CD Traveller » Consumer Protection

Airports and Passenger Interests.

Editor — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 09:25:21 +0000

What is the purpose of an airport regulator?
To make money? To manage the interests of our airports? Or the airlines? To control over-zealous ideas and practices? To make sure passengers fly safely?
I sometimes wonder.
Yesterday the Transport Secretary, Philip Hammond, announced that he was giving additional powers to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) so that it can “apply competition law in respect of airport operators and providers of airport services.” What this means, I think, is that the powers we thought they had are being given to them. Or which we believed were being handled by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT). Anyway it looks like the CAA has a bit more power. But this time the power is to look out for the passenger. Hammond said, “…the CAA’s primary duty will be to promote the interests of existing and future passengers.”
Since they haven’t been renowned for putting us travellers first, or sometimes even second, one can only hope that they will do something this time and be seen to do something. The CAA regulates the package holidays bonding scheme which we know as ATOL. See an ATOL bond and, in a time of collapse, you should be assured of getting your money back. But this doesn’t apply to airline passengers just flying from A to B without accommodation. It doesn’t apply if the company isn’t ATOL bonded.
There have been calls for the last couple of years to widen the bonding and travellers accept that they would have to pay a pound or two extra for this insurance. (After all package holidaymakers pay a levy of £2.50 per passenger.) Instead of saying there is a European solution being considered (true but I might get my pension first), it would be great step forward if the CAA acted unilaterally and offered us travellers wider protection.
Hammond also said that “significant investment will be required if passengers’ expectations are to be met.” Well what are our expectations? He says things like better baggage handling. I say how about having the Air Transport Users Council (AUC) complaints/help line being open for longer than a five hours a day on just Monday to Thursday. Has no-one told them that Saturday is still just about the busiest day of the week for leisure passengers? But then we’ve only known that for 30 years or so. Hammond also said that the Passenger Focus (the consumer watchdog for trains, buses and coaches) will not now take over the responsibilities of the AUC. So this body that has managed just one press release this year, seven responses to consultations and no response, that I can see, to the March 2009 CAA report on Passenger Experience at our four biggest airports will continue. The same report also noted that half of the respondents to a survey were unaware of their rights and even fewer were aware of the AUC. So if passengers are to be put first, it would help if passengers knew who could help them.
Lots of words. I’ll be less cynical when I see action.

More on the Goldtrail Collapse

Editor — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 07:49:21 +0000

Over the weekend, there has been lots of coverage of Goldtrail, the plight of those abroad and the efforts by the CAA to get them home. Holidaymakers affected are quoted as saying things like they are angry, everything was fine when they checked the website, why wasn’t there some notice and so on. Because Goldtrail had appeared on BBC’s Watchdog programme last year, some holidaymakers have suggested the writing was on the wall for the company then. The same program said that ABTA had fined them. Barrhead Travel in Scotland said that they didn’t sell Goldtrail holidays unless someone came in to their travel agencies and deliberately asked for one, suggesting they were concerned about the company.
So how can the holidaymaker know the company they have bought a holiday from is safe?
The answer is that they can’t. But there are some ways that might help.
Goldtrail sold holidays at the cheap end of the market. If when you look for a holiday and the price from one company is very different from the others you have looked at then be wary. It could mean that they have a great deal on offer but it could mean they are scrabbling for cash and are using that cash to pay old bills. That could be a sign that they are living from day-to-day. I ‘m not talking about a price difference of £10 or £15 per person but say over £75 per person
Ask your travel agent what they think of a company. If they are owned by a tour operator that you are consider travelling with then ask someone else,- another travel agent for example. The trade knows the gossip and they will want to help so that you come back to them next time.
Goldtrail is claimed not to have paid its hoteliers for 2 months and some say this should have been a warning. It is common in travel for bills to be paid even later than this. One I know, tried to negotiate 120 day payments. It is cash flow and if they can hold on to their money longer they will do so. This is no guide as to how strong or weak a company is.
That a company has been on Watchdog is no guide. Just about every travel company has at some stage from the biggest to the smallest. That there are comments on websites about them is no guide either. How recent are the comments? Do the bad comments-or the good ones- have the same language. In that case distrust it because there are certainly some fake comments that exist.
Finally, companies do go bust and there will be people who suffer. Company directors have a duty to trade until they recognise that the company is insolvent. Which means they will trade until the last minute in the hope that they can trade the company out of the crisis. So, we the holidaymakers, will always be the last to know-just after the employees who will be made redundant.
The one thing I am sure about is that there will be other tour operator collapses. The thoughts above may help. By that time, better consumer protection might finally come in

Summer and Bad News

Editor — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 11:42:52 +0000

With decent weather over much of our countries last weekend it looked as though things were set fare for a while. In the space of one week, we have had winds and heavy rain and then, to top it off, Goldtrail Holidays (which also used the name Sunmar) went bust yesterday evening leaving 16,000 abroad. Now it also seems that there may be a strike at all BAA airports (Heathrow, Stanstead, Southampton, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen) during August.
CD-Traveller has frequently argued for wider consumer protection. In the wake of Globespan in 2009 and XL in 2008 (see CD-Traveller 14 Sept, 26 Nov, 17 Dec 2009), you might have hoped or expected that such high profile events might have stimulated some change. No, the EU prepared a document and sent it for consultation. The then government said it was an EU issue and we are no further forward. Yet we have had 11 cases of companies going bust this year.
To remind those unfortunate holidaymakers who booked with Goldtrail, if you are on holiday at the moment then enjoy the rest of it and the CAA will ensure flights for the return flight. If you booked just flights with them and then paid separately for your accommodation, check with the ATOL website or www.caa.co.uk/default.aspx?catid=2036&pagetype=90 (be patient it was very slow this morning) and your travel insurance. You may have to find return flights home and pay for them. Keep any and all receipts in case you can make a claim.
For those of you who are yet to go on a package holiday, (accommodation and the flight both through Goldtrail) and Simon Calder from The Independent estimated there might be up to 50,000 of you, then you will get a refund. This is small consolation since finding a holiday at this stage for the same price is unlikely. Chances are you’ll have to pay more. For those of you who just booked a flight with them and paid be credit card, contact you credit card company for a possible refund. If you paid in any other way, check your travel insurance for a possible refund.
And to top off a bad week, Unite is to ballot its members about strike action at all BAA airports because they have only been offered 1.5% pay rise. If they vote for a strike, the best guess is that it will occur sometime after the first week in August. How will it affect flights? The answer is that we will just have to wait and see.

FlyGlobespan Collapse Will Hit Scottish Holidaymakers

adrian — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 08:48:44 +0000

Regular readers can stop reading right now if they don’t want to hear me talk again about providing an adequate safety net for passengers outside the ATOL bonding scheme.

As you probably all know by now, those passengers who bought a package holiday under the Globespan name are probably protected under the ATOL system. Those of you who bought just a flight with a credit card (not a debit card)and paid more than £100 may be able to claim a refund from the credit card providers. The rest of you, I’m afraid, will probably be out of pocket. And for those of you who are covered then you still have the hassle and probable expense of rebooking with another carrier if there is availability. To check your position, see www.caa.co.uk/default.aspx?catid=1985&pagetype=90.

The collapse of the Globespan group will hit Scotland particularly badly. Coming relatively soon after the demise of Zoom which was also virtually Scottish it has meant that another major supplier of aircraft seats to Scottish tour operators has been lost. With such a large volume supplier (1.5 million passengers flew with them in 2008) it probably means that prices will be higher next year as a major competitor has been removed.

There have been calls from various bodies and us for a new bonding system that covers all flyers and holiday makers. Nothing can remove the annoyance and hassle if people have to rebook but at least there is some reassurance that they are protected if an airline does go bust. After Sky Europe went bust in September (CD-Traveller 14/9/2009) I asked when something would be done. In November the EU announced a consultation within the travel industry about greater protection for travellers (CD-Traveller 26/11/2009)

Now we are going to ask you what you think should be put in place and we will forward that to the EU. So in early January look out for a small survey from us and the European Tour Operators Association (ETOA) which will be e-mailed to you. It’s time this situation was sorted once and for all and that some remedies be made available to all travellers

EU Consults on Travel Protection

Editor — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 06:30:56 +0000

Starting today, the EU will consult with the travel industry over the next 8 weeks before coming up with new proposals on giving greater protection to travellers.

CD-Traveller has published many stories about this over the last year. You will know by now that you are protected if you buy a holiday package from someone who is ATOL bonded. Or so we thought. Recently the courts threw a spanner in the works by questionning what is meant by a “package” in a test case between the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) and Travel Republic (see CD-Traveller 13 November 2009). Now even lawyers seem unsure about consumer protection regarding flights and holidays. Therefore it becomes more pressing that talk is relaced by some action. Just as night follows day, there will be other airline and tour operator collapses especially in this uncertain economic climate.

The EU Commissioner, Meglena Kuneva, in a BBC interview said that the existing situation “will not be tolerated.” Given that the consultation will take until the end of January 2010 and then the EU will go ahead and draft legislation, I cannot see any short term solution for travellers. But maybe the EU can really do something this time. In the meantime, check carefully when you book to see what level of protection you have.

When is a Duck not a Duck?

Editor — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 08:08:44 +0000

A spokesman from TUI (the owners of Thomson and First Choice) said this week that if a bird swims, quacks, waddles and looks like a duck then it must be a duck. The courts think otherwise. Most of you will never have heard of a company called Travel Republic but the result of a court action against it by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) might actually help travellers with better consumer protection for our flights and holidays.

At present, we are protected by the bonding scheme that CAA run through their ATOL scheme. If you buy a package holiday from a travel agent who carries an ATOL number you are protected in the event of the tour operator going bust. But if you separately buy a flight and accommodation you are not covered.

CD-Traveller has mentioned time and time again to the point of tedium that better protection is required for the traveller. Endless conferences, meetings and consultations have taken place. The EU is considering it but nothing happens. Maybe this will be a belated spur. Without going into the judgement, what it means is that some travellers who thought they might be protected may not be so. Do check. Buying a flight and accommodation at the same time from one supplier may not give you protection.

Amidst this confusion, it would be nice if the CAA, the EU and Uncle Tom Cobley and all got off their hands and did something instead of talking. But how many times has that been said over the last few years. And what’s the betting I’ll still be moaning about this in a year’s time?

UPDATE: The CAA is going to appeal this case

Consumer protection for Airline Passengers

adrian — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 08:25:08 +0000

A couple of weeks ago another airline company went bust. Sky Europe only flew out of two UK airports so you can be forgiven for thinking it is of little consequence. But it follows in the wake of others including XL and Zoom which has a much bigger impact. After those collapses as well there were calls for a tightening up of customer protection and nothing happened. In fairness Ryanair and easyjet offered special fares to help passengers return home which neither of them needed to do.

Two weeks after Sky Europe, we have a silence again.

The EU Consumer Commissioner, Meglena Kuneva, made a speech in 2008 saying that customer protection needed thought. She said the same thing in Dublin about 10 days ago. When she released a report in early August her department said that most of the complaints received were about air transport. In total they had 62,000 complaints about service issues so about 17,000 concerned transport. To me this number seems odd. Odd because out of all the millions in the EU these were all that complained? On this basis in terms of numbers you could almost argue there was no problem to speak off. I think this understates the problem.

Where I agree is that most are transport related and most relate to air transport where the protection afforded by an ATOL bonding doesn’t exist. The cost per passenger charged goes up shortly and it still doesn’t cover air passengers.

What does it take for some protection to be afforded to aitrlines passengers in the event of an airline collapse because as sure as night follows day, there will be another collapse and we’ll hear cries for change go up again. To more platitudes or silence?