I am planning on travelling to china and oasis...

I am planning on travelling to china and oasis hong kong airlines have cheap flights I was just wondering if I would be protected finanially if I went with them (do you know if they have Atol, Abta or Aito)?

If your air travel is booked as part of a package via a travel agent, then you will most likely be offered financial protection if things go wrong. In the DIY world, don't assume holidays are financially protected. The general rule is that if you book on the internet there is an element of risk and therefore being aware before you book of the extent of the risk is advised.

Under the (PTR) Package Travel Regulations, every package that includes a flight should be covered by an ATOL (Air Travel Organiser's Licence). An ATOL requires tour operators to provide a bond to the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority). This ensures that funds are available to repatriate travellers in the event of the company going bust.

ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents) has never provided financial protection for air holidays. This is the role of AITO.

If you book passage direct on a schedule flight with an airline - including no-frills airlines - you will NOT be protected by ATOL. Air packages sold by any company displaying an ATOL or AITO should be financially protected. However, caution is still recommended as agents are able to sell non ATOL-protected packages too. As an example Thomson's website shows an ATOL logo but also warns that flights departing from various UK airports to not have ATOL protection. 

You should also be aware that a travel agent that sells you the various components of your holiday separately, as opposed to as a package, will be able to bypass the requirement to provide ATOL protection.

4 April 2007