The bankruptcy of the major German tour operator FTI Touristik is also becoming a nightmare for many Austrian holidaymakers. More and more affected people are reporting to the Styrian Workers’ Chamber. For example, a family in the Dominican Republic had to pay twice.
Since Monday, almost 30 inquiries have already gone to the Styrian Chamber of Labor by telephone and email – and the number is constantly increasing, according to the ‘Krone’ query. Consumer lawyer Birgit Auner: “The questions relate to individual bookings of flights and rental cars, but also to package holidays.”
The package holidays are insured, Auner advises customers to search the travel documents for so-called backup data. With individual bookings, the chance that you will ever get the money back is small: “These customers will have to wait out the insolvency proceedings.”
Family asked to pay again
No one is currently in custody anywhere, but a family flew to the Dominican Republic on Monday. “When they arrived at the hotel, the bill had not yet been paid” – even though the family had paid for the trip in full. She was asked to pay again. Auner: “We recommend that you definitely get a payment confirmation!” Such a situation is “extremely stressful”.
According to Auner, it is also important: “If someone now receives a payment request, we advise not to pay. But you have to send an email and explain why.” The last bankruptcy of a comparable scale that Auner experienced was that of German tour operator Thomas Cook in 2019.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
