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British Columbia is in a state of emergency. More than 500 wildfires are burning in the western province, overwhelming the region’s firefighting capacity and threatening local communities and properties.
A thick blanket of smoke is slowly submerging parts of the province, with the BC government indicating a very high health risk (due to poor air quality) in areas from Whistler, Squamish and Nanaimo to the Fraser Valley, Okanagan, Castlegar and parts of Metro Vancouver.
The smoky haze has caused disruption at local airports, particularly impacting travellers heading to and from Kamloops, Kelowna, Castlegar, Prince George, Penticton and Terrace. Both Air Canada and WestJet announced last week that they would provide flexible flight options for passengers travelling to and from those destinations between August 15 and 22.
“First and foremost, anyone planning to travel to and from British Columbia during the active wildfire season should ensure they have their travel insurance policy in hand or at least have access to their policy, so they can read and review their coverage,” said James Sion, COO, Generali Global Assistance. “That should help them make determinations on what potential coverage they would have as they travel into those areas.
“Wildfires are treated like all other natural catastrophes. Once the fire has been named, reported and deemed official by local authorities, it can become a covered event, which means people with travel insurance can claim for trip cancellation, trip interruption and so forth. It’s important for insureds to know that once a fire is known, claims filed on a policy purchased after that date can be denied.”
A common misconception that crops up during times of extreme weather is that traditional travel insurance policies will cover trips cancelled due to ‘fear of travelling’. People might read about the fires in British Columbia and then choose not to travel there for fear of inhaling smoke or being exposed to danger, but fear of travel is not covered by insurance, Sion explained.
“Another part of the travel insurance policy that doesn’t get the attention it should is the cover provided to someone who lives in an endangered area and therefore has to cancel a trip because their home or property is in danger,” Sion told Insurance Business.
“At times like this, it’s important for brokers to help their clients understand their policies and keep communicating up-to-date information about the fires. They should continue to keep insureds appraised of the situation and make sure they know what the authorities are saying with regards to the containment or spreading of the fires.”
