BIBA blasts government over ATOL reforms

The British Insurance Brokers’ Association has warned that the new ATOL APC (ATOL Protection Contribution) system offers insufficient protection for the modern independent traveller.

The massive growth of internet sales has resulted in many millions of consumers booking their own flights and hotels separately, as opposed to through a travel “organiser”.

As a result, there has been a massive reduction in ATOL protected customers in recent times.

In 1997, 97 per cent of holidaymakers had ATOL protection, according to the Civil Aviation Authority. This figure fell to 61 per cent in 2006, leaving 18 million holidaymakers without ATOL or APC Protection.

The new APC system will not cover losses for these travellers as it only compensates customers in the event of their travel organiser becoming insolvent.

BIBA said the protection provided by the new APC system was insufficient. Graeme Trudgill, BIBA Technical and Corporate Affairs Executive, said: “The Government needs to move with the times and understand the trends and the purchasing methods of the modern independent traveller, this was a missed opportunity.”

This ideal opportunity to tackle the changes in the industry has been overlooked to the detriment of the modern independent traveller, Biba said.