice or warning has been released by the Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade indicating “Do not travel” or warning to “Reconsider your need to travel” or otherwise advising against all non-essential travel to or in that location or advising against specific transport arrangements or participation in specific events or activities; and

c. you did not take appropriate action to avoid or minimise any potential claim under your policy (including delay of travel to the country or part of the country referred to in the warning).

Please note, whilst General Exclusion 14 and 15 have been specifically mentioned, all General Exclusions are applicable to all policies regardless of policy purchase or travel dates.

Policies come with a 14 day cooling off refund period as long as you have not travelled or exercised any condition under the policy such as departing on your trip, making a claim or using it as part of your visa requirements to enter a country such as Canada on an IEC Visa.

You should understand, all policies include a General Exclusion for Pandemics. There is no cover available for any claims for anything, directly or indirectly, relating to the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the COVID-19 disease or any mutation of either, including but not limited to:

• State, territory and international border closures or international travel bans by any Government.
• The cancellation by an airline, bus line, shipping line or rail authority.
• Due to the financial collapse of but not limited to any airline, or other carriers, accommodation provider, car rental agency, travel agency including online travel agencies, online travel and leisure retailer, tour or cruise operator, travel wholesaler, booking agent or other providers of facilities or travel or tourism-related services.