p6 News Nov13 11/11/09 18:20 Page 6
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ttglive.com
Tui postpones plan for
payments 12 weeks out
Lee Hayhurst.
quired a lot of changes to our computer systems.”
TUI TRAVEL is to defer plans to change its terms Blastland said the factors that prompted Tui
that would have required customers to pay in full to consider the move, including increasing levels
12 weeks out rather then eight. of late bookings, were still causing it problems.
As TTG revealed on October 16, it had started “Booking patterns are changing; we used to
to consult the trade about the proposal. get lots of early bookings on deposit,” he said.
Last week Cosmos revealed it would be asking “The more consumers commit on deposit and
for payments from direct customers 12 weeks out pay early, the more likely they are to go on
and said it could make this the norm for agents holiday and not cancel.” Mike Greenacre (left) and Dermot Blastland at WTM on Tuesday
when commercial terms are renewed. Tui previously said one of the reasons for con-
Tui UK managing director Dermot Blastland sidering extending the payment window was so it “Customers are used to paying 10 to 12 weeks
said Tui’s move to 12 weeks would not go-ahead, could more efficiently recycle cancelled holidays. out and this would just have added to all the
although he could not rule it out in the future. Mike Greenacre, managing director of The other challenges they are facing financially. We
“The decision to defer was taken due to the Co-operative Travel, said he did not think already have APD going up, airport security tax
recession and to the fact that this would have re- consumers would have accepted the move. going from £1 to £2.50 and rising unemployment.”
Constanti and Derbyshire promoted Tui’s Long implores
THOMAS COOK has promoted Pete Constanti and and content management, as well as retaining
Ian Derbyshire in a boardroom reshuffle. some existing roles including health and safety,
MPs to scrap APD
Derbyshire, who is known to be highly re- legal, human resources and PR. TUI TRAVEL chief executive Peter Long confronted
garded by group chief executive Manny Fontenla- Derbyshire will look after airline, sales chan- politicians in Westminster last week to demand
Novoa, now overseas both the independent and nels, operating and financial services activities. the scrapping of the controversial Air Passenger
mainstream channels as UK chief executive. Fontenla-Novoa said Constanti’s new role Duty.
Constanti, another of Fontenla-Novoa’s trusted would “drive further efficiencies” as well as His demands during a parliamentary reception
lieutenants, has taken on the role of destination deliver continued high standards of service. that APD needed to be replaced “as a matter of
management chief executive for the group. He He said Derbyshire would continue the expan- urgency” echoed similar views from delegates at
was previously UK chief executive for main- sion of the mainstream business, which had cap- this week’s WTM (full report, p10).
stream travel. italised on the growth of the independent travel Long criticised the government for its lack of
He will lead the group’s purchasing, in-resort sector in the last 18 months by acquiring Hotels4U, consultation with the industry and said travel
operations, overseas agents, hotels investment Elegant Resorts, Medhotels and Gold Medal. companies were outraged APD was charged as a
per-passenger tax, rather than taking aircraft
load factors into account.
He said it penalised charter airlines, which fly
aircraft about 95% full, while scheduled carriers
“ran at about two-thirds”.
Long also argued that a planned increase in
APD in November next year must be stopped,
and that premium economy tickets should be
downgraded to the lowest tax band.
Labour’s Paul Clark, a parliamentary under-
secretary for the Department for Transport, said
the government had no plans to change APD but
was always keen to listen to the industry. He said
a per-aircraft tax was not viable as it would not
TALK OF THE TOON: Newcastle United manager Chris Hughton (left), Thomas Cook give enough flexibility for economic change.
agents Sandra Adams (second left) and Claire Hedley, and Thomas Cook Sport’s Nick The Conservative and Liberal Democrat
Smith celebrate Cook Sports’ three-year deal to become the team’s official travel partner parties both vowed to review APD.
06 13.11.2009
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