The risk of losing hotel costs arises when flights are cancelled due to issues like jet fuel shortages. If you booked a package holiday where you booked everything in one, then under the package holiday regulations and rules and protections generally, if your flight went, you would get everything back. But that doesn’t apply if you’ve made separate arrangements.

Key considerations:

• Travellers risk losing hotel costs if flights are cancelled and bookings were made separately from the flight.
• Package holidays provide extra security under consumer protection laws compared to DIY bookings.
• If a flight is cancelled, there is nothing wrong with the hotel booking itself, which means no consumer rights apply.

Lewis points out that only a few travel insurance policies cover hotel costs if a flight is cancelled due to jet fuel issues. So, what should travelers do? He recommends booking accommodations with free or limited cancellation options to mitigate these risks.