How times have changed. A decade ago, all travellers needed to worry about before setting off on their holidays was whether or not they'd remembered to pick up their passport and pack their toothbrush. Nowadays, of course, it's a different story. As if keeping up to date with the Foreign Office advice on which countries we have to avoid in case of terrorist strikes isn't enough, we are now in the grip of a new travel crisis: severe acute respiratory syndrome.

While most of us in the UK have looked on in consternation as Sars has spread across the world, we have so far thankfully been insulated from the problem. There have been no confirmed cases reported in mainland Britain, and our contact with the disease has been limited to watching images of masked citizens hurrying through the streets in Hong Kong and exhausted doctors giving press conferences in Canadian hospitals. All that may change, though, if your holiday plans this year involve a trip to one of the affected areas.

Understandably, if you were intending to spend a fortnight in Hong Kong, southern China or parts of Canada in the next month or so, you may well feel that it would be a good idea to reconsider. The World Health Organisation's website currently advises against non-essential travel to Toronto, Beijing, Hebei, Hong Kong, Shianxi, Mongolia, Tianjin and Taiwan on the basis of the Sars outbreak - a warning which it would be inadvisable, not to say irresponsible, to ignore. It seems reasonable to assume that your travel insurance policy will cover you against outbreak of disease: all you have to do is claim for the cost of your holiday and book something elsewhere.

But it's not that simple, as Sarah Allinson found out when she tried to reclaim the cost of her annual holiday. "Over Christmas, my husband and I booked a two-week holiday to Hong Kong in May. We booked it independently and didn't go through a travel agent. Obviously, when we realised how serious the Sars outbreak was, we decided to cancel and claim the cost back from our insurer. But we were told that under the terms of the policy, we weren't allowed to cancel our holiday just because we felt anxious. Not wanting to take the risk, we cancelled anyway, and ended up hundreds of pounds out of pocket."

Unfortunately, Sarah's insurer is not alone. According to Leonie Edwards, a spokeswoman for the Association of British Insurers, few policies are likely to cover travellers for cancellation charges. "Whether or not you're covered will depend on what it says in your insurance policy. If there is a clause which guarantees compensation if your holiday has to be called off due to 'circumstances beyond your control', you may be able to claim for cancellation.

"However, most policies tend to specify the conditions under which you can cancel; for example, jury service, illness or death in the family. If this is the case, then you will not be covered for Sars. Our advice is to check your policy and talk to your travel insurer to find out what your position is before you decide what to do."

On hearing this, travellers might well think that they're damned if they do and damned if they don't - cancel, and you lose your money; travel, and you risk contracting a life-threatening disease. Thankfully, there is some good news for travellers: anyone who has booked to travel to China, Toronto or Hong Kong through an ABTA-registered travel agent will be entitled to a refund if they decide not to travel, until the point that the WHO declares the destinations safe.

Furthermore, there are travel insurers who have adopted a more reasonable line on the crisis. Emma Holyer, a spokeswoman for insurers Direct Line, explains the company's position: "When it comes to cancellation, we see two different levels," she says, "On the one hand there is 'disinclination to travel' -if, for example, you decided not to travel to the US because you were worried about the Sars outbreak in Canada - for which our policies would not cover you. On the other hand, however, if the Foreign Office advises against travel to the country you were intending to visit, then you would be covered for cancellation. Our policy is based on Foreign Office advice."

All well and good. But what about if you absolutely have to travel - or even if you're just prepared to take the risk? If you catch Sars, will your insurance policy cover you? Emma Holyer again: "If you bought a policy from us today for a country which the Foreign Office warns against visiting due to the presence of the Sars virus, you wouldn't be covered if you caught it. However, if you bought the policy in good faith before the outbreak began, we would of course meet any medical costs you might incur."

While the Sars virus continues to dominate the news from certain sectors of the globe, it is important to continue to check the updates on the FCO site (LINK?) and stay in touch with your travel agents and insurers. And if you do find yourself travelling to one of the affected areas, remember to take all possible health precautions - nowadays it is less a case of don't forget your toothbrush and more a case of don't forget your facemask.