The UK Civil Aviation Authority has revealed that of the 1,261 ATOL licences that expired at the end of September, 995 have been renewed.
There are a further 90 still in the process in renewal.
This means that, in total, 176 companies decided not to renew their protection.
If a business decides not to renew their licence, this can be for a variety of reasons including making changes to their business model, which means they no longer need an ATOL licence to continue trading.
However, a number of companies are likely to have entered administration during the Covid-19 slowdown.
Michael Budge, head of ATOL licensing at the UK Civil Aviation Authority, said “We understand the huge pressure that travel businesses are under at this time and would like to thank them for positively engaging with us to meet the required conditions for their ATOL renewal.
“In the interest of protecting consumers, we continuously engage with and closely monitor ATOL holders throughout the period covered by their licence, requesting further information where necessary.”
Travel businesses that were not due to renew their ATOL licence during this renewals period should apply in good time before the March 31st expiry date.
