AN insurance company which refused to pay out after a York couple had to cancel their £1,300 trip to quake-hit Japan looks set to reverse its decision.

Lee and Linda Maloney called off their once-in-a-lifetime trip in March after the Foreign Office advised only essential travel to Japan, in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake and tsunami.

However the couple, from the Hull Road area, found themselves out of pocket by £1,380 after insurer Nationwide said it would only pay out if the Foreign Office advised against all travel.

Now after their story was covered in The Press, Nationwide said it is reviewing the Maloney’s claim and expects to settle soon.

A spokesman for the company said the couple’s claim was being reviewed following discussions between Nationwide and its underwriters regarding the approach to “cancellation and curtailment claims for customers travelling to Tokyo and northern Japan”.

He said: “Following that review, we can confirm that the claim is now being processed by UK Insurance Ltd and that once the necessary documentation has been provided by the customer, the claim will be settled. “Mrs Maloney has been notified that the claim for £1,379.87 minus excess will be settled on receipt of documentation, and we are sorry for any inconvenience that has been caused.”

At the time, the Maloneys claimed other insurance companies in the UK had settled straight away and accused Nationwide of “splitting hairs” over the Foreign Office advice.

Mrs Maloney said: “We have been saving a long time and have wanted to go to Japan for years. We have hosted Japanese students before and had arranged to meet them while we were there.”

She agreed it would have been wrong to go to Japan at that time, but said: “I think the insurance company is playing with words.”