Spain holidays cancelled (again)

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Quarantine for Spain travellers

The government has re-imposed the 14-day quarantine rule on people entering the UK from Spain after a resurgence of coronavirus cases there. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has advised people not to travel there. One travel company estimates that 1.8 million holidays have been thrown into chaos by the move.

Adviser comment: "Check your insurance before travelling to understand what you are and aren’t covered for. Travelling to countries against FCO advice is likely to invalidate your travel insurance."

More quarantine coming?

The Spain quarantine happened very quickly - the rules changed at midnight on Saturday with just a few hours’ warning. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has said the situation is under constant review and the government “won’t hesitate” to add other countries to the list at short notice.

Airlines could be banned

The airline regulator is starting to crack down* on airlines for failing to refund customers whose flights were cancelled due to coronavirus travel restrictions. In total, millions of people are still owed billions in unpaid refunds. The worst offenders could end up banned from operating in the UK.

Higher tax on over-40s?

The government is considering plans to pay for the care of elderly people using higher taxes on over-40s. Boris Johnson made an election pledge last year to “fix the crisis in social care once and for all”. The proposals are modelled on similar systems in Germany and Japan and would see everyone over 40 pay more tax - or take out private insurance to pay for their own later life care.

Adviser comment: "This is a huge election pledge to deliver and we'll definitely watch this space. For now though, we just need to wait and see what is actually proposed."