Flight Options Collapse Left Thousands Stranded
Around 13,000 holidaymakers found themselves stranded following the collapse on 17 August of holiday company Flight Options. 60,000 people have now had their holiday plans ruined.
Flight Options, the parent company of Kiss Flights was part of the Civil Aviation Authority's (CAA) ATOL scheme. This comes into effect when a travel company collapses, enabling people who have bookings with the company to claim a full refund from the CAA for the ATOL-protected elements of their holidays.
Disappointed customers who wish to claim need to find out whether or not they are protected by ATOL. They should check the invoice and/or receipt that they received at the time of the booking, as recommended on Guardian.co.uk.
The only customers to be protected under the ATOL scheme though are those who, in one credit card transaction, paid for flights, accommodation and car hire. This excludes those who paid in three separate payments. Customers who wish to find out about refunds under the ATOL scheme can visit the CAA website for information.
For those who have booked a holiday with Kiss Flights and whose flight is due to leave before 6pm on Wednesday 18 August 2010, the CAA has said it will operate as usual. Passengers should go to the airport and follow the usual check-in procedure.
However, for holidaymakers due to leave after 6pm on 18 August their tickets are no longer valid. If they booked their flight through Flight Options or Kiss Flights, they should claim a refund from the CAA and go online to seek advice about alternative travel arrangements.
Most people booked flights only, as only a very small number of package holidays were sold. In this case, flights are covered by ATOL, so people should claim as advised. Accommodation is not affected by the company's collapse.
Travel Industry news posted by Marilyn on 19 August 2010
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Holiday Hypermarket is a trading name of TUI Travel PLC. Registered office: TUI Travel House, Crawley Business Quarter, Fleming Way, Crawley, West Sussex, RH10 9QL.
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