ABTA INTRODUCES NEW CLAIMS PROCEDURE
Date published: 11 June 2009From 1 July 2009 ABTA Principals will benefit from a greatly simplified claims procedure when an ABTA retailer fails. Historically ABTA Principals have had to provide proof of payment from their clients to the failed retailer for a claim to be considered. This documentation had to be provided in very specific forms and often was difficult to obtain from clients. In addition principals had to provide evidence of specific written documentation showing they had chased retailers when payment was overdue.
The ABTA Board, following the recommendations of its Claims Review Group, has agreed that ABTA principals will no longer have to provide this documentation. This change will remove the occasional perception from Members that the ABTA claims procedure was overly rigid and inflexible and demonstrate that the relationship between ABTA and its Members is a mutually beneficial partnership.
In the past the claims documentation requirements involved extra work for ABTA Principals’ credit control departments and if not provided, led to claims not being paid. The new claims regime will lessen the work load for ABTA principals and ensure that all outstanding monies will be claimable.
ABTA Chief Executive Mark Tanzer said “This is a very significant change that is fairer to our Members and will make their lives much easier. ABTA is committed to helping our Members build and run successful businesses. I’m sure this change will be welcomed in the current difficult economic climate“
It will remain essential that Principals do not relax their usual credit control procedures and ABTA will still require some proof that these were in place and that debtors have been chased, but the evidence required will now more accurately follow standard modern working practices. All of this will clearly show that ABTA’s financial protection scheme is designed to settle ABTA Principals’ claims, not frustrate them.
The new regime will apply to claims against companies that fail from 1 July 2009 not to any claims against companies that failed before that date.
For further information
Sean Tipton, Communications Officer, tel: 020 3117 0513,Frances Tuke, Public Relations Manager, tel: 020 3117 0514, Mobile 07850 712 325,
Casia Zajac, Head of Communications, tel: 020 3117 0515, Mobile: 0754 592 7411
Out of Hours: Contact the Duty Press Officer via pager: 07659 190987
E-mail: press@abta.co.uk
Web: www.abta.com
Notes to editors
ABTA – The Travel Association was founded in 1950 and currently has 1,415 members with 5,900 outlets. Members include travel agents, tour operators and support services right across the spectrum from small family-owned businesses to the largest tour operators.
ABTA is the largest travel association in the UK and its members provide 90% of the foreign package holidays in the UK as well as selling millions of independent travel arrangements.
As part of its comprehensive package of services to members, ABTA, as a non-party political organisation, also provides an effective voice to represent the interests of its Members to government and key opinion formers at the highest levels. In the UK, these include, government ministers, constituency MPs, Select Committee members, senior civil servants and members of the political opposition parties in both Westminster and the devolved administrations in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
In Europe, ABTA is forming close ties with members of the European Parliament, the European Commission and staff within the Director Generals’ Secretariats. ABTA works in partnership with ECTAA (the European grouping of travel agents and tour operators’ associations) to lobby on interests relevant to its Members.
