Conditions of the cancellation insurance
General conditions valid until 14/12/2020
General conditions valid from 15/12/2020
Cancellation insurance Platinum & All Risk
TEMPORARY CANCELLATION INSURANCE
GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS
If you book a trip or flight from our offer, cancellation cover is not included in the trip price. Within this scope, we recommend our PLATINUM or ALL RISK cancellation insurance. These cancellation insurance plans need to be taken out when the reservation is made.
1. Purpose of the insurance
The PLATINUM and ALL RISK cancellation insurance plans reimburse the traveller for the cancellation or modification costs in case of cancellation of a trip or a rental agreement of a holiday accommodation due to one of the reasons defined in the plan once the insurance plan has been taken out and the travel contract has been signed.
2. Concerned parties
a) Insurer: Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell; The Landmark, Level 1, Suite 2, Triq L-Iljun, Qormi, QRM3800, Malta, approved by the MFSA. Authorised claim handler: Pats nv, company number 0436.072.606, Gistelsesteenweg 1, 8400 Oostende (Belgium).
b) Insurance policyholder, insured party and beneficiary: the insurance policyholder is a natural person who takes out the PLATINUM or ALL RISK cancellation insurance policy and resides in a member state of the European Union or in Switzerland. The insured parties are the beneficiary and possible travel companions (3.d)).
3. Definitions
a) travel contract: any transport, stay or holiday accommodation rental, or combination thereof, booked by the beneficiary in the capacity of traveller and/or renter with TUI Belgium nv as travel agent and/or tour operator.
b) departure date: the date of departure specified in the travel contract.
c) registration date: the date when the booked services were booked with the tour operator.
d) travel companion: the person who is mentioned together with the insurance policyholder in the registration and with whom the insurance policyholder decided to undertake the scheduled trip and whose presence is essential for a successful holiday.
e) life partner: the person with whom the insurance policyholder is engaged in registered or unregistered cohabitation and who lives together with the insurance policyholder at the same address in a long-lasting manner.
f) illness: any sudden and unexpected deterioration of health not caused by an accident of which the cause and symptoms have objectively and medically been determined by a certified physician before or on the date of cancellation, consequently making the concluded travel contract impossible.
g) stable disease: a disease is considered to be stable when a patient does not present any new symptoms of this disease before or at the time of booking the trip and no new or supplementary treatment or medication is necessary during the 3 to 6 months (depending on the pathology) before the time of booking the trip.
h) accident: any harm to the physical integrity as diagnosed by a certified doctor that is attributable to a sudden cause beyond the insurance policyholder’s control and renders the performance of the concluded travel contract impossible from a medical point of view.
i) significant material damage to immovable property: exceptional and accidental damage of at least 2.500 EUR to immovable property of the insurance policyholder (regardless of the purpose of the property) beyond the insurance policyholder's will that is attributable to an accidental cause and that requires cancellation of the travel contract to enable the insurance policyholder to protect their material interests.
4. Right to compensation
The insurer reimburses any cancellation or modification costs to be paid to the tour operator in accordance with the travel terms and conditions if any of the following situations occur after the date of subscription. The insurer reserves the right to appoint an advising physician who has the right to request additional medical information or access to the complete medical file of the patient whose illness is the reason for the cancellation or modification of the travel contract. The final decision will always lie with the insurer.
a) accident, decease or unexpected necessary treatment of a disease of:
· the insurance policyholder;
· the insurance policyholder's life partner;
· a relative of the insurance policyholder up to the third degree;
· the minor children from the insurance policyholder's reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
The insurer covers the consequences of an accident or a disease on condition that the disease or the consequences of the accident were stable at the time of booking the trip, if before departure the insured party appears not to be able to start the trip because unforeseeable medical treatment is necessary.
The guarantee expires when the beneficiary departs against the advice of the attending physician.
b) unexpected care for a family member up to the 2nd degree for medical reasons after a hospital admission on condition that the person in need of help was not hospitalised at the time of booking the trip and that the insurance policyholder did not provide care for this family member in the same way at the time of booking the trip. You have to demonstrate the need for this unexpected care by presenting proof provided by the hospital to which the family member was admitted;
c) pregnancy if the insurance policyholder was not yet pregnant before the trip at the moment of the registration date and the departure date falls within the last 3 months of the pregnancy;
d) unexpected pregnancy complications for the insurance policyholder, their life partner not participating in the trip or a family member up to the 2nd degree , including premature birth at least one month before the expected date of birth;
e) termination of the insurance policyholder's or their life partner’s employment contract by the employer for economic reasons after the registration date;
f) conclusion of a new employment contract by the insurance policyholder for at least 3 consecutive months after the registration date if this time period fully or partially coincides with the duration of the trip and if the holiday period was not approved by the new employer;
g) significant material damage (at least € 2500) to the insurance policyholder’s immovable property or business premises, for which the necessary findings and reports have been made by a public authority and/or expert, which requires the policyholder's presence, with clear traces of tampering being found in the event of a burglary, within 30 days prior to departure or during the trip;
h) summons of the policyholder or their life partner after the registration date:
· for organ transplantation (both as donor and as recipient) (medical certificate mentioning the impossibility to travel) (including for family members up to the 2nd degree);
· for the adoption of a child (arrival of the child in the family between one month before and one month after the departure date);
· for an unexpected military mission;
· for jury service at the Assize Court or for witness service in a court of law at the time of the trip;
i) disappearance or kidnapping, at the hands of a third party, of the policyholder, their life partner or a relative by blood or affinity up to the second degree;
j) suicide of
· the insurance policyholder;
· their life partner;
· any individual related to the insurance policyholder by blood or affinity up to the second degree (i.e. parents, parents-in-law, brothers, sisters, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, children, grandchildren and grandparents);
· the minor children from their reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
k) divorce or separation, if the proceedings were initiated on court level after booking the trip, or dissolution of a civil partnership, after booking the trip, provided that the official address of the insurance policyholder or the former spouse has changed after reservation, subject to presentation of an official document;
l) honeymoon cancellation because of cancellation of marriage, subject to presentation of an official document;
m) exams to be retaken by the policyholder as a student during or within 30 days after the trip, on condition that they were not aware of the retake or the unsatisfactory grade at the time of booking and that the retake cannot be rescheduled;
n) total loss of the private vehicle of the insured party or their life partner due to an accident, a fire or a theft within the week before the date of departure of the holiday by car. The insured party must in any case provide us with proof of the damage or theft (police report, public authority report and/or expert report);
o) immobilisation of the private vehicle that was supposed to take the insurance policyholder to the port or airport of departure because of accidental damage, fire, technical breakdown or theft to such extent that the port or airport of departure is not reached or cannot be reached in time and for which the necessary findings and/or reports have been made by a public authority and/or expert; Any incident resulting in immobilisation that takes place less than one hour before boarding is not covered by the guarantee of this contract. The insured must in any case provide us with proof of the damage or theft (towing service invoice, police report, public authority report and/or expert report);
p) home invasion or carjacking against the insurance policyholder, at the hands of a third party, in the week before departure, subject to presentation of the police report;
q) termination of the rental contract for the principal place of residence of the beneficiary by the landlord after the registration date and within three months prior to departure if the beneficiary needs to move out of the property within 30 days prior to departure or during the trip;
r) cancellation of leave granted to the insured by their employer because of unavailability of a colleague substituting the insured due to illness, accident or death. The insured must provide a certificate from the employer indicating that their substitute had been designated before the trip was booked as well as a medical certificate of incapacity to work or, if applicable, a death certificate of the insured's substitute;
s) Necessary presence of the insured exercising a liberal or independent profession due to unavailability of the insured's substitute as designated in the certificate of affiliation due to illness, accident or death. The insured must provide a certificate indicating that their substitute had been designated before the trip was booked as well as a medical certificate of incapacity to work or, if applicable, a death certificate of the insured's substitute;
t) theft with violence or burglary of the identity documents or flight tickets required for the journey within five days before departure, subject to presentation of the police report;
u) impossibility to vaccinate the insured due to medical reasons even though this vaccination is explicitly required according to the World Health Organisation (WHO);
v) refusal by the authorities of the country of destination to issue a visa for the insured, their life partner or a relative in the 2nd degree who travels along with the insured on condition that this refusal is not due to a late request from the insured or due to a request for which incorrect or incomplete information was provided and that it was impossible to know on the date of subscription the visa could not be issued in time or could not be issued at all;
w) decease of the dog, cat or horse of the insured within two days before the departure date. The insured must submit the following documents: a death certificate from the veterinarian, a certificate of good health of the animal on the day when the insured booked the trip and proof of ownership.
x) if the insurance policy holder took out an ALL RISK cancellation insurance plan, the insurer shall also reimburse the insured for any cancellation and modification costs of the trip for a different (personal) and verifiable reason than those listed above, subject to presentation of supporting documents and taking into account the exclusions as described in article 6.2.
y) if the insured person takes out the ALL RISK cancellation insurance, the insurer covers 75% of the costs of cancellation or change in case of an outbreak of an epidemic/pandemic, if at the time at which your trip is cancelled, the Federal Public Service for Foreign Affairs has issued an orange or red travel advice (see: https://diplomatie.belgium.be/nl int this respect) or if the insured person tests positive at the body temperature checkpoints at the airport or if the insured person is laid off, if his leave is cancelled or if he goes bankrupt due to the epidemic/pandemic.
5. Extent of the guarantee
If the insurance holder is entitled to reimbursement and has been demonstrated and acquired on the basis of the required corroborating documents, the PLATINUM and ALL RISK cancellation insurance plans cover:
a) reimbursement of the cancellation or modification costs due to the tour operator in application of the travel contract;
b) the unrecoverable part of the paid travel amount as mentioned in the travel contract in case of cancellation by the beneficiary during the course of the travel contract (trip interruption);
c) any nights not spent at the booked accommodation if the policyholder(s) can only depart at a later time than the scheduled date of departure for one of the reasons for cancellation as set out in article 4.
The insurance policy holder does not have to pay an excess fee nor an administration fee. The insurance premium and the administration fee in the travel contract are not reimbursed.
5.1 PLATINUM guarantee
The PLATINUM cancellation insurance plan covers 100% of the cancellation or modification costs of the trip in case the trip is cancelled or modified due to a reason mentioned in art. 4 (a) to w) included).
5.2 ALL RISK guarantee
The ALL RISK cancellation insurance plan covers 100% of the cancellation or modification costs of the trip in case the trip is cancelled or modified due to a reason mentioned in art. 4 (a) to w) included).
In case of cancellation or modification for a reason mentioned in art. 4 (x) and y)), this compensation shall amount to 75% of the cancellation or modification costs, taking into account the exclusions specified under article 6.2.
6. Exclusions
The insurer will not be required to reimburse the insurance policyholder for any costs in case of the following reasons of cancellation or modification:
6.1 PLATINUM Cancellation Insurance
a) chronic or existing diseases in a terminal phase at the time of booking the trip;
b) all events caused by excessive use (beyond the “at risk” and legal threshold) of alcohol, drugs or medication not prescribed by a physician or when problems occur associated with the use hereof;
c) depressions, psychic or psychosomatic illnesses, mental or nervous disorders, unless there has been an admission to a hospital or an institution during the travel period and on condition that the disease was stable at the time of booking the trip, if before departure the insured party appears not to be able to start the trip because unforeseeable medical treatment is necessary;
d) illnesses or accidents which cannot be diagnosed with a medical examination or which do not involve objective symptoms on the basis of which an indisputable diagnosis can be made;
e) all events that cause the cancellation of a trip known at the time of booking of the trip, except stable illnesses and diseases (not in a terminal phase);
f) medical or surgical procedures that were planned before the time of booking the trip or that were performed before the time of booking the trip and all complications linked to these surgical procedures;
g) not medical urgent surgical intervention (such as a.o. aesthetic intervention, gastric bypass, obesity surgery,…) and all complications linked to this intervention;
h) illnesses, accidents or disturbances resulting from:
a. the practice of dangerous sports such as: mountaineering, big game hunting, speleology, deep-sea diving and martial arts
b. participation in speed attempts or contests
c. professional sports practice, including trainings
i) epidemics and/or pandemics;
j) every loss being directly or indirectly the result of deliberately caused events with fraudulent intent or malicious, voluntary and/or wrongful acts of the insured;
k) effects of nuclear or atomic attacks or radiation;
l) war, strikes, riots, civil war or acts of violence with a collective motive, unless the beneficiary is able to demonstrate there is no causal link between the cancellation and the event;
m) earthquakes, tidal waves, volcanic eruption, floodings or other natural disasters;
n) all events that cause the cancellation of a trip known at the time of booking of the trip, that are not explicitly mentioned in the art.4;
o) cancellations in case the tour operator does not charge any costs or is not allowed to charge any costs or offers an appropriate alternative free of charge.
p) if the policyholder leaves on holiday against the advice of the attending physician or leaves in the same period as the cancelled travel contract;
q) the tour operator or airline company has been declared bankrupt.
6.2 ALL RISK Cancellation Insurance
a) all events causing the cancellation of a trip that were known to the insured before taking out the insurance policy (except chronic and pre-existing illnesses);
b) every loss being directly or indirectly the result of deliberately caused events with fraudulent intent or malicious, voluntary and/or wrongful acts of the insured;
c) the insured no longer wants to go ahead with the trip;
d) the weather conditions at the destination do not meet the expectations of the insured (excess or lack of sunshine or rain etc.);
e) the tour operator or airline company has been declared bankrupt;
f) cancellations in case the tour operator does not charge any costs or is not allowed to charge any costs or offers an appropriate alternative free of charge.
g) all events caused by excessive use (beyond the “at risk” and legal threshold) of alcohol, drugs or medication not prescribed by a physician or when problems occur associated with the use hereof;
h) cancellations due to non-specified, materially intangible or non-verifiable reasons not substantiated by supporting documents;
i) trips that do not meet the definition under 3 a) "Travel contract";
j) if the policyholder leaves on holiday against the advice of the attending physician or leaves in the same period as the cancelled travel contract.
The guarantees and the exclusions apply to the policyholder as well as to any person whose medical condition is the cause of the request for reimbursement.
If the policyholder, after having been served a formal notice of default, fails to pay the advance amount, the travel amount or the fee that is required of them, the touroperator/airline shall be entitled to terminate the contract with the traveller without further warning at the traveller's expense. In this case the insurance company will not pay any amounts under this insurance policy until the aforesaid outstanding amount has been settled. It is not possible to settle these costs with a TUI MasterCard voucher. The TUI MasterCard voucher will be activated once for a maximum of 6 months upon expiry of the original voucher.
7. Duration
The cover commences upon registration and lasts until the start of the trip.
8. Up-/downgrading the cancellation insurance plan
8.1 Upgrading
Upgrading the cancellation insurance plan is permitted until 7 days after the booking and 57 days before departure.
8.2 Downgrading
Downgrading the cancellation insurance plan is not permitted.
9. Obligations of the beneficiary/insurance policyholder
a) the policy holder will make all reasonable efforts to minimise cancellation or modification costs. More specifically he/she will inform the tour operator as soon as something happens that may be a reason to cancel, modify or interrupt the trip;
b) the policy holder will file the insurance claim online on https://claims.tui.be. Further communication will be done by phone on +32 (0)59 56 58 01 with Pats nv, which was appointed by Advent Insurance PCC Limited as its authorised loss adjuster. In order to assure fast claim handling, the policy holder will:
- download the necessary medical documents on https://claims.tui.be, fill out the declaration form online and upload the filled out medical documents and/or other supporting materials within 30 calendar days from the date of cancellation of the travel contract (or the date of departure in case of a no show), which corresponds with the issue date of the cost invoice, on https://claims.tui.be, otherwise you will risk a lower coverage;
- follow the instructions of Pats nv and provide all useful information and/or documentation they deem necessary or useful;
- present a medical certificate from the attending physician or a medical certificate from the local physician in case of travel interruption;
- allow your insurer to perform a medical assessment and to access your medical file in case of an accident or illness.
c) by taking out cancellation insurance, the insured accepts that the insurer or the competent entity or physician (in the case of medical information) mandated by the insurer can carry out a check and gain access or have insight in the full medical file in case of an illness or an accident of the person whose medical condition is the reason of the claim for reimbursement. Furthermore, the insured accepts that in case no check can be carried out and therefore the reason for cancellation and reimbursement is not sufficiently proven, the insurer shall be entitled to refuse reimbursement.
10. General conditions
10.1 Policies previously taken out
When the same interest has been insured by different insurers for the same risk, the insured can, in the event of losses, claim an indemnity payment from each insurer within the limits of each one’s obligations and for the amount that they are entitled to. In that case, the insurer cannot invoke the existence of other contracts covering the same risks to refuse its guarantee, except in the case of fraud. The claim will be settled pursuant to Article 99 §2 of the Belgian Law of 30.04.2014 on terrestrial insurance contracts.
10.2 Subrogation
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell automatically takes over the beneficiary’s rights versus any liable third party to the amount of its contribution.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell respects the privacy of its customers and of the users of its website. The collection of personal data and their use by Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell are subject to the General Data Protection Regulation. If you affiliate yourself with Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, your personal data will be stored in a data file. The controller of that site and of the personal data contained in that file is Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell.
Your personal data and contact details are in order to conclude, manage and implement the insurance contract. In addition, Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell can, on the basis of its legitimate commercial interests, use your personal data and contact details to meet requests from its customers, to keep its customers informed of the activities of Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell as well as for marketing purposes, such as the provision of services or products, membership benefits and promotional actions with partners, data file management, (direct) marketing, public relations and activities in the capacity as intermediary. Furthermore, it is possible that Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell is also required to process information relating to your health in order to conclude or implement the agreement and/or process your claim. We are required by law to ask your explicit consent to process your health data or those of the person represented by you. You are at all times entitled to withdraw this consent. In case of withdrawal of your consent, Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell is authorised to further process the data without your consent, if it concerns the processing of personal data which you publicly disclosed yourself and their processing is necessary to institute or corroborate a legal action.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell secures your personal data by means of far-reaching technical measures. Only duly authorised individuals process your personal data and observe the highest degree of confidentiality in this respect.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell only shares data with the organisations with which Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell has a contractual relationship. For instance Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell calls upon the services of a sub-processor, Pats nv (with registered office at 8400 Oostende, Gistelsesteenweg 1, registered with the CBE under company number 0436.072.606)
You have a right of disclosure, consultation, access and rectification of your personal data. You can also object to the processing of your personal data for direct marketing purposes or to the forwarding of your data to an organisation with which Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell has a contractual relationship. You can exert these rights by sending a simple letter, with a copy of your ID card, to Advent Insurance at its registered office. If you are of the opinion that the data processing does not take place in compliance with the applicable laws and regulations, you can file a claim with the Data Protection Authority.
More information about the use of your data by the insurer and about your rights can be found in the insurer's privacy statement, which is available via the website of the insurer (http://www.adventpcc.com/data-protection). It is also possible to obtain a paper copy free of charge from the insurer.
10.3 Applicable law and limitation
The PLATINUM and ALL RISK insurance contracts are governed by Belgian law. Any dispute shall be submitted to the exclusive jurisdiction of the materially competent court of the legal district of Bruges. Any action resulting from any of these insurance contracts is time-barred three years from the date of the event giving cause for this action.
10.4 Domicile
The domicile of the contracting parties is elected by operation of law:
- in the case of Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, the registered office of its loss adjuster;
- in the case of the beneficiary, their official domicile.
10.5 Complaints handling
Although we go to great lengths to manage your file correctly, it might happen that you are dissatisfied with our service and want to file a complaint. If this is the case, please first address your claims handler, whose details you can find in the correspondence of Pats nv. If this does not suffice, you can contact the insurer’s complaints service, represented in Belgium by Pats nv, Complaints Handling division, Gistelsesteenweg 1, 8400 Oostende (Belgium). Phone: +32 (0)59 56 58 01- e-mail: travel_insurance@tui.be.
Always mention your reservation and file number so as to ensure smooth handling. Pats nv will examine your complaint as soon as they have received it and you will receive their answer within two weeks of receipt. If they are unable to answer you in this time period, they will inform you when you can expect an answer. If you are eventually not satisfied with the handling of your complaint, you can contact the Ombudsman for Insurances through the standard form on the website www.ombudsman.as, by e-mail to info@ombudsman.as, by fax at the number +32 (0)2 547 59 75 or by letter to the Ombudsman for Insurances, de Meeûssquare 35, 1000 Brussel (Belgium). Always mention your reservation and file number. This complaints procedure does not exclude the possibility to take legal action.
Cancellation insurance Platinum
Cancellation insurance Platinum
GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS
If you book a trip or flight from the offer of TUI, cancellation cover is not included in the trip price. When booking your trip, you can take out an additional cancellation insurance under the terms and conditions stated below.
1. Purpose of the insurance
The PLATINUM cancellation insurance plan reimburse the traveller for the cancellation or modification costs in case of cancellation of a trip or a rental agreement of a holiday accommodation due to one of the reasons defined in the plan once the insurance plan has been taken out and the travel contract has been signed.
2. Concerned parties
a) Insurer: Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell; The Landmark, Level 1, Suite 2, Triq L-Iljun, Qormi, QRM3800, Malta, approved by the MFSA (number C 52394) and the FSMA (number 2787). Authorised claim handler: Pats nv, company number 0436.072.606, Gistelsesteenweg 1, 8400 Oostende (Belgium).
b) Insurance policyholder: the insurance policyholder is a natural person who takes out the PLATINUM cancellation insurance policy and resides in a member state of the European Union or in Switzerland.
The insured parties are the beneficiary and possible travel companions (3.d)).
c) the Insured Parties: the persons whose name is mentioned under “the insured parties” in the specific terms and conditions of the agreement and who are domiciled in a member state of the European Union or in Switzerland. The Insured Parties shall also be referred to in this contract as “you”.
3. Definitions
a) travel contract: any transport, stay or holiday accommodation rental, or combination thereof, booked by the beneficiary in the capacity of traveller and/or renter with TUI Belgium nv as travel agent and/or tour operator.
b) departure date: the date of departure specified in the travel contract.
c) registration date: the date when the booked services were booked with the tour operator and the insurer.
d) travel companion: the person who is mentioned together with the insurance policyholder in the registration and with whom the insurance policyholder decided to undertake the scheduled trip and whose presence is essential for a successful holiday.
e) life partner: the person with whom the insurance policyholder is engaged in registered or unregistered cohabitation and who lives together with the insurance policyholder at the same address in a long-lasting manner.
f) illness: any deterioration of the medical condition not caused by an accident, whose cause and symptoms have been objectively and medically determined by a certified physician before or on the date of cancellation and which makes the performance of the travel contract impossible for medical reasons.
g) stable illness: the stable nature of an illness is assessed on the basis of the “reference date”, i.e. the day six calendar months prior to the registration date. An illness is only considered stable if three cumulative conditions are fulfilled:
1. prior to the reference date, the doctor in attendance made a definitive diagnosis, and any medical treatment was started and took a normal course;
2. between the reference date and the registration date, the patient did not show any new symptoms or health consequences of the illness (“new”: other than the symptoms or health consequences the patient showed during the period of six calendar months prior to the registration date);
3. between the reference date and the registration date, no modification of the treatment and/or medication for the illness was required, implemented, planned or reasonably foreseen by the physician or patient (“modification”: other than the treatment and/or medication administered during the period of six calendar months prior to the reference date).
h) accident: any harm to the physical integrity as diagnosed by a certified doctor that is attributable to a sudden cause beyond the insurance policyholder’s control and renders the performance of the concluded travel contract impossible from a medical point of view.
i) stable medical condition after an accident or a medical/surgical intervention: the stable nature of the medical condition is assessed on the basis of the “reference date”, i.e. the day six calendar months prior to the registration date.
The consequences of an accident or a medical/surgical intervention are only considered stable if three cumulative conditions are fulfilled:
1. prior to the reference date, the doctor in attendance made a definitive diagnosis, and any medical treatment was started and took a normal course;
2. between the reference date and the registration date, the patient did not show any new symptoms or health consequences (“new”: other than the symptoms or health consequences the patient showed during the period of six calendar months prior to the registration date);
3. between the reference date and the registration date, no modification of the treatment and/or medication was required, implemented, planned or foreseen by the physician or patient (“modification”: other than the treatment and/or medication administered during the period of six calendar months prior to the reference date).
j) significant material damage to immovable property: exceptional and accidental damage of at least 2.500 EUR to immovable property of the insured party (regardless of the purpose of the property) beyond the insured party's will that is attributable to an accidental cause and that requires cancellation of the travel contract to enable the insured party to protect their material interests.
k) terminal: an incurable illness and is in the terminal phase;
l) natural disaster: an extreme event of natural origin with large-scale devastating effects. Natural disasters are events caused by the atmosphere, water mass or the soil affecting a country, in particular (non-exhaustive list) floods, tidal waves, dike ruptures, hurricanes, drying out or expansion of soils (extreme drought), earthquakes, landslides, volcanic eruptions, mudslides and subsidence.
4. Right to compensation
The insurer reimburses any cancellation or modification costs to be paid to the tour operator in accordance with the travel terms and conditions if any of the following situations occur after the date of subscription. The insurer reserves the right to appoint an advising physician who has the right to request additional medical information or access to the medical file of the patient whose illness is the reason for the cancellation or modification of the travel contract. The final decision will always lie with the insurer.
a) an accident, death or illness dating from the period after the registration date, including the medically necessary treatment as a result of this accident or illness, of:
· the insured party;
· the insurance party’s life partner;
· a relative of the insured party up to the third degree;
· the minor children from the insured party’s reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
in case it turns out prior to departure that it is impossible for the insured party to undertake the trip for this reason. “Impossible” is understood to mean: it is not possible for a normally careful insured party to organise the treatment in such a manner that the trip can nevertheless go ahead.
An illness dates from the period after the registration date, in case no symptoms or medical complaints had manifested themselves at that time which could be linked to the illness, regardless of the date of the diagnosis. Any intervening factors (such as the progress of the treatment, the development of the complaints, a fault committed by a third party, etc.) do not prejudice the causal link between the medical complaints and the illness.
The guarantee expires when the insured party has booked the trip contrary to the recommendations of the doctor in attendance.
b) an unexpected medically necessary treatment as a result of an accident or illness, in case this accident or illness date from the period prior to the registration date (in accordance with the definition in art. 4 a), provided that the medical condition after the accident or illness was stable on the registration date as defined in art. 3.g) and art. 3.i)., of:
· the insured party;
· the insurance party’s life partner;
· a relative of the insured party up to the third degree;
· the minor children from the insured party’s reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
in case it turns out prior to departure that it is impossible for the insured party to undertake the trip for this reason. “Impossible” is understood to mean: it is not possible for a normally careful patient to organise the treatment in such a manner that the trip can nevertheless go ahead.
“Unexpected” is understood to mean: the treatment could not be reasonably foreseen on the registration date by a normally careful patient and a normally careful physician.
The guarantee expires when the insured party has booked the trip contrary to the recommendations of the doctor in attendance.
c) the unexpected necessary care for a family member of the insured party up to the 2nd degree for medical reasons after a hospital admission, provided that the person requiring care was not hospitalised on the registration date and that the insured party did not provide care to this family member in the same manner prior to the registration date and if proof for the need for this unexpected care is provided by the hospital to which the family member was admitted. In that case, it must be impossible for a normally careful insured party to organise the care in such a manner that the trip can nevertheless go ahead. “Unexpected” is understood to mean that the need for the care could not be met by a normally careful patient and a normally careful physician on the registration date.
d) pregnancy if the insured party was not yet pregnant before the trip at the moment of the registration date and the departure date falls within the last 3 months of the pregnancy;
e) unexpected pregnancy complications for the pregnant insured party, provided that these complications make the performance of the travel contract medically impossible; unexpected pregnancy complications for a family member of the insured party up to the 2nd degree, including premature birth at least one month prior to the expected date of childbirth. “Unexpected” complications are understood to mean: deviating from the medical development normally expected on the registration date;
f) termination of the insured party’s or their life partner’s employment contract by the employer for economic reasons after the registration date;
g) conclusion of a new employment contract by the insured party for at least 3 consecutive months after the registration date if this time period fully or partially coincides with the duration of the trip and if the holiday period was not approved by the new employer;
h) significant material damage to the by the insured party immovable property or business premises, beyond your control and for which the necessary findings and reports have been made by a public authority and/or expert, which requires the policyholder's presence, with clear traces of tampering being found in the event of a burglary, within 30 days prior to departure or during the trip;
i) summons of the by the insured party or their life partner after the registration date:
· for organ transplantation (both as donor and as recipient) (medical certificate mentioning the impossibility to travel) (including for family members up to the 2nd degree);
· for the adoption of a child (arrival of the child in the family between one month before and one month after the departure date);
· for an unexpected military mission;
· for jury service at the Assize Court or for witness service in a court of law at the time of the trip;
j) disappearance or kidnapping, at the hands of a third party, of the policyholder, their life partner or a relative by blood or affinity up to the second degree;
k) suicide of
· the insured party;
· their life partner;
· any individual related to the insured party by blood or affinity up to the second degree (i.e. parents, parents-in-law, brothers, sisters, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, children, grandchildren and grandparents);
· the minor children from their reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
l) divorce or separation, if the proceedings were initiated on court level after booking the trip, or dissolution of a civil partnership, after booking the trip, provided that the official address of the insured party or the former spouse has changed after reservation, subject to presentation of an official document;
m) honeymoon cancellation because of cancellation of marriage, subject to presentation of an official document;
n) exams to be retaken by the insured party as a student during or within 30 days after the trip, on condition that you were not aware of the retake or the unsatisfactory grade at the time of booking and that the retake cannot be rescheduled;
o) total loss of the private vehicle of the insured party or their life partner due to an accident, a fire or a theft within the week before the date of departure of the holiday by car. The insured party must in any case provide us with proof of the damage or theft (police report, public authority report and/or expert report);
p) immobilisation of the private vehicle that was supposed to take the insured party to the port or airport of departure because of accidental damage, fire, technical breakdown or theft to such extent that the port or airport of departure is not reached or cannot be reached in time and for which the necessary findings and/or reports have been made by a public authority and/or expert; Any incident resulting in immobilisation that takes place less than one hour before boarding is not covered by the guarantee of this contract. The insured must in any case provide us with proof of the damage or theft (towing service invoice, police report, public authority report and/or expert report);
q) home invasion or carjacking against the insured party, at the hands of a third party, in the week before departure, subject to presentation of the police report;
r) termination of the rental contract for the principal place of residence of the insured party by the landlord after the registration date and within three months prior to departure if the beneficiary needs to move out of the property within 30 days prior to departure or during the trip;
s) cancellation of leave granted to the insured by your employer because of unavailability of a colleague substituting the insured due to illness, accident or death. The insured must provide a certificate from the employer indicating that their substitute had been designated before the trip was booked as well as a medical certificate of incapacity to work or, if applicable, a death certificate of the insured's substitute;
t) Necessary presence of the insured party exercising a liberal or independent profession due to unavailability of the insured's substitute as designated in the certificate of affiliation due to illness, accident or death. The insured party must provide a certificate indicating that their substitute had been designated before the trip was booked as well as a medical certificate of incapacity to work or, if applicable, a death certificate of the insured party's substitute;
u) theft with violence or burglary of the identity documents or flight tickets required for the journey within five days before departure, subject to presentation of the police report;
v) impossibility to vaccinate the insured due to medical reasons even though this vaccination is explicitly required according to the World Health Organisation (WHO);
w) refusal by the authorities of the country of destination to issue a visa for the insured party, their life partner or a relative in the 2nd degree who travels along with the insured on condition that this refusal is not due to a late request from the insured or due to a request for which incorrect or incomplete information was provided and that it was impossible to know on the date of subscription the visa could not be issued in time or could not be issued at all;
x) decease of the dog, cat or horse of the insured within two days before the departure date. The insured party must submit the following documents: a death certificate from the veterinarian, a certificate of good health of the animal on the day when the insured booked the trip and proof of ownership.
5. Extent of the guarantee
If the insurance holder is entitled to reimbursement in accordance with article 4 and has been demonstrated and acquired on the basis of the required corroborating documents, the PLATINUM cancellation insurance plan cover:
a) reimbursement of the cancellation or modification costs due to the tour operator in application of the travel contract, taking into account the exclusions listed in art. 6;
b) the non-recoverable costs of lost overnight stays as mentioned in the travel contract in case of cancellation by the beneficiary during the course of the travel contract (the outbound flight does not qualify for payment);
c) the non-recoverable costs of lost overnight stays at the booked accommodation if the policyholder(s) can only depart at a later time than the scheduled date of departure for one of the reasons for cancellation as set out in article 4 (the inbound flight does not qualify for payment).
The insurance policy holder does not have to pay an excess fee nor an administration fee. The insurance premium and the administration fee in the travel contract are not reimbursed.
6. Exclusions
The insurer only provides coverage for events leading to the cancellation of the trip and explicitly listed in article 4. The insurer excludes coverage, and will therefore not owe any compensation, for the reasons of cancellation listed in this article.
a) illnesses in a terminal phase (evaluated by the customer’s physician and by the insurer’s consultant physican) on the registration date;
b) all events caused by excessive use (beyond the “at risk” and legal threshold) of alcohol, drugs or medication not prescribed by a physician or when problems occur associated with the use hereof;
c) depressions, psychic or psychosomatic illnesses, mental or nervous disorders, unless they required an admission to a hospital or a mental health institution during the travel period, without prejudice to the conditions specified in art. 4, a) and b).
d) illnesses or the consequences of accidents which cannot be diagnosed with a medical examination or which do not involve any objective and perceptible symptoms on the basis of which an indisputable diagnosis can be made;
e) any reasons directly or indirectly leading to the cancellation of the trip and known to the insured party or which a normally careful insured party should have reasonably known on the registration date, except a pre-existing illness or accident under the conditions specified in art. 4, b).
f) a medical or surgical intervention and its consequences (including complications) in case: 1. the intervention had already been planned or performed prior to the registration date (unless the medical condition after the intervention was stable as described in art 3, i); or 2. the intervention was planned or performed after the registration date and a causal link can be established with the symptoms or medical complaints that had already manifested themselves prior to the registration date. This can be a direct or indirect causal link, which is not prejudiced by any additional factors of a later date (such as the progress of the treatment, the development of the complaints, a fault committed by a third party, etc.).
g) a surgical intervention which is not medically urgent (such as a cosmetic procedure, gastric bypass, bariatric surgery, etc.) and all its consequences, including complications. This can be a direct or indirect causal link, which is not prejudiced by any additional factors of a later date (such as the progress of the treatment, the development of the complaints, a fault committed by a third party, etc.).
h) illnesses, accidents or disturbances resulting from:
a. the practice of dangerous sports such as: mountaineering, big game hunting, speleology, deep-sea diving and martial arts (this list is not exhaustive);
b. participation in speed attempts or contests
c. professional sports practice, including trainings
i) epidemics and/or pandemics;
j) any damage directly or indirectly resulting from intentional acts of the insured party;
k) the effects of nuclear or atomic accidents, attacks, explosions and/or radiation;
l) war, strikes, riots, civil war or acts of violence with a collective motive and their consequences, unless the beneficiary is able to demonstrate there is no causal link between the cancellation and the event;
m) earthquakes, tidal waves, volcanic eruption, floodings or other natural disasters corresponding to the definition under 3 l);
n) trips or sojourns for professional purposes or not corresponding to the definition under 3 a);
o) cancellations in case the tour operator does not charge any costs or is not allowed to charge any costs or the tour operator offers an appropriate alternative free of charge.
p) if the policyholder leaves on holiday against the advice of the attending physician
q) ) if the policyholder leaves anyway in the same period as the cancelled travel contract.
r) cancellations due to non-specified, materially intangible or non-verifiable reasons not substantiated by supporting documents;
s) the failure of the insured to comply with the obligations set out in article 9, including the term of declaration;
t) the tour operator or airline company has been declared bankrupt.
The guarantees and the exclusions of cancellation insurance PLATINUM apply to the insured party as well as to any person whose medical condition is the cause of the request for reimbursement.
7. Duration
The cover commences upon registration and lasts until the start of the trip.
The policy only takes effect after full payment of the insurance premium. As long as the premium has not been paid in full, there is no coverage.
8. Up-/downgrading the cancellation insurance plan
8.1 Upgrading
It is possible to take out the additional temporary Platinum cancellation insurance or to upgrade from a Platinum cancellation insurance already booked to an All Risk insurance up to 7 days after the date of booking, provided that this date is at least 57 days before departure. Of course the by the upgrade obtained coverage is only applicable to the reasons dating from the period after the upgrade. It is impossible to obtain coverage for events that have already taken place or that can be reasonably expected to occur (increased risk).
8.2 Downgrading
Downgrading or cancelling the temporary cancellation insurance is not possible
9. Obligations of the insured party
a) the insured party will make all reasonable efforts to minimise cancellation or modification costs. More specifically you will inform the tour operator as soon as something happens that may be a reason to cancel, modify or interrupt your trip;
b) the insured party will file the insurance claim online on https://claims.tui.be. Further communication will be done by phone on +32 (0)59 56 58 01 with Pats nv, which was appointed by Advent Insurance PCC Limited as its authorised loss adjuster. In order to assure fast claim handling, the insured party will:
- download the necessary medical questionnaire on https://claims.tui.be, fill out the declaration form online and upload the filled out medical documents and/or other supporting materials within 30 calendar days from the date of cancellation of the travel contract (or the date of departure in case of a no show), which corresponds with the issue date of the cost invoice, on https://claims.tui.be, otherwise you will risk a lower coverage;
- follow the instructions of Pats nv and provide all useful information and/or documentation they deem necessary or useful;
- if required requested, send medical reports from the customer’s physician to the insurer’s consulting physician, or a medical certificate from the local physician in case of travel interruption, and proof of the early return;
c) by taking out cancellation insurance, the insured party accepts that the insurer or the competent entity or physician (in the case of medical information) mandated by the insurer can carry out a check and gain access or have insight in the full medical file in case of an illness or an accident of the person whose medical condition is the reason of the claim for reimbursement. Furthermore, the insured also accepts that if no verification is possible and no adequate proof is provided for the reason for the intervention or if the reason for cancellation of the coverage invoked by the insurer cannot be verified, the insurer is entitled to refuse payment.
10. General conditions
10.1 Policies previously taken out
When the same interest has been insured by different insurers for the same risk, the insured party can, in the event of losses, claim an indemnity payment from each insurer within the limits of each one’s obligations and for the amount that they are entitled to. In that case, the insurer cannot invoke the existence of other contracts covering the same risks to refuse its guarantee, except in the case of fraud. The claim will be settled pursuant to Article 99 §2 of the Belgian Law of 30.04.2014 on terrestrial insurance contracts.
10.2 Subrogation
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell automatically takes over the beneficiary’s rights versus any liable third party to the amount of its contribution.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell respects the privacy of its customers and of the users of its website. The collection of personal data and their use by Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell are subject to the General Data Protection Regulation. If you affiliate yourself with Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, your personal data will be stored in a data file. The controller of that site and of the personal data contained in that file is Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell.
Your personal data and contact details are in order to conclude, manage and implement the insurance contract. In addition, Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell can, on the basis of its legitimate commercial interests, use your personal data and contact details to meet requests from its customers, to keep its customers informed of the activities of Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell as well as for marketing purposes, such as the provision of services or products, membership benefits and promotional actions with partners, data file management, (direct) marketing, public relations and activities in the capacity as intermediary. Furthermore, it is possible that Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell is also required to process information relating to your health in order to conclude or implement the agreement and/or process your claim. We are required by law to ask your explicit consent to process your health data or those of the person represented by you. You are at all times entitled to withdraw this consent. In case of withdrawal of your consent, Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell is authorised to further process the data without your consent, if it concerns the processing of personal data which you publicly disclosed yourself and their processing is necessary to institute or corroborate a legal action.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell secures your personal data by means of far-reaching technical measures. Only duly authorised individuals process your personal data and observe the highest degree of confidentiality in this respect.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell only shares data with the organisations with which Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell has a contractual relationship. For instance Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell calls upon the services of a sub-processor, Pats nv (with registered office at 8400 Oostende, Gistelsesteenweg 1, registered with the CBE under company number 0436.072.606)
You have a right of disclosure, consultation, access and rectification of your personal data. You can also object to the processing of your personal data for direct marketing purposes or to the forwarding of your data to an organisation with which Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell has a contractual relationship. You can exert these rights by sending a simple letter, with a copy of your ID card, to Advent Insurance at its registered office. If you are of the opinion that the data processing does not take place in compliance with the applicable laws and regulations, you can file a claim with the Data Protection Authority.
More information about the use of your data by the insurer and about your rights can be found in the insurer's privacy statement, which is available via the website of the insurer (http://www.adventpcc.com/data-protection). It is also possible to obtain a paper copy free of charge from the insurer.
10.3 Applicable law and limitation
The PLATINUM insurance contract are governed by Belgian law. The court of the legal district where the policyholder is domiciled shall be competent in case of disputes. Any action resulting from any of these insurance contracts is time-barred three years from the date of the event giving cause for this action.
10.4 Domicile
The domicile of the contracting parties is elected by operation of law:
- in the case of Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, the registered office of its loss adjuster;
- in the case of the beneficiary, their official domicile.
10.5 Complaints handling
Although the insurer go to great lengths to treat your file correctly, it might happen that you are dissatisfied with our service. If this is the case, please first address the claims handler Pats nv, whose details you can find in the correspondence. If this does not suffice, you can contact the insurer’s complaints service which is provided in Belgium on behalf of the insurer by Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, represented by the claims handler Pats nv. The contact details are: Pats nv, Complaints Handling division, Gistelsesteenweg 1, 8400 Oostende (Belgium). Phone: +32 (0)59 56 58 01- e-mail: travel_insurance@tui.be.
Always mention your reservation and file number so as to ensure smooth handling. Pats nv will examine your complaint as soon as they have received it and you will receive their answer within two weeks of receipt. If they are unable to answer you in this time period, they will inform you when you can expect an answer. If you are eventually not satisfied with the handling of your complaint, you can contact the Ombudsman for Insurances through the standard form on the website www.ombudsman.as, by e-mail to info@ombudsman.as, by fax at the number +32 (0)2 547 59 75 or by letter to the Ombudsman for Insurances, de Meeûssquare 35, 1000 Brussel (Belgium). Always mention your reservation and file number. This complaints procedure does not exclude the possibility to take legal action.
Cancellation insurance ALL RISK temporary
GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS
If you book a trip or flight from the offer of TUI, cancellation cover is not included in the trip price. When booking your trip, you can take out an additional cancellation insurance under the terms and conditions stated below.
1. Purpose of the insurance
The ALL RISK cancellation insurance plan reimburse the traveller for the cancellation or modification costs in case of cancellation of a trip or a rental agreement of a holiday accommodation due to one of the reasons defined in the plan once the insurance plan has been taken out and the travel contract has been signed.
2. Concerned parties
a) Insurer: Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell; The Landmark, Level 1, Suite 2, Triq L-Iljun, Qormi, QRM3800, Malta, approved by the MFSA (number C 52394) and the FSMA (number 2787). Authorised claim handler: Pats nv, company number 0436.072.606, Gistelsesteenweg 1, 8400 Oostende (Belgium).
b) Insurance policyholder: the insurance policyholder is a natural person who takes out the ALL RISK cancellation insurance policy and resides in a member state of the European Union or in Switzerland.
The insured parties are the beneficiary and possible travel companions (3.d)).
c) the Insured Parties: the persons whose name is mentioned under “the insured parties” in the specific terms and conditions of the agreement and who are domiciled in a member state of the European Union or in Switzerland. The Insured Parties shall also be referred to in this contract as “you”.
3. Definitions
a) travel contract: any transport, stay or holiday accommodation rental, or combination thereof, booked by the beneficiary in the capacity of traveller and/or renter with TUI Belgium nv as travel agent and/or tour operator.
b) departure date: the date of departure specified in the travel contract.
c) registration date: the date when the booked services were booked with the tour operator and the insurer.
d) travel companion: the person who is mentioned together with the insurance policyholder in the registration and with whom the insurance policyholder decided to undertake the scheduled trip and whose presence is essential for a successful holiday.
e) life partner: the person with whom the insurance policyholder is engaged in registered or unregistered cohabitation and who lives together with the insurance policyholder at the same address in a long-lasting manner.
f) illness: any deterioration of the medical condition not caused by an accident, whose cause and symptoms have been objectively and medically determined by a certified physician before or on the date of cancellation and which makes the performance of the travel contract impossible for medical reasons.
g) stable illness: the stable nature of an illness is assessed on the basis of the “reference date”, i.e. the day six calendar months prior to the registration date. An illness is only considered stable if three cumulative conditions are fulfilled:
1. prior to the reference date, the doctor in attendance made a definitive diagnosis, and any medical treatment was started and took a normal course;
2. between the reference date and the registration date, the patient did not show any new symptoms or health consequences of the illness (“new”: other than the symptoms or health consequences the patient showed during the period of six calendar months prior to the registration date);
3. between the reference date and the registration date, no modification of the treatment and/or medication for the illness was required, implemented, planned or reasonably foreseen by the physician or patient (“modification”: other than the treatment and/or medication administered during the period of six calendar months prior to the reference date).
h) accident: any harm to the physical integrity as diagnosed by a certified doctor that is attributable to a sudden cause beyond the insurance policyholder’s control and renders the performance of the concluded travel contract impossible from a medical point of view.
i) stable medical condition after an accident or a medical/surgical intervention: the stable nature of the medical condition is assessed on the basis of the “reference date”, i.e. the day six calendar months prior to the registration date.
The consequences of an accident or a medical/surgical intervention are only considered stable if three cumulative conditions are fulfilled:
1. prior to the reference date, the doctor in attendance made a definitive diagnosis, and any medical treatment was started and took a normal course;
2. between the reference date and the registration date, the patient did not show any new symptoms or health consequences (“new”: other than the symptoms or health consequences the patient showed during the period of six calendar months prior to the registration date);
3. between the reference date and the registration date, no modification of the treatment and/or medication was required, implemented, planned or foreseen by the physician or patient (“modification”: other than the treatment and/or medication administered during the period of six calendar months prior to the reference date).
j) significant material damage to immovable property: exceptional and accidental damage of at least 2.500 EUR to immovable property of the insured party (regardless of the purpose of the property) beyond the insured party's will that is attributable to an accidental cause and that requires cancellation of the travel contract to enable the insured party to protect their material interests.
4. Right to compensation
4.1 Reimbursement of all cancellation or modification costs
The insurer reimburses any cancellation or modification costs to be paid to the tour operator in accordance with the travel terms and conditions if any of the following situations occur after the date of subscription. The insurer reserves the right to appoint an advising physician who has the right to request additional medical information or access to the medical file of the patient whose illness is the reason for the cancellation or modification of the travel contract. The final decision will always lie with the insurer.
a) an accident, death or illness dating from the period after the registration date, including the medically necessary treatment as a result of this accident or illness, of:
· the insured party;
· the insurance party’s life partner;
· a relative of the insured party up to the third degree;
· the minor children from the insured party’s reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
in case it turns out prior to departure that it is impossible for the insured party to undertake the trip for this reason. “Impossible” is understood to mean: it is not possible for a normally careful insured party to organise the treatment in such a manner that the trip can nevertheless go ahead.
An illness dates from the period after the registration date, in case no symptoms or medical complaints had manifested themselves at that time which could be linked to the illness, regardless of the date of the diagnosis. Any intervening factors (such as the progress of the treatment, the development of the complaints, a fault committed by a third party, etc.) do not prejudice the causal link between the medical complaints and the illness.
The guarantee expires when the insured party has booked the trip contrary to the recommendations of the doctor in attendance.
b) an unexpected medically necessary treatment as a result of an accident or illness, in case this accident or illness date from the period prior to the registration date (in accordance with the definition in art. 4 a), provided that the medical condition after the accident or illness was stable on the registration date as defined in art. 3.g) and art. 3.i)., of:
· the insured party;
· the insurance party’s life partner;
· a relative of the insured party up to the third degree;
· the minor children from the insured party’s reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
in case it turns out prior to departure that it is impossible for the insured party to undertake the trip for this reason. “Impossible” is understood to mean: it is not possible for a normally careful patient to organise the treatment in such a manner that the trip can nevertheless go ahead.
“Unexpected” is understood to mean: the treatment could not be reasonably foreseen on the registration date by a normally careful patient and a normally careful physician.
The guarantee expires when the insured party has booked the trip contrary to the recommendations of the doctor in attendance.
c) the unexpected necessary care for a family member of the insured party up to the 2nd degree for medical reasons after a hospital admission, provided that the person requiring care was not hospitalised on the registration date and that the insured party did not provide care to this family member in the same manner prior to the registration date and if proof for the need for this unexpected care is provided by the hospital to which the family member was admitted. In that case, it must be impossible for a normally careful insured party to organise the care in such a manner that the trip can nevertheless go ahead. “Unexpected” is understood to mean that the need for the care could not be met by a normally careful patient and a normally careful physician on the registration date.
d) pregnancy if the insured party was not yet pregnant before the trip at the moment of the registration date and the departure date falls within the last 3 months of the pregnancy;
e) unexpected pregnancy complications for the pregnant insured party, provided that these complications make the performance of the travel contract medically impossible; unexpected pregnancy complications for a family member of the insured party up to the 2nd degree, including premature birth at least one month prior to the expected date of childbirth. “Unexpected” complications are understood to mean: deviating from the medical development normally expected on the registration date;
f) termination of the insured party’s or their life partner’s employment contract by the employer for economic reasons after the registration date;
g) conclusion of a new employment contract by the insured party for at least 3 consecutive months after the registration date if this time period fully or partially coincides with the duration of the trip and if the holiday period was not approved by the new employer;
h) significant material damage to the by the insured party immovable property or business premises, beyond your control and for which the necessary findings and reports have been made by a public authority and/or expert, which requires the policyholder's presence, with clear traces of tampering being found in the event of a burglary, within 30 days prior to departure or during the trip;
i) summons of the by the insured party or their life partner after the registration date:
· for organ transplantation (both as donor and as recipient) (medical certificate mentioning the impossibility to travel) (including for family members up to the 2nd degree);
· for the adoption of a child (arrival of the child in the family between one month before and one month after the departure date);
· for an unexpected military mission;
· for jury service at the Assize Court or for witness service in a court of law at the time of the trip;
j) disappearance or kidnapping, at the hands of a third party, of the policyholder, their life partner or a relative by blood or affinity up to the second degree;
k) suicide of
· the insured party;
· their life partner;
· any individual related to the insured party by blood or affinity up to the second degree (i.e. parents, parents-in-law, brothers, sisters, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, children, grandchildren and grandparents);
· the minor children from their reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
l) divorce or separation, if the proceedings were initiated on court level after booking the trip, or dissolution of a civil partnership, after booking the trip, provided that the official address of the insured party or the former spouse has changed after reservation, subject to presentation of an official document;
m) honeymoon cancellation because of cancellation of marriage, subject to presentation of an official document;
n) exams to be retaken by the insured party as a student during or within 30 days after the trip, on condition that you were not aware of the retake or the unsatisfactory grade at the time of booking and that the retake cannot be rescheduled;
o) total loss of the private vehicle of the insured party or their life partner due to an accident, a fire or a theft within the week before the date of departure of the holiday by car. The insured party must in any case provide us with proof of the damage or theft (police report, public authority report and/or expert report);
p) immobilisation of the private vehicle that was supposed to take the insured party to the port or airport of departure because of accidental damage, fire, technical breakdown or theft to such extent that the port or airport of departure is not reached or cannot be reached in time and for which the necessary findings and/or reports have been made by a public authority and/or expert; Any incident resulting in immobilisation that takes place less than one hour before boarding is not covered by the guarantee of this contract. The insured must in any case provide us with proof of the damage or theft (towing service invoice, police report, public authority report and/or expert report);
q) home invasion or carjacking against the insured party, at the hands of a third party, in the week before departure, subject to presentation of the police report;
r) termination of the rental contract for the principal place of residence of the insured party by the landlord after the registration date and within three months prior to departure if the beneficiary needs to move out of the property within 30 days prior to departure or during the trip;
s) cancellation of leave granted to the insured by your employer because of unavailability of a colleague substituting the insured due to illness, accident or death. The insured must provide a certificate from the employer indicating that their substitute had been designated before the trip was booked as well as a medical certificate of incapacity to work or, if applicable, a death certificate of the insured's substitute;
t) Necessary presence of the insured party exercising a liberal or independent profession due to unavailability of the insured's substitute as designated in the certificate of affiliation due to illness, accident or death. The insured party must provide a certificate indicating that their substitute had been designated before the trip was booked as well as a medical certificate of incapacity to work or, if applicable, a death certificate of the insured party's substitute;
u) theft with violence or burglary of the identity documents or flight tickets required for the journey within five days before departure, subject to presentation of the police report;
v) impossibility to vaccinate the insured due to medical reasons even though this vaccination is explicitly required according to the World Health Organisation (WHO);
w) refusal by the authorities of the country of destination to issue a visa for the insured party, their life partner or a relative in the 2nd degree who travels along with the insured on condition that this refusal is not due to a late request from the insured or due to a request for which incorrect or incomplete information was provided and that it was impossible to know on the date of subscription the visa could not be issued in time or could not be issued at all;
x) decease of the dog, cat or horse of the insured within two days before the departure date. The insured party must submit the following documents: a death certificate from the veterinarian, a certificate of good health of the animal on the day when the insured booked the trip and proof of ownership.
4.2. Partial reimbursement of cancellation of modification costs
The insurer reimburses 75% of the cancellation or modification costs to be paid to the tour operator as a result of cancellation of or modification to the travel contract if any of the situations listed below occur after the registration date, taking into account the exclusions as described in article 6.
aa) In case of a cancellation for a different (personal) and verifiable reason than those listed in art. 4.1, point a) – x), subject to presentation of supporting documents.
ab) In case of an outbreak of an epidemic/pandemic:
- if at the time at which your trip is cancelled, the Federal Public Service for Foreign Affairs has issued an orange or red travel advice (see: https://diplomatie.belgium.be/nl int this respect)
- if the insured person tests positive at the body temperature checkpoints at the airport;
- if the negative result of the test taken within the context of the trip is received too late, i.e. after the date of departure, due to a lack of capacity in the lab to process the tests;
- if the insured is not allowed to depart for the destination because no proof of vaccination against Covid-19 can be presented and the insured was not informed of this at the moment they took out the insurance;
- if the insured person is laid off, if his leave is cancelled or if he goes bankrupt due to the epidemic/pandemic.
ac) If the insured is subject to mandatory quarantine in the country of destination due to an actual or suspected infection with the coronavirus (Covid-19) and can therefore not return to the country of residence at the scheduled time. 75% of the following expenses are covered:
a) The cost of a PCR test not ordered by a physician as well as the extra costs of transport, e.g. public transport or taxi in the country of destination, for an amount of up to € 250;
b) The surcharge for the change in the originally booked return flight or the cost of a new return flight, for an amount of up € 1,500;
c) The extra accommodation expenses, inclusive of meals, resulting from the mandatory quarantine, for an amount of up to € 250 per night and up to 10 nights;
d) The total cost of all services listed in a) to c) is limited to € 3,600 per trip.
5. Extent of the guarantee
If the insurance holder is entitled to reimbursement in accordance with article 4 and has been demonstrated and acquired on the basis of the required corroborating documents, the ALL RISK cancellation insurance plan cover:
a) full reimbursement of the cancellation or modification costs payable to the tour operator in application of the travel contract; 100% if the cancellation take place for a reason listed in article 4.1, a)-x), 75% if the cancellation takes place for a reason listed in art. 4.2, aa) - ac), taking into account the exclusions referred to in art. 6.;
b) the non-recoverable costs of lost overnight stays as mentioned in the travel contract in case of cancellation by the beneficiary during the course of the travel contract (the outbound flight does not qualify for payment);
c) the non-recoverable costs of lost overnight stays at the booked accommodation if the policyholder(s) can only depart at a later time than the scheduled date of departure for one of the reasons for cancellation as set out in article 4 (the inbound flight does not qualify for payment).
The insurance policy holder does not have to pay an excess fee nor an administration fee. The insurance premium and the administration fee in the travel contract are not reimbursed.
6. Exclusions
The reasons for cancellation listed in this article exclude the insurer from coverage and therefore no compensation will be due, regardless of whether the cancellation is made for a reason stated under art. 4.1 or art. 4.2.
a) any reasons directly or indirectly leading to the cancellation of the trip and known to the insured party or which a normally careful insured party should have reasonably known on the registration date, except a pre-existing illness or accident under the conditions specified in art. 4.1, b).
b) any damage directly or indirectly resulting from intentional acts of the insured party;
c) the insured no longer wants to go ahead with the trip;
d) the weather conditions at the destination do not meet the expectations of the insured (excess or lack of sunshine or rain etc.);
e) the tour operator or airline company has been declared bankrupt;
f) cancellations in case the tour operator does not charge any costs or is not allowed to charge any costs or the tour operator offers an appropriate alternative free of charge.
g) all events caused by excessive use (beyond the “at risk” and legal threshold) of alcohol, drugs or medication not prescribed by a physician or when problems occur associated with the use hereof;
h) cancellations due to non-specified, materially intangible or non-verifiable reasons not substantiated by supporting documents;
i) trips or stays for professional purposes that do not meet the definition under 3 a);
j) if the policyholder leaves on holiday against the advice of the attending physician
k) ) if the policyholder leaves anyway in the same period as the cancelled travel contract.
l) failure by the insured to comply with the obligations stipulated in art. 9, including the declaration period.
m) costs already covered by third parties (e.g. public authorities, tour operator, ,...);
n) the costs relating to quarantine if the country of destination imposes a quarantine on all people entering the country and the insured was not informed of this on the registration date.
The guarantees and the exclusions of cancellation insurance ALL RISK apply to the insured party as well as to any person whose medical condition is the cause of the request for reimbursement.
7. Duration
The cover commences upon registration and lasts until the start of the trip.
The policy only takes effect after full payment of the insurance premium. As long as the premium has not been paid in full, there is no coverage.
8. Up-/downgrading the cancellation insurance plan
8.1 Upgrading
It is possible to take out the additional temporary ALL RISK cancellation insurance or to upgrade from a Platinum cancellation insurance already booked to an All Risk insurance up to 7 days after the date of booking, provided that this date is at least 57 days before departure. Of course the by the upgrade obtained coverage is only applicable to the reasons dating from the period after the upgrade. It is impossible to obtain coverage for events that have already taken place or that can be reasonably expected to occur (increased risk).
8.2 Downgrading
Downgrading or cancelling the temporary cancellation insurance is not possible
9. Obligations of the insured party
a) the insured party will make all reasonable efforts to minimise cancellation or modification costs. More specifically you will inform the tour operator as soon as something happens that may be a reason to cancel, modify or interrupt your trip;
b) the insured party will file the insurance claim online on https://claims.tui.be. Further communication will be done by phone on +32 (0)59 56 58 01 with Pats nv, which was appointed by Advent Insurance PCC Limited as its authorised loss adjuster. In order to assure fast claim handling, the insured party will:
- download the necessary medical questionnaire on https://claims.tui.be, fill out the declaration form online and upload the filled out medical documents and/or other supporting materials within 30 calendar days from the date of cancellation of the travel contract (or the date of departure in case of a no show), which corresponds with the issue date of the cost invoice, on https://claims.tui.be, otherwise you will risk a lower coverage;
- follow the instructions of Pats nv and provide all useful information and/or documentation they deem necessary or useful;
- if required requested, send medical reports from the customer’s physician to the insurer’s consulting physician, or a medical certificate from the local physician in case of travel interruption, and proof of the early return;
c) by taking out cancellation insurance, the insured party accepts that the insurer or the competent entity or physician (in the case of medical information) mandated by the insurer can carry out a check and gain access or have insight in the full medical file in case of an illness or an accident of the person whose medical condition is the reason of the claim for reimbursement. Furthermore, the insured also accepts that if no verification is possible and no adequate proof is provided for the reason for the intervention or if the reason for cancellation of the coverage invoked by the insurer cannot be verified, the insurer is entitled to refuse payment.
10. General conditions
10.1 Policies previously taken out
When the same interest has been insured by different insurers for the same risk, the insured party can, in the event of losses, claim an indemnity payment from each insurer within the limits of each one’s obligations and for the amount that they are entitled to. In that case, the insurer cannot invoke the existence of other contracts covering the same risks to refuse its guarantee, except in the case of fraud. The claim will be settled pursuant to Article 99 §2 of the Belgian Law of 30.04.2014 on terrestrial insurance contracts.
10.2 Subrogation
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell automatically takes over the beneficiary’s rights versus any liable third party to the amount of its contribution.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell respects the privacy of its customers and of the users of its website. The collection of personal data and their use by Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell are subject to the General Data Protection Regulation. If you affiliate yourself with Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, your personal data will be stored in a data file. The controller of that site and of the personal data contained in that file is Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell.
Your personal data and contact details are in order to conclude, manage and implement the insurance contract. In addition, Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell can, on the basis of its legitimate commercial interests, use your personal data and contact details to meet requests from its customers, to keep its customers informed of the activities of Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell as well as for marketing purposes, such as the provision of services or products, membership benefits and promotional actions with partners, data file management, (direct) marketing, public relations and activities in the capacity as intermediary. Furthermore, it is possible that Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell is also required to process information relating to your health in order to conclude or implement the agreement and/or process your claim. We are required by law to ask your explicit consent to process your health data or those of the person represented by you. You are at all times entitled to withdraw this consent. In case of withdrawal of your consent, Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell is authorised to further process the data without your consent, if it concerns the processing of personal data which you publicly disclosed yourself and their processing is necessary to institute or corroborate a legal action.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell secures your personal data by means of far-reaching technical measures. Only duly authorised individuals process your personal data and observe the highest degree of confidentiality in this respect.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell only shares data with the organisations with which Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell has a contractual relationship. For instance Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell calls upon the services of a sub-processor, Pats nv (with registered office at 8400 Oostende, Gistelsesteenweg 1, registered with the CBE under company number 0436.072.606)
You have a right of disclosure, consultation, access and rectification of your personal data. You can also object to the processing of your personal data for direct marketing purposes or to the forwarding of your data to an organisation with which Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell has a contractual relationship. You can exert these rights by sending a simple letter, with a copy of your ID card, to Advent Insurance at its registered office. If you are of the opinion that the data processing does not take place in compliance with the applicable laws and regulations, you can file a claim with the Data Protection Authority.
More information about the use of your data by the insurer and about your rights can be found in the insurer's privacy statement, which is available via the website of the insurer (http://www.adventpcc.com/data-protection). It is also possible to obtain a paper copy free of charge from the insurer.
10.3 Applicable law and limitation
The ALL RISK insurance contract are governed by Belgian law. The court of the legal district where the policyholder is domiciled shall be competent in case of disputes. Any action resulting from any of these insurance contracts is time-barred three years from the date of the event giving cause for this action.
10.4 Domicile
The domicile of the contracting parties is elected by operation of law:
- in the case of Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, the registered office of its loss adjuster;
- in the case of the beneficiary, their official domicile.
10.5 Complaints handling
Although the insurer go to great lengths to treat your file correctly, it might happen that you are dissatisfied with our service. If this is the case, please first address the claims handler Pats nv, whose details you can find in the correspondence. If this does not suffice, you can contact the insurer’s complaints service which is provided in Belgium on behalf of the insurer by Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, represented by the claims handler Pats nv. The contact details are: Pats nv, Complaints Handling division, Gistelsesteenweg 1, 8400 Oostende (Belgium). Phone: +32 (0)59 56 58 01- e-mail: travel_insurance@tui.be.
Always mention your reservation and file number so as to ensure smooth handling. Pats nv will examine your complaint as soon as they have received it and you will receive their answer within two weeks of receipt. If they are unable to answer you in this time period, they will inform you when you can expect an answer. If you are eventually not satisfied with the handling of your complaint, you can contact the Ombudsman for Insurances through the standard form on the website www.ombudsman.as, by e-mail to info@ombudsman.as, by fax at the number +32 (0)2 547 59 75 or by letter to the Ombudsman for Insurances, de Meeûssquare 35, 1000 Brussel (Belgium). Always mention your reservation and file number. This complaints procedure does not exclude the possibility to take legal action.
GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS
1. Purpose of the insurance
The purpose of the PLATINUM and PLATINUM EXTENSION annual cancellation policy is to reimburse the insured party for well-defined harmful consequences of the cancellation of a trip booked through a travel contract or a rental agreement for a holiday accommodation due to well-defined events occurring during the term of the cancellation insurance contract.
2. The parties
a) Insurer: Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell; The Landmark, Level 1, Suite 2, Triq L-Iljun, Qormi, QRM3800, Malta, approved by the MFSA (number C 52394) and the FSMA (number 2787). Authorised claim handler: Pats nv, company number 0436.072.606, Gistelsesteenweg 1, 8400 Oostende (Belgium).
b) Insurance policyholder: the insurance policyholder is a natural person who takes out the PLATINUM or PLATINUM EXTENSION cancellation insurance policy and resides in a member state of the European Union or in Switzerland.
The insured parties are the beneficiary and possible travel companions (3.d)).
c) the Insured Parties: the persons whose name is mentioned under “the insured parties” in the specific terms and conditions of the agreement and who are domiciled in a member state of the European Union or in Switzerland. The Insured Parties shall also be referred to in this contract as “you”.
Children of insured parents who are born or adopted during the term of the agreement are insured until the next due date. Children of insured parents who are born during a stay outside Belgium and children of foreign origin who are adopted are only insured as from the moment on which they are entered in the Belgian population register.
The individuals who can be insured by an annual contract are:
- Single: one single person.
- Couple: the married or de facto spouses living under one roof or two people living under the same roof.
- Family: the married or de facto couple, their resident parents and their unmarried children, either dependent or not, who all have primary residence under one roof, with a maximum of 6 family members. This also includes the single children who reside elsewhere in the country of residence within the context of their studies or a work placement. The unmarried children of divorced parents are insured, even if they have their principal place of residence elsewhere in the country where the insured parent has his/her place of residence.
3. Definitions
a) travel contract: any transport, stay or holiday accommodation rental, or combination thereof, booked by the policyholder in the capacity of traveller and/or renter, abroad with at least two booked nights or in Belgium with at least one booked night.
In addition, the travel contract must have a value that exceeds EUR 150.
b) departure date: the date of departure specified in the travel contract.
c) registration date: the date on which the insured took out the insurance policy.
d) travel companion: the person who is mentioned together with the policyholder in the registration and with whom the policyholder decided to undertake the scheduled trip and whose presence is essential for a successful holiday.
e) life partner: the person with whom the policyholder is engaged in registered or unregistered cohabitation and who lives together with the policyholder at the principal residence in a long-lasting manner.
f) illness: any deterioration of the medical condition not caused by an accident, whose cause and symptoms have been objectively and medically determined by a certified physician before or on the date of cancellation and which makes the performance of the travel contract impossible for medical reasons.
g) stable illness: the stable nature of an illness is assessed on the basis of the “reference date”, i.e. the day six calendar months prior to the registration date. An illness is only considered stable if three cumulative conditions are fulfilled:
1. prior to the reference date, the doctor in attendance made a definitive diagnosis, and any medical treatment was started and took a normal course;
2. between the reference date and the registration date, the patient did not show any new symptoms or health consequences of the illness (“new”: other than the symptoms or health consequences the patient showed during the period of six calendar months prior to the registration date);
3. between the reference date and the registration date, no modification of the treatment and/or medication for the illness was required, implemented, planned or reasonably foreseen by the physician or patient (“modification”: other than the treatment and/or medication administered during the period of six calendar months prior to the reference date).
h) accident: any harm to the physical integrity as diagnosed by a certified doctor that is attributable to a sudden cause beyond the insurance policyholder’s control and renders the performance of the concluded travel contract impossible from a medical point of view.
i) stable medical condition after an accident or a medical/surgical intervention: the stable nature of the medical condition is assessed on the basis of the “reference date”, i.e. the day six calendar months prior to the registration date.
The consequences of an accident or a medical/surgical intervention are only considered stable if three cumulative conditions are fulfilled:
1. prior to the reference date, the doctor in attendance made a definitive diagnosis, and any medical treatment was started and took a normal course;
2. between the reference date and the registration date, the patient did not show any new symptoms or health consequences (“new”: other than the symptoms or health consequences the patient showed during the period of six calendar months prior to the registration date);
3. between the reference date and the registration date, no modification of the treatment and/or medication was required, implemented, planned or foreseen by the physician or patient (“modification”: other than the treatment and/or medication administered during the period of six calendar months prior to the reference date).
j) significant material damage to immovable property: exceptional and accidental damage of at least 2.500 EUR to immovable property of the insured party (regardless of the purpose of the property) beyond the insured party's will that is attributable to an accidental cause and that requires cancellation of the travel contract to enable the insured party to protect their material interests.
k) terminal: an incurable illness and is in the terminal phase;
l) natural disaster: an extreme event of natural origin with large-scale devastating effects. Natural disasters are events caused by the atmosphere, water mass or the soil affecting a country, in particular (non-exhaustive list) floods, tidal waves, dike ruptures, hurricanes, drying out or expansion of soils (extreme drought), earthquakes, landslides, volcanic eruptions, mudslides and subsidence.
4. Right to compensation
The insurer reimburses any cancellation or modification costs to be paid to the tour operator in accordance with the travel terms and conditions if any of the following situations occur after the date of subscription. The insurer reserves the right to appoint an advising physician who has the right to request additional medical information or access to the medical file of the patient whose illness is the reason for the cancellation or modification of the travel contract. The final decision will always lie with the insurer.
a) an accident, death or illness dating from the period after the registration date, including the medically necessary treatment as a result of this accident or illness, of:
· the insured party;
· the insurance party’s life partner;
· a relative of the insured party up to the third degree;
· the minor children from the insured party’s reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
in case it turns out prior to departure that it is impossible for the insured party to undertake the trip for this reason. “Impossible” is understood to mean: it is not possible for a normally careful insured party to organise the treatment in such a manner that the trip can nevertheless go ahead.
An illness dates from the period after the registration date, in case no symptoms or medical complaints had manifested themselves at that time which could be linked to the illness, regardless of the date of the diagnosis. Any intervening factors (such as the progress of the treatment, the development of the complaints, a fault committed by a third party, etc.) do not prejudice the causal link between the medical complaints and the illness.
The guarantee expires when the insured party has booked the trip contrary to the recommendations of the doctor in attendance.
b) an unexpected medically necessary treatment as a result of an accident or illness, in case this accident or illness date from the period prior to the registration date (in accordance with the definition in art. 4 a), provided that the medical condition after the accident or illness was stable on the registration date as defined in art. 3.g) and art. 3.i)., of:
· the insured party;
· the insurance party’s life partner;
· a relative of the insured party up to the third degree;
· the minor children from the insured party’s reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
in case it turns out prior to departure that it is impossible for the insured party to undertake the trip for this reason. “Impossible” is understood to mean: it is not possible for a normally careful patient to organise the treatment in such a manner that the trip can nevertheless go ahead.
“Unexpected” is understood to mean: the treatment could not be reasonably foreseen on the registration date by a normally careful patient and a normally careful physician.
The guarantee expires when the insured party has booked the trip contrary to the recommendations of the doctor in attendance.
c) the unexpected necessary care for a family member of the insured party up to the 2nd degree for medical reasons after a hospital admission, provided that the person requiring care was not hospitalised on the registration date and that the insured party did not provide care to this family member in the same manner prior to the registration date and if proof for the need for this unexpected care is provided by the hospital to which the family member was admitted. In that case, it must be impossible for a normally careful insured party to organise the care in such a manner that the trip can nevertheless go ahead. “Unexpected” is understood to mean that the need for the care could not be met by a normally careful patient and a normally careful physician on the registration date.
d) pregnancy if the insured party was not yet pregnant before the trip at the moment of the registration date and the departure date falls within the last 3 months of the pregnancy;
e) unexpected pregnancy complications for the pregnant insured party, provided that these complications make the performance of the travel contract medically impossible; unexpected pregnancy complications for a family member of the insured party up to the 2nd degree, including premature birth at least one month prior to the expected date of childbirth. “Unexpected” complications are understood to mean: deviating from the medical development normally expected on the registration date;
f) termination of the insured party’s or their life partner’s employment contract by the employer for economic reasons after the registration date;
g) conclusion of a new employment contract by the insured party for at least 3 consecutive months after the registration date if this time period fully or partially coincides with the duration of the trip and if the holiday period was not approved by the new employer;
h) significant material damage to the by the insured party immovable property or business premises, beyond your control and for which the necessary findings and reports have been made by a public authority and/or expert, which requires the policyholder's presence, with clear traces of tampering being found in the event of a burglary, within 30 days prior to departure or during the trip;
i) summons of the by the insured party or their life partner after the registration date:
· for organ transplantation (both as donor and as recipient) (medical certificate mentioning the impossibility to travel) (including for family members up to the 2nd degree);
· for the adoption of a child (arrival of the child in the family between one month before and one month after the departure date);
· for an unexpected military mission;
· for jury service at the Assize Court or for witness service in a court of law at the time of the trip;
j) disappearance or kidnapping, at the hands of a third party, of the policyholder, their life partner or a relative by blood or affinity up to the second degree;
k) suicide of
· the insured party;
· their life partner;
· any individual related to the insured party by blood or affinity up to the second degree (i.e. parents, parents-in-law, brothers, sisters, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, children, grandchildren and grandparents);
· the minor children from their reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
l) divorce or separation, if the proceedings were initiated on court level after booking the trip, or dissolution of a civil partnership, after booking the trip, provided that the official address of the insured party or the former spouse has changed after reservation, subject to presentation of an official document;
m) honeymoon cancellation because of cancellation of marriage, subject to presentation of an official document;
n) exams to be retaken by the insured party as a student during or within 30 days after the trip, on condition that you were not aware of the retake or the unsatisfactory grade at the time of booking and that the retake cannot be rescheduled;
o) total loss of the private vehicle of the insured party or their life partner due to an accident, a fire or a theft within the week before the date of departure of the holiday by car. The insured party must in any case provide us with proof of the damage or theft (police report, public authority report and/or expert report);
p) immobilisation of the private vehicle that was supposed to take the insured party to the port or airport of departure because of accidental damage, fire, technical breakdown or theft to such extent that the port or airport of departure is not reached or cannot be reached in time and for which the necessary findings and/or reports have been made by a public authority and/or expert; Any incident resulting in immobilisation that takes place less than one hour before boarding is not covered by the guarantee of this contract. The insured must in any case provide us with proof of the damage or theft (towing service invoice, police report, public authority report and/or expert report);
q) home invasion or carjacking against the insured party, at the hands of a third party, in the week before departure, subject to presentation of the police report;
r) termination of the rental contract for the principal place of residence of the insured party by the landlord after the registration date and within three months prior to departure if the beneficiary needs to move out of the property within 30 days prior to departure or during the trip;
s) cancellation of leave granted to the insured by your employer because of unavailability of a colleague substituting the insured due to illness, accident or death. The insured must provide a certificate from the employer indicating that their substitute had been designated before the trip was booked as well as a medical certificate of incapacity to work or, if applicable, a death certificate of the insured's substitute;
t) Necessary presence of the insured party exercising a liberal or independent profession due to unavailability of the insured's substitute as designated in the certificate of affiliation due to illness, accident or death. The insured party must provide a certificate indicating that their substitute had been designated before the trip was booked as well as a medical certificate of incapacity to work or, if applicable, a death certificate of the insured party's substitute;
u) theft with violence or burglary of the identity documents or flight tickets required for the journey within five days before departure, subject to presentation of the police report;
v) impossibility to vaccinate the insured due to medical reasons even though this vaccination is explicitly required according to the World Health Organisation (WHO);
w) refusal by the authorities of the country of destination to issue a visa for the insured party, their life partner or a relative in the 2nd degree who travels along with the insured on condition that this refusal is not due to a late request from the insured or due to a request for which incorrect or incomplete information was provided and that it was impossible to know on the date of subscription the visa could not be issued in time or could not be issued at all;
x) decease of the dog, cat or horse of the insured within two days before the departure date. The insured party must submit the following documents: a death certificate from the veterinarian, a certificate of good health of the animal on the day when the insured booked the trip and proof of ownership.
y) the cancellation by one or several travelling companions included in the same booking and insured with Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell (with the same of a different policy) for a reason insured by this policy;
z) the cancellation by one or several travelling companions included in the same booking and not insured with Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell for a reason that would have been insured by this policy; But only if the customer insured with Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell would have to make the trip alone or with one single other traveller as a result of this cancellation.
5. Extent of the guarantee
5.1. Losses covered
If the insurance holder is entitled to reimbursement in accordance with article 4 and has been demonstrated and acquired on the basis of the required corroborating documents, the PLATINUM and PLATINUM EXTENSION cancellation insurance plan cover:
a) reimbursement of the cancellation or modification costs due to the tour operator in application of the travel contract, taking into account the exclusions listed in art. 6;
b) the non-recoverable costs of lost overnight stays as mentioned in the travel contract in case of cancellation by the beneficiary during the course of the travel contract (the outbound flight does not qualify for payment);
c) the non-recoverable costs of lost overnight stays at the booked accommodation if the policyholder(s) can only depart at a later time than the scheduled date of departure for one of the reasons for cancellation as set out in article 4 (the inbound flight does not qualify for payment).
The insurance policy holder does not have to pay an excess fee nor an administration fee. The insurance premium and the administration fee in the travel contract are not reimbursed.
5.2. PLATINUM coverage ceiling
Payment by the insurer is limited to a maximum of EUR 12,500 for all insured parties combined per trip, with a maximum of EUR 2,500 per person per trip. The insurer will never pay an amount exceeding the total contractual cost of cancellation or modification.
5.3. PLATINUM EXTENSION coverage ceiling
Payment by the insurer is limited to a maximum of EUR 25,000 for all insured parties combined per trip, with a maximum of EUR 5,000 per person per trip. The insurer will never pay an amount exceeding the total contractual cost of cancellation or modification.
6. Exclusions
The insurer only provides coverage for events leading to the cancellation of the trip and explicitly listed in article 4. The insurer excludes coverage, and will therefore not owe any compensation, for the reasons of cancellation listed in this article.
a) illnesses in a terminal phase (evaluated by the customer’s physician and by the insurer’s consultant physican) on the registration date;
b) all events caused by excessive use (beyond the “at risk” and legal threshold) of alcohol, drugs or medication not prescribed by a physician or when problems occur associated with the use hereof;
c) depressions, psychic or psychosomatic illnesses, mental or nervous disorders, unless they required an admission to a hospital or a mental health institution during the travel period, without prejudice to the conditions specified in art. 4, a) and b).
d) illnesses or the consequences of accidents which cannot be diagnosed with a medical examination or which do not involve any objective and perceptible symptoms on the basis of which an indisputable diagnosis can be made;
e) any reasons directly or indirectly leading to the cancellation of the trip and known to the insured party or which a normally careful insured party should have reasonably known on the registration date, except a pre-existing illness or accident under the conditions specified in art. 4, b).
f) a medical or surgical intervention and its consequences (including complications) in case: 1. the intervention had already been planned or performed prior to the registration date (unless the medical condition after the intervention was stable as described in art 3, i); or 2. the intervention was planned or performed after the registration date and a causal link can be established with the symptoms or medical complaints that had already manifested themselves prior to the registration date. This can be a direct or indirect causal link, which is not prejudiced by any additional factors of a later date (such as the progress of the treatment, the development of the complaints, a fault committed by a third party, etc.).
g) a surgical intervention which is not medically urgent (such as a cosmetic procedure, gastric bypass, bariatric surgery, etc.) and all its consequences, including complications. This can be a direct or indirect causal link, which is not prejudiced by any additional factors of a later date (such as the progress of the treatment, the development of the complaints, a fault committed by a third party, etc.).
h) illnesses, accidents or disturbances resulting from:
a. the practice of dangerous sports such as: mountaineering, big game hunting, speleology, deep-sea diving and martial arts (this list is not exhaustive);
b. participation in speed attempts or contests
c. professional sports practice, including trainings
i) epidemics and/or pandemics;
j) any damage directly or indirectly resulting from intentional acts of the insured party;
k) the effects of nuclear or atomic accidents, attacks, explosions and/or radiation;
l) war, strikes, riots, civil war or acts of violence with a collective motive and their consequences, unless the beneficiary is able to demonstrate there is no causal link between the cancellation and the event;
m) earthquakes, tidal waves, volcanic eruption, floodings or other natural disasters corresponding to the definition under 3 l);
n) trips or sojourns for professional purposes or not corresponding to the definition under 3 a);
o) cancellations in case the tour operator does not charge any costs or is not allowed to charge any costs or the tour operator offers an appropriate alternative free of charge.
p) if the policyholder leaves on holiday against the advice of the attending physician
q) ) if the policyholder leaves anyway in the same period as the cancelled travel contract.
r) cancellations due to non-specified, materially intangible or non-verifiable reasons not substantiated by supporting documents;
s) the failure of the insured to comply with the obligations set out in article 9, including the term of declaration;
t) the tour operator or airline company has been declared bankrupt.
The guarantees and the exclusions of cancellation insurance PLATINUM and PLATINUM EXTENSION apply to the insured party as well as to any person whose medical condition is the cause of the request for reimbursement.
7. Term of the cancellation insurance
The annual agreement is entered into for a period of one year maximally, and takes effect on the date referred to in the specific terms and conditions at midnight under the condition precedent of payment of the premium. Upon expiry of that one-year period, the agreement will be tacitly renewed for subsequent periods of one year, unless it is terminated by one of the parties as stated in art. 8.2.
The condition precedent also applies in case of tacit renewal: coverage is only provided if the premium has been paid.
8. Subscription to and termination of the cancellation insurance
8.1. Subscription
If the insured parties booked a trip and/or stay before taking out a PLATINUM or PLATINUM EXTENSION annual cancellation policy, the time between the effective date of the PLATINUM or PLATINUM EXTENSION annual cancellation policy and the departure date of the trip or the first day of the stay must be at least 30 days.
8.2. Termination
The agreement can be terminated by one of the parties, by registered letter or by delivery of the notice of termination against receipt:
a) in 14 days after confirmation by the insurer of the receipt of the insurance request or the pre-signed policy. If the policyholder terminates the agreement, the termination takes effect immediately on the day of the notice. If the insurer terminates the agreement, the termination takes effect 8 days after receipt of the notice;
b) at the latest 3 months before the annual expiry date. The agreement then ends on the annual expiry date. If no notice is given in time, the policy will be tacitly renewed in accordance with the provisions of article 7.
c) after a request for reimbursement within the context of a claim, at the latest one month after payment has been made or refused by the insurer. The agreement ends 3 months after the date of the notice.
The agreement can be terminated by the insurer by registered post if the premium is not paid on the due date, provided that a reminder was sent to the policyholder by registered post. The agreement is terminated 15 days after the notice is sent.
In case of termination of the contract or in case of a reduction of the insurance coverage, the premiums paid for the insurance period following the date of the termination, or the part of the premium corresponding to the reduction of the coverage will be reimbursed proportionally to the policyholder at the latest 15 days following the effective date of the termination or the reduction of the coverage.
9. Obligations of the insured/ policyholder
a) the insured party will make all reasonable efforts to minimise cancellation or modification costs. More specifically you will inform the tour operator as soon as something happens that may be a reason to cancel, modify or interrupt your trip;
b) the insured party will file the insurance claim online on https://claims.tui.be. Further communication will be done by phone on +32 (0)59 56 58 01 with Pats nv, which was appointed by Advent Insurance PCC Limited as its authorised loss adjuster. In order to assure fast claim handling, the insured party will:
- download the necessary medical questionnaire on https://claims.tui.be, fill out the declaration form online and upload the filled out medical documents and/or other supporting materials within 30 calendar days from the date of cancellation of the travel contract (or the date of departure in case of a no show), which corresponds with the issue date of the cost invoice, on https://claims.tui.be, otherwise you will risk a lower coverage;
- follow the instructions of Pats nv and provide all useful information and/or documentation they deem necessary or useful;
- if required requested, send medical reports from the customer’s physician to the insurer’s consulting physician, or a medical certificate from the local physician in case of travel interruption, and proof of the early return;
c) by taking out cancellation insurance, the insured party accepts that the insurer or the competent entity or physician (in the case of medical information) mandated by the insurer can carry out a check and gain access or have insight in the full medical file in case of an illness or an accident of the person whose medical condition is the reason of the claim for reimbursement. Furthermore, the insured also accepts that if no verification is possible and no adequate proof is provided for the reason for the intervention or if the reason for cancellation of the coverage invoked by the insurer cannot be verified, the insurer is entitled to refuse payment.
10. General conditions
10.1 Policies previously taken out
When the same interest has been insured by different insurers for the same risk, the insured party can, in the event of losses, claim an indemnity payment from each insurer within the limits of each one’s obligations and for the amount that they are entitled to. In that case, the insurer cannot invoke the existence of other contracts covering the same risks to refuse its guarantee, except in the case of fraud. The claim will be settled pursuant to Article 99 §2 of the Belgian Law of 30.04.2014 on terrestrial insurance contracts.
10.2 Subrogation
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell automatically takes over the beneficiary’s rights versus any liable third party to the amount of its contribution.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell respects the privacy of its customers and of the users of its website. The collection of personal data and their use by Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell are subject to the General Data Protection Regulation. If you affiliate yourself with Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, your personal data will be stored in a data file. The controller of that site and of the personal data contained in that file is Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell.
Your personal data and contact details are in order to conclude, manage and implement the insurance contract. In addition, Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell can, on the basis of its legitimate commercial interests, use your personal data and contact details to meet requests from its customers, to keep its customers informed of the activities of Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell as well as for marketing purposes, such as the provision of services or products, membership benefits and promotional actions with partners, data file management, (direct) marketing, public relations and activities in the capacity as intermediary. Furthermore, it is possible that Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell is also required to process information relating to your health in order to conclude or implement the agreement and/or process your claim. We are required by law to ask your explicit consent to process your health data or those of the person represented by you. You are at all times entitled to withdraw this consent. In case of withdrawal of your consent, Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell is authorised to further process the data without your consent, if it concerns the processing of personal data which you publicly disclosed yourself and their processing is necessary to institute or corroborate a legal action.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell secures your personal data by means of far-reaching technical measures. Only duly authorised individuals process your personal data and observe the highest degree of confidentiality in this respect.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell only shares data with the organisations with which Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell has a contractual relationship. For instance Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell calls upon the services of a sub-processor, Pats nv (with registered office at 8400 Oostende, Gistelsesteenweg 1, registered with the CBE under company number 0436.072.606)
You have a right of disclosure, consultation, access and rectification of your personal data. You can also object to the processing of your personal data for direct marketing purposes or to the forwarding of your data to an organisation with which Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell has a contractual relationship. You can exert these rights by sending a simple letter, with a copy of your ID card, to Advent Insurance at its registered office. If you are of the opinion that the data processing does not take place in compliance with the applicable laws and regulations, you can file a claim with the Data Protection Authority.
More information about the use of your data by the insurer and about your rights can be found in the insurer's privacy statement, which is available via the website of the insurer (http://www.adventpcc.com/data-protection). It is also possible to obtain a paper copy free of charge from the insurer.
10.3 Applicable law and limitation
The PLATINUM and PLATINUM EXTENSION insurance contract are governed by Belgian law. The court of the legal district where the policyholder is domiciled shall be competent in case of disputes. Any action resulting from any of these insurance contracts is time-barred three years from the date of the event giving cause for this action.
10.4 Domicile
The domicile of the contracting parties is elected by operation of law:
- in the case of Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, the registered office of its loss adjuster;
- in the case of the beneficiary, their official domicile.
10.5 Complaints handling
Although the insurer go to great lengths to treat your file correctly, it might happen that you are dissatisfied with our service. If this is the case, please first address the claims handler Pats nv, whose details you can find in the correspondence. If this does not suffice, you can contact the insurer’s complaints service which is provided in Belgium on behalf of the insurer by Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, represented by the claims handler Pats nv. The contact details are: Pats nv, Complaints Handling division, Gistelsesteenweg 1, 8400 Oostende (Belgium). Phone: +32 (0)59 56 58 01- e-mail: travel_insurance@tui.be.
Always mention your reservation and file number so as to ensure smooth handling. Pats nv will examine your complaint as soon as they have received it and you will receive their answer within two weeks of receipt. If they are unable to answer you in this time period, they will inform you when you can expect an answer. If you are eventually not satisfied with the handling of your complaint, you can contact the Ombudsman for Insurances through the standard form on the website www.ombudsman.as, by e-mail to info@ombudsman.as, by fax at the number +32 (0)2 547 59 75 or by letter to the Ombudsman for Insurances, de Meeûssquare 35, 1000 Brussel (Belgium). Always mention your reservation and file number. This complaints procedure does not exclude the possibility to take legal action.
ANNUAL POLICY ALL RISK and ALL RISK EXTENSION
GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS
1. Purpose of the insurance
The purpose of the ALL RISK, ALL RISK EXTENSION, annual cancellation policy is to reimburse the insured party for well-defined harmful consequences of the cancellation of a trip booked through a travel contract or a rental agreement for a holiday accommodation due to well-defined events occurring during the term of the cancellation insurance contract.
2. The parties
a) Insurer: Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell; The Landmark, Level 1, Suite 2, Triq L-Iljun, Qormi, QRM3800, Malta, approved by the MFSA (number C 52394) and the FSMA (number 2787). Authorised claim handler: Pats nv, company number 0436.072.606, Gistelsesteenweg 1, 8400 Oostende (Belgium).
b) Insurance policyholder: the insurance policyholder is a natural person who takes out the ALL RISK cancellation insurance policy and resides in a member state of the European Union or in Switzerland.
The insured parties are the beneficiary and possible travel companions (3.d)).
c) the Insured Parties: the persons whose name is mentioned under “the insured parties” in the specific terms and conditions of the agreement and who are domiciled in a member state of the European Union or in Switzerland. The Insured Parties shall also be referred to in this contract as “you”.
Children of insured parents who are born or adopted during the term of the agreement are insured until the next due date. Children of insured parents who are born during a stay outside Belgium and children of foreign origin who are adopted are only insured as from the moment on which they are entered in the Belgian population register.
The individuals who can be insured by an annual contract are:
- Single: one single person.
- Couple: the married or de facto spouses living under one roof or two people living under the same roof.
- Family: the married or de facto couple, their resident parents and their unmarried children, either dependent or not, who all have primary residence under one roof, with a maximum of 6 family members. This also includes the single children who reside elsewhere in the country of residence within the context of their studies or a work placement. The unmarried children of divorced parents are insured, even if they have their principal place of residence elsewhere in the country where the insured parent has his/her place of residence.
3. Definitions
a) travel contract: any transport, stay or holiday accommodation rental, or combination thereof, booked by the policyholder in the capacity of traveller and/or renter, abroad with at least two booked nights or in Belgium with at least one booked night.
In addition, the travel contract must have a value that exceeds EUR 150.
b) departure date: the date of departure specified in the travel contract.
c) registration date: the date on which the insured took out the insurance policy.
d) travel companion: the person who is mentioned together with the policyholder in the registration and with whom the policyholder decided to undertake the scheduled trip and whose presence is essential for a successful holiday.
e) life partner: the person with whom the policyholder is engaged in registered or unregistered cohabitation and who lives together with the policyholder at the principal residence in a long-lasting manner.
f) illness: any deterioration of the medical condition not caused by an accident, whose cause and symptoms have been objectively and medically determined by a certified physician before or on the date of cancellation and which makes the performance of the travel contract impossible for medical reasons.
g) stable illness: the stable nature of an illness is assessed on the basis of the “reference date”, i.e. the day six calendar months prior to the registration date. An illness is only considered stable if three cumulative conditions are fulfilled:
1. prior to the reference date, the doctor in attendance made a definitive diagnosis, and any medical treatment was started and took a normal course;
2. between the reference date and the registration date, the patient did not show any new symptoms or health consequences of the illness (“new”: other than the symptoms or health consequences the patient showed during the period of six calendar months prior to the registration date);
3. between the reference date and the registration date, no modification of the treatment and/or medication for the illness was required, implemented, planned or reasonably foreseen by the physician or patient (“modification”: other than the treatment and/or medication administered during the period of six calendar months prior to the reference date).
h) accident: any harm to the physical integrity as diagnosed by a certified doctor that is attributable to a sudden cause beyond the insurance policyholder’s control and renders the performance of the concluded travel contract impossible from a medical point of view.
i) stable medical condition after an accident or a medical/surgical intervention: the stable nature of the medical condition is assessed on the basis of the “reference date”, i.e. the day six calendar months prior to the registration date.
The consequences of an accident or a medical/surgical intervention are only considered stable if three cumulative conditions are fulfilled:
1. prior to the reference date, the doctor in attendance made a definitive diagnosis, and any medical treatment was started and took a normal course;
2. between the reference date and the registration date, the patient did not show any new symptoms or health consequences (“new”: other than the symptoms or health consequences the patient showed during the period of six calendar months prior to the registration date);
3. between the reference date and the registration date, no modification of the treatment and/or medication was required, implemented, planned or foreseen by the physician or patient (“modification”: other than the treatment and/or medication administered during the period of six calendar months prior to the reference date).
j) significant material damage to immovable property: exceptional and accidental damage of at least 2.500 EUR to immovable property of the insured party (regardless of the purpose of the property) beyond the insured party's will that is attributable to an accidental cause and that requires cancellation of the travel contract to enable the insured party to protect their material interests.
k) terminal: an incurable illness and is in the terminal phase;
l) natural disaster: an extreme event of natural origin with large-scale devastating effects. Natural disasters are events caused by the atmosphere, water mass or the soil affecting a country, in particular (non-exhaustive list) floods, tidal waves, dike ruptures, hurricanes, drying out or expansion of soils (extreme drought), earthquakes, landslides, volcanic eruptions, mudslides and subsidence.
4. Right to compensation
4.1 Reimbursement of all cancellation or modification costs
The insurer reimburses any cancellation or modification costs to be paid to the tour operator in accordance with the travel terms and conditions if any of the following situations occur after the date of subscription. The insurer reserves the right to appoint an advising physician who has the right to request additional medical information or access to the medical file of the patient whose illness is the reason for the cancellation or modification of the travel contract. The final decision will always lie with the insurer.
a) an accident, death or illness dating from the period after the registration date, including the medically necessary treatment as a result of this accident or illness, of:
· the insured party;
· the insurance party’s life partner;
· a relative of the insured party up to the third degree;
· the minor children from the insured party’s reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
in case it turns out prior to departure that it is impossible for the insured party to undertake the trip for this reason. “Impossible” is understood to mean: it is not possible for a normally careful insured party to organise the treatment in such a manner that the trip can nevertheless go ahead.
An illness dates from the period after the registration date, in case no symptoms or medical complaints had manifested themselves at that time which could be linked to the illness, regardless of the date of the diagnosis. Any intervening factors (such as the progress of the treatment, the development of the complaints, a fault committed by a third party, etc.) do not prejudice the causal link between the medical complaints and the illness.
The guarantee expires when the insured party has booked the trip contrary to the recommendations of the doctor in attendance.
b) an unexpected medically necessary treatment as a result of an accident or illness, in case this accident or illness date from the period prior to the registration date (in accordance with the definition in art. 4 a), provided that the medical condition after the accident or illness was stable on the registration date as defined in art. 3.g) and art. 3.i)., of:
· the insured party;
· the insurance party’s life partner;
· a relative of the insured party up to the third degree;
· the minor children from the insured party’s reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
in case it turns out prior to departure that it is impossible for the insured party to undertake the trip for this reason. “Impossible” is understood to mean: it is not possible for a normally careful patient to organise the treatment in such a manner that the trip can nevertheless go ahead.
“Unexpected” is understood to mean: the treatment could not be reasonably foreseen on the registration date by a normally careful patient and a normally careful physician.
The guarantee expires when the insured party has booked the trip contrary to the recommendations of the doctor in attendance.
c) the unexpected necessary care for a family member of the insured party up to the 2nd degree for medical reasons after a hospital admission, provided that the person requiring care was not hospitalised on the registration date and that the insured party did not provide care to this family member in the same manner prior to the registration date and if proof for the need for this unexpected care is provided by the hospital to which the family member was admitted. In that case, it must be impossible for a normally careful insured party to organise the care in such a manner that the trip can nevertheless go ahead. “Unexpected” is understood to mean that the need for the care could not be met by a normally careful patient and a normally careful physician on the registration date.
d) pregnancy if the insured party was not yet pregnant before the trip at the moment of the registration date and the departure date falls within the last 3 months of the pregnancy;
e) unexpected pregnancy complications for the pregnant insured party, provided that these complications make the performance of the travel contract medically impossible; unexpected pregnancy complications for a family member of the insured party up to the 2nd degree, including premature birth at least one month prior to the expected date of childbirth. “Unexpected” complications are understood to mean: deviating from the medical development normally expected on the registration date;
f) termination of the insured party’s or their life partner’s employment contract by the employer for economic reasons after the registration date;
g) conclusion of a new employment contract by the insured party for at least 3 consecutive months after the registration date if this time period fully or partially coincides with the duration of the trip and if the holiday period was not approved by the new employer;
h) significant material damage to the by the insured party immovable property or business premises, beyond your control and for which the necessary findings and reports have been made by a public authority and/or expert, which requires the policyholder's presence, with clear traces of tampering being found in the event of a burglary, within 30 days prior to departure or during the trip;
i) summons of the by the insured party or their life partner after the registration date:
· for organ transplantation (both as donor and as recipient) (medical certificate mentioning the impossibility to travel) (including for family members up to the 2nd degree);
· for the adoption of a child (arrival of the child in the family between one month before and one month after the departure date);
· for an unexpected military mission;
· for jury service at the Assize Court or for witness service in a court of law at the time of the trip;
j) disappearance or kidnapping, at the hands of a third party, of the policyholder, their life partner or a relative by blood or affinity up to the second degree;
k) suicide of
· the insured party;
· their life partner;
· any individual related to the insured party by blood or affinity up to the second degree (i.e. parents, parents-in-law, brothers, sisters, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, children, grandchildren and grandparents);
· the minor children from their reconstituted family;
· the person who would look after your minor children or disabled family members during your trip;
l) divorce or separation, if the proceedings were initiated on court level after booking the trip, or dissolution of a civil partnership, after booking the trip, provided that the official address of the insured party or the former spouse has changed after reservation, subject to presentation of an official document;
m) honeymoon cancellation because of cancellation of marriage, subject to presentation of an official document;
n) exams to be retaken by the insured party as a student during or within 30 days after the trip, on condition that you were not aware of the retake or the unsatisfactory grade at the time of booking and that the retake cannot be rescheduled;
o) total loss of the private vehicle of the insured party or their life partner due to an accident, a fire or a theft within the week before the date of departure of the holiday by car. The insured party must in any case provide us with proof of the damage or theft (police report, public authority report and/or expert report);
p) immobilisation of the private vehicle that was supposed to take the insured party to the port or airport of departure because of accidental damage, fire, technical breakdown or theft to such extent that the port or airport of departure is not reached or cannot be reached in time and for which the necessary findings and/or reports have been made by a public authority and/or expert; Any incident resulting in immobilisation that takes place less than one hour before boarding is not covered by the guarantee of this contract. The insured must in any case provide us with proof of the damage or theft (towing service invoice, police report, public authority report and/or expert report);
q) home invasion or carjacking against the insured party, at the hands of a third party, in the week before departure, subject to presentation of the police report;
r) termination of the rental contract for the principal place of residence of the insured party by the landlord after the registration date and within three months prior to departure if the beneficiary needs to move out of the property within 30 days prior to departure or during the trip;
s) cancellation of leave granted to the insured by your employer because of unavailability of a colleague substituting the insured due to illness, accident or death. The insured must provide a certificate from the employer indicating that their substitute had been designated before the trip was booked as well as a medical certificate of incapacity to work or, if applicable, a death certificate of the insured's substitute;
t) Necessary presence of the insured party exercising a liberal or independent profession due to unavailability of the insured's substitute as designated in the certificate of affiliation due to illness, accident or death. The insured party must provide a certificate indicating that their substitute had been designated before the trip was booked as well as a medical certificate of incapacity to work or, if applicable, a death certificate of the insured party's substitute;
u) theft with violence or burglary of the identity documents or flight tickets required for the journey within five days before departure, subject to presentation of the police report;
v) impossibility to vaccinate the insured due to medical reasons even though this vaccination is explicitly required according to the World Health Organisation (WHO);
w) refusal by the authorities of the country of destination to issue a visa for the insured party, their life partner or a relative in the 2nd degree who travels along with the insured on condition that this refusal is not due to a late request from the insured or due to a request for which incorrect or incomplete information was provided and that it was impossible to know on the date of subscription the visa could not be issued in time or could not be issued at all;
x) decease of the dog, cat or horse of the insured within two days before the departure date. The insured party must submit the following documents: a death certificate from the veterinarian, a certificate of good health of the animal on the day when the insured booked the trip and proof of ownership.
y) the cancellation by one or several travelling companions included in the same booking and insured with Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell (with the same of a different policy) for a reason insured by this policy;
z) the cancellation by one or several travelling companions included in the same booking and not insured with Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell for a reason that would have been insured by this policy; But only if the customer insured with Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell would have to make the trip alone or with one single other traveller as a result of this cancellation.
4.2. Partial reimbursement of cancellation of modification costs
The insurer reimburses 75% of the cancellation or modification costs to be paid to the tour operator as a result of cancellation of or modification to the travel contract if any of the situations listed below occur after the registration date , taking into account the exclusions as described in article 6.
aa) In case of a cancellation for a different (personal) and verifiable reason than those listed in art. 4.1, point a) – z), subject to presentation of supporting documents.
ab) In case of an outbreak of an epidemic/pandemic:
- if at the time at which your trip is cancelled, the Federal Public Service for Foreign Affairs has issued an orange or red travel advice (see: https://diplomatie.belgium.be/nl int this respect)
- if the insured person tests positive at the body temperature checkpoints at the airport;
- if the negative result of the test taken within the context of the trip is received too late, i.e. after the date of departure, due to a lack of capacity in the lab to process the tests;
- if the insured is not allowed to depart for the destination because no proof of vaccination against Covid-19 can be presented and the insured was not informed of this at the moment they took out the insurance;
- if the insured person is laid off, if his leave is cancelled or if he goes bankrupt due to the epidemic/pandemic.
ac) If the insured is subject to mandatory quarantine in the country of destination due to an actual or suspected infection with the coronavirus (Covid-19) and can therefore not return to the country of residence at the scheduled time. 75% of the following expenses are covered:
a) The cost of a PCR test not ordered by a physician as well as the extra costs of transport, e.g. public transport or taxi in the country of destination, for an amount of up to € 250;
b) The surcharge for the change in the originally booked return flight or the cost of a new return flight, for an amount of up € 1,500;
c) The extra accommodation expenses, inclusive of meals, resulting from the mandatory quarantine, for an amount of up to € 250 per night and up to 10 nights;
d) The total cost of all services listed in a) to c) is limited to € 3,600 per trip.
5. Damage covered and extent of the coverage
5.1. Losses covered
If the insurance holder is entitled to reimbursement in accordance with article 4 and has been demonstrated and acquired on the basis of the required corroborating documents, the ALL RISK and ALL RISK EXTENSION cancellation insurance plan cover:
a) full reimbursement of the cancellation or modification costs payable to the tour operator in application of the travel contract; 100% if the cancellation take place for a reason listed in article 4.1, a)-z), 75% if the cancellation takes place for a reason listed in art. 4.2, aa) - ac), taking into account the exclusions listed in art. 6;
b) the non-recoverable costs of lost overnight stays as mentioned in the travel contract in case of cancellation by the beneficiary during the course of the travel contract (the outbound flight does not qualify for payment);
c) the non-recoverable costs of lost overnight stays at the booked accommodation if the policyholder(s) can only depart at a later time than the scheduled date of departure for one of the reasons for cancellation as set out in article 4 (the inbound flight does not qualify for payment).
The insurance policy holder does not have to pay an excess fee nor an administration fee. The insurance premium and the administration fee in the travel contract are not reimbursed.
5.2. ALL RISK coverage ceiling
Payment by the insurer is limited to a maximum of EUR 12,500 for all insured parties combined per trip, with a maximum of EUR 2,500 per person per trip. The insurer will never pay an amount exceeding the total contractual cost of cancellation or modification.
5.3. ALL RISK EXTENSION coverage ceiling
Payment by the insurer is limited to a maximum of EUR 25,000 for all insured parties combined per trip, with a maximum of EUR 5,000 per person per trip. The insurer will never pay an amount exceeding the total contractual cost of cancellation or modification.
6. Exclusions
The reasons for cancellation listed in this article exclude the insurer from coverage and therefore no compensation will be due, regardless of whether teh cancellation is made for a reason stated under article 4.1 or art. 4.2.
a) any reasons directly or indirectly leading to the cancellation of the trip and known to the insured party or which a normally careful insured party should have reasonably known on the registration date, except a pre-existing illness or accident under the conditions specified in art. 4.1, b).
b) any damage directly or indirectly resulting from intentional acts of the insured party;
c) the insured no longer wants to go ahead with the trip;
d) the weather conditions at the destination do not meet the expectations of the insured (excess or lack of sunshine or rain etc.);
e) the tour operator or airline company has been declared bankrupt;
f) cancellations in case the tour operator does not charge any costs or is not allowed to charge any costs or the tour operator offers an appropriate alternative free of charge.
g) all events caused by excessive use (beyond the “at risk” and legal threshold) of alcohol, drugs or medication not prescribed by a physician or when problems occur associated with the use hereof;
h) cancellations due to non-specified, materially intangible or non-verifiable reasons not substantiated by supporting documents;
i) trips or stays for professional purposes that do not meet the definition under 3 a);
j) if the policyholder leaves on holiday against the advice of the attending physician
k) ) if the policyholder leaves anyway in the same period as the cancelled travel contract.
l) failure by the insured to comply with the obligations stipulated in art. 9, including the declaration period.
m) costs already covered by third parties (e.g. public authorities, tour operator, ,...);
n) the costs relating to quarantine if the country of destination imposes a quarantine on all people entering the country and the insured was not informed of this on the registration date.
The guarantees and the exclusions of cancellation insurance ALL RISK and ALL RISK EXTENSION apply to the insured party as well as to any person whose medical condition is the cause of the request for reimbursement.
7. Term of the cancellation insurance
The annual agreement is entered into for a period of one year maximally, and takes effect on the date referred to in the specific terms and conditions at midnight under the condition precedent of payment of the premium. Upon expiry of that one-year period, the agreement will be tacitly renewed for subsequent periods of one year, unless it is terminated by one of the parties as stated in art. 8.2.
The condition precedent also applies in case of tacit renewal: coverage is only provided if the premium has been paid.
8. Subscription to and termination of the cancellation insurance
8.1. Subscription
If the insured parties booked a trip and/or stay before taking out an ALL RISK or ALL RISK EXTENSION annual cancellation policy, the time between the effective date of the ALL RISK or ALL RISK EXTENSION annual cancellation policy and the departure date of the trip or the first day of the stay must be at least 30 days.
8.2. Termination
The agreement can be terminated by one of the parties, by registered letter or by delivery of the notice of termination against receipt:
a) in 14 days after confirmation by the insurer of the receipt of the insurance request or the pre-signed policy. If the policyholder terminates the agreement, the termination takes effect immediately on the day of the notice. If the insurer terminates the agreement, the termination takes effect 8 days after receipt of the notice;
b) at the latest 3 months before the annual expiry date. The agreement then ends on the annual expiry date. If no notice is given in time, the policy will be tacitly renewed in accordance with the provisions of article 7.
c) after a request for reimbursement within the context of a claim, at the latest one month after payment has been made or refused by the insurer. The agreement ends 3 months after the date of the notice.
The agreement can be terminated by the insurer by registered post if the premium is not paid on the due date, provided that a reminder was sent to the policyholder by registered post. The agreement is terminated 15 days after the notice is sent.
In case of termination of the contract or in case of a reduction of the insurance coverage, the premiums paid for the insurance period following the date of the termination, or the part of the premium corresponding to the reduction of the coverage will be reimbursed proportionally to the policyholder at the latest 15 days following the effective date of the termination or the reduction of the coverage.
9. Obligations of the insured/ policyholder
a) the insured party will make all reasonable efforts to minimise cancellation or modification costs. More specifically you will inform the tour operator as soon as something happens that may be a reason to cancel, modify or interrupt your trip;
b) the insured party will file the insurance claim online on https://claims.tui.be. Further communication will be done by phone on +32 (0)59 56 58 01 with Pats nv, which was appointed by Advent Insurance PCC Limited as its authorised loss adjuster. In order to assure fast claim handling, the insured party will:
- download the necessary medical questionnaire on https://claims.tui.be, fill out the declaration form online and upload the filled out medical documents and/or other supporting materials within 30 calendar days from the date of cancellation of the travel contract (or the date of departure in case of a no show), which corresponds with the issue date of the cost invoice, on https://claims.tui.be, otherwise you will risk a lower coverage;
- follow the instructions of Pats nv and provide all useful information and/or documentation they deem necessary or useful;
- if required requested, send medical reports from the customer’s physician to the insurer’s consulting physician, or a medical certificate from the local physician in case of travel interruption, and proof of the early return;
c) by taking out cancellation insurance, the insured party accepts that the insurer or the competent entity or physician (in the case of medical information) mandated by the insurer can carry out a check and gain access or have insight in the full medical file in case of an illness or an accident of the person whose medical condition is the reason of the claim for reimbursement. Furthermore, the insured also accepts that if no verification is possible and no adequate proof is provided for the reason for the intervention or if the reason for cancellation of the coverage invoked by the insurer cannot be verified, the insurer is entitled to refuse payment.
10. General conditions
10.1 Policies previously taken out
When the same interest has been insured by different insurers for the same risk, the insured party can, in the event of losses, claim an indemnity payment from each insurer within the limits of each one’s obligations and for the amount that they are entitled to. In that case, the insurer cannot invoke the existence of other contracts covering the same risks to refuse its guarantee, except in the case of fraud. The claim will be settled pursuant to Article 99 §2 of the Belgian Law of 30.04.2014 on terrestrial insurance contracts.
10.2 Subrogation
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell automatically takes over the beneficiary’s rights versus any liable third party to the amount of its contribution.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell respects the privacy of its customers and of the users of its website. The collection of personal data and their use by Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell are subject to the General Data Protection Regulation. If you affiliate yourself with Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, your personal data will be stored in a data file. The controller of that site and of the personal data contained in that file is Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell.
Your personal data and contact details are in order to conclude, manage and implement the insurance contract. In addition, Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell can, on the basis of its legitimate commercial interests, use your personal data and contact details to meet requests from its customers, to keep its customers informed of the activities of Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell as well as for marketing purposes, such as the provision of services or products, membership benefits and promotional actions with partners, data file management, (direct) marketing, public relations and activities in the capacity as intermediary. Furthermore, it is possible that Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell is also required to process information relating to your health in order to conclude or implement the agreement and/or process your claim. We are required by law to ask your explicit consent to process your health data or those of the person represented by you. You are at all times entitled to withdraw this consent. In case of withdrawal of your consent, Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell is authorised to further process the data without your consent, if it concerns the processing of personal data which you publicly disclosed yourself and their processing is necessary to institute or corroborate a legal action.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell secures your personal data by means of far-reaching technical measures. Only duly authorised individuals process your personal data and observe the highest degree of confidentiality in this respect.
Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell only shares data with the organisations with which Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell has a contractual relationship. For instance Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell calls upon the services of a sub-processor, Pats nv (with registered office at 8400 Oostende, Gistelsesteenweg 1, registered with the CBE under company number 0436.072.606)
You have a right of disclosure, consultation, access and rectification of your personal data. You can also object to the processing of your personal data for direct marketing purposes or to the forwarding of your data to an organisation with which Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell has a contractual relationship. You can exert these rights by sending a simple letter, with a copy of your ID card, to Advent Insurance at its registered office. If you are of the opinion that the data processing does not take place in compliance with the applicable laws and regulations, you can file a claim with the Data Protection Authority.
More information about the use of your data by the insurer and about your rights can be found in the insurer's privacy statement, which is available via the website of the insurer (http://www.adventpcc.com/data-protection). It is also possible to obtain a paper copy free of charge from the insurer.
10.3 Applicable law and limitation
The ALL RISK and ALL RISK EXTENSION insurance contract are governed by Belgian law. The court of the legal district where the policyholder is domiciled shall be competent in case of disputes. Any action resulting from any of these insurance contracts is time-barred three years from the date of the event giving cause for this action.
10.4 Domicile
The domicile of the contracting parties is elected by operation of law:
- in the case of Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, the registered office of its loss adjuster;
- in the case of the beneficiary, their official domicile.
10.5 Complaints handling
Although the insurer go to great lengths to treat your file correctly, it might happen that you are dissatisfied with our service. If this is the case, please first address the claims handler Pats nv, whose details you can find in the correspondence. If this does not suffice, you can contact the insurer’s complaints service which is provided in Belgium on behalf of the insurer by Advent Insurance PCC Limited - Absolut Cell, represented by the claims handler Pats nv. The contact details are: Pats nv, Complaints Handling division, Gistelsesteenweg 1, 8400 Oostende (Belgium). Phone: +32 (0)59 56 58 01- e-mail: travel_insurance@tui.be.
Always mention your reservation and file number so as to ensure smooth handling. Pats nv will examine your complaint as soon as they have received it and you will receive their answer within two weeks of receipt. If they are unable to answer you in this time period, they will inform you when you can expect an answer. If you are eventually not satisfied with the handling of your complaint, you can contact the Ombudsman for Insurances through the standard form on the website www.ombudsman.as, by e-mail to info@ombudsman.as, by fax at the number +32 (0)2 547 59 75 or by letter to the Ombudsman for Insurances, de Meeûssquare 35, 1000 Brussel (Belgium). Always mention your reservation and file number. This complaints procedure does not exclude the possibility to take legal action.