Staysure has introduced travel insurance policies specifically designed for people who choose to travel to European destinations where the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has advised against “all but essential” travel.

FCO advice is normally a trigger point for travel insurance. If you travel against FCO advice, your insurance policy usually becomes void.

But Staysure will allow travellers in Europe to maintain cover for all other elements of the travel insurance policy except for those relating to the reason the FCO has issued the travel advice.

This means that travellers to Spain, France and other European countries currently on the FCO watch list would not be covered for claims relating to coronavirus.

However, they would be covered for claims relating to:

• Emergency medical and repatriation not relating to coronavirus
• Travel delays
• Loss of baggage, personal money or passport

If the FCO changes its advice on a host destination once a traveller has arrived, Staysure will pay the policyholder up to £1,000 for additional accommodation and travel expenses incurred, if they need to repatriate or return to the UK earlier than planned.

Ryan Howsam, CEO of Staysure, said: “Against a backdrop of ever-changing travel advice and widespread uncertainty, we have worked hard to bring this new cover to market as quickly as possible.

“We know that, for a multitude of reasons, people are choosing to travel to European destinations even when FCO advice advises otherwise. In doing so, they find themselves exposed to additional risk, as they are no longer insured for other eventualities.

“Staysure is invested in the future of travel. While we cannot prevent people from choosing to travel, we can support them to make sensible choices and protect themselves and their families to the degree that it is possible in these challenging times.”