United Kingdom
United States
Asia Pacific
Call for ‘all-encompassing’ consumer protection
Sunday, 07 Sep, 2009
0
The founder of Travel Counsellors has called for ‘all-ecncompassing’ protection for travellers against company failures.
David Speakman, chairman of the home working agency group, made the call in the wake of the collapse of budget airline SkyEurope (see previous TravelMole stories).
“The succession of airline failures highlights the need for the travel industry to take the next logical step on the issue of financial protection for customers and that is to bring in protection for anything the customer may want to book, with no strings attached,” he said.
“SkyEurope’s collapse follows a series of other failures within the industry such as Freedom Direct, XL Leisure Group and Zoom Airlines at the end of last year, which saw thousands of passengers lose their money due to lack of financial protection.”
He added that while the Civil Aviation Authority’s ATOL scheme “provides excellent protection” but was limited to only covering ATOL-protected holidays.
“There are many customers who think that what they have booked is covered, only to discover that certain elements are not financially protected or who have belatedly discovered that because they have not paid by credit card they are unable to claim money back,” said Speakman.
“ATOL is not all-encompassing as it only covers charter flights, air package holidays and scheduled flights booked through a consolidator.
“Many customers require tailor made travel arrangements which may not be covered by ATOL protection.
“I believe that customers should receive all-encompassing travel protection for any arrangements they want to make, not just ATOL protection for package holidays. ABTA also no longer guarantees financial protection.”
Travel Counsellors offers customer protection through its own trust fund covering all bookings irrespective of when they were made, departure date or value.
Speakman added: “Having designed something four years ago to ensure our customers receive flawless financial protection we encourage other travel companies to put their customers first and do the same.
“The industry also needs to bring clarification to the customer, as so many seem unclear as to whether or not they are covered when they book their holidays.”
by Phil Davies
Phil Davies
Walt Leger on New Orleans’ Resilience and Major Events Ahead
Cindy Mackin Shares Estes Park’s Winter Thrills
Mark Jaronski of Explore Georgia on FIFA World Cup 2026
Connecting Small Businesses to Global Tourism Markets: Nate Huff of Tourism Exchange
North Carolina’s Resilience: Wit Tuttell on Recovery and Tourism
Kittipong Prapattong’s Plan for Thailand’s Tourism Growth: Taxes, Visas, and Campaigns
James Jin: Didatravel’s Journey from China to Global Reach and the Impact of AI on Travel
Darien Schaefer on Pensacola’s Evolution: From Small Town to Global Destination
Florida Tourism’s Next Frontier: Dana Young on Expanding Beyond the Classics
Patrick Harrison on Tampa Bay Tourism’s Resilience and Marketing Strategy
Bubba O’Keefe on Clarksdale’s Vibrant Music Scene
Commemorating Elvis and Embracing Tupelo’s Culture with Jennie Bradford Curlee
BA suspending all Heathrow to Abu Dhabi flights
Unexpected wave rocks cruise ship
Woman dies after going overboard in English Channel
Report: Cruise guest died after ship lashed in heavy storm
British teen in serious condition after paraglider collision