My travel insurer was inhumane after my father-in-law’s death

theguardian.com:

My partner and I travelled to the south of France in December to spend Christmas with my father-in-law. We were taking our newborn twins to meet him for the first time. When we arrived at his flat in Perpignan, he didn’t answer the door. We had to break a window to gain entry, whereupon we discovered his dead body. It was a gruesome experience involving the fire brigade, police, coroner and lots of bureaucracy.

The funeral was scheduled for 28 December, the same date that I had been due to travel from Paris to London and back on Eurostar to collect my son. I sought to cancel my £389 Eurostar tickets, via the booking agent Trainline, but was told that they were non-refundable. I therefore had to buy new tickets to make the trip two days later. My travel insurance provider, Churchill, has also refused to refund me as my trip was extended by two days rather than curtailed.

This is inhumane. What good is travel insurance if it doesn’t cover unexpected deaths in the family? KH, London

Your ordeal is beyond imagining. I am so very sorry. Many airlines consider reimbursing non-refundable tickets on compassionate grounds, so, while Eurostar’s standard ticket policy is unambiguous, it’s disappointing it doesn’t make exceptions. And your situation was truly exceptional. That’s why you hit a brick wall with your insurance claim.

A feeling heart may beat behind the customer service scripts, but it’s smothered by the small print. Your policy terms state that you can claim costs of up to £5,000 if you have to cancel a trip. You did have to cancel your return trip and it was that cost you were claiming. But, in the insurance mindset, it doesn’t count as a curtailment, because you had already embarked on your travels.

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