Wars, Natural Disasters, Epidemics: What Does Travel Insurance Cover?

It happens often enough: Countries you plan to travel to are suddenly hit by civil unrest, war, a natural disaster, or an epidemic. Airspace is closed and flights are grounded, affecting connecting flights as well. Long-planned holidays or visits to friends and family must be cancelled, and travelers may be left stranded far from home. The losses and unexpected costs can quickly become very high.

In this guide, moneyland.ch answers the most important questions about travel insurance cover and benefits for travelers affected by war and civil unrest.

Which crises does travel insurance cover?

Crises that are typically covered include:

• Wars – including rebellions, revolutions, and civil unrest.
• Terrorist attacks.
• Natural disasters – including floods, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, hurricanes, earthquakes, heavy snowfall, and avalanches, among others.
• Epidemics and quarantines.
• Strikes.
• Nuclear disasters (radiation).

The exact lists of covered crises vary between travel insurance offers.

If I cancel my travel bookings because of a crisis in the country I wanted to travel to, can I get reimbursed by my travel insurance?

The trip cancellation insurance included in Swiss travel insurance offers covers trip cancellations due to wars, pandemics, and natural disasters in your destination country. A travel warning from the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs is normally sufficient.

If you are entitled to refunds from airlines, hotels, or travel agencies, the travel insurance will cover the outstanding amount that is not refunded. How much you can claim depends on your policy’s limit for trip cancellations. For Swiss long-term travel insurance, these limits range between just 2000 francs and 200,000 francs, depending on the offer.

You can sort offers based on their trip cancellation cover using the sort tool in the interactive travel insurance comparison on moneyland.ch.

Does travel insurance reimburse the cost of bookings when I have to cut my trip short because of a war or other crisis?

Yes. Trip interruption insurance, sometimes called travel assistance insurance, covers these costs if you are forced to cut a trip short due to a crisis in your travel destination or one of the countries on your travel route.

The exact crises that make you eligible to claim reimbursement vary between travel insurance offers. You can use the filters under “Trip interruption: covered events” in the interactive travel insurance comparison to limit results to offers that cover specific crises.

Does my travel insurance cover the cost of returning home early if a crisis hits my travel destination?

Yes. The trip interruption insurance included in most travel insurance offers covers the cost of repatriation if a war, civil unrest, a pandemic, or a natural disaster makes it impossible to continue your trip as planned.

Does travel insurance cover the cost of an emergency evacuation from an area hit by war, natural disasters, or a pandemic?

The search and rescue cover included in many Swiss travel insurance offers only covers emergency evacuations in very specific cases – namely, when you are injured or become ill. However, when this does apply, the limits on cover are typically much higher than those for repatriation due to trip interruptions.

Does my travel insurance cover hotel stays if I am unable to return home?

Not necessarily. Some travel insurance offers include insurance for the added costs of accommodation and meals required when a flight is cancelled or delayed, or when a delayed or canceled flight causes you to miss a connecting flight. This cover is sometimes called travel comfort insurance or trip delay insurance. 

If your travel insurance includes this cover, you can claim reimbursement for eligible hotel costs up to the limit for this insurance. For Swiss long-term travel insurance, the limits vary between just 750 francs and 5000 francs, depending on the offer. Some offers do not have a clear limit, but are more limited with regards to which situations are covered.

You can sort offers based on their cover for accommodation and meals using the “Accommodation and catering” sort option in the interactive travel insurance comparison on moneyland.ch.

Does my travel insurance cover medical costs during extended stays?

Medical expenses while traveling are already largely covered by your mandatory Swiss health insurance. If you have supplementary outpatient insurance or hospital insurance, this may cover certain costs that are not covered by mandatory insurance. You can find useful information in the guide to Swiss health insurance for travel.

Some travel insurance offers include travel medical insurance, which covers additional costs of medical care while traveling. However, if you are already adequately insured by mandatory and supplementary health insurance, this cover is somewhat superfluous.

Are my medical costs covered if I am injured or become ill because of a war, natural disaster, or epidemic?

The same medical cover that applies to other illnesses also applies if you are injured or become ill due to a war, natural disaster, epidemic, or other crisis.

It is worth noting, however, losses that occur due to your actively taking part in strikes, wars, or civil unrest are excluded from travel insurance cover.

Note: This article is provided for informational purposes only. The exact rules governing a specific travel insurance offer are laid out in the applicable general insurance conditions published by the insurance company.

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A basic guide to Swiss travel insurance