Deadline looms for XL passengers seeking refund
September 8, 2009Holidaymakers who were left out of pocket by the demise of XL Airways last year have until this Friday (September 11) to file a claim for compensation.
The operator collapsed on September 12, 2008, leaving 200,000 people scrambling to secure refunds from Civil the Aviation Authority (CAA) for their tickets.
About 85,000 of those had booked with an ATOL-bonded agent and so were automatically entitled to a refund – and yet a quarter have still not asked for their money back.
To date, the CAA has received 65,102 claims of which 55,324 have been settled, ratcheting up a bill of £37.5 million for the beleaguered regulator.
Anyone who still wants to request compensation only has until Friday to do so under the terms of the Air Travel Trust payment policy. To make a claim you should either speak to your travel operator or print off the relevant form from the CAA's ATOL website.
"The CAA can only pay valid claims that are received by it within 12 months of the date of failure," the regulator's official advice states. "Therefore the CAA will not accept claims arising from the failure of the XL Group after midnight on September 11, 2009."
Customers who booked direct with the airline are not eligible for ATOL compensation, and should instead contact their credit card company or travel insurance provider.
© Cheapflights Ltd
