ABTA members wishing to run a health and safety check on properties overseas can now do so through ABTA Resort Check – a database comprising 20,000 independent audits.

ABTA head of business development and consumer affairs Keith Richards said: “Everything on the list meets the necessary standards.”

For an annual fee of £150, members can see if a property appears and there is a range of fees for the audits – from £200 for details of 20 properties to bulk orders working out at about £2 per audit. About 5,000 properties a year will be added to the list.

Richards said obtaining an independent audit outside of the system would cost between £500 and £600.

“Simply doing nothing, or thinking a property is satisfactory because larger tour operators use it, would not stand up in court,” said Richards. “This is money worth spending.”