Dubai-based airline Emirates has come up with a novel way to encourage air travel amid the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic: by promising to provide Covid-19 insurance for its passengers.

According to a press release on July 23, the airline promised to cover medical expenses of up to 150,000 euros (S$242,000), if a passenger travelling on Emirates is diagnosed with Covid-19 during their travel.

This guarantee is provided by the airline, and is free of charge to customers, regardless of class of travel or destination.

Customers do not need to register or fill in any forms

According to Emirates, the cover is immediately effective for customers flying on Emirates until Oct. 31, 2020 (first flight to be completed on or before Oct. 31, 2020).

It will be valid for 31 days from the moment they fly the first sector of their journey.

This means that travellers flying on Emirates can continue to benefit from this cover, even if they travel onwards to another city after arriving at their Emirates destination.

Customers do not need to register or fill in any forms before they travel, and they are also not obligated to utilise this cover provided by Emirates.

An impacted customer who has been diagnosed with Covid-19 during their travel will have to contact a dedicated hotline in order to get this assistance and cover, and more details can be found on their website.

According to HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Emirates Group Chairman and Chief Executive, the airline is seeking to provide flexibility and assurance for travellers who are yearning to fly but are afraid of unforeseen circumstances due to Covid-19:

"Emirates has worked hard to put in place measures at every step of the customer journey to mitigate risk of infection, and we have also revamped our booking policies to offer flexibility. We are now taking it to the next level, by being the first in the industry to offer our customers free global cover for COVID-19 medical expenses and quarantine costs should they incur these costs during their travel. It is an investment on our part, but we are putting our customers first, and we believe they will welcome this initiative."

The airline will cover funeral costs in the event of death due to Covid-19

According to the press release, in addition to medical expenses of up to S$242,000, the airline will also cover quarantine costs of EUR 100 (S$162) per day, for 14 days.

A closer look at the airline's terms and conditions reveal more details about what is included, and what is not.

While Covid-19 testing expenses will not be covered by the airline, repatriation assistance for those diagnosed with the virus is covered, up to the actual cost of repatriation.

Funeral costs will also be covered, limited to EUR 1,500 (S$2,426).

The terms and conditions for the airline's Covid-19 assistance cover can be found here.

Top image via Emirates.