Not upheld: claim declined - missed departure complaint against Inter Partner Assistance SA (IPA)

Decision detail

Summary

Mr and Mrs D claimed on their travel insurance policy after missing their outbound flight in April 2025. They had made a detour to hospital for a pregnancy check-up and subsequently faced an accident on the motorway, combined with misinformation from the airline about check-in closure times. IPA declined the claim as the circumstances were not covered under the policy terms. The ombudsman found that while sympathetic to their situation, the fundamental reason for missing the flight was that they had not allowed sufficient time for travel to the airport, which does not fall within the covered events under Section 1 – Missed Departure. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman applied the principle that insurance policies cover only agreed areas of risk as set out in the terms and conditions. The test was whether the claim fell within the covered events under Section 1 – Missed Departure. The ombudsman found that the fundamental reason for missing the flight was that Mr and Mrs D did not allow enough time for their travel to the airport, which is not a covered event. While sympathetic to their situation regarding the hospital visit and airline misinformation, neither constitutes an insured event under the policy terms. The special condition requiring sufficient time to be allowed for transport to arrive on schedule and deliver them to the departure point was not met.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website