COLUMN: Citizens Advice Leighton Linslade

The chances are you’ll have the relaxing holiday you deserve, but there are a few things you can do in advance to help your holiday go smoothly. That includes the golden rule of getting travel insurance and brushing up on what your rights are if something goes wrong.

The first thing to do is check if your passport is in date. Renewing can take several weeks so you don’t want to leave this until the last minute. You can check the validity of your passport for your trip on GOV.UK here by seeing the entry requirements of the country you’re travelling to. This is especially important if you’re flying to Europe as EU countries no longer accept passports that are more than ten years old. If your passport was issued pre-Brexit then the expiry date might be more than ten years from the issue date, but if it’s older than ten years, you’ll need to get it renewed for EU travel - even if it’s still in date.

Flight delays and cancellations could happen to any of us, so it’s worth knowing what your rights are if this happens. If your flight is delayed long enough, your airline has to give you access to food and drink vouchers, phone calls and emails, and accommodation if you’re delayed overnight. If your flight is cancelled, you have a legal right to a full refund or replacement flight to help you get to your destination. Bags going missing is another classic holiday nightmare. But you do have a right to compensation if your airline delays, loses or damages your checked-in luggage. You might also get compensation for other things, like a day trip getting cancelled, or if you paid for a deluxe room but only got a standard one. This will depend on whether you booked a package holiday, made ‘linked travel arrangements’ or organised the holiday yourself as an independent traveller, so it’s worth checking to see what compensation you can get.

Finally, you should get travel insurance, as it can cover many of the things already mentioned, like flight delays and lost luggage, but also things like a holiday cancellation and medical emergencies. You should get insurance as soon as you book a holiday to make sure you're covered from the get go, but check first to see if you’re covered for what you need through an existing insurance policy or through your bank account.

Hopefully you won’t face any problems while on holiday, but early planning and preparations can go a long way. If you want to read more about what you can do to avoid any issues and how to tackle them if they arise, you can find more about holidays and consumer issues on the Citizens Advice Website here

We know that times are incredibly tough but please remember, you don’t have to face any of your problems alone. Do contact Citizens Advice Leighton Linslade no matter what the issue. You can speak to one of our friendly advisers on the telephone on 01525 373878. You can find our opening hours and contact us by email using our online enquiry form available on our website www.leightonlinsladecab.org.uk