TURFED OUT ON THE STREET
Hotel’s greedy bosses order families to leave
SCOTS caught up in the Thomas Cook collapse were booted out of their hotel by heartless resort bosses.
Dylan Hutchison was kicked out with wife Charrelle and son Leo, five, after being ordered to stump up an extra £885 to stay.
even though we’d already paid Thomas Cook.
“They said although we were Atol-protected, the hotel would be on the bottom of the pile to receive payment from any liquidators.
“I contacted the CAA, who spoke to reception via my mobile phone but the hotel was adamant they were not accepting any guarantee of payment. It was pay €2000 or leave.
“We didn’t have the money to pay it even if we wanted to.
“So we had to pack up our cases and hand over the room keys. We were left on the street.”
The families went to a nearby bar to find shelter out of the 29C sunshine while they tried to find another place to stay.
After a number of hours, they managed to find an apartment online costing £310, along with a £310 deposit, to stay in until they fly out.
Dylan, who works as a master technician, said: “It was all-inclusive package holiday with Thomas Cook which included meals, drinks and a shuttle transfer to Alicante Airport.
“Our airline was easyJet so we’re told the flights back to Edinburgh Airport on Wednesday are still OK but we’ll have to get a taxi or something there.
“We’ll also have to pay for food and everything until then. It’s ruined the holiday.”
Last night the hotel said no one was available for comment. Transport Minister Michael Matheson MSP said: “We are saddened by the collapse of Thomas Cook which has a long history with many jobs in Scotland, the UK and overseas.
“We are working closely with the UK Government and the CAA as the situation progresses and the CAA is providing detailed information for customers on their website, via a call centre and through representatives in the resorts and airports.
“This will be a very worrying time for employees in Scotland, and Scottish staff based overseas, and we recognise these job losses will have a disproportionate impact on women.
“We have already made the offer of support for affected employees in Scotland through our Partnership Action for Continuing Employment initiative.”
Ken McLeod, president of the Scottish Passenger Agents’ Association, said: “This is a terrible day, not just for the UK travel industry, but on a global scale as well for the most renowned name in travel.
“Our first thoughts are with everyone who is affected by this, whether they are holidaymakers, staff or affected third parties such travel agents, hotels and other suppliers.”