A €500,000 insolvency fund for package holiday operators has been set up to insure against a repeat of the Fantasy Tours fiasco.

Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis announced today that a legal notice has been published to set up the fund to protect Maltese holiday-goers from travel companies that encounter financial difficulty after having accepted payment for trips abroad.

The fund will be financed by some 70 operators and the amounts they contribute will be based on their size and market share.

The issue was thrust into the national spotlight back in 2013 when travel company Fantasy Tours went bankrupt after having cancelled hundreds of paid-up trips. The police received some 270 reports claiming nearly €407,000 in damages, against the company.

Dr Zammit Lewis, explained that the new fund cannot be accessed by those who suffered losses before it was set up, but it would protect future travellers from similar situations.

He said the legal amendments to protect travellers had been pending since 2009.

 

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