ARTAC Worldchoice has launched its own bonding scheme offering savings of up to 20% after ABTA failed to reduce its members’ fees.
The controversy surrounds the Applicable Risk Turnover fee – 0.15% of turnover – that agents have to pay if they are part of ABTA’s Travel Agent Bond Replacement Scheme.
Although ARTAC only has to pay 50% of the fee, chairman Colin Heal argued his members should not have to pay it at all because they are already covered through its own scheme, Credit Account System.
Heal also attacked ABTA for not giving ARTAC an automatic place on the proposed new board in the restructured ABTA, particularly as ARTAC represents 25% of ABTA membership.
ABTA chief executive Ian Reynolds said it was up to ARTAC members to decide if the new bonding scheme was right for them.
Meanwhile, specialist operators are facing crippling financial costs if they want to continue accepting bookings by credit card.
Barclaycard Merchant Services, the clearing house for nearly all credit card transactions, is demanding bonding to protect itself if an operator goes bust.
The move is thought to have been sparked by the collapse of Canary Island specialist Evergreen last September, which cost BMS heavily.