TD settles lawsuit over travel insurance claims related to COVID-19

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TD Home and Auto Insurance Company has agreed to settle a class action lawsuit over certain travel insurance claims it denied, primarily affecting Canadians whose trips were canceled due to COVID-related travel restrictions. 19.

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The lawsuit alleged that the subsidiary of the Toronto-Dominion Bank violated the terms of its insurance policy by refusing to honor claims for trip cancellation benefits and to provide full compensation when credits, coupons or vouchers were available.

The insurer has agreed to pay $5.1 million as part of the settlement, of which $4.8 million will be distributed to compensate class members. The remaining $300,000 will cover administration costs.

Customers who were insured under a TD Travel Insurance policy between March 16, 2018 and October 15, 2021 may be eligible if they have had their travel claim denied in whole or in part due to receipt of non-monetary compensation, such as vouchers, coupons or credits instead of cash refunds. This means the customer must have already filed a trip cancellation request with TD.

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The compensation will be distributed to three groups. The first includes travelers whose claims related to money paid to certain airlines that changed their policies after the class action was filed. Airlines and Travel Suppliers including air Canada, Air France, Air Transat, British Airways, Emirates, Porter, Ryanair, Sunwing, Swoop, United Airlines and WestJet previously only offered credits for canceled trips, but have changed their policies and made cash refunds available for certain periods. Although reimbursed by the airlines, members of this group may receive $100, regardless of the amount of their claim.

The second group will include travelers whose claims did not meet the travel date and other conditions set by the airlines. They will receive approximately 40% of the value of the denied claim in proportion to the settlement amount and will be able to keep the credits they received.

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The third group includes those who qualify for both groups and will receive $100 and approximately 40% of the denied application.

Law firms Samfiru Tumarkin LLP and Adair Goldblatt Bieber LLP launched the class action on behalf of lead plaintiff Kevin Lyons, who was allegedly denied a claim for trip cancellation coverage after his travel plans were canceled in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the class action, Lyons was only reimbursed $78.97 for the non-refundable portion of his Airbnb booking out of his $6,673.36 claim. He was denied the portion relating to his family’s flights and cruise.

The lawyers involved estimate that there are around 8,800 Canadians eligible to file a claim.

TD said it had no further comment on the proposed settlement.

The agreement to settle the case was reached earlier this month and will go to court on February 17, 2023.

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