Insurers await possible extended gadget ban on flights

Industry body says insurers will adapt as US and EU officials discuss the issue

Insurers await possible extended gadget ban on flights

Insurance News

By Paul Lucas

The insurance industry is keeping an eye on the potential extension of a US ban on laptops and tablets in cabin baggage, a proposal that will be reportedly discussed by US and EU officials this week.

In March, the US imposed new aviation security measures on electronic gadgets over fears that explosives could be concealed inside the devices.

The US banned devices “larger than a smartphone” from the cabins of flights from eight mostly Mulsim countries – Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and UAE.

The UK followed suit, prohibiting the same devices from the cabin on flights from Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia and Saudi Arabia.

An EU spokeswoman and US Department of Homeland Security spokesman David Laplan said no decision had been made on the possible extension of the gadget ban, according to reports by the BBC and Forbes.

Officials from the US and EU will meet in Brussels this week to discuss the matter, the reports said.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) told the Daily Mail that if new rules were introduced, then companies could be willing to relax their regulations.

“Insurers will always monitor what the current restrictions are and adapt,” the publication quoted an ABI spokesman as saying.

“I know that when the original laptop ban was brought in for flights to the UK, some companies said they were looking to cover electronic items in the hold provided that the customer could prove they had no choice but to check the item in,” he added.

The ABI spokesman said passengers should talk to their travel insurer before flying and check their cover.

“If items such as laptops and tablets are not covered travellers should think very carefully about whether they want to take these items at all. Obviously for business trips they will have no choice but holidaymakers could be better off leaving their valuable items at home,” the ABI spokesman told the Daily Mail.


Related stories:
Allianz to cover clients affected by UK flight gadget ban
Government reaches out to insurers over gadget ban on UK flights
 

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