London-based firm Flight Options Limited, trading principally as Kiss Flights, ceased trading at 5pm on 17 August 2010. The budget flight company operated charter flights to Greece, Egypt, Turkey and the Canary Islands. The company has an estimated 13,000 customers currently overseas, and around 60,000 people have forward bookings with the company.
Flight Options / Kiss Flights is the 13th holiday company to cease trading so far this year. Sun 4 U collapsed last week and Goldtrail folded last month. Flight Options / Kiss Flights operated flights on many of the same routes as Goldtrail, and it is possible that some unfortunate holidaymakers will be adversely affected for a second time.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has confirmed that Flight Options / Kiss Flights was ATOL (Air Travel Organisers' License) protected under ATOL 4233. The CAA has provided the following advice for concerned Flight Options / Kiss Flights customers.
If you are currently abroad:
The CAA has said that ATOL protected customers will be able to complete their holidays and travel home in line with the scheduled end of their holidays. You are ATOL protected if your flight was booked with Flight Options / Kiss Flights – check your invoice, looking for ‘ATOL 4233’. In these cases, you should arrive at the airport in time to check-in for your flights home as normal. In most cases, accommodation was booked independently with another holiday company and so is not affected by the failure of Flight Options / Kiss Flights. If this applies to you (check your booking invoice), you do NOT have to pay again for your accommodation. Flight Options / Kiss Flights did sell a very small number of package holidays. In such cases, only the flight element of the holiday is protected under ATOL 4233. You may be required to pay again for the accommodation, although you should be able to claim this back using the claim form on the CAA website - see caa.co.uk. Remember to obtain and keep a receipt. If you are currently abroad and experiencing difficulties, you can call the CAA helpline on 0044 161 444 5811.
If your flight leaves the UK before 6pm on Wednesday 18 August 2010:
The CAA has confirmed that because Flight Options / Kiss Flights ceased trading at the height of the summer season, it has made arrangements to allow a limited number of people to travel out on their holidays in order to reduce confusion and protect passengers. If your flight leaves the UK before 6pm on Wednesday 18 August 2010, it will operate as planned and you should go to the airport and check in as normal.
If you have a forward booking leaving after 6pm on Wednesday 18 August 2010:
If your flight leaves after 6pm on Wednesday 18 August 2010 you are advised not to travel. Instead, you should make a claim for a refund – the CAA website (caa.co.uk) has details on how to make a claim. You are ATOL protected if your flight was booked with Flight Options / Kiss Flights – check your invoice, looking for ‘ATOL 4233’. The ATOL protection only applies to the flight element of your holiday. You will not be able to claim a refund for the accommodation element of your holiday if it was provided by another company – check your booking invoice for details. Rather, you should seek advice from your travel agent about making alternative travel arrangements where possible. You will have to pay for the replacement travel, which may well cost more that the original flights. You should check your travel insurance to see if you may be able to claim any additional cost, but you will not be able to claim it under the ATOL scheme. If you have a forward booking and need general advice you can call the CAA helpline on 0844 571 7262.