Hundreds of thousands of stranded Thomas Cook customers have been desperately attempting to find out the fate of their holiday plans. The 178-year-old travel agent has ceased trading with immediate effect as well as filing for bankruptcy following a failed last-gasp plea to its lenders.

Insiders were initially saying the company was examining “every possible option” as it tried to salvage a rescue deal.

A deal would have sought to save the 20,000 jobs across Thomas Cook, including 9,000 in the UK.

The travel agent had attempted to calm any fears of the worst on its website where it wrote that it was “working on recapitalisation planes to provide financial stability for the Thomas Cook Group going forward”.

What does this all mean for holidaymakers?

The collapse has triggered the biggest peacetime repatriation of British citizens in history.

The Civil Aviation Authority has launched a taxpayer-funded airlift to bring the estimated 150,000 holidaymakers home.

It isn’t the first time that public money has been used to get UK tourists home, as in October 2017 £60million ($74million) was used to get passenger of the bust the airline Monarch home.

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What happens if I’m already overseas?

This all depends on your booking.

If you’re holiday is ATOL protected you will be able to finish your trip and be repatriated home with little to no inconvenience.

If you’re holiday was part of a package you’ll also be fine, as package holiday’s are ATOL protected – as well as some flight-only bookings.

The CAA has warned travellers have been warned not to make their way to the airport until their flight has been confirmed on a dedicated website, such as thomascook.caa.co.uk.

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What is ATOL?

ATOL, or Air travel Organiser’s License, is a financial protection scheme run by the Civil Aviation Authority.

It protects most air package holidays sold by UK-based travel businesses in the event that things go wrong unexpectedly or in short notice, as have done with Thomas Cook.

If a travel business with ATOL ceases trading, the scheme would support consumers who are currently abroad.

The scheme would then provide financial reimbursement for the cost of replacing parts of an ATOL protected package.

The ATOL scheme is funded by each ATOL holder paying a small fee for each traveller.

This fee is held by the Air Travel Trust.

This fund is then used to refund, repatriate or reimburse travellers where appropriate.

How do I know if my holiday was ATOL protected?

The best way to check this is to look for an ATOL certificate that is normally attached to any booking made.

The certificate will tell you what to do in the case of an issue – here, if your travel business collapses.

The number to call with any problems is +44 (0) 333 103 6350.

What if my package holiday didn’t include a flight?

In this case you could be ABTA protected instead.

Thomas Cook says on its customer care Twitter that ABTA and the CAA (who manage the ATOL scheme) would arrange for these customers to be repatriated.

Will my insurance help?

Your insurance will only help if ti specifically includes failure cover. and not all of them do – even if your policy does have this, it is unlikely to pay out if you’re covered by ABTA or ATOL.

What ifI haven’t started my holiday yet?

ATOL protection means that you’ll either get a refund or in some cases a replacement holiday.

For more information on all of the above thomascook.caa.co.uk.

Here you will find details and information on repatriation flights, as well as advice on accommodation for both ATOL and non-ATOL customers.

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