ABTA claims victory in judicial review
A judge has quashed efforts by the Civil Aviation Authority to require agents to obtain ATOLs to sell dynamically packaged or tailor-made holidays.
The move follows an application by ABTA to the High Court for a judicial review of CAA guidance notes on consumer protection for selling air-based packages.
ABTA was concerned the cost to agent members of additional bonding could have cost more than £16.5 million, representing as many as 3.5 million trips.
Mr Justice Goldring ordered that the guidance notes be quashed and no longer applicable.
The judge said: “It is not in the public interest for travel agents effectively to be pressurised into obtaining ATOLs if the law manifestly does not require them to.”
ABTA chief executive Mark Tanzer said: “This is very good news for our travel agent members. We now have a clear interpretation of the law and agents can continue their business providing tailor-made arrangements as they always have done, without the added burden of further cost and regulation.”
The CAA advice concerned dynamically packaged or tailor-made holidays sold by travel agents and if correct would have meant agents having had to obtain an ATOL. This would have cost implications to businesses and would also mean that agents would be liable if any part of that holiday went wrong, ABTA said.
Report by Phil Davies
Phil Davies
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