Travel Insurance claim for aborted hotel stay due to rail disruption

Earlier today I had to abandon travel due to disruption (from Taunton to Penrith). I'm proceeding with the rail side of the costs as usual, however there is a hotel cost I'd like to get back that was too late to refund through cancellation policy, so I'm going down the travel insurance claim route, as I have an annual policy that covers Europe including the UK. However, after a previous incidence of a one-night hotel stay being abandoned due to a last-minute event postponement, my travel insurer did not accept that claim, so I'm keen to get advice in advance to make absolutely sure I get this claim right.

What should I be trying to provide to my insurers to backup the case? I'm currently thinking photos of tickets, or at least the email with the booking and itinery, and/or any (hopefully successful) journey refunds, as well as the same for the hotel. Has anyone been through a similar experience? My insurance is with Sainsburys if this helps.

(Apologies if this isn't the right forum, while it has rail elements it's not the main gist of the discussion).

Any and all evidence will help.

But fundamentally it comes down to your policy terms. I've not read Sainsbury's' travel insurance policy booklet, but it should provide clarification on what is covered and what is not.

Why was it denied last time? If it's outside the terms of the cover then you aren't likely to be successful this time around. Did you abandon due to a rail delay making the trip unviable?

It's not at all unusual for standard annual policies to only cover UK domestic travel where there are two nights away from home minimum. Worth checking if that is the reason for the previous denial, as if so it would also result in this one being denied.

AlterEgo said:

Why was it denied last time? If it's outside the terms of the cover then you aren't likely to be successful this time around. Did you abandon due to a rail delay making the trip unviable?

Click to expand...

I missed a connection at Birmingham due to a late-running XC service, then Avanti couldn't accept my bike on a later service than the one I was reserved on.

Bletchleyite said:

It's not at all unusual for standard annual policies to only cover UK domestic travel where there are two nights away from home minimum. Worth checking if that is the reason for the previous denial, as if so it would also result in this one being denied.

Click to expand...

This one was a 5-night so if that won't be an issue this time.


I've found the old email rejecting the claim and it summarised this:

I would refer you to the policy wording under Section 2 - cancellation/cutting short your trip, page 45/46, where it states that you are covered for:

Click to expand...

We will pay you up to the amount shown in the Policy limits and excesses table for the level of cover you have selected, for your share of the cost of your trip as a result of:

• The death, injury or illness, as certified by a medical practitioner, of you, your relative or colleague or travelling companion or a friend or relative with whom you had arranged to stay; or

• Your attendance at a court of law as a witness (except as an expert witness) or for Jury Service where postponement of the Jury Service has been denied by the Clerk of the Courts Office; or

• You or your travelling companion is a member of the Armed Forces, Police, Ambulance, Fire or Nursing Service and authorized leave is cancelled due to an unexpected emergency or a posting overseas at the time of your trip; or

• You or your travelling companion are instructed to stay at home (within 14 days of your departure date) or return home by a relevant authority due to severe damage to your home or place of business in the UK caused by serious fire, explosion, storm, flood, subsidence or burglary; or

• Your redundancy or that of your travelling companion or your spouse (including a civil partner or co-habitee) notified to you after the purchase of this policy or after the date the trip was booked, whichever is the later; or

• Your cancellation of the trip as a result of a travel delay under Section 5: Travel delay and missed departure where the delay is in excess of 12 hours at your first international departure point from the UK

Click to expand...

The claim was basically trying to get back a one-night hotel stay after a theatre performer took ill on the day of the show (thus after the hotel cancellation window), in Exeter, so postponed the show a few weeks. It wasn't the end of the world as it wasn't a particularly expensive booking, but still annoying.

My policy currently has UK in its remit, so if they rejected the claim on the above grounds I will try and enquire further, but first I'm waiting for the abandoned journey claims to process as this will likely be evidence I submit.

Seems clear from reading that that abandoning a trip because its reason disappeared (event cancellation) wasn't covered - sometimes it is and sometimes it isn't. Always important to read your policy, but doesn't reflect on the new claim I guess.

Update on this: the outbound train journey has been refunded; still waiting for the return journey (which I did as a separate claim). I'll wait for the latter to come through, but I'm thinking the outbound journey at least should be enough to provide to the travel insurers that I didn't make it to the destination of the hotel booking.

brad465 said:

Update on this: the outbound train journey has been refunded; still waiting for the return journey (which I did as a separate claim). I'll wait for the latter to come through, but I'm thinking the outbound journey at least should be enough to provide to the travel insurers that I didn't make it to the destination of the hotel booking.

Click to expand...

Decent outcome, and fair play to the insurers who often get daggers for not paying out.

styles said:

Decent outcome, and fair play to the insurers who often get daggers for not paying out.

Click to expand...

This was not the insurers, this was the ticket seller (GWR). I haven't claimed against the insurers yet, but should be close to now the ticket outcomes are coming through.