Coronavirus travel rights

Top holiday destinations – what are their rules?

The table below, which we're updating regularly, shows the latest situation for 20 of the top travel destinations for Brits. It details where tests are needed pre-departure, though you may also need to take a test at the airport and quarantine if it comes back positive.

Some countries also require that travellers fill in a passenger locator form on arrival. You'll often be asked if you've been in the company of a confirmed coronavirus case in the days prior to travelling. For example, Spain will deny entry if you've been in contact with someone with a positive case within seven days before you travel. So do check this beforehand. But don't get caught out thinking you have to pay for these forms. They'll always be available free of charge on the Government website in the destination you arrive in. 

Always check for yourself before travelling or planning to travel, as this is a fast-moving situation – if you spot something in the table that needs updating, please let us know.

Travel firms SHOULD refund you for cancelled trips – though many have dragged their feet

As a general rule, if you've paid for a trip and then the travel firm cancels, you should be due a refund. You may see more cancellations as travel firms reduce schedules in the face of more restrictions and falling demand.

Yet refunds haven't always proved easy with cancellations due to the pandemic. While coronavirus has been devastating across the travel industry, firms have been treating customers in very different ways – as shown by several major MoneySavingExpert.com (MSE) surveys we ran last year.

Even if some firms have previously been slow to refund customers, your right to a refund is clear:

• With most cancelled flights, you're due a full refund within seven days. Most cancelled flights will fall under flight delay rules (which have been written into UK law, and cover all flights leaving the UK or EU, as well as flights to the UK/EU on a UK/EU airline). These state you're entitled to choose between:
  • EITHER a refund for the flight that was cancelled.
  • OR an alternative flight (airlines call this re-routing) to your destination.
  
  We've seen some airlines pushing customers towards getting a voucher instead, but you are absolutely entitled to a refund in this situation. In theory and according to the law, this should also be paid in seven days, though aviation regulator the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) acknowledged it was "very challenging" for airlines to sort it that quickly at the height of the pandemic. While refund backlogs should now have been cleared, refunds may still take longer in the future if restrictions suddenly change and there's a spate of cancellations.
  
  If your airline ignores your complaint or you don't get the outcome you're after, you can use an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) scheme. See the CAA's website for info on which airline is a member of which scheme. If an airline isn't signed up to an ADR scheme you may be able to complain directly to the CAA instead. 

• With cancelled package holidays, you're due a full refund within 14 days. Package holidaymakers whose trips are cancelled are also entitled to all their money back under the Package Travel Regulations.
  
  Technically you're due this refund within two weeks, but in practice it could be longer – the Chartered Trading Standards Institute previously told us that insisting on a 14-day turnaround could be tricky given the volume of refunds travel firms were grappling with. While most of these backlogs should now have been cleared, it may still be advisable to show forbearance and not push the law as far as it can technically go on the timescale. But the important thing is that you are due a refund.
  
  

• With other travel bookings (hotels, car hire etc), the rules are less clear-cut but you SHOULD still get a refund. Generally speaking, if the service you have booked isn't provided, you should be refunded – and that's a principle the UK competition watchdog has clearly supported. Enforcing it may be tricky though, especially if the firm is abroad where local laws may be different to those in the UK – so there are no guarantees.
  
  Some countries may require you to show a negative test result on arrival. If you've taken the test but the trip is then cancelled, you need to contact the provider you ordered the test from to see if it'll refund you – but there are no guarantees. If you've paid for the test but not yet taken it as your trip was cancelled, you may find providers are more willing to give refunds.
  

If my flight or holiday goes ahead but I don't want to travel – or can't – what are my rights? 

What if I can't or don't want to go because I have to quarantine on my return?

We've previously been asked by users if they'll legally be able to get a refund on travel bookings (for example, a flight or package holiday) if they are unable or unwilling to quarantine on their return, and are therefore unable to take their trip. The short answer is no, as the company would not have to refund you for your disinclination to travel – though some firms may agree to help out, so it's worth asking.

Your travel insurance is also unlikely to cover you if you have to quarantine. However, insurance trade body the Association of British Insurers says you should ask your insurer directly to be certain, as some insurers may consider exemptions if you will be disproportionately affected, eg, if having to quarantine on your return will affect your employment.

Similarly, if an overseas destination moves to the UK's 'red list', it's unlikely that you'll be able to claim a refund from travel firms or your travel insurer, as the change wouldn't affect the delivery of your holiday – only what happens when you get back. However, if your destination is reclassified, it's possible your travel provider may choose to cancel your booking itself – in the event this happens, the normal rules on cancellations would apply.

Holidaying in the UK? Your refund rights

What if I've booked a trip for multiple households?

This isn't currently an issue as there are no restrictions on multiple households gathering, but we've answered this question in case restrictions come in again in future. So if your holiday is to and from a permitted area, but would break rules because the travellers are from multiple households, CMA guidance suggests you'd be owed a refund (though it's not completely clear-cut and there are no guarantees).

When we checked back in September 2020, all the major UK firms we'd spoken to said they would pay out – see more details in our Social gatherings of more than six banned – your refund rights MSE News story.