This is the least glamorous article on the site, and probably the most useful.
People ask me about ABTA and financial protection more than almost anything else, usually in the first conversation and usually with a slight apology, as though it's impolite to check. It isn't. It's your money, and you're entitled to a straight answer. So here's the straightest one I can give you.
The short version
I'm not an ABTA member myself. I'm an independent travel advisor, and I'm affiliated with InteleTravel, who are the ABTA member. Their membership number is P7384, and it sits behind the bookings I make through them.
That distinction matters, so let me spell it out rather than glide past it.
What ABTA actually is
ABTA is a trade association for UK travel companies. Two things come out of membership, and people tend to blur them together:
- Financial protection. Many package holidays come with financial protection if the travel organiser fails, helping safeguard your money. Other bookings may have different arrangements, so it's important to check what protection applies. This is the bit everyone cares about.
- Standards. Members agree to a code of conduct covering how complaints are handled, how information is presented and what customers are told before they pay.
The protection is the important part. The standards are what stop it being a rubber stamp.
Where I sit in that
If you book through a big high-street agency, the agency is the ABTA member and you're dealing with them. My setup is different. I work as an independent travel advisor affiliated with InteleTravel UK, an ABTA member (P7384). This means you benefit from the reassurance of booking through an established travel business, with financial protection applying where it's included in your particular booking.
What it doesn't mean is that everything I sell is protected. That's the next bit.
What's protected, and what isn't
This is where most marketing gets vague. I'd rather be exact.
Package holidays (which combine two or more travel services, such as flights and accommodation) come with financial protection if the package organiser goes out of business. Flight-inclusive packages are generally covered by ATOL, while other packages have different protection arrangements.
And the honest part: a hotel booked on its own, or a flight booked on its own, may not be protected at all. Plenty of travel businesses will let you assume otherwise. I'd rather you knew before you booked than found out afterwards.
So the rule is simple: anything you're unsure about, ask me. I'd rather answer a boring question twice than have you find out the hard way.
A quick word on ATOL
You'll see the ATOL logo alongside ABTA on most travel websites, so it's worth a sentence of explanation, because the two are not the same thing.
ABTA is the association I've described above. ATOL is a separate scheme covering flight-inclusive holidays, and where it applies you'll be issued an ATOL Certificate. That certificate is your proof, and it's worth keeping.
The exact wording of what is and isn't ATOL-protected, for each service I sell, is set out in my booking conditions and on the relevant pages of this site. It's wording I'm required to reproduce precisely rather than paraphrase, which is why you'll see it in full there rather than in this article.
InteleTravel, and the reassurance behind the booking
InteleTravel UK is the established travel business I'm affiliated with, and an ABTA member (P7384). I'm the person you actually talk to.
That's the structure I chose deliberately. It means you get personal service from someone who knows your trip, backed by the experience and support of an established travel business. And I'll always be clear about what financial protection applies to your booking.
What happens if it goes wrong
Protection is an abstract word until the week you need it, so here's what it means in practice.
If a travel company goes out of business, what happens next depends on the type of booking you've made and the protection in place.
For financially protected package holidays, the relevant scheme can help with refunds or getting you home if you're already abroad. Other bookings may have different arrangements.
Whatever happens, I'll be here to help you understand your options and liaise with the relevant travel companies wherever I can.
How to check any of this in a minute
You don't have to take my word for any of it, and you shouldn't.
- ABTA: search the member on abta.com. If a business claims membership, they should be findable.
- ATOL: check the ATOL number on the CAA's register at www.caa.co.uk. Every ATOL holder is listed.
- Ask for it in writing. Any agent should be able to tell you exactly what protection applies to your specific booking, before you pay.
If someone can't answer that last one clearly, that tells you something.
What I do about it
When you book with me, I'll explain in writing what type of booking you're making and what financial protection applies before you commit. If your booking is ATOL protected, you'll receive an ATOL Certificate. If different protection applies, I'll explain that too.
And throughout it all, you'll have one point of contact who knows your plans and is there to help.
The wider point
Financial protection is a bit like insurance: nobody thinks about it until the week they need it. But the difference between a protected booking and an unprotected one is the difference between a disrupted holiday and a lost one.
Which is why the whole thing is worth two minutes of your attention now, rather than an hour of it later.
Ask me. It's genuinely not an imposition, and I'd rather you asked than assumed.