NEWS
Are you ready to sell
supplier failure cover?
ABTA head warns agents need to be FSA-authorised to off er new insurance policy SPAA to
ramp up
lobbying
eff orts
Jackie David
Agents seeking extra protection
for themselves and their customers
need to be aware of the
impact of new Financial Services
Authority regulations on their
ability to sell supplier failure
insurance, ABTA head of fi nance
Mike Monk has warned.
Supplier failure policies are
designed to plug gaps in protection
for consumers and agents
when a company supplying
individual components of a holiday
or dynamic package fails.
A number of new supplier
failure products have entered
the market following highprofi
le collapses such as XL
Leisure Group in September.
So far, 80 travel companies
have signed up to sell Rock
www.travelweekly.co.uk
Insurance Services’ Supplier
Failure Cover and 150 applications
are in the pipeline.
Holiday Brokers launched a
similar policy in September
and ABTA’s Supplier Failure
Insurance launches at the end
of the year.
But the new regulations,
which come into force in January
2009, mean agents selling
any form of travel insurance,
including supplier failure products,
will either need FSA
authorisation, to be an appointed
representative, or refer customers
to authorised insurance
businesses for a commission.
“People have to understand
that the new regulations are
not just for ordinary travel
insurance – they will not be
able to sell scheduled airline
“At WTM…the
general agreement
was that ATOL
does not work”
failure or other travel-related
insurance unless they are
authorised. The only exception
is car hire,” said Monk.
The new rules come amid
calls for a reform of the ATOL
protection regime, which many
believe is inadequate.
Rock Insurance consultant
Lawrence Assock said: “ATOLs
had never been fully tested
until the collapse of XL and
when they were [tested], they
were more than wanting.
“At a recent World Travel
Market seminar on the future
Mystery Shopper Are Burton agents on the
right track for an Inca Trail trek? page 40
of ATOLs, the general agreement
was that ATOL does not work,”
Assock said.
The FSA deadline to apply
for authorisation to sell travel
insurance from January 2009
was November 15, when just
fi ve companies had signed up.
Firms may still apply for authorisation
status, but they may
not be able to trade policies at
the beginning of the year.
● About 25 industry chiefs
were due to meet the Civil Aviation
Authority yesterday to discuss
fi nancial protection before
TUI Travel and Thomas Cook
meeting transport secretary
Geoff Hoon.
For daily news go to
www.travelweekly.co.uk
Badger joins the
Future Travel set
Ruth Badger, runner-up in the
BBC’s The Apprentice in 2006 was
guest speaker at Future Travel’s
annual conference in Manchester
last week. Individual bookable
websites and SMS messaging
were introduced at the event for
homeworkers to increase sales
and keep in touch with customers.
From left, are Akos Debrah, Holiday
Now; Badger; Alistair Rowland and
Sheena Darby, both Future Travel.
The Scottish Passenger Agents’
Association is hosting a dinner
for Scottish MPs in Westminster
to step up its lobbying efforts.
SPAA immediate past-president
Sandy MacPherson said
around 15 hand-picked MPs are
expected to attend in January
when they will be joined by four
members of the SPAA and four
British Airways staff.
He added the working dinner
will be used to discuss
issues affecting the Scottish
market, including Air Passenger
Duty, the reduction in
Anglo-Scottish fl ights and the
third runway at Heathrow.
MacPherson said: “In the
eyes of many MPs in Westminster,
the UK stops at Watford
Junction.”
The SPAA has already hosted
two events for members of
the Scottish Parliament and the
move south should bring the
association even more political
clout, particularly where Heathrow’s
future is concerned.
MacPherson said: “It is vital
to Scotland that Heathrow has a
third runway and we’ve been
forceful in our dealings with
MPs in letting them know it is a
must for the Scottish economy.”
November 21 2008 | Travel Weekly | 7
MacPherson:
Third
runway at
Heathrow
is ‘vital to
Scotland’
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