Member of court staff criticised by judge over comment
HOLIDAYMAKERS STRUGGLE to obtain accurate information from travel firms about financial protection, an investigation has found.
Staff at travel companies have a “lack of knowledge” about what is covered by the Atol scheme, research by magazine revealed.
Posing as potential customers, the publication made 80 calls to eight travel firms, asking a variety of questions.
British Airways and lastminute.com exaggerated Atol protection, with the former incorrectly telling researchers “on several occasions” that they would be covered despite only purchasing a flight.
Thomas Cook employees performed “particularly poorly” getting less than half (45 per cent) of the answers correct, according to the report.
In eight out of 10 cases, the tour operator’s staff could not confirm that customers are Atol-protected if they book a flight and hotel at the same time, or book a hotel the day after buying a plane ticket.
The Atol scheme ensures travellers do not get stranded abroad or lose money if a company stops trading. UK-based companies must protect bookings consisting of flights and accommodation or flights and car hire.
More than 1.5 million travellers had their plans thrown into chaos in recent weeks because flights are not going ahead as planned.
Some 860,000 customers held bookings with Monarch when the firm collapsed on Monday, and about 700,000 passengers were affected when Ryanair cancelled flights after it mismanaged pilots’ annual leave. The investigation by
found an online post by Ryanair wrongly stating that its subsidiary, Ryanair Holidays, was a member of Atol.
Ryanair Holidays is run by a German company and is part of a financial protection scheme in that country, according to the research.
The post has since been amended by Ryanair, but it is “still not clear how a claim to the German equivalent of Atol would be made”, warned.
The magazine’s editor Rory Boland said: “Given the recent chaos caused by Monarch going into administration and Ryanair’s flight cancellation shambles, it’s just not good enough that travel agents don’t understand the rules around holiday protections – especially when they are exaggerating the cover on offer.
“Atol-registered companies need to improve the accuracy of the information they are providing to their customers, and companies registered abroad must do more to inform customers in the UK about what protections they will be covered by.”
Ryanair chief marketing officer Kenny Jacobs said: “Ryanair holidays complies with all legal and regulatory requirements including EU provisions relating to insolvency protection.
“Ryanair Holidays’ application for Atol protection remains ongoing. We expect the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) to grant Atol protection shortly.”
CAA chief executive Andrew Haines said he was “furious” with Ryanair last week because it was not telling passengers they are entitled to be re-routed by other airlines following its flight cancellations.
The airline later agreed to implement measures to ensure passengers are “fully aware” of their rights. THE JUDGE in the trial of an Army sergeant accused of attempting to murder his wife by tampering with her parachute has criticised a member of court staff for telling jurors “in France he would be guilty until proven innocent”.
The high-profile case against Emile Cilliers, of the Royal Army Physical Training Corps, at Winchester Crown Court was delayed for several hours while the High Court judge, Mr Justice Sweeney, and lawyers discussed the impact of the conversation held between jurors and the “new and untrained” member of court staff.
Mr Justice Sweeney told the jurors that one of them had produced a note describing the incident which happened within the jury’s private room on Thursday. The note stated: “During yesterday’s conversation in the jurors’ room, questions were asked about whether the defendant was in custody during the build-up to the trial.
“The court staff member stated that he was in fact on bail but not allowed to visit Wiltshire except to visit his solicitor. Questions were then asked as to his employment and it was established he was still employed.”
The note went on to say that a juror suggested that Cilliers might have been “inconvenienced”, to which the court worker appeared “shocked” and replied: “If he was tried in France he would be guilty until proven innocent.”
The note continued: “As a jury I feel we are taking this extremely seriously but was personally shocked that a court member would make such a simple mistake.”
Mr Justice Sweeney advised the jurors to ensure they did not discuss the trial with anyone else and only as a group of jurors.
Cilliers faces two charges of attempting to murder his former Army officer wife Victoria Cilliers, who suffered multiple serious injuries at Netheravon Airfield, on Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire, on April 5, 2015.
The 37-year-old is also accused of a third charge of damaging a gas valve at their home.
He denies all three charges.