The March Atol renewals will close this week “in a pretty good place” despite the Civil Aviation Authority warning earlier this month that 36% of Atol holders due to renew licences had still to submit applications.
Companies failing to submit applications in time risk being unable to sell package holidays from April 1.
The aviation regulator issued notice of the shortfall in applications on March 10, but CAA group director for consumers and markets Paul Smith said the renewal would close with late application rate “not particularly different to historic renewals”.
He told the spring AGM of Aito, the Specialist Travel Association: “We made really good progress since that statement and got a significant number of [renewal] offers to Atol holders. I’m comfortable with the position we’ll get to. We’re in a pretty good place with the renewal.”
Smith conceded the Atol reform process had been delayed since the CAA issued a consultation on proposals to require the segregation of customer money and move to a variable Atol Protection Contribution last April. The CAA has still to report on the industry responses despite promising a second consultation on detailed proposals early this year.
He acknowledged: “The process has taken us longer than we might have liked. But it has given us more time to reflect and to try to understand individual businesses.”
Smith told Aito members: “There is not likely to be a one-size-fits-all approach [to future Atol arrangements]. He said: “There will be another consultation around the middle of the year on the preferred option, how we move forward and the preferred implementation process.”
He also promised “a short document that summarises the 300 responses” to last year’s consultation.
Smith admitted: “We thought there would be more failures of Atol holders. We’ve seen companies work phenomenally hard to be resilient. We’ve tried to reflect in the licensing process the fact that we’re here to protect consumers but also to support the industry. It’s much better for us for the industry to be successful.
“The resilience has been fantastic. We want licensing arrangements in place that protect consumers but also help businesses recover and take advantage of pent-up demand. At the end of the day, a successful industry is good for consumers.”