Guarding against invalidating your travel insurance this Christmas

Over the past several months, there have been some pretty drastic changes all around the world, thanks to the global pandemic, COVID-19. People are still confined in their homes in many parts of the world, and there are active quarantines to minimise the spread of the contagious disease. This pandemic has changed a lot of things, and have prepared people for the worst. Among other things, people have now started to realise the importance of insurance. There have been thousands of deaths all around the world just because they were unable to afford the medical fees. Other than this, there have been losses suffered as tourists had no insurance and were affected by many issues in foreign countries. So, in order to prepare yourself better for the unexpected, like this pandemic, here is what you can do to manage the risks!

As we can now socialise with up to 6 family members and friends in outdoor spaces, including back gardens, a BBQ is a great way to have some fun with your favourite people whilst staying safe. However, there is now a bit more to think about with increased hygiene standards and social distancing crucial in preventing a second wave of the coronavirus. With the summer months well underway, we share how you can host a perfect BBQ. 1. Planning your space Planning your garden space and how people will move around your garden will help everyone to maintain social distancing. For example, you could create a one way system so that people can collect their food and navigate back to their seats with ease. Setting out a seating plan will also help to minimise movement and touching around your garden. 2. Hygiene Whilst this is already a must, ensuring that you wash your hands prior to preparing or handling food and utensils is crucial to reduce the risk of germs spreading. If you have hand sanitizer at home, have this available outdoors for your guests so that they can regularly keep their hands clean during their visit too. You could ask your guests to bring their own condiments and cutlery where possible too. 3. Food preparation Stick to having one person in charge of food preparation and BBQ'ing. Although there is minimal risk of any transmission from food or food packaging, this will ensure that touching is kept to a minimum. Making food preparations prior to guests arriving will allow you to prepare food calmly with no distractions. It will also ensure that you can spend as much of your valuable time catching up with your guests instead of in the kitchen. 4. Plating food Often at BBQs you may be used to having food in the middle of the table where people can help themselves. To reduce physical contact it is better for people to plate all of the food they would like onto their individual plate once food is ready so that there is less touching of surfaces and utensils. You could create a queuing system where people can use their own utensils to serve themselves, or you could plate the food up for them. This is especially important for foods such as dips and nibbles where you would usually share the packet. 5. Watch the booze! A couple of drinks at a BBQ is part of the fun for many. But after a few drinks people can tend to become lazy and forgetful; making social distancing more difficult to manage. Watch the drinks so that you can continue to be aware of the government guidelines. 6. Facilities People are aloud to enter your home to use the toilet as long as they thoroughly wash their hands. You should keep some disposable paper towels in the bathroom instead of having everybody use one of your towels to dry their hands. Wipes should be used to wipe any surfaces as required.

With businesses around the world impacted by COVID-19, returning to work is one of the main priorities for many. Ensuring that you can create the safest environment in which your staff can operate without risk of infection is key, as it’s absolutely vital to maintain optimum well being throughout your team. There are several different steps that you can take to make sure your business can safely open its doors once more, so you don’t need to stress trying to figure out how to restart operations amidst the current pandemic. You should aim to abide by social distancing guidelines within your workspace, requesting that staff members always keep at least 2 metres away from each other. It’s a good idea to invest in some kind of disposable protection that your team can utilise daily, including face masks that cover their nose and mouth as well as gloves too. Advise your staff to provide their own meals and eat outside to avoid potentially spreading the virus through communal food, and regularly remind your team to wash their hands with an antibacterial soap for at least 20 seconds. It’s important that you can seek out the necessary health insurance required to protect both yourself and your employees whilst on the job, as they are potentially risking their wellbeing each time they attend a shift. Insurance can provide both healthcare cover for ill or injured workers as well as ultimate peace of mind for your team to know that their employer has their back no matter what may happen.

It is assumed that humanity will take over during a pandemic, yet there are more scammers than ever. The National Cyber Security Centre (NSCS) warned the public of criminals using the Covid-19 pandemic to scam people. The UK cybersecurity agency launched a service to allow people to report suspicious emails. There was also a campaign urging people to be more vigilant online. The NCSC campaign has a range of interesting and informative advice. This will empower the UK Internet users with the knowledge to help protect themselves. With the increased amount of people working from home, on a work computer. An increased risk in the breach and hacking of sensitive data is being observed. The advice also includes how to make sure that your Zoom calls are as secure as possible. As there have been many safety concerns about the use of this app. Jeremy Fleming, the director of government Communications headquarters, who oversees the NCSC, said: “Crisis is changing the world very fast, and the scale of activity among opportunistic cybercriminals seeking to profit from the virus at all.” The NSCS has said it will build on its existing takedown services. This service has removed more than 2000 scams related to the coronavirus in the last month alone. This actually includes over 455 online shops selling fraudulent PPE. A survey by TSB suggested that as many as 42% of people believe that they have been a victim of a bogus email. There is a range of insurance scams, including travel insurance and staged accidents. And while many insurance companies have made exceptions and allowances. If you receive a call or email out of the blue, delete or hang up. In some cases, where you have the correct insurance, you can make a claim and get some of your money back. You can head to NSCS.gov.uk to read more about this information and report anything suspicious. Click here to read the full ITV news story