British tourists could face holiday cancellations in July following the collapse earlier this month of one of Europe’s biggest tour operators, FTI.
The company is based in Germany, but Britons could be hit by the fallout. The company owns a subsidiary called youtravel.com, an accommodation intermediary, also known as a ‘bed bank’, which British online travel agents (OTAs) including Loveholidays use to book hotel rooms for customers.
These OTAs match hotels booked through youtravel.com with flights, creating a package deal for their customers.
Youtravel.com initially announced that bookings up to June 11 had been cancelled, leading to some British travellers having to pay twice for their rooms as hoteliers feared they would not receive the money from the bank.
Now Youtravel.com has announced that all bookings will be canceled until July 26, potentially leading to further disruption.
British tourists could face holiday cancellations in July following the collapse earlier this month of one of Europe’s biggest tour operators
Those affected by FTI’s collapse include Annie Cox, 24, who told Birmingham Live that she was forced to pay an extra £900 to keep her room at Labranda Targa Club Aqua Parc in Morocco, which she booked through Loveholidays.
How likely is it that Britons will experience disruption in July?
Loveholidays told MailOnline Travel it works hard to ensure its customers’ holidays run smoothly.
It said: ‘Earlier this month, the FTI Group, the parent company of one of our many suppliers, Youtravel, filed for bankruptcy. Only a very small proportion of our customers are affected and we are working hard to minimise disruption to their holidays.
‘This is a rapidly changing situation. We will therefore remain in contact with affected customers as the situation develops. We apologize for the inconvenience.”
In addition, customers who booked through Loveholidays are Atol protected. This means that they will get their money back if they have to pay extra for their holiday.
The collapse of FTI has left some holidaymakers paying twice for their hotel rooms
Currently, holidays booked after 26 July will continue as normal. Customers who still wish to cancel will have to pay cancellation fees.
In a statement, Youtravel.com said: ‘The bankruptcy of FTI Touristik GmbH has had a significant impact on Youtravel.com. Over the past three weeks, our management has been actively engaging with the appointed manager of the FTI group and going through the M&A process to secure our future.
‘While we are hopeful for a positive conclusion to these discussions soon, we have taken the difficult decision to cancel all bookings up to and including 26 July 2024. We understand the inconvenience this may cause and sincerely apologise for any disruption. All active bookings in the Youtravel system for arrivals up to and including 26 July will be automatically cancelled free of charge by Monday 1 July 2024.’
