Since the bankruptcy of the German tour operator FTI Touristik, several French customers have shared their difficulties and struggles. The situation remains all the more complicated as the French subsidiary, FTI Voyages, has not yet filed for bankruptcy, Emmanuel Toromanof, secretary general of APST, its financial guarantor, confirmed to us this morning. “What’s difficult for travel agencies is getting customers to leave,” he explains. Fortunately, “the networks have mostly kept the money paid by customers,” he adds.
In the immediate future, many travelers are raising another problem: the payment of services required upon arriving at their destination, i.e. double payment. As evidenced by this comment left on the site of The Tourist Echo : “We are in Croatia. We had to pay for the hotel nights, the transfer to the airport as well as a new flight to return to France and still no contact from our tour operator. We are very perplexed about a possible refund or even support.”
Keep the supporting documents carefully
What to do in such a situation? “Keep the supporting documents carefully to claim reimbursement,” replies Emmanuel Toromanof. A tip that may seem obvious, but is very useful to remember. For the record, following the bankruptcy of Thomas Cook in 2019, many French people were unable to obtain a refund because their file remained incomplete.
“In all cases, customers must contact their salesperson immediately” if they have booked through an agency for example, adds Emmanuel Toromanof. Customers who have booked directly with the tour operator, without going through an intermediary “must make a complaint on the APST website”, via this form.
Then, travelers will have to be patient. As long as FTI Voyages has not filed for bankruptcy in France, the APST cannot do anything. The reimbursement procedures that then begin can take many months.
