Air Canada has announced it will begin offering complimentary COVID-19 insurance to Canadian customers who book international roundtrip flights to eligible destinations. The plan covers emergency quarantine and medical expenses for Canadian residents related to COVID-19, and will be available for new bookings made in Canada through October 31, 2020.

Air Canada is the second Canadian airline to offer no-charge COVID insurance, following a similar announcement from WestJet on Monday. The coverage is underwritten by the Company of The Manufacturers Life Insurance (Manulife), a leading Canadian travel insurance provider. 

"At Air Canada, we know people have personal, family and business reasons to travel. To give them greater confidence as they do so, we have engaged Manulife to offer all Canadian residents complimentary COVID-19 emergency medical & quarantine insurance when they book round-trip flights for travel outside of Canada," said Lucie Guillemette, executive vice president and chief commercial officer at Air Canada.

“Combined with our industry leading airport and onboard biosafety protocols, including Air Canada CleanCare+, and our flexible rebooking policies, customers can be assured that when they book and travel with Air Canada their safety and well-being is our top priority.”

The insurance plan will cover Air Canada customers who test positive for COVID-19, up to $200,000 CA for medical expenses and treatment, up to $150 CA per person per day for quarantine costs including meals and accommodations ($300 CA per family per day), and up to up to $500 CA for return-to-home expenses, in the event the government issues a heightened travel alert while they are abroad.

The airline also announced that customers booking with Air Canada Vacations will be offered COVID-19 Coverage and Assistance Plan provided by Allianz at no additional cost. It will be available to all eligible customers who book an Air Canada Vacations package for travel by April 30, 2021 to eligible destinations. 

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