North East travel insurance specialist launches innovative tech solution

Sunderland’s specialist travel insurance provider Just Travel Cover has partnered with Leeds based InsurTech CPP UK to launch Smart Luggage – a technology solution offering real-time, automated support to airline passengers whose checked luggage cannot be located.

25.4 million items of baggage were mishandled by the travel industry in 2019 – costing the industry approximately £1.8 billion.

The first product of its kind in the UK, Smart Luggage allows holidaymakers and travellers to easily upload an image of their delayed airline luggage receipt, and without making a travel insurance claim, entitles them to receive an automated £50 pay-out within 30 minutes of their checked luggage being unlocatable at the arrival airport, rising to an additional £500 pay-out if still the case after a 48-hour window.

As part of the mobile-first Smart Luggage policy, travellers are kept informed via text message to help reunite them with their baggage and belongings.

Smart Luggage is included on all of Just Travel Cover’s gold travel insurance policies or as an addition to any silver or bronze travel insurance policy, and is available in annual multi-trip and single trip formats. It is the first parametric lost luggage product of its kind in the UK, and launches on 17th August 2021.

The parametric lost luggage product is the first of its kind in the UK market and is available as an annual multi-trip travel insurance and single trip travel insurance policy and distributed as a standalone product, add-on or embedded insurance product.

Andrew Jackson, managing director at Just Travel Cover, says: “Overseas holidays fell by approximately 79% in 2020, but the appetite remains: 62% of people we surveyed said they’re still hopeful of a holiday in 2021 and over a third have booked for next year.

“This summer season, after months of restrictions, complex claim processes and travel disruption like never before, the stress of losing luggage is the last thing that passengers need. With Smart Luggage, lost luggage doesn’t need to be another obstacle to passengers fully enjoying their travels.

“Though it’ll be a long road back to recovery for the travel sector, we’re pleased to play our part with CPP UK in making the industry and customers’ return to travel as enjoyable and stress-free as it can be.”

Carl Carter, CEO of CPP UK, adds: “As Covid-19 restrictions relax and non-essential travel gradually returns, it’s important that passengers continue to ensure they not only have the right travel insurance cover but are also able to spend more time travelling and less time filling in claims forms should the unfortunate happen. The CPP parametric solution for delayed and lost baggage allows them to make the most of a streamlined and automated claims process should they encounter delayed or lost checked in luggage.

“With the average checked luggage of a UK passenger worth £535, losing a bag on your travels cannot only be an inconvenience, but also a potentially hefty financial blow.

“The technology behind Smart Luggage, which taps into the global database for lost luggage (SITA), automates everything from the moment the passenger registers their luggage as missing at the lost luggage desk, making an otherwise stressful experience as seamless as possible – with no paper forms to fill in.”

The technology will be delivered by Blink parametric, which was acquired as part of the wider CPP Group in 2017.

Further information about Smart Luggage can be found here: justtravelcover.com/SmartLuggage.