Big fall in Atol renewals, latest figures show

As of 31 March, 554 companies due to renew at the end of last month had been granted their licence. Another 99 companies (13%) had not applied and 89 (12%) had applied but not yet been renewed.

In total, 742 Atol licences had been granted by the deadline, compared to 805 at the same point last year. In 2020, 55 companies had not applied and 46 had yet to renew.

However, this year’s total includes 23 trade Atol holders that no longer require an Atol to Atol licence. These are included in those that did not apply.

In addition, 44 of the 89 applications still being processed were classed as late, being submitted within the last 10 business days of March. Many of these are expected to be granted.

Michael Budge, the CAA’s head of Atol Licensing, said: “We would like to thank those travel companies that submitted their application and supporting information for renewal in good time as well as engaging constructively with us regarding licensing requirements.”

“We have continued to focus on ensuring the appropriate protection of advance customer monies and requiring Atol holders to maintain adequate liquidity to meet future obligations. Where appropriate, certain conditions were required to meet these obligations.”