Get All Access for $5/mo

Thomas Cook Crisis: What Are Your Rights as a Passenger? Thomas Cook India is a separate entity and remains unaffected by the event. But, as a holidaymaker it would be in your interest to know about your rights

By Shipra Singh

You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.

pixabay

World's oldest tour operator, Thomas Cook, folded operations on Monday after failing to secure an investment to keep their business going. Sudden shut down of the travel company and airlines has left around six lakh travelers stranded all over the world, as reported by BBC, and thousands of other holiday plans spoiled.

While Thomas Cook India is a separate entity and remains unaffected by this event, you should know your rights as a customer if your travel agency goes bankrupt.

When you have booked a holiday package

If you are outside India on the travel company's holiday package and are stranded as a result of the company going bust, you will have to arrange for transportation back home on your own.

Currently, there is no government policy or travel insurance product that covers holidaymakers on a holiday package. "The current travel policies cover flight cancellation but other parts of the package like, taxis for internal commute and hotel are not covered," says Tarun Mathur, Chief Business Officer—General Insurance, Policybazaar, an online insurance aggregator.

Consumer activist Jehangir Gai says that hotels and airlines are not the faulty party and hence, hold the right to cancel the booking or charge the customer even if he has made full payment to the travel agency for the holiday package. "The airline or the hotel is not at fault here. If they haven't received the payment from the travel company, they can cancel the booking or ask for payment from the customer."

However, you can later approach the consumer court to claim a refund of the package amount. You can even ask for compensation for the inconvenience caused to you.

When you are yet to take the holiday

The travel company will cancel and process refund of the holiday package that has not yet been taken. However, the refund amount that you will get will depend on the terms and conditions laid out by the company in its fine print. So, before making the booking, make sure to check the company's fine print to get clarity on what you stand to get in case of such an event.

If you bought a flight-only deal

You can claim a refund of a flight-only deal booked through a third party only if that trip is covered by travel insurance. Otherwise, as mentioned above, the airline can deny you boarding or cancel your booking if it has not received payment from the travel company.

Full refund of the ticket or an alternate flight is provided to passengers when the flight is cancelled by the airline itself without informing the passengers at least two weeks in advance. However, they are not liable to compensate passengers when the cancellation is a result of the travel operator's fault.

Shipra Singh

Entrepreneur Staff

Freelance Journalist

News and Trends

India's Logistics Cost to be Reduced to 9% Within 2 Years: Nitin Gadkari

With a focus on innovation, clean energy, infrastructure, and rural empowerment, Nitin Gadkari's vision aligns with India's aspirations to become a global economic powerhouse.

Business News

Apple Is Adding ChatGPT to iPhones This Week. Here's How It Works.

ChatGPT will take over questions that Siri can't answer.

Business News

These Companies Offer the Best Work-Life Balance, According to Employees

The ranking is based on Glassdoor ratings and reviews.

News and Trends

AWE Funds to Scale Women-Led ClimateTech Initiatives with CGEF Grant

The grant will empower AWE Funds to expand initiatives, invest in women-led climate companies, enhance accelerator programs, and launch a fellowship nurturing young women professionals in climate and sustainability.

News and Trends

India's Data Center Capacity to Reach 2,070 MW by End of 2025: CBRE

Cumulative investment commitments in the data center sector in India to cross USD 100 billion by 2027. Mumbai, Chennai, and Delhi-NCR to lead data center supply addition