The Civil Aviation Authority has denied it made any hefty bond demands on failed Goldtrail Travel that prompted its demise.
The travel company went under in July, derailing the holiday plans of thousands of Brits.
Administrators Begbies Traynor hinted in a report that the CAA had said it would be seeking a bond of 10%-15%, around £8m, of turnover after it came to light that Goldtrail had been trading above its licence.
But a spokeswoman for the CAA, whose Air Travel Trust scheme is set to make a decision in the next few days about payments to customers who booked with non-ATOL holding retailers, said this was not the case.
She told Travelmole: “That is simply not how we work. There was an issue of over trading and there were suggestions that there needed to be a bond at some point.
“But we had no idea Goldtrail was going to fail and we didn’t do anything to bring that about such as issuing a demand for a bond – we don’t operate like that, particularly with it being so early in the season.”
She added that she did not know whether trustees of the Air Travel Trust would be making payment decisions today and it could be as late as next week.
by Dinah Hatch
