Thomas Cook in bother??

sweetpeas_2

Hi,

I'm hoping someone can help me - I've googled it and searched the forum but can't find any info. I'm looking at booking a holiday to Vegas for next April and have been told that Thomas Cook might be in administration? Anyone got any advice for me in regards to the hol I was going to book?? It is through Direct holidays so I know it's protected but I've no credit card to book it on so wanted to make sure if the company is in trouble I'd get my money back

Thanks xx

vodkachick68

I think that Thomas cook have sorted their financial problems out,but not too sure. I have a holiday booked with them for august and if the worst happens i will hopefully get my money back as they are atol protected. Please correct me if i'm wrong

sweetpeas_2

Yes I think you are, that's why I thought I was safe as well.

Fingers crossed for you then, I can't find anything on the net saying otherwise so like you say, it must be all sorted now

Mr_Wang

sweetpeas wrote: »

Yes I think you are, that's why I thought I was safe as well.

Fingers crossed for you then, I can't find anything on the net saying otherwise so like you say, it must be all sorted now

Far from it I'm afraid.

They are trying though - No doubt about that.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/thomascookgroup

sweetpeas_2

Ar no _pale_ that's not good is it. I really don't know whether I should risk it or not, the holiday itself is £400 cheaper then it is with Virgin, hence why I'm thinking about it

stephb34

Thomas cook are not in administration and are ATOL and ABTA protected so your money is safe, i do wonder if a lot of the muck raking on here is from Thomson and other holiday company staff, though i spose if the boot was on the other foot we'd be doing the same. Book your Thomas Cook holiday with confidence with 170 years experience they're not going under any time soon and the more people that book will keep us in business

sweetpeas_2

Thanks Steph, do you mind me asking if you work for them then??

Mr_Wang

stephb34 wrote: »

Thomas cook are not in administration and are ATOL and ABTA protected so your money is safe, i do wonder if a lot of the muck raking on here is from Thomson and other holiday company staff, though i spose if the boot was on the other foot we'd be doing the same. Book your Thomas Cook holiday with confidence with 170 years experience they're not going under any time soon and the more people that book will keep us in business

I don't work for Thomson et al......

I posted a link for the Guardian, which is backed up with its financial data by the Financial Times - one of the most reputable sources of business info in the world.

Personally I wouldn't book with any high street Travel Agent since its almost always cheaper booked independently.

flutterby_lil

I have booked with Thomas cook for November via credit card to give me more protection. I'd book it.

ian41

sweetpeas wrote: »

Ar no _pale_ that's not good is it. I really don't know whether I should risk it or not, the holiday itself is £400 cheaper then it is with Virgin, hence why I'm thinking about it

Sorry but the information above is incorrect and rather misleading. The facts are as follows:

Overseas package holidays operated and sold by Thomas Cook Tour Operations Ltd are fully protected through their ATOL licence No 1179. If something went wrong, you would be fully protected, you would not be stranded and you would not lose money..

If you are talking about Thomas Cook retail shops, they are ABTA protected. TC retail will sell many different overseas package holidays for different operators including TCTO (above) as well as flights, accommodation etc. The package holidays that TC retail sell will all be covered with an ATOL licence for each and every operator and are therefore protected.

To complete the circle, always take out Travel Insurance and wherever possible pay by credit card. This provides additional cover including protection over and above the ATOL licence.

Thomas Cook is still a huge and substantial operation. TUI, owners of Thomson, also had poor sales figures reported in January. The reason being that there is a recession at worst or money is very tight, in most countries around the world. Holiday bookings are therefore badly affected. Airlines are also affected - American Airlines are currently in administration but their flights are operating normally every day around the globe.

So as long as you have booked through TC retail or taken out a TC overseas package holiday, you will be protected

You can read the details on the TC website here:

http://www.thomascook.com/reasons-to-book-with-thomas-cook

You should look forward and enjoy your holiday

sweetpeas_2

Thank you for your replies everyone.

My Mum has a credit card so as added protection I could always ask her to book on that and then just send the money straight off. Sorry if this is a thick question - but if I just pay the deposit on the credit card am I protected still? I would probably just use my debit card to send off money every month so how does it work in terms of getting this money back if the worst happens?

Thanks