To think flights should be ATOL protected? Thomas Cook

[ShitFuckBastardBollocks]

Why is it just package holidays? Why not flights?

Booked my first ever family holiday and had no idea about ATOL protection not applying if you bought flights separately to the accommodation.

I got insurance.

Told this insurance does not cover airline bankruptcy/failure.

Called insurance and they said I cannot upgrade to Flight protection insurance because its now a known issue and it won't be valid

So I've spend 2600 on flights and my insurance is wank and I'm not ATOL protected.

So if I fly out and Thomas Cook go under how do I get home? I do not have the money to pay for flight s home

Does this mean I have to just abandon my holiday? :(

Ive been crying all afternoon.

This was supposed to be our first family holiday abroad and its just turned into hell

I’m guilty of not using a credit card. Can easily afford to and get a good facility but usually just pay by Debit. Things like this do make me realise I’m being a bit stupid and should just pay on a CC and the balance immediately at no additional cost

Thanks for hoping they go bust Op .....my DH is sat around, feeling very sick as he may not have a job tomorrow

It is a very difficult situation for people to be in who have not flown out yet but are due to fly out soon. Do you go or not?

Visa Debit - okay so not a credit card. Is there some kind of debit card charge card refund thing,,,found it - read this very carefully www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/visa-mastercard-chargeback/
Flicking through that is looks ilike Visa debit has the charge back and you can only claim however once the company is bust so once you are out there (assuming the flight out takes off) not in advance just in case they go bust and it may not be 100% assurance. But worth looking into.

Sorry Hells Bells but it’s not like anyone is actually pleased about the situation. I doubt your DH is surprised and has seen it coming

Yes. I can get a refund if they collapse.

But if they don't I have the choice of losing my money by abandoning the holiday or go without adequate insurance to get us home again.

I'm sorry but even if they get bailed out they obviously aren't doing well enough to keep themselves afloat and after this I can only see sales getting worse as I would certainly never book with them again.

So if the government does bail them out I imagine they will be doing the same thing again in 6 months time.

Helsbells obviously I don't want anyone to be out of a job but as someone on disability benefits who has saved nonstop for a year+ to pay for our first holiday abroad I would rather have the money back in my bank and book elsewhere with proper insurance now rather than be at the mercy of such a wobbly company.

It's a horrible situation for everyone :(

To be fair to OP, quite a lot of the cheaper insurance policies DON'T include SAFI.

I know this as I spent a lot of time reading the small print of several different policy documents earlier in the year.

They rely on the other coverage like ABTA and ATOL to take over in those cases and hope nobody realises.

It's how the policies are so cheap - they don't cover one of the most expensive risks.

Good luck OP, it is doubly shit for you and I hope it work out.

I'd never booked travel insurance before. First holiday abroad and just didn't know.

Expensive mistake :(

I'm due to fly back a week on Tuesday with Thomas Cook but flying out with Ryan Air. The agent has advised we will be flown back regardless but as my sister is panicking about work we've booked Ryan Air to come back too. I'd rather not get the Ryan Air back as it's stupid early but was only £37 so happy to lose that for piece of mind. Are there any alternatives for you?

Alternative flights are a day early to accommodation and are 200 more each.

On top of the there are 7 of us so would be ALOT of money that I just don't have.

I don't have the money to cover one person's flight.

When Monach went bust some other airlines had lower repatriation fares for stranded Monach passengers.

It won't help you but for the future ensure your insurance has scheduled airline failure and end supplier failure. The cheapest policies omit these generally. Insurance that comes with bank accounts doesn't always include it either. The good news is that you can buy a family policy for Europe including this for around £30 in the future.

OP I go on a lot of holidays and it's complete news to me that travel insurance doesn't cover you for this eventuality. We have an annual policy and I have literally just checked and ours does but by chance rather than design. So don't feel bad about not having checked.

I'm so confused. I contacted Thomas Cook and they said that flights won't be affected. They said "all Thomas Cook Group Airlines" won't be affected by this. So I'm so confused now if they go under, will I still have m.flight next month.

This is a good issue to highlight OP. There’s focus on the package holidays being protected but TC has many customers with flight only bookings who are not protected. Yes they may have insurance or credit cards they can claim on but if TC folds, no one will automatically sort a flight out and if you have to wait for monies to be reclaimed then it’s highly likely those customers will miss the start of their holiday plus incur addition cost of rebooking flights. And other airlines will clearly push their prices up in light of the new demand.

I’d also highlight that in NW of England, there are significantly less flight options than from London airports. For example TC services many of the US routes, and there are few other options. TC has the only direct flights to San Francisco. So if they go bust and you have a flight in the coming days, there is no other direct flight to switch onto. You’d have to go to London or fly to another US city, with all the additional cost and hassle. All your bookings for parking and any other extra would also be impacted, and Unlikely to be reimbursed with out the specific insurance covering the airline failing scenario.

It’s easy to say make sure you have the right insurance, but there is clearly confusion over what ATOL covers and what specific insurance policies covers leaving people exposed to the risk. Most people wouldn’t think to look for SAFI cover as airline failure feels like it would be a rare event (getting more common though) plus some insurers simply won’t underwrite the risk.

I feel for the staff of TC who are clearly going to be in the dark about their jobs too. Also the passengers, not everyone is travelling just for a holiday. There will be people affected travelling to see loved ones, get married etc. The impact is very real and costly for any one affected.

The reality is, the more you cant afford to lose the money, the more you need to read the small print. People stopped booking package holidays because it was cheaper to book flights, accommodation etc separately. One of the reasons it was cheaper is the lack of insurance.

Likewise cheap travel insurance almost always covers less than more expensive travel insurance. And so you need to research that carefully as well.

Sorry OP but there it is.

Well yes. That's the truth but we can't be legal experts in every task in our lives can we?

This was the first time I've ever been abroad or had to book flights or holiday insurance.

I thought I was covered.

I don't even know what supplier failure insurance was.

This actually happened to me in 2010, when I booked flights, a car, and accommodation separately.
The airline (Goldtrail) went bust, and the re-booked flights on a different airline (Kiss) also went bust, within weeks of each other, and just 2 days before we were supposed to fly out, for 4 people.
Both the airlines were charter flights, but in my case they were atol protected.
I found that travel insurance only covered a scheduled airline going bust, not charter flights.
In the end I had to re-arrange the flights via scheduled airlines with a change going out and another change coming back. The destination airport was also different (as charter flights often use smaller local airports), so I also had to re-arrange our hire car, and then drive for 4 hours when we got there.
Of course, my new flights cost more than the original but the holiday was not totally spoilt.
As, I said, in my case the flights, were Atol protected, but it still took 6 months for me to get the original cost back (from July to December).
This was the reason (and only reason) I took out a credit card. Now, in cases where I buy on-line, or anywhere where I am paying in advance, for goods not yet received, I now pay by credit card, because of the additional protection.
It was very stressful at the time.

I meant to add to my post above, that I did not want to abandon the holiday, because, I would have not the money for the accommodation, and the money for the hire car, as well as disappointing the others I was travelling with.

Last time it happened the government funded other airlines to put on extra flights to repatriate stranded travellers. My friend’s pilot husband worked lots of extra hours to fly people home.

I had a customer today who was abroad when Monarch went and he came home in a military plane!

No good to the OP but you only have to pay a min £100 on a credit card to be covered under I think section 75
I always pay £100 or the deposits by credit card for holidays or anything over £100 just in case and pay the rest in cash or debit card

caucho a policy that doesn't include airline collapse isn't necessarily shit. It would be totally appropriate if you are going by ferry or tunnel. Too many people just choose by £ and don't check it gives the appropriate cover for their needs.

Maybe I should try and get one. But my credit is so poor I don't think I'll be accepted.

I'm sat in the airport right now waiting to board a Thomas cook plane to Tunisia. I booked a package through on the beach so am protected through them . It's been a nightmare tbh and we have just been told the flight has been delayed so I'm worried that we may not even leave !