‘CAA wrong to deny commission’ Ian Taylor
Abta believes the CAA was wrong to deny agents unpaid commission on Thomas Cook bookings when they handed over pipeline money following the company’s failure. Simon Bunce, Abta head of
legal services, said: “The agents had done everything right. They had the pipeline money and they have been perfectly happy to hand it over. They should be able to keep their commission.” Speaking at law firm Travlaw’s
annual Big Tent Event in London on Monday, Bunce said: “I’m very supportive of the CAA in this process [of handling Cook’s
liquidation], but this is wrong.” He noted the requirement for
agents to hand over all payments from consumers following an Atol- holder’s failure “is in the [Atol] rules, and it has been like this for a long time”. But he insisted: “We’ll be taking this up with the CAA [on completion of the process].” The amount of commission lost
by third-party agents remains unclear. Kelly Cookes, who was head of
commercial partnerships and sales planning at Thomas Cook when the group went into liquidation, agreed. She said: “The agents had done
all the work. They had sold the holiday. They had supported the tour operator and passed on the money.
Agents had sold
the holiday. To not receive commission was a shock. It didn’t help keep businesses afloat
COLLAPSE
THOMAS COOK
“To not receive the commission
wasn’t what they were expecting. It was a shock. It didn’t help keep businesses afloat.” Cookes joined The Advantage
Travel Partnership as leisure director
in October, but until last June was general manager of the Cook-owned Freedom Travel Group. She said: “Some Freedom members lost businesses they had spent years building up [due to the system shut- down following Cook’s collapse].” However, a senior industry source
suggested criticism of the CAA over non-payment of commissions was unwarranted, saying: “The CAA paid agents [who passed on pipeline money] £50 each as an admin fee, regardless of the value of a booking. There were winners and losers from that.” The source added: “Freedom
members got all their commission [on bookings] through the Accredited Body.”
Globe award honours former Cook staff
Travel Weekly reporters
Former Thomas Cook agents who worked in the wake of the collapse were honoured as this year’s Unsung Heroes at the Travel Weekly Globe Travel Awards in London last Thursday. Donna Jones, who had worked in
the Longton branch in Staffordshire, collected the Penny Akam award on behalf of all the agents who helped customers despite losing their jobs. She praised other ex-Cook agents
who set up advice clinics in coffee shops or pubs, similar to how her team used a vacant shop to help worried customers.
4 23 JANUARY 2020 Another special award winner
was Alistair Rowland, retail chief of The Midcounties Co-operative and chairman of Abta, who received this year’s Outstanding Achievement Award. Rowland, who
has more than 20 years’ industry experience, said he was “humbled” to be honoured, saying the award “means the world to me”. A group of industry leaders
also shared stories of how they coped with mental health issues as the night’s chosen charity was introduced. G Adventures’ Brian
Donna Jones with the Penny Akam Unsung
Hero Award for former Thomas Cook staff
Young, The Travel Corporation’s Rachel Coffey, Virgin Voyages’ Shane Riley, Michelle Laverick of HF Holidays and Vivid Travel owner Kane Pirie gave heartfelt video testimony to shine a light on mental health awareness. Thousands of pounds were raised
for the Mental Health Foundation, whose head of business development and engagement Chris O’Sullivan addressed guests. Jet2holidays and
Jet2.com were
once again the big winners on the night, taking home three Globes. The operator won Best Trade-Friendly Brand and Best Short-Haul Operator, while
Jet2.com was named Best Short-Haul Airline. Other multiple award
winners included Kuoni, APT, Gold Medal and Emirates, each of which won two Globes at the industry’s biggest awards ceremony. The event was attended by 1,250 guests at Grosvenor House hotel on London’s Park Lane.
i Globes coverage, pages 14-18
travelweekly.co.uk
PICTURE: Sarah Lucy Brown
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