Where were you this time last year?

Not in the air, presumably. Last April, the Icelandic volcanic ash cloud paralysed air travel, leaving many thousands of travellers across Europe and beyond stranded. The unprecedented nature of the event, together with the widespread chaos it wrought, meant that many travellers were eager to seek compensation but were unsure of how to get it, where to get it and what their travel insurance policy entitled them to.

That led to disputes.

Now, it’s important that we get one thing clear right away. Many travel insurers have settled disputes with their customers by offering good will payments. Others simply accepted straight away that their customers were entitled to compensation. (Like us. We offered no quibble payouts to our affected customers twelve months ago.) Yet one year on, even though it has long since vanished from the skies, the ash cloud continues to disrupt some travellers who have locked horns with their insurers over compensation.

A recent ruling from the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), however, could help to bring those disputes to an end. And it’s good news for travellers.

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And the winner of our second World First Wednesday is…@quirkytraveller from the popular travel blog www.thequirkytraveller.com. The blog is all about seeing the world from a different angle, about searching out the weird and wonderful – wherever your travels take you. So presumably the copy of the acclaimed book Make The Most Of Your Time On Earth: 1000 Ultimate Travel Experiences that’s on its way to @quirkytraveller will make perfect reading! Congratulations.

World First Wednesday is the new weekly competition that we run through Twitter. Every week there’s a chance to win a great new travel book to whet the appetite for adventure. Entering is easy. You just need to follow @WFInsurance over on Twitter. Then, when Wednesday comes around, just add the #worldfirst hashtag to one of your tweets. See? We said it was easy! Winners are announced the same day.

Next week’s prize is the highly rated Atlas of Remote Islands: Fifty Islands I Have Not Visited and Never Will by the German author and graphic designer Judith Schalansky. This beautifully compiled book is a wistful exploration of the world’s most remote and inaccessible islands. Expect it to bring out your inner Crusoe as you’re swept along a journey of true discovery.

Twitter.com/WFInsurance

We’ve always said that great travel insurance is about more than policies. It’s about really being there for your customers. And we do all we can to make sure we’re there for ours. Did you know you can contact us in double-quick time through Twitter? @WFSupport is our dedicated support account that you can use to get the answers to any queries and questions – big or small, day or night, wherever you are in the world. You just need a Twitter account. Simple.

When you contact us we’ll get back to you as soon as possible, helping to give you the peace of mind you need to enjoy a great holiday.

We’ll be there when you need us. That’s a promise.

>> Visit @WFSupport now

Are you ready for another World First Wednesday? It’s the new weekly competition from World First Travel Insurance. And it’s on er… Wednesday. This week we’ll be whetting your appetite for world wide travel with a fabulous book from the people who brought you The Rough Guides. Make The Most Of Your Time On Earth: 1000 Ultimate Travel Experiences is one of those books that’s going to make you want to pack up and ship out as soon as you can. Snorkelling in Tanzania? Mountain biking in Bolivia? If it’s worth doing then it’ll be in here.

And you can win a copy with this week’s World First Wednesday. All you have to do is follow @WFInsurance on Twitter. Then, on Wednesday, add the #worldfirst hashtag to one of your tweets before 6.00 pm. It’s that simple, and everyone who mentions the World First Wednesday hashtag will be entered into the draw. The winner will get to find out just how to make the most of every one of those very precious moments.

Good luck.

Did you know that April is Bowel Cancer Awareness Month? Organised for many years by the charity Bowel Cancer UK, the purpose of the campaign is to help people recognise the symptoms of this frightening disease that accounts for about 13% of all cancers*. After all, as with all cancers, early detection is beneficial to a full recovery.

Fundraising events have been taking place up and down the country throughout April, including a 5k sponsored walk in London’s Hyde Park on the 2nd. Another official sponsored walk is taking place in Edinburgh on April 30^th. The five mile route will take in the historic Royal Mile, Holyrood Park and Arthur’s Seat. Thousands are expected to turn out for the family-friendly event. You can register your place by visiting The Spring Step website.

The numerous fundraising events are a great excuse for a good time. But their message is serious. In the UK alone someone is diagnosed with bowel cancer every fifteen minutes. But would you be able to recognise the symptoms? You can get clued up and find out what you can do for Bowel Cancer Awareness on the Bowel Cancer website.

Having bowel cancer, or any type of cancer, can have an affect on patients’ lives far beyond simply fighting and recovering from the disease. Many travellers who are fighting cancer or have had it in the past are either refused travel insurance or asked to pay prohibitively high premiums. Here at World First we’re different. In fact, we offer cover for thousands of medical conditions – including bowel cancer. And we do it at a price that’s fair.

Just ask Dr Shah. After being refused a policy with his existing insurer following surgery for bowel cancer, Dr Shah began searching the internet for alternatives. He didn’t have much luck. Until he found us, that is. Dr Shah used our fast and easy to use online screening and was offered a quote of £135 in a matter of minutes. The only other quote he had been offered totalled £800.

>> Read Dr Shah’s full story

Travelling with a medical condition? We’re proud of our fair and unintrusive medical cover. You might be surprised at how affordable our comprehensive cover is too. If you’d like to find out more, visit our medical travel insurance page. Otherwise, keep your eyes peeled for bowel cancer fundraising events near you for the rest of April.

* Source: Cancer Research UK.

Sometimes the working week could do with a bit of jollying up. We’re extremely excited to announce that we’re going to be doing just that with our new weekly competition: World First Wednesdays. Each week our customers and readers will have the chance to snap-up a brand new travel book.

If you’re up for it, entering couldn’t be much easier…

All you have to do is get your tweet on. It takes seconds. Literally. Firstly, you’ll need to follow us (@wfinsurance) over on twitter. Then, when Wednesday comes, you just need to tweet something with the #worldfirst hashtag. Winners will be announced at 1800 each Wednesday. Simple, right? And by following us you’ll be able to keep on top of all the important travel related news and stories too.

The competition starts today! This week we’re giving you the chance to be swept off on a four-wheeled journey of culinary adventure with The Camper Van Cookbook, written by Martin Dorey with recipes by Sarah Randell. It’s been in the top ten food and travel books on Amazon.co.uk since it was released last summer and has been much-lauded in the press. Rightly so.

So what are you waiting for? Do that twitter thing and enter World First Wednesday now. And don’t forget there’ll be a brand new opportunity to win every single week.

Good luck!

Portugal. It’s a beautiful country, famed for its easy-going lifestyle, great beaches and even better weather. But it won’t have escaped your attention that Portugal’s economy is in big trouble.

The European Union are negotiating the terms of a rescue package after receiving a formal request from Portugal for aid last Thursday (7^th April). They follow in the footsteps of Ireland and Greece, who were both given emergency financial assistance at the end of 2010. But how will Portugal’s economic difficulties affect Brits travelling to the country?

Well, it might be good news if you’re after a bargain break.

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Yesterday 7^th April 2011 The Foreign Office revised its advice for UK citizens travelling to Japan. They no longer advise against non-essential travel to Tokyo. This means that anyone with a trip planned and with World First travel Insurance will be covered under the terms of their policy.

However, the Foreign Office is still advising against all non-essential travel to the areas north east of Tokyo that have been worst affected by the earthquake and the tsunami. According to the FO “these areas continue to suffer disruptions to residential, business and transport infrastructure”.

The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant continues to have a 20km exclusion zone around it but the FO is warning resident and visiting Brits to remain outside an 80km radius of the plant. The Tokyo Metropolitan area and Narita airport lie outside this zone.

The advice for anyone visiting or staying within the 80km radius of the nuclear facility is to leave the area or remain indoors. Additional advice is to follow the advice of the Japanese authorities, take care with food and water, and in certain circumstances (which will be advised by the authorities), take shelter or iodine tablets. 

If you are due to be travelling to Japan then please remember that your travel insurance will be valid in areas that are deemed ‘safe’ by the FO. This now includes Tokyo. If you were to visit the areas affected by the earthquake and tsunami or the 80km zone around the nuclear plant then it’s also worth noting that this will invalidate your insurance because you will have travelled against advice.

Visiting Japan and need a travel insurance quote and travel insurance advice?

Give the team at World First Travel Insurance a call on 0845 90 80 161.