There are currently wildfires across Greece, with thousands of people being evacuated from Chios, Zakynthos, Patras and other areas.
Wildfires are extremely dangerous. If you’re in Greece or are booked to go soon, we want you to know exactly what to do, so you can keep you and your loved ones safe.
What to do if you’re in Greece
First, check if you’re in or near an area affected by wildfires. It may be obvious if you can see fires nearby, but you can also check the official 112Greece X page or Greece’s Civil Protection website.
If it’s not safe to stay where you are, get in touch with your who you booked your trip with.
They’ll hopefully have up to date information about what’s going on and can give you support if you need to be moved.
They’re usually responsible for flying you home safely or moving you to safer accommodation.
Keep up to date with local news and authorities too. On the FCDO’s ( Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office) advice page, there are instructions for turning on emergency alerts on your phone so you’re always aware of wildfire risks near you.
I’m in immediate danger
Call the Greek Emergency Services on 112 if you’re in immediate danger.
You can also contact the fire service at 199 and the ambulance service at 166.
What to do if you need to evacuate
If you’re told by police, firefighters or another authority that you need to evacuate, it’s very important you follow their instructions.
If you’re not in urgent danger, pack a bag of essentials before leaving including:
- passports and ID
- phones and chargers
- money and bank cards
- insurance documents
- essential medicine and prescription details
- a spare change of clothes
What to do if your holiday is cancelled or hasn’t started yet
Contact who you booked your holiday with if you want to change when you’re travelling or where you’re travelling to. Just a heads up, we won’t cover the costs of rearranging your trip.
Check to see if you need to update your travel insurance if you rearrange your destination or move the dates to make sure you’ll still be covered.
If your trip is cancelled, speak to who you booked your trip with. They may be able to offer you alternatives like:
- a refund
- changing your holiday destination
- moving your date
Read our holiday cancellation guide for more information.
We’ll cover you for a cancelled trip if the FCDO’s advice changes after you’ve booked your trip, as it won‘t be considered a safe destination anymore.
If the FCDO advises you not to travel to Greece (or specific parts of it) and you book a trip there anyway, your travel insurance won’t cover you.
Am I covered if I already have a policy with you?
Travel insurance covers unexpected events. So, if you were in or on your way to Greece when the wildfires hit the news, you’ll be covered.
But you won’t be covered if the wildfires were already happening when you booked your trip or bought your travel policy. That’s because they’re not considered unexpected anymore.
Also, our policies only cover losses that you can’t get back. So for instance, if your trip was re-booked at another time or you were given a voucher to cover the costs you lost out on, you won’t be able to claim for those costs with us.
Before you make a claim, you’ll need to show that you haven’t been able to get a refund from who you booked your trip with.
There are some exclusions to be aware of, so you should always check your policy book for the full details.
New customers
Because the wildfires have been a known event since late June, you probably won’t be able to claim on your travel insurance for anything related to them if you bought your policy after this date.
You can still buy the policy, but you just won’t be able to claim for anything connected to the wildfires.
Existing customers
Check for advice and support from who you booked your flight or accommodation with before trying to claim on your insurance.
If you do need our support, there are a few situations that your policy will cover:
- Emergency medical issues and repatriation: if you have an illness or injury that happened because of the fires or the weather conditions. You can call our emergency medical assistance line on +44 (0)292 010 7777.
- Lost or damaged personal belongings: if you’ve been forced to evacuate your accommodation and couldn’t bring your belongings with you – or if your accommodation was destroyed by the fire, including your belongings inside.
- Missed cruises: we’ll look at cruise cover claims if your cruise is affected by the wildfires, for instance if you miss your cruise leaving or the cruise itinerary has to change.
- Missed flights: if you miss your flight or can’t make it to the airport on time because of the fires, then we’d cover reasonable expenses like accommodation and travel.
- Delayed flights: for a flight delay of more than 12 hours to or from Greece, you'll get cover if you continue your trip after the delays.
- Abandoned flights: if the flight to Greece is cancelled and you can’t get an alternative in 12 hours, you may be covered to abandon your trip and stay home.
- Catastrophe cover (Gold and Platinum only): covers things like travel, non-refundable payments and accommodation for events like fires, hurricanes, avalanches, tsunamis and epidemics.
Remember, there are some limits and exclusions to be aware of. Read your policy book for more information.
What to do if you’re delayed at the airport
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) says that “your flight provider must offer you care and assistance if a flight is significantly delayed” under UK law.
That means they must give you:
- food and drink: usually in vouchers
- opportunity to contact someone: usually by refunding your calls
- accommodation: this only applies if the flight’s delayed overnight
- transport: to and from accommodation or your home (if it’s close enough)
If your airline’s dealing with staff shortages and can’t offer you the above, they should provide a refund for your flight, as long as it’s seen as reasonable.
Get in touch with your airline if you need to understand their policy a little better.
Read more about your travel rights on the CAA website. Is it still safe to travel?
The FCDO has said:
“Ensure that your mobile phone is registered to receive emergency alerts to be warned of wildfires near your location.
Wildfires are highly dangerous and unpredictable. The situation can change quickly.”
The FCDO hasn’t said not to travel to Greece yet, but make sure you keep up to date with its advice.
It’s important to remember not all of Greece and its islands are affected. We recommend keeping up with news outlets and who you booked your trip with to see how the situation evolves.
If you’re one of our customers, please contact us if you need anything.
Where can I find the right information in my policy book?
Here are some important parts of your policy book you may need, and the sections they come under:
- Emergency medical issues: Section 1
- Trip cancellations: Section 2
- Personal belongings lost due to evacuation: Section 4
- Personal belongings destroyed in a fire: Section 4 and 6
- Missed or abandoned flights: Section 4
- Catastrophe cover: Section 10
