ATOL Reform

Latest updates:

New video - ATOL Reform: What you need to know now
ABTA-ATOL application form and updated guidance
Agency agreement
 
The 30 April deadline for complying with the new ATOL requirements is less than a week away. Whilst the announcement by the CAA that during May it will concentrate on educating and assisting applicants is welcome, Members should not interpret this as meaning they have an extra month before they need to take appropriate action. The CAA has made it clear that companies requiring a licence, which have not started the application process by the 30 April deadline, will not have the same level of cover if an ATOL holder fails. It is also vital that ATOL-holders and agents take steps to get their written Agency Agreements in place. I would strongly urge, if you haven’t already, that you go to abta.com/atolreform and find out what you need to do. You can also discuss your requirements with your ABTA Financial Liaison Officer. For Members with an ATOL turnover of less than £1.5M the ABTA-ATOL Joint Administration Scheme (see below) might be the right option for your business.

More guidance on all of these points, including the list of exemptions from the scheme, is provided in our newly updated Frequently Asked Questions.

Next steps:

ABTA will provide regular updates through ABTA Today and our website and you can now access below our model agency agreement and application packs for any Member wishing to apply for an ATOL through the new ABTA-ATOL Joint Administration Scheme.

If you are selling any flight-based holidays, we recommend that you follow the immediate next steps:

1. Read the FAQs and Member guidance information here on ABTA’s website to understand how your business may be affected by the changes overall.
2. Understand what are the immediate changes required from 30 April: notably new licensing arrangements and written agency agreements.
3. If you think that you will sell Flight Plus or other ATOL holiday arrangements after 30 April, start the licence application process as soon as possible. There are a number of different options to do this. Look out for application packs for the ABTA-ATOL Joint Administration Scheme which we issued to Members last week; any Member with an ATOL licensable turnover of up to £1.5m may be eligible to apply. Alternatively, contact the CAA.
4. If you are an ATOL holder, our model agency agreement which provides guidance on the correct wording to use in these agreements is available below.
5. Start to prepare your business for the introduction of ATOL Certificates later in the year and understand what ATOL documents you may need to issue between 30 April and October (see FAQs for guidance).

We will continue to provide further updates through ABTA Today and our website, or you can contact the Member Information Line on 0845 177 2282 or your Financial Liaison Officer for further assistance. 

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In this area you can find out more about the Department for Transport's (DfT) plans for ATOL Reform and what this means for consumers and travel businesses.

ABTA continues to consult with Members on key aspects of the reform proposals and has been in negotiations with the DfT and CAA, on behalf of Members, throughout the consultation process.  

Section 1: ATOL Reform guidance

A: Events

Travel Law Seminar
The first morning of our two-day Travel Law Seminar (29-30 May) is devoted to ATOL Reform. Full details are available in the Events section of our website.

Regional meetings
ABTA is hosting a series of free regional meetings to update Members with the latest on ATOL Reform. 

future meetings:
Scotland - 18 April
 
previous meetings:
Scotland - 19 January
Guernsey - 25 January
South West - 25 January
Midlands - 31 January
North West - 16 February
Greater London & Southern - 22 February
Eastern - 01 March
Greater London & Southern - 05 March
Yorkshire & North Midlands - 07 March
Greater London & Southern - 13 March
North East - 14 March
Jersey - 14 March
Northern Ireland - 29 March

B: Written guidance

FAQs for ABTA Members are now available in the Members' area.

Following the DfT's announcement confirming the reforms ABTA will produce written guidance and model documents for Members (agency agreements, booking conditions, agency terms & conditions). These will be available in the Members' area of the website.

C: Videos

Here you'll find a series of short videos to help you understand and comply with the reforms. Further videos will be added in due course so please keep checking back for the latest information.
Each video can be played back full screen by selecting  in the bottom right-hand corner of each video and in high definition by clicking  once you've pressed play. We recommend you allow the video to buffer first before watching.  

Summary
Flight Plus
ATOL Certificates

Section 2: Consultation documents and webcasts

ABTA's response to the CAA Standard Terms Consultation 2012 - 22 March 2012 
Briefing paper for ABTA Members - March 2012
ABTA submits response to CAA Information Paper on ATOL Reform - December 2011
ABTA submits response to ATOL Reform Consulation - September 2011

ABTA webcasts
Watch a recording of our latest webcast filmed on Monday 5 March which included representatives from ABTA, the DfT and the CAA.

Watch a recording of the webcast filmed on 11 August 2011 which gave ABTA Members the opportunity to ask questions directly to the DfT on ATOL reform.

Section 3: Next steps

Please find below links to our model agency agreement, guidance and documents for appling for an ATOL under the ABTA-ATOL Joint Administration Scheme. Please note you'll be prompted to log into the Members' area to download each document.

Model agency agreement

Letter from ABTA about applying for an ATOL under the ABTA-ATOL Joint Administration Scheme

Guidance on completing the Application form for an ATOL under the ABTA-ATOL Joint Administration Scheme

The ABTA- ATOL Application form

Deed of Guarantee (Personal Overtrading) Standard Licence (to be submitted with the ABTA-ATOL application form) 

Section 4: Further information

Any enquiries can be made to the Members’ Information line on 0845 177 2282. For more detail on ABTA’s response to the Reform proposals please see our full consultation response; and to have more questions answered about the detail of the proposed Reforms, read our Frequently Asked Questions document. Full CAA proposals outlined in the Information Paper are also available online.

ABTA Members can read our FAQs and guidance note available in the Members' area of this website. Guidance for Members in the Channel Islands and Isle of Man is also available.

If you have any further queries about ATOL reform, please contact the Member Information line membersinfo@abta.co.uk on 0845 177 2282.