The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) publishes a raft of travel advice and tips to help British Nationals stay safe and healthy when they go on holiday. Read on to find out why it is important and how it can impact your travel insurance.

In addition to their general tips for keeping yourself and your possessions safe whilst you are away, they also publish continually updated information and advice about specific countries, including information on local laws and customs, any imminent strikes or industrial action which could affect your holiday and most importantly, advice on areas which should avoid because they may be dangerous for British Nationals.

It is important that you check the latest information for the country you are visiting, every time you travel or even before you plan your trip as travelling against Foreign and Common Office advice can affect your travel insurance cover.

FCO advice and travel insurance cover.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office publishes travel advice by country which is continually reviewed and updated, this is done daily or even more frequently if the situation in a country is changing rapidly.

There is a page of advice for every country in the world; any travel alerts for that country, such as advising against travel or all but essential travel to that country or specific areas of that country will be highlighted at the top of these pages.

These travel alerts are important because your travel insurance is very unlikely to provide cover if you travel to a country or region against Foreign Office advice. Your travel insurance would not provide cover if you are intentionally putting yourself at risk by travelling somewhere that is considered dangerous.

You may still be able to travel to, or purchase flights to areas that are considered unsafe, so it is up to you to check the latest FCO travel advice to see whether it is safe to travel and whether your travel insurance will be valid.

For instance British Airways will soon be restarting direct flights to Tripoli, which were stopped when tensions in Libya escalated last year. Purchasing a flight and getting to Libya will be easy, however the FCO are still advising against travel. Therefore if you choose to travel to Libya a standard travel insurance policy will not provide cover.

It's not just war zones: Check the latest travel advice, wherever you are going

You may think that you don't need to worry because you are not planning on visiting a war zone, but troubles can bubble up anywhere and problems do occur at more popular holiday destinations, so it's important to be aware of the latest travel advice.

Demonstrations and unrest in the Maldives last week, led the FCO to advise British Nationals against travelling to the capital, Male. Whilst the rest of the Maldives, including the international airport and holiday islands are still considered safe, British Nationals should avoid visiting the capital. Therefore if you are visiting the Maldives your travel insurance would be valid, so long as you don't go on an excursion to Male Island.

The situation in the Maldives highlights the need to be aware of the latest travel advice so that you can avoid areas that may be considered dangerous, even if the country as a whole is considered safe.

Egypt and Kenya are other examples of popular holiday destinations where the FCO has advised against travel to specific regions, either currently or in the recent past.

During the revolution in Egypt last year British Nationals were advised to stay away from areas of Cairo and Suez, although the popular red sea resorts were considered safe.

In the case of Kenya, the FCO are currently advising against travel to specific areas, including coastal areas within 150km of the Somali border.

To help you stay safe on holiday you should check the latest travel advice from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office every time you travel, wherever you travel. As well as publishing travel alerts as mentioned above they also provide very useful information about any upcoming strikes or changes in law which could affect your holiday.

Check the latest advice for your holiday destination