How to book your holiday securely

As LowCostHolidays goes bust, leaving thousands of holidaymakers stranded or disappointed, we tell you what to look for to securely book your holiday.

Many British holidaymaker’s holidays have been ruined this summer with the recent news that budget LowCostHolidays travel company has gone bust. When the news officially broke, it is said that there were an estimated 27,000 customers currently on holiday with the company, and 110,000 customers who were yet to embark on their holidays.

An official warning was announced to holidaymakers to not use the budget company since they relocated to Spain from Britain back in 2013. The company’s relocation meant that holidays booked with the company were no longer covered by the Atol scheme. The scheme was put into place in order to make customers feel comforted by the fact that their money is securely protected, and that sufficient help will be provided if any failures were to occur with the tour operator. However, the company claimed that there was no need for customers to worry about not being protected as they would be protected under a Spanish scheme.

A message was uploaded to the company’s website stating “We deeply regret to announce that the LowCostTravelGroup ceased to trade on 15 July 2016, following exhaustive attempts by the group’s directors to rescue the group, which has been hampered by the recent and ongoing turbulent financial environment.”

The message continued to state that although returning flights to the UK would still be covered, many other facilities including hotels and airport transfers may ask holidaymakers to cover the fees.

In order to make sure your holiday is securely booked, check out our top tips:

1. Make sure that you are Atol protected. Like we previously said above, the scheme was put into place in order to make customers feel comforted by the fact that their money is securely protected, and that sufficient help will be provided if any failures were to occur with the tour operator. You can check to see if a travel company is covered by Atol by going on the Atol website where they have a search bar you can use.
2. Make sure you have sufficient travel insurance.
3. Pay with a credit card or Visa debit card. This will give you added protection.

Don’t forget, you can get your travel insurance from DirectTravel at either www.direct-travel.co.uk or ring our friendly team on 0330 880 3600.