Hi,
After the recent failures i cannot stress enough the importance of people asking how their holiday has been created and what protection they offer.
If you see several companies advertising the same hotel and 1 or 2 are much much cheaper than the others, question yourself as to why. I know everyone is cutting back but agents are on some of the lowest profit margins ever (£10-£15 per person). Some companies are even advertising the holiday so cheaply that they wouldn't make anything at all, some even selling at below the actual nett cost of the holiday, just to get a booking and get some money in to help cashflow.
This in itself is very dangerous, purely because ok, they get some money in to pay bills etc but if it carries on in this way, when it comes to pay suppliers, the money wouldn't simply be there.
Like they say in everything, SAFETY FIRST, and i think you need to put this method into practice when looking at holidays too.
I don't wish to frighten anyone or put agents down as i am an agent myself but if the basic cost sounds too cheap compared to other companies, question as to why.
The public have to become more aware of everything they are booking.
Check out http://www.atol.org.uk / http://www.abta.com / http://www.traveltrust.co.uk for more info
The public have to become more aware of everything they are booking.
Your final comment shown above really sums it all up. I have said before on HT that many of the complaints are the result of people only reading the headline. The old saying "You don't get ow't for now't" really is true. In many cases it is obvious that people have been seduced by the pretty pictures
Yes we all like a bargain, and there are plenty out there. But if people would only read the small print first life would be so much easier.
There is of course a very simple way to resolve things.
One body charged with policing the industry and overseeing customer rights.
No company allowed to sell/provide holidays without being an approved member of such body.
All vendors to be fully bonded in case of failure. The idea we should be taking out additional insurance to cover such events is ludicrous.
A ban on confusing small print that when things do go wrong the customer is not left stranded without redress, or required to jump through hoops to get a satisfactory settlement.
If a company cannot trade without stating in Plain English what they will provide and what rights you have then how can we anyone be expected to trust them?
From the other side customers also need to accept responsibility for their own actions. Not every complaint is justified and the compensation culture really does need to be brought under control.
fwh
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