What new Spain quarantine rule means for holidaymakers

The government has announced that travellers from Spain to the UK must self-isolate at home for two weeks.

The sudden move, in response to several spikes of coronavirus infection in Spain, will affect several hundred thousand British people currently on the mainland, and in the Balearic and Canary Islands.

A further three million people are estimated to be booked to travel from the UK to Spain in the next month alone.

These are the key questions and answers.

What has changed?

On 8 June the UK government imposed a blanket requirement for all incoming travellers by air, sea and rail to self-isolate for two weeks. This was lifted for dozens of countries, including Spain, on 10 July.

But 16 days after England, Wales and Northern Ireland removed the quarantine requirement from Spain (and just a few days after Scotland followed suit), the obligation has been re-imposed.

For British holidaymakers currently in Spain, it is shocking news. When they set off, they were not expecting to have to quarantine on their return.

But they are now learning that they must go home from the airport or sea port and stay there for two weeks.

What exactly does quarantine involve?

Arriving travellers are required to go direct to their home or to other suitable accommodation. They may do so by public transport.

They must immediately self-isolate for 14 days, timed from the day following their arrival.

A holidaymaker who flew out for a week on the last “no-quarantine day,” 25 July, will return on 1 August. Their self-isolation must begin immediately, but the clock starts ticking only on 2 August – and so the first time they will be able to venture out is immediately after midnight on 16 August.

Meanwhile they can leave home only to obtain medical assistance, to attend court or a funeral, or to go shopping for essentials if there is no one else who can supply provisions.

Leaving home for work, exercise, socialising or walking the dog is not permitted.

But I am a key worker and must return to my job the day after my return. Surely I am exempt?

Almost certainly not. Most of the exemptions are very narrowly defined and cover either transport professionals or key workers travelling abroad specifically on government business. Holidays do not count.

What about important family obligations?

Unless they involve a court case or, heaven forbid, a funeral, you will not be able to leave your house to meet any such commitments.

I have a package holiday booked for late July/August. What are my rights?

There is no legal entitlement to cancel, but the big two holiday firms, Jet2 and Tui, say they will not take travellers somewhere from which there is a need to self-isolate upon return.

Starting from Sunday morning, 26 July, it is expected that Tui and Jet2 will cancel all holidays from the UK to Spain in the near future – probably for about the next two weeks, with rolling cancellations thereafter.

Customers will be entitled to a full refund, but can choose an alternative holiday or a voucher for future travel if they prefer.

Under the Package Travel Regulations, people whose trips are cancelled should get their money back within two weeks, but that time limit is unlikely to be met given the extreme stress on the travel industry.

I have booked a “DIY” trip, with flights, accommodation and car rental all booked separately. Can I get my money back?

It will be difficult. Despite the sudden quarantine decision, there is every chance that your flight will still be operating. After all, there are plenty of people who will be expecting to be flown home from Spain, so many outbound flights will be running.

If the departure goes ahead as planned, the airline is legally entitled to refuse a refund even though you have compelling reasons not to go – such as work or family commitments.

Any accommodation or car-rental flexibility will depend on the deal you agreed with the supplier, and their attitude. They may be prepared to allow you to postpone – but are unlikely to offer you any cash back.

If you have a good insurance policy issued before mid-March, you may be able to claim for unavoidable losses.

Can I dodge quarantine by returning from Spain via France or another third country?

No. Every traveller to the UK must complete a passenger locator form, in which they are expected to spell out the countries they have visited in the past two weeks.

Any hacks to limit the time spent in self-isolation?

The only way to reduce the extent of quarantine is to leave the country again. But any days remaining of your quarantine period will still need to be served when you return from this second trip. So if you return from Spain on 1 August, and leave for France on 4 August for a week, you will still be expected to remain at home thereafter until 16 August.

What happens if I break quarantine?

The penalty for failing to comply is £1,000 (reduced to £480 in Scotland).

Who is checking up?

The public health authorities are making some tracking calls.

The numbers who will now be required to quarantine will make it challenging for officials to keep tabs on travellers.

The Independent is unaware of any fines being issued for breaches of quarantine, even though the Brexit Party leader, Nigel Farage, appeared to have clearly broken the rules following his trip to a Donald Trump rally in Tulsa, US.

Kent Police, which would have been responsible for issuing the penalty, told The Independent it has issued none.

Why has the whole of Spain been included?

Presumably to keep the message simple. The authorities in the four UK nations could have applied the rule for specific regions of Spain, such as Catalonia and Aragon, where the most significant case spikes have occurred.

Instead, they have chosen to enforce the policy for the whole country – including the Balearics and Canary Islands, where infections remain low.

What effect will this decision have on the travel industry?

It is utterly devastating. Just as the travel industry thought 2020 could get no worse – it has. Airlines and holiday companies are already on their knees after the worst four months in their history.

The immediate damage in terms of refunds for cancelled package holidays will run into many tens of millions of pounds.

Airlines that had been hoping to exploit an apparent appetite for Spanish holidays to help fill flights in late July and August now face the prospect of no fresh bookings. They may also have to cancel planned departures because it could be less financially ruinous to pay out refunds than to operate half-empty planes.

The longer-term effects could be even worse.

The weekend when the government chose to make the decision was the busiest so far this summer. Many holidaymakers were setting off on long-planned trips that would provide a welcome escape after months of lockdown.

Instead, many find themselves confused and anxious.

Travel, previously the industry of human happiness, depends on confidence.

Now that many dream trips have turned into nightmares, bookings for September and October are now likely to dry up – not just for Spain, but for every other country.