It has been confirmed that the Government is going to carry out a major overhaul of ATOL which will be completed by the end of this year. It is estimated that the new legislation will cover an additional 6 million consumers.
A three month consultation has been announced for the spring, which is to be followed by an act of parliament later in 2011.
Aviation minister Theresa Villiers announced that the new protection will cover trips where a flight and other elements are purchased separately within a specified period of time, commonly referred to as the DIY holiday.
The aim is to encourage businesses to make the protection in place for flights and accommodation sales much clearer. New standardised documents will also be used, to make it clear whether their trip is ATOL protected. The reforms follow a number of insolvencies of travel firms in recent years which have highlighted the need for consumers to be able to buy protected holidays.
Whatever level of protection is in place on your holiday, we would always recommend that you have comprehensive travel insurance as well.
Do you welcome these changes to ATOL?
