Trade body AAC consulted its membership following the call for evidence in September
After surveying its members on the proposed changes, AAC chair Lindsay Ingram said on Tuesday (12 December): “At present, some of the rules fail to do either and should be changed.”
The association’s members were invited to share their views on the proposals within hours of the government announcing in September a 12-week call for evidence, led by the Department of Business and Trade (DBT)
Key proposals included deregulating domestic holidays, setting a minimum cost threshold for package rules to apply, simplifying – or scrapping – Linked Travel Arrangements, and clarifying the redress from third-party rule.
More than 40% of AAC members returned completed surveys, sharing views the association described as “clear and unambiguous”. The AAC added it opposed “any attempt” to reduce consumer protection “simply based on the price paid”.
AAC secretary Alan Bowen said: “For those choosing lower-priced holidays, the need for protection may well be higher and this suggestion is hare-brained.”
The AAC has also pushed for an end to Linked Travel Arrangements, claiming “neither the consumer, nor the industry, seems certain of their intent nor the very limited level of protection they provide”.