London tube strike latest

June 9th, 2009

Millions of commuters and visitors to London face travel chaos and major delays after talks aimed at averting a 48 hour strike by Tube workers broke down. Thousands of members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union will walk out from 7pm today, Tuesday 9th, until 7pm on Thursday 11th, bringing the network to a standstill. Boris Johnson, the London mayor, and Transport for London have put in place a series of contingency plans aimed at helping commuters get to work, including extra buses, taxi-sharing and schemes to lead cyclists across the capital and a free River shuttle service.

If you are using London Underground to get to the airport, are you covered if you have taken out a travel insurance policy? Well, for those taking trips abroad and caught up on their way to the airport, then yes you may well be. Under most travel insurance policies, insurers will respond to claims for Delay and Abandonment as well as Missed Departure. Some insurers provide cover for events beyond your control so if you have been delayed by the Underground disruption, then your travel insurance should cover you for additional accommodation and travel expenses incurred to get you to your destination, so all is not lost. The proviso here, of course, is that you need to have bought your travel insurance before the strike was announced.

Do also obtain a written report from London Transport if your journey to the airport is delayed or cancelled, which you should include in any claim you make.