Thomas Cook Collapses: What to Do in Barcelona

As if things could get much worse for Brits in Europe, now many are stranded on their holidays after travel company Thomas Cook collapsed this week. Here’s everything you need to know.

What Happened?

On Monday, September 23, the British travel company, Thomas Cook, ceased trading with immediate effect, leaving some 150,000 British citizens stranded on holiday, their flights home cancelled and hotels demanding. After 178 years of helping Brits escape the non-stop rain for warmer climes, Thomas Cook failed to secure the immediate funding—estimated at 200 million (pounds)—it needed to tide itself over during the winter holiday lull.

Thomas Cook was a British institution, visible on high streets across the country, and its demise was not an overnight phenomenon: some point to longer trends in the UK retail sector as the cause of the collapse. Changing consumer tastes and the economic pinch brought on by the recession and now Brexit have caused British holiday makers to change tack, preferring to vacation within the UK or buy cheap flights and rooms separately online, rather than opting for Thomas Cook’s trademark package holidays (hotel and flights booked all in one).

In the UK, the collapse has seen job losses to some 9,000 people, however, the cost to those working in tourist sectors in Spain is equally, if not more, severe. La Vanguardia reports “panic” in the Spanish tourism industry over the news, with the president of the Spanish Confederation of Travel Agencies, Rafael Gallego, comparing it with the fall of the Lehman Brothers investment bank that preceded the 2008 financial crash.

Thomas Cook brought an estimated seven million British holiday makers to Spain each year, 9% of the industry’s total. 80,000 of those came to the Catalan coasts around Barcelona, so the effect on the region’s (and indeed all of Spain’s) tourism industry is predicted to be huge. El Pais writes that Thomas Cook has an outstanding debt of more than €200 million to the Spanish tourism sector, from hotels, to bus and rental car companies, and a lot more besides.

The hotel issue has been perhaps the biggest hurdle for British holidaymakers and Spanish hoteliers alike. Stories about people being “kicked out of their rooms” or being forced to pay huge amounts to continue their stay have been surfacing, while the long term financial cost on the Spanish hotel sector is likely to be significant.

What To Do?

The UK government has now begun the largest peacetime repatriation in its history to get those stuck abroad back home. The newly appointed UK ambassador to Spain, Hugh Elliot, has sought to reassure holidaymakers that they will not incur any “surprise bills,” as the UK government has agreed to put on free flights back to Britain for those affected, while the Air Travel Organiser’s Licence (commonly referred to as ATOL) scheme will allow customers to get refunds on their hotel bills and other expenses.

If you’re one of the 5,000 British citizens stranded in Catalunya on a Thomas Cook package holiday and don’t know what to do, here are the things to bear in mind to make sure you get home in one piece with your wallet still intact.

Flights

The UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has confirmed that it will repatriate anyone with Thomas Cook flights back to the UK until Sunday, October 6 (up to and including that date). In Catalunya these all go out of Girona Airport. See here for how to check when your new flight will be.

However, these free flights will cease on October 7, so anyone with Thomas Cook flights booked on or after that date should contact the CAA to check whether they are still eligible for a flight. The CAA has said that some holiday makers may have to make their own arrangements in order to return home and that all flights leaving the UK with Thomas Cook have been cancelled. You can check all this information through the website.

Normally, anyone whose trip was not ATOL protected would be asked to find their own way home, however, in these circumstances, the UK government has decided to assist all affected passengers, no matter their nationality or ATOL status.

Hotels

The CAA has said that if you bought a package holiday with ATOL protection that it will “seek to guarantee your stay directly with your hotel,” and that the UK government will pay the cost of the extra nights’ stay. As such, you should not have to make any payment to your hotel to prolong your stay. If your hotel demands that you do so, you should refer it to the CAA, or call the CAA on +44 1753 330 330.

If you do not have ATOL protection you may well have to pay for the extra nights’ accommodation of your trip.

Refunds

Refunds for future holidays and flights that have now been cancelled should be made through the ATOL scheme, and all ATOL protected passengers are entitled to a full refund. (Thomas Cook package holiday customers are covered by ATOL).

The CAA has said that it will set up a dedicated refund service to help with claims, beginning on Monday, September 30.

If you are experiencing issues not covered by this article or the CAA designated website, you can call the CAA on +44 1753 330 330.

Look out for more info and press releases from the UK government through the transport/aviation section on the website.

Harry Stott is a regular contributor to the Barcelona Metropolitan covering Brexit, local political and social issues as well as the music scene. He recently received a B.A. in music from the University of Leeds, and now writes and produces radio content for a number of organizations in Barcelona and beyond. You can read more of Harry's articles here.