Simon Cooper, the CEO here at On the Beach HQ, explains all when it comes to financially protected holidays, ATOL and how On the Beach go the extra mile for its customers…
Read more about what makes On the Beach holidays financially protected
How do I make sure my holiday is financially protected?
Holiday companies operating in the UK that are selling a flight and a hotel in one transaction have to have ATOL protection. If a company does have ATOL protection, the ATOL logo should be displayed on the site with its own number. Customers can check the ATOL protection associated with this unique number. If you book with an ATOL protected company, you should also receive an ATOL certificate.
What is ATOL protection?
ATOL protection ensures that customers are fully financially protected should any of the suppliers of the holiday – the flights, the hotel, the transfers and so on – go out of business before their holiday. So, customers won’t lose any of the money they have paid for their holiday abroad. If, in a worst case scenario, a holiday supplier is to go bust whilst customers are out in-resort, they will be repatriated back to the UK.
Does every travel company have ATOL protection?
Nope. Holiday companies based outside of the UK don’t offer any protection at all. Companies that offer single elements of a holiday – so either flight-only or hotel-only – don’t need to offer financial protection. And unfortunately, if you package your own holiday, you won’t have financial protection.
But On the Beach go above and beyond…
Because of the On the Beach Trust account, we offer full financial protection for all of our customers – and that’s very different from most online travel agents, who do not cover flight-only or hotel-only sales! So if you travel with On the Beach, on a flight-only, a hotel-only or a flight plus hotel booking, you will always be fully covered.
That’s more than a million passengers a year who are fully financially protected!
What should I ask my holiday company before booking a holiday?
You should ensure that they are based in the UK and that they offer ATOL protection. Then you should also check that all elements of your holiday booking are covered.
Remember… Only book where you see the ATOL logo.
