The story…
On 4th June 2017, the Taxi Charity For Military Veterans† – run and funded by London’s cab drivers – took hundreds of World War II veterans on a final trip back to the beaches of Normandy. The trip included a remembrance service at the Pegasus Bridge Museum and trips to Bayeux and the beach at Arromanches.
The veterans came from all over the UK for the 5 day trip to Northern France; however due to the size and ages of the travelling party, the youngest WWII veteran to travel was aged 93 and the oldest of the veterans was 99, specialist travel insurance was vital.
P J Hayman & Co Ltd (who have over 25 years’ experience in arranging specialist cover and are based in Hampshire) arranged cover via its Free Spirit travel insurance scheme. They took an innovative approach to the insurance requirements and abandoned the ‘one size fits all’ standard policy to provide the Taxi Charity with a tailor-made policy, including blanket cover for the medical risks of the travelling group.
Mary Holt, Free Spirit Manager (pictured above) who joined the veterans on the trip with her colleague Jan Smith, explained:
“It would have been an impossible task to medically screen each person. Providing the insurance wasn’t just about ages and medical risks, it was about giving the veterans the peace of mind that should something happen to them on their trip, they would be covered. We are delighted to be involved in helping the veterans get the necessary cover and provide it to them free of charge.”
A member of the committee said that without P J Hayman & Co it would have been very difficult and that the Charity is very thankful for the help and support they received.
Free Spirit was able to offer full policy cover to a total of 306 veterans, committee members, carers, drivers, medical support team members and guests.
† formally known as The London Taxi Benevolent Association for War Disabled