One of current topics for any media and newspaper around the world is the case of the Cumbre Vieja volcano eruption in La Palma, Canary Islands.
Flights to and from the Spanish island were cancelled in the week due to the massive eruption, forcing the Spanish island to close its airport and causing long queues for boats off the island.
A similar event occurred in 2010 in Iceland, during the eruption period of Eyjafjallajökull, one of Iceland's smallest volcanoes. This event brought about huge air travel disruption in Europe, since the eruption ash covered many areas of western and northern Europe. The airspace of 20 countries was closed, affecting travel for about 10 million people.
Although phenomena like volcanic eruptions are rare, it’s certainly still possible that they can disrupt travel plans. People are generally focused on the ‘short’ term – years, decades, or a lifetime; however, the prediction of future geologic activity happens on a much larger scale, reducing the long-term accuracy. Not all insurance companies include volcanic risk in their policies, although some insurance loss models, particularly for ash fall, are currently being developed.
In the case in which volcanic eruption is included in the policy, it is often incorporated with earthquake and tsunami cover.
Many volcanic eruptions include several perils that can vary for dimension, intensity and consequences and they could affect your travel, like in La Palma.
That’s why taking travel insurance before travelling is always a good idea.
People who previously booked flights for La Palma, and purchased a Fit 2 Trip policy before the current volcanic activity began, will be covered for travel disruption related to the volcanic eruptions.
With Fit 2 Trip you can choose between our medical-only or multi-risk travel insurance policies, with basic, standard or premium coverage levels. You can also choose between a single trip or multi-trip policy and you can always add to your policy extreme activities and winter sports, business or golf coverage.