BONDING COSTS ‘BECOMING UNAFFORDABLE’, CLAIMS PROTECTED TRUST SERVICES

Published on 24th of March, 2022 on TTG Media.

Protected Trust Services has claimed a “surge” in membership in recent months fuelled by upcoming Atol renewals and a rise in the cost of bonding.

The consortium, which specialises in offering trust accounts to members, said it was hearing “consistent feedback” from businesses enquiring and joining its ranks that increased bonding costs were forcing firms to reassess their financial protection methods.

PTS said “all types” of travel businesses were coming onboard, including tour operators, retail travel agencies and independent homeworkers, reporting to have welcome 40 new members since the start of 2022.

Managing director Mark Sutton claimed “the sharp increase” in bonding was “simply becoming unaffordable for many travel businesses”.

“However, we appreciate this increase must be implemented to ensure better financial protection. For UK travel companies that are moving to PTS they are seeing trust accounts are a more affordable option,” said Sutton.