View Full Version : Insurance Help
Hi All,
I need some help. Scenario is as follows:
- Booked and paid for flights in February for travel 27th October and 10th November.[msnsmile]
- Found out we're expecting a baby due on or around 1st December.
- Virgin Atlantic accept you for travel up to 36 weeks pregnant if all is ok with pregnancy. (Will be 37 weeks for the return flight)
- Not been to doctors yet as we just found out over the weekend.
We're thinking of taking out an annual travel insurance policy to cover a change in flights to before 36 weeks as we are not covered for canellation with the Virgin flights we booked.
Is this possible?
Any help or advice would be very much appreciated!! Even other ways round it other than losing £3000 on flights!!
Thanks in advance
Congratulations on your news.
Insurance companies speculate that the thing you're insuring against hasn't/doesn't happen and of which you're unaware at the time of taking out the insurance (unless you've declared it and they have agreed cover) so I don't quite see how you can get cover for something that already has happened?
You'd need to declare the pregnancy (as with any other medical condition) when taking out the policy and arrange specific cover for that otherwise any subsequent claim would be dismissed.
We advise our guests to always, always take out comprehensive insurance before they book any part of a trip abroad.
Plus... if Virgin accept passengers up to 36 weeks, how will your partner/wife return home if she'll be 37 weeks at the time of her return journey?
We are working on the basis that if we had booked the flights and insurance say last week then we genuinely wouldn't have been aware of the pregnancy but it would have still been there so would they not have had to cover us once we found out??
Exactly blott, my wife would not be able to fly home at 37 weeks which is why we need to change our flights to earlier in the year so that we can still go.
Thanks for the congratulations, it doesn't feel that way at the moment, more shock than anything!!
It's a long shot, but your best advice is probably to contact Virgin as soon as possible, explain the situation & see if they will oblige!
Guess it depends on the sympathy of who you contact, but we've got flights moved on a previous occasion.
Agree with Blott that insurance won't help....
So did Virgin change your flights without charge??
If they do then that would be the best solution, it's just that it says on the e-ticket that the flights are non flexible!
Cheers
steph_goodrum
14-04-2009, 14:23
Congratulations on your unexpected news. Unfortunately as Blott says if you don't have insurance now then it's too late to get it for a known event.
Your best bet is asking Virgin if there is any way they will change the flights, but even so unless you booked insurance at the time of booking the flights, that could stil prove a problem unless it is within the next few months as anywhere near due date they are going to be reluctant because it is very expensive should the baby happen to arrive in the US.
Unfortunately your situation may serve as a reminder to people to make sure insurance is in place either before booking or as soon as you know there is a significant loss if you are unable to proceed with the booking. The other option might be to ask them if they will allow you to defer the flights until say March next year (they only book up to 330 days in advance) and take baby with you.
Regarding if you had booked flights last week then I think you'll find the wording is something like "if you could not have been reasonably expected to know when booking the insurance", of course with pregnancy it's difficult because some people go through and don't know until they are about to deliver so everyone is different.
A phone call to Virgin should clarify it but would double check on the insurance side as well before you book it in case they say for example they will cover you to 24 weeks or some such other date, so you know where you stand.
clairemca
14-04-2009, 16:54
Hi Garry,
Congratulations!!
I wanted to get a refund on my Virgin tickets but when I phoned up they told me they were refundable, but they did tell me I could change the date and destination if I was going to use the tickets in the next year. You would have to pay the difference if the tickets were dearer. I would gave them a ring and see what they say.
Claire
Neatfeat
14-04-2009, 22:05
We had Virgin e-tickets that were non-refundable/no changes accepted and they changed our flight dates at no cost after a situation arose. I think it depends who you get on the other end of the line but we were told they can be changed at a cost of £50 per ticket.
Congrats.
Even if you had booked your insurance weeks ago you would still have had to tell them about the pregnancy. Any and all things have to be notified to them up to the date of travel and would be deemed and pre-existing.
lafifille
14-04-2009, 23:11
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by wrpac00
Congrats.
Even if you had booked your insurance weeks ago you would still have had to tell them about the pregnancy. Any and all things have to be notified to them up to the date of travel and would be deemed and pre-existing.
[/quote]
I think he meant that if he had booked an insurance [u]before</u> she became pregnant it might have helped. But I'm not sure pregnancy would be taken into account, as it is something you can "avoid" nowadays, and when you read the small prints they always seem to find an excuse not to pay your money back anyway.
I would take my chances with VA and be very flexible about any solution they'd be ready to offer. Ask for a manager if the person you talk to doesn't seem ready to help. But I've called them a couple of times and they've been very nice, even though my problems were not as bad as yours.
Congratulations anyway, when the shock wears off (and you've found a solution to this problem) you'll be thrilled I'm sure [clap].
Congratulations on your news.
Did you pay with a credit card as most of them have some sort of travel insurance attached to them which might help your situation. Have a read of your CC Terms and Conditions just in case.
Sandra
Hi All,
Thanks very much for all your replies and advice. I am going to take the majority of advice and ring Virgin Atlantic at the weekend to explain the situation and see if they will change the dates of all 7 flights from October/November to next February.
My wife has already said that if she has the choice then she would choose to go to Florida with a 3 month old baby rather than when 8 months pregnant!
I will check my First Direct credit card terms and conditions to see if we have any cover for this unexpected situation! (just in case Virgin will not move the flights).
Thanks again for all your help and i will let you know the outcome once i have a resolve.
Cheers
lafifille
15-04-2009, 15:13
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by gpullan
My wife has already said that if she has the choice then she would choose to go to Florida with a 3 month old baby rather than when 8 months pregnant!
[/quote]
I certainly agree with her, and I would add "when 7 months pregnant", and "when 6 months pregnant", as they put you right in the summer... she'd feel miserable. Try to get a later date, and tell them you'll post about their generous attitude (eventually) on this forum, who knows, it may help!
Good luck and keep us posted
Nathalie
Hi All,
An update for you on our fortunate or unfortunate situation!![confused][grin]
Spoke with Virgin last night and they will move our flights for free. All we need to do is provide them with a medical letter stating that on 10th November, Melanie will be 38 ish weeks pregnant. They will then move the flights for free to next February. I could have changed them last night but without the medical letter, they will charge £50 per ticket to change. All is looking good with them.
Our villa owner has also been great and has agreed to move the dates for us once the new flights are confirmed.
Also, Roger was great about the situation and will change our booking for the car, again once the flights are confirmed. We also need an 8 seater now!!
So panic over i think due to us flying with a good airline and being part of this forum where everyone is so helpful, understands people's situations and try and make things as stress free as possible.
A big thanks for everyone's advice, help and good wishes. Florida 2010 it is then! Hope the weather is as good then, never checked!!
I will post back once all the i's are dotted and t's crossed.
Congratulations on your happy news. I am pleased to hear it has all worked out well and you have been able to alter all your arrangements.
steph_goodrum
17-04-2009, 14:36
That's a good result then hopefully Garry. The next few months are going to be so exciting with plans for the new arrival, Christmas and your first Florida family holiday.
Congratulations on your good news [msnsmile] and pleased to hear you have managed to sort out new arrangements with flights, villa and car. Hope all goes well for you and you have a great Florida holiday...... next February! I'm sure you will have a great time.
FraserLynn
17-04-2009, 21:30
We love Feb in Florida, personally I think it is one of the nicest times of the year to be there especially with a young baby.
It is nice, bright and warm, but not hot and humid (which would probably make the baby cranky) so you can enjoy the parks without big queues and with really pleasant weather. It is a little cool in the evenings and a fleece or light coat is needed, but it soon warms up again in the mornings.
It is great to hear that Virgin have been so helpful, I guess an up front and honest approach always pays off in the end.[msnsmile2]
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by lafifille
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by wrpac00
Congrats.
Even if you had booked your insurance weeks ago you would still have had to tell them about the pregnancy. Any and all things have to be notified to them up to the date of travel and would be deemed and pre-existing.
[/quote]
I think he meant that if he had booked an insurance [u]before</u> she became pregnant it might have helped.
[/quote]
I think I understood it OK. What I was saying was that it doesn't matter when you take out your insurance the insurers HAVE to be made aware of everything before you go on holiday.
lafifille
18-04-2009, 01:11
Great news then, and a big [clap][clap][clap] to Virgin, and to your owner and Roger of course.
Now you can relax and enjoy the news.
Congratulations again, and if I can make a suggestion for the baby's name, if it's a boy, you could name him Orlando :D ;)
sarahnmitch
18-04-2009, 11:15
:DAnd if it's a girl you could name her VIRGINia!!! lol
Hi all,
An update for you all.
Spoke to Virgin customer Services who have been absolutely fantastic. I have cancelled all our flights and will receive a full refund within 4 weeks.
I then rebooked our flights for February 09, getting a seat for Aimee who will be 18 months rather than her being on our lap, and a skycot for the baby who will be with us in November, all for £200 less than we paid originally. Granted i needed to fax a medical letter to them to prove Melanie would be 38 weeks pregnant but £20 for the doctors letter was a small price to pay!!
I have had a very understanding villa owner who has agreed to move our dates to Feb 09.
We have either been very lucky or Virgin are a class airline when things go wrong.
Downside is that we have to wait an extra 3 months to go, upside is that we will have a baby arriving in November!!
Thanks again for all the advice during this problem. Also, thanks for the name suggestions [msnsmile2]
Albert the Frog
06-05-2009, 03:04
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by sarahnmitch
:DAnd if it's a girl you could name her VIRGINia!!! lol
[/quote]......or even FLO.rida
Dads_Taxi
18-05-2009, 22:44
Congratulations from me too, on your addition to the family.
The part of this thread that has me totally baffled is: How the heck did you get SEVEN flights with Virgin for Three Grand?? I've never seen them so cheap.
Hi Dave. Perhaps it's the time of year we're going and the passengers. We actually got 3 adults, 4 children and an infant for less than £2800 direct with Virgin Atlantic. Travelling Feb 2010.