ATOL Certificates - Complete Consumer protection? Not quite.....



Great idea but not yet complete Holiday Protection


When Neville Chamberlain returned from making the Anglo-German agreement in Munich in September 1938 he stepped from the aircraft waving the accord in the air proclaiming "Peace in our Time!!!"  He was echoing a previous Prime Minister, Benjamin Disraeli, who used the same words sixty years previously when returning from The Congress of Berlin in 1878.   Well we unfortunately know the worth of Chamberlain's scrap of paper.  Germany invaded the Sudetanland the day after Chamberlain returned and WWII exploded the Peace in our Time myth a year after.   Hopefully the ATOL Certificate launched today will prove to be worth more and the time and effort that has gone into its creation.

The Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) chief executive Mark Tanzer welcomed the launch  of the long awaited ATOL Certificate which must now be issued with ATOL protected holiday packages to the buying public.  He warned however, that confusion would remain due to the fact that protection depends on several factors. "Abta estimates that about 50% of holiday arrangements sit outside the Atol scheme." He continued: "Atol Certificates are only evidence of Atol protected holidays. There is still much confusion about what holiday arrangements are or are not protected by Atol.  He said Abta's Protection Checklist would help holidaymakers understand what to look for.   To view the checklist go to ABTA's press release and click on the word "website" which will bring up a pdf document : http://www.abta.com/about/news/view/523 
 The ATOL Certificate is a welcome step in helping customers understand what protection is (may be) included in their holiday package.  However it is not a sure-fire guarantee that if your holiday company fails you will receive compensation or be repatriated.  Take some time to read ABTA's check-list BEFORE you commit to buying:

You should also know that:
• ATOL bookings made before October 1st, 2012 do not require an ATOL certificate whatever the departure date
• The following are exempt from the ATOL scheme of financial protection:
   o Corporate sales
   o Certain sales where the customer’s credit card is used by the agent for flight only
   o Flight only sales made by airline ticket agents.

The ABTA check list is very comprehensive so do take time to check their site and download their PDF document for peace of mind.   As Mark Tanzer stated only about 50% of holidays are covered by ATOL and the check list will help you to determine what cover (or not) you might be getting with your holiday purchase......