In the ongoing consumer protection debate, Travel Counsellors’ local boss has stepped in to say agency groups need to play a bigger role in protecting their own clients.
In a statement sent to media, Managing Director, David Hughes, said all travel companies should offer full financial protection “and not expect the government to cover the slack”.
His comment comes two months ahead of the two year anniversary since the demise of the Travel Compensation Fund (TCF) in favour of ATAS accreditation.
While ATAS has a strict membership process designed to ensure the reliability of its members, it doesn’t offer the same financial protection that was once provided by its predecessor.
This change lead to a number of groups taking up their own form of customer financial protection.
Hughes has now urged others to follow suit, saying the offer of full protection will “further cement the trust customers have in travel agents”.
“From time to time businesses fail in all industries due to the actions of individual business owners.”
David Hughes, Travel Counsellors Managing Director
“We need to question whether the government should provide funds to cover this across all industries or provide appropriate legislation that protects consumers, and then let the participants in the industry decide if they value their customers enough to protect them through accreditation schemes and personal financial guarantees.
“I believe it is up to our industry to ensure consumers are fully informed about the consequences of trading with both unscrupulous providers and those who aren’t prepared to back their product enough to provide full financial protection.
“Implementing full financial protection immediately following the cessation of the TCF and being ATAS accredited is something that we are very proud of.
“We believe it is an important component of the care Travel Counsellors offer to our customers.”
