Report highlights concerns over Lowcostholidays relocation
Uncertainty over the relocation of Lowcostholidays has been raised again in a report on traveller protection.
The Air Travel Insolvency Protection Advisory Committee (ATIPAC) is calling for safeguards to ensure that holidaymakers understand what financial protection is provided when they buy from non-ATOL travel companies based abroad.
In its Annual Report 2013/2014, ATIPAC highlights the relocation of Lowcostholidays from the UK to the Balearic Islands.
"It is currently unclear what level of protection Lowcostholiday customers would receive. It appears that, in the event of failure, consumers on holiday would have to repatriate themselves and then make their claims in the Spanish courts," said ATIPAC chair John Cox.
"There is a concern that other companies could follow suit and relocate to another EU state, not only to benefit from lower overhead costs but also to avoid the ATOL Protection Contribution.
"Consumers must be made aware of the risk that a holiday booked with a company not based in the UK may have a lower level of protection than provided with ATOL.
"We need to provide safeguards against companies relocating to other cheaper jurisdictions in a ‘race to the bottom’ that may not provide consumers with suitable protection against their financial failure."
ATIPAC is calling for the ATOL scheme and for and non-ATOL packages, financially protected under the Package Travel Directive by approved bodies such as ABTA, to be amalgamated.
It has also recommended the formation of a single Government department responsible for travel protection schemes.
"The administration, and consequently the cost, of administering multiple protection systems is burdensome. One clear system covering both ‘licensable’ and ‘non-licensable’ would be simpler and less costly," added Cox.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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