September ATOL renewal completed by CAA
October 2, 2008
In a difficult period for the travel industry, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is pleased to announce that its September renewal of Air Travel Organisers' Licences has been completed.
A total of 1,295 firms applied to renew their licences, with 1,279 of these receiving a decision and 1,199 renewing on time.
Andy Cohen, Head of ATOL Licensing at the CAA, commented:
The renewal was completed in exceptionally difficult circumstances for the industry and it is pleasing that the result achieved was comparable to previous renewals. The majority of firms that did not renew on time were Small Business ATOL (SBA) holders. Due to the nature of their business, renewing on time is often less critical, but we expect most to renew shortly.
ATOL is the largest travel protection scheme in the UK and the only one for flights and air holidays sold by tour operators. After XL Leisure Group ceased trading on September 12 of this year, ATOL brought 83,000 UK passengers home and estimates that a further 200,000 will claim refunds.
Written by: Maxine Clarke
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