Earlier this year, during the Brexit fiasco, over 3.5 million British holidaymakers were told their passport may be invalid if they travelled into the EU. The fear led to many renewing their passports ready for the holiday season. Now there is news that new technology is replacing the travel essential.
Facial scan technology has replaced tradition at two major airports as passengers travelling from Canada to the Netherlands will no longer need to carry their passport. Instead, entry and immigration clearance will be approved using the biometrics technology.
London’s Heathrow Airport carried out a trial in 2018 which saw facial recognition technology being used at varies points around the airport, including check-in, bag drop and during boarding.
The implementation of biometrics technology is still in the early stages, but it is believed we will soon be living in a world where a passport is simply redundant. The finer details are yet to be released.
The revolution is sure to be welcomed with open arms by those more forgetful passengers who have come unstuck at the airport when they realise, they have left their passport at home. Ordinarily, leaving your travel documents at home and missing your flight is not covered by travel insurance so it will be interesting to see how this clause will change. Theoretically, if the facial recognition technology has the ability to refuse entry to a country, then travel insurance will maintain the ‘refused entry’ stance and not cover any related claims. But, stay tuned.
What are your thoughts on the changes? Do you think the airport experiences will be less hassle without the need to have a passport?
