Thinking of doing a DIY holiday? Read on…

While the idea of a DIY holiday may appeal to you, it may be more prudent to go through a travel agent/tour operator.

Ensuring that the company that you book with has an Air Travel Organisers Licence protects you from being left high and dry in another country. Travel companies that sell you holiday packages with air travel must have an ATOL licence and have to issue you with a certificate as proof that protection is in place as soon as you hand over any money for your trip.

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) will have conducted its checks on the company before it issues the licence. So, if your tour operator closes down, the CAA will refund you or fly you home. It may even allow you to complete your holiday. In the case of an airline, an ATOL-protected tour operator has to find you an alternative flight whether you are waiting to go on holiday or you are abroad. 

Cape Town
While the idea of a DIY holiday may appeal...

“Any UK travel company, selling air packages, whether online or on the high street, must have ATOL protection. 

“ATOL is the UK’s financial protection scheme, which gives air travellers the peace of mind they won't lose their money and will get home - even if the travel business they book with collapses,” says a CAA spokesperson. 

If you book direct with an airline or just book hotel accommodation, you are not covered by ATOL. For more information check the CAA’s packpeaceofmind.co.uk website, part of the on-going public information “Pack Peace of Mind” campaign.

While it may cost more to use a credit card, according to the Money Advice Service website (moneyadviceservice.org.uk) if you pay with one you can get valuable legal protection if the company you are buying from goes bust or doesn’t deliver what it’s promised.

“When booking a holiday, customers should consider using a credit or debit card, which may provide further protection in the event of travel operator failure,” points out a CAA spokesperson. 

Using a credit card when flights cost more than £100 each does give you some important protection under section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 according to the CAA’s website. It goes on to say that if things go wrong and if the airline is at fault, the credit card company shares legal responsibility with the airline. This means the consumer also has a claim against the credit card company for any losses. It should also mean you can claim for airline failure against the credit card company. You can refer disputes to the Financial Ombudsman if the credit card company challenges your claim.

Another point to note is that paying the deposit is enough to give you legal protection. If you are using a debit card you can find out information of the Money Advice Service website about making a claim, known as a chargeback, to get a refund of the cost of your flights.

“However credit and debit card protection is not guaranteed to bring you home if your travel company collapses while you are abroad. ATOL protection will bring you home,” the CAA spokesperson highlights.

For service issues that you have with your travel agent you need to contact ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents, abta.com).

While it may be cheaper to go for a DIY holiday, booking through a good travel agent means that somebody is there should anything go wrong before or during your trip and they should be able to advise you on the best holiday for you.

The Civil Aviation Authority advocates shopping around for the best deals when looking for flights. It says you should take into consideration the extra charges such as for baggage and meals. You can check price comparison sites but you need to bear in mind that not all airlines appear on them so you may need to visit individual airline sites to view their flights.

The Consumer Credit Act 1974 may not cover you for all situations if you book through a travel agent. The CAA points out that Section 75 protection may not apply to situations where you have paid a travel agent for services provided by another company. For example, if you pay the travel agent for rooms provided by a hotel. For a scenario such as this you may want to speak to your credit card company to see what sort of protection that it offers you.  

Not all travel agents are equal. You need to compare quotes to ensure that you are getting the best deal. Some are hundreds of pounds more expensive for the same holiday. The other week I got a quote from a company that is regarded as highly reputable and found it to be £1,000 more expensive on a four-day break to Iceland than booking direct with a major airline as a package deal.

By Daralyn Danns

First published in All About Hair (All About Hair UK), the travel and lifestyle blog with a luxury twist