The Association of Independent Tour Operators (AITO) is calling for the government to implement an abandoned £1 levy on airline ticket sales to cover the cost of repatriating Monarch customers. The organisation claims only a small portion of passengers are covered by ATOL protection, leaving a £65 million bill that could be passed on to tax payers.
AITO says many travel companies with a European programme will have been hit by the airline’s collapse. It says while the CAA’s quick action to secure planes to bring Monarch customers home is admirable, it also leaves a hefty bill because the company’s ATOL only covered its packaged holidays, not the airline tickets it sold. The association claims this means 90,000 of the 110,000 passengers who were abroad when Monarch ceased trading have no right to compensation under ATOL regulation.
AITO chairman Derek Moore believes “significantly better planning” is required to limit the chances of a similar situation leaving such a huge bill. “Did the government liaise with any of the trade bodies, which could have advised it on this matter?” he says. “The travel industry faces challenges day in, day out... it is very well versed in coping with adversity, and often its clients are unaware that there was ever a problem.
“The CAA proposed a £1 levy – the price of a bag of crisps – on all passengers flying out of the UK,” Moore continues. “It was turned down. Had it been implemented, the £65 million cost of repatriating Monarch passengers would have been covered easily, without any impact on the tax payer, travel industry or credit card companies.”
Moore is urging the government to re-visit the proposed levy because “this situation should have been foreseen, and it will happen again”.
Moore has also given his thoughts on what cause the demise of Monarch, saying it comes down to two key factors. “Firstly, selling its airline seats far too cheaply, due to excess capacity in the market. There are simply too many planes flying, due to the proliferation of the so-called ‘no-frills’ carriers. And secondly, the fact that destinations such as Egypt, Turkey and Tunisia... have become out of bounds due to security concerns, forcing airlines to move their planes on to European routes.”
aito.com