Airline Insolvency Review Published
The Department for Transport has published the final report from the independent Airline Insolvency Review, which was chaired by Peter Bucks.
The report can be found by following this link: www.gov.uk/government/publications/airline-insolvency-review-final-report
The Transport Secretary Chris Grayling commissioned the review following the collapse of Monarch Airlines in October 2017, when 85,000 passengers were repatriated by the Civil Aviation Authority, but at a cost to the taxpayer.
The review has considered both refund and repatriation protection in the event of an airline or travel company failure. The key recommendations from the report are as follows:
- Proposals for a new Flight Protection Scheme, which would protect passengers if an airline became insolvent while they were abroad. It is estimated the cost of the protection will amount to less than 50p per passenger on average.
- Reforms to the UK’s airline insolvency regimes so an airline’s own aircraft can be used to repatriate its passengers should it fail.
- Providing CAA with the necessary powers and capability to coordinate repatriation operations for all sizes of airline.
- Improving awareness and take up of safeguards which protect the future bookings of customers, when airlines collapse.
The Department for Transport will now consider the range of options put forward, and stakeholders are encouraged to respond to the recommendations as part of the ongoing consultation on Aviation 2050, which closes on 20 June.
[Source: Department for Transport. 9 May, 2019]