DRN-6011063

The complaint Mr H and Ms N are unhappy that Inter Partner Assistance SA (‘IPA’) declined a claim made under the travel insurance policy from which they benefited (‘the policy’). What happened The details of this complaint are well known to both parties, so I won’t repeat them again here. I’ll focus on giving the reasons for my decision. What I’ve decided – and why I’ve considered all the available evidence and arguments to decide what’s fair and reasonable in the circumstances of this complaint. IPA has a regulatory obligation to handle insurance claims fairly and promptly. And not to unreasonably decline a claim. On their day of travel, Mr H and Ms N say they arrived at the parking area for the airport in good time. There was a suspected fire in the main access (road) tunnel to the airport they were due to depart from. The shuttle bus from the parking area took them to a different terminal as the bus which would take them to the terminal, they were departing from, wasn’t running. They then had to travel by underground which was delayed. They say when they arrived at the underground station, airport members of staff held them and other passengers on a landing between escalators for about an hour. They were then held for a long period in the station lobby before being allowed to walk through the passenger tunnel and into the terminal. They decided to head straight to the departure gate and upon arrival, was told that the flight was closed. Unable to book another outbound flight to their destination, they returned home. I empathise with Mr H and Ms N’s situation. They were denied boarding their flight through no fault of their own, have missed out on a trip abroad and incurred significant financial losses. I’m sorry to disappoint them but for the reasons set out below, I’m satisfied IPA fairly and reasonably declined their claim. Travel insurance isn’t designed to cover every eventuality. Cover is subject to terms and conditions of the policy. Subject to the remaining terms of the policy, there is cover for delayed departure/abandonment (section D) and for missed departure (section E). Section D says cover is available:

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If you have arrived at the terminal and have checked-in, or attempted to check in for your pre-booked flight…from…the United Kingdom, and it is delayed for more than 12 hours beyond the intended departure time as a direct result of: • strike or industrial action, • adverse weather conditions, or • mechanical breakdown of or a technical fault occurring in the scheduled public transport on which you are booked to travel. I’m satisfied IPA has fairly concluded that there’s no cover in the circumstances which led Mr H and Ms N to miss their flight. From what I’ve seen, including an email from the airline dated August 2025, I’m not persuaded that the pre-booked outbound flight was delayed (or if it was, by more than 12 hours). And the trip wasn’t abandoned for any of the insured reasons under this section of the policy. Section E says: We will pay you, up to the amount shown in the Benefit Schedule, for reasonable additional accommodation (room only) and travel expenses necessarily incurred in reaching your overseas destination/home if you fail to arrive at the international departure point in time to board the scheduled public transport on which you are booked to travel for the first leg of the outbound/return journey of the trip as a result of: • the failure of other scheduled public transport, taking you to your international departure point, from the UK, or • an accident to or breakdown of the vehicle in which you are travelling • heavy traffic or road closures that were sufficiently severe to warrant reporting on a recognised motoring association website or on television, news bulletins or in the press. Again, from what I’ve seen, I’m satisfied that there’s no cover in the circumstances which led Mr H and Ms N to miss their flight under section E of the policy. I’m not satisfied that it would be fair and reasonable to conclude that there was a failure of other scheduled public transport (public transport is defined as ‘any publicly licensed aircraft, sea vessel, train or coach on which you were booked to travel’), taking Mr H and Ms N to their international departure point. From what Mr H and Ms N have said, they were held for over an hour in areas before being allowed into the main airport. I’m not persuaded that the insured events have been too narrowly construed or that it would be fair and reasonable to interpret them to include the circumstances which led to Mr H and Ms N missing their outbound flight in this case. I’ve also considered other sections of the policy terms, and I’m satisfied that there isn’t cover for the circumstances which led to them missing their flight. My final decision I don’t uphold this complaint.

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Under the rules of the Financial Ombudsman Service, I’m required to ask Mr H and Ms N to accept or reject my decision before 12 May 2026. David Curtis-Johnson Ombudsman

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