Tour company Thomas Cook collapses, stranding travelers

By Bianca Britton, Jessie Yeung and Sherisse Pham, CNN

Updated 1:40 p.m. ET, September 23, 2019
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10:01 a.m. ET, September 23, 2019

Groom named Thomas Cook has wedding ruined by Thomas Cook collapse

From CNN's Gianluca Mezzofiore

A groom who shares the same name as the travel operator Thomas Cook has had his wedding plans ruined by the company's collapse.

Cook and his partner, Amelia Binch, were due to get married on the Greek island of Rhodes on Friday.

Now they are stranded, and aren't sure if the wedding can go ahead.

If it does, they don't yet know whether any of their friends will make it to Greece in time for the ceremony.

“We found out today in the early hours,” Binch told CNN. “We were devastated and still are!”

Amelia Binch and Thomas Cook booked a wedding package with Thomas Cook last year.
Amelia Binch and Thomas Cook booked a wedding package with Thomas Cook last year. Amelia Binch

The couple booked their wedding package with Thomas Cook last year. Binch said the operator promised a “special surprise” since the groom shares the company's name.

They haven’t received anything, she said, explaining that the wedding package the couple bought included not only the ceremony, but also the flowers, wedding cake and entertainment. It's not clear if any part of the wedding can go ahead as planned.

“We have some family out here but our friends are due to be flew out Wednesday (including best man) which won’t be able to come,” Binch said.

“We have no plans but to wait and find out when our flight home is.”

8:56 a.m. ET, September 23, 2019

Thomas Cook collapse equal to "a 7-magnitude earthquake" for Crete, island's tourism boss says

From CNN Business' Chris Liakos

News of Thomas Cook's collapse is the equivalent to a "7-magnitude earthquake," for the island, Michalis Vlatakis, president of the Association of Cretan Travel and Tourism Agencies has told CNN.

"The size of the Thomas Cook collapse can be compared to a 7-magnitude earthquake -- but sometimes the tsunami is even worse, and in this occasion what we’re bracing for is the tsunami," Vlatakis said.

He added that the loss of Thomas Cook's business could have a major impact on tourism on the Greek Island, where large numbers of hotels have contracts with the company.

Tourists wait at a Thomas Cook company counter at the Heraklion airport on the island of Crete.
Tourists wait at a Thomas Cook company counter at the Heraklion airport on the island of Crete. COSTAS METAXAKIS/AFP/Getty Images

Meanwhile, the Greek Tourism Association says the operator's collapse will need "quick and effective responses."

"Concrete measures should be planned and announced, as to how the problems that arise for tourism businesses as a result of the collapse will be absorbed," it said in a statement, adding that the private sector "needs to remain calm and offer assistance to the thousands of Thomas Cook tourists currently in the country."

"Our behavior and the treatment provided towards these people will shape the image of our country as a welcoming and responsible destination, on an international level."

8:36 a.m. ET, September 23, 2019

Stranded by Thomas Cook's collapse? Here's what you need to know

Fron CNN's Karla Cripps, Maureen O'Hare and Francesca Street

British tourists, flying with Thomas Cook, queue at the Enfidha International Airport in Tunisia September 23, 2019.
British tourists, flying with Thomas Cook, queue at the Enfidha International Airport in Tunisia September 23, 2019. FETHI BELAID/AFP/Getty Images

Around 600,000 travelers are affected by the collapse of tour operator Thomas Cook.

The countries where the largest numbers of tourists are stranded are Spain, Turkey, Tunisia and Greece.

Here's what affected travelers need to know:

I'm currently on a Thomas Cook holiday. How do I get home?

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) will arrange return flights for ATOL-protected travelers currently abroad who were planning to fly back to the UK with Thomas Cook.

What is ATOL? It stands for "Air Travel Organiser's Licence" -- it's a UK financial protection scheme that safeguards most package holidays sold by travel businesses based in the UK.

Basically, it prevents travelers from being left without assistance or facing a financial loss if their travel company stops trading. Which is exactly what happened in the UK on Sunday.

For those currently abroad and due to fly back to the UK with Thomas Cook, the CAA is providing new flights to get them home.

What about hotels?

Now for the bad news: Travelers who only booked hotels through Thomas Cook and not flight-inclusive packages will have to foot the hotel bill themselves.

But if your Thomas Cook holiday included flights, there is specific advice about accommodation.

The CAA says that if you are currently abroad on an ATOL-protected package holiday with Thomas Cook -- or any company which is part of the Thomas Cook Group -- the authority "will seek to guarantee your stay directly with your hotel."

The CAA says it may take a few days to secure these arrangements. In the meantime, do not make a payment to your hotel, unless instructed otherwise by the CAA team.

If you are not ATOL-protected, the CAA says you can't make a claim for out-of-pocket expenses and additional nights of hotel accommodation -- but you may be able to claim from your travel insurer, bank or credit card issuer.

I haven't traveled yet. How do I get a refund?

Don't bother going to the airport. All Thomas Cook flights were immediately canceled following the announcement of the company's shutdown.

As for getting a refund, again, in the UK it all comes down to ATOL. If your holiday was protected, you should be able to file a claim via the ATOL scheme.

Now here's where things get a bit tricky.

The CAA says if you booked a holiday with Thomas Cook but your flights are with an airline unrelated to the Thomas Cook Group, your flights may still be available.

"You are advised to check with the airline if you are still able to travel," says the authority's advice.

"If you wish to travel, you can do so and make a claim to ATOL for the cost of replacing your other travel services. You are not obliged to use your flights and can instead claim a refund under the ATOL scheme."

8:26 a.m. ET, September 23, 2019

Thomas Cook employees have been "stabbed in the back," pilots' union says

Empty check-in counters at Gatwick Airport.
Empty check-in counters at Gatwick Airport. Sebastian Shukla, CNN

The British Airline Pilots' Association (BALPA) says it is "despicable" how Thomas Cook employees have been treated amid the travel company's collapse.

Read the full statement here:

The hope of all Thomas Cook employees that their airline could survive has been brutally quashed this morning as they wake up to find they have no job. 
While detailed plans to repatriate passengers have been carefully put together and ministers have and will continue to claim the credit for that, the staff have been stabbed in the back without a second’s thought. 
Despite continuing to keep Thomas Cook going in recent weeks with dignity and integrity while their own futures were being secretly decided, we don’t even know if staff will get a pay cheque this month. It is despicable. Thomas Cook pilots and all staff deserve better than this. 
For pilots, BALPA will be supporting our members through the legal complexities of what [the] Thomas Cook liquidation means for them, and doing everything we can to help them find alternative jobs in other airlines
8:21 a.m. ET, September 23, 2019

UK union calls Thomas Cook collapse "an act of economic vandalism"

From Hadas Gold and James Frater in Brighton

The collapse of the 178-year-old travel firm triggered a massive repatriation effort.
The collapse of the 178-year-old travel firm triggered a massive repatriation effort. Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

The collapse of Thomas Cook, which has left 600,000 passengers stranded and tens of thousands of employees without a job, is an act of “economic vandalism,” according to Britain's Unite union.

Speaking to CNN at the Labour Party’s conference in Brighton, the union’s Assistant General Secretary for Transport, Diana Holland, said: “It is absolutely devastating for people, and our first priority -- in addition to obviously extending our message of support to every single person -- is to make sure they get paid.”

“On top of that we need to make sure they get legal representation and [compensation] they are entitled to, but above all we are doing all we can to see if there are other opportunities with other airlines.
“It is absolutely shocking and an act of economic vandalism that this could have been allowed to happen.”

Holland says Unite represents about 3,000 of the company’s 9,000 UK-based employees.

7:59 a.m. ET, September 23, 2019

Sombre atmosphere on final Thomas Cook flight

From CNN's Gianluca Mezzofiore

Wendy Willis, 57, was on board a Thomas Cook plane from Orlando to Manchester, which --- according to flight-tracking website Flightradar24 -- was the operator’s final flight.

Willis told CNN the atmosphere on the flight was very somber: "Staff were crying on the plane and ground staff were really upset and tearful."

"They were so professional and will be a credit to anyone who employs them,” she added.

Willis said she learned of Thomas Cook's collapse on Facebook before the flight took off from Florida.

“We only knew it was Thomas Cook’s last flight just before we landed, and it was confirmed by staff after we landed,” she added.

7:56 a.m. ET, September 23, 2019

Quiet scenes at London's Gatwick Airport

From CNN's Sebastian Shukla

CAA officials help passengers at Gatwick Airport.
CAA officials help passengers at Gatwick Airport. Sebastian Shukla, CNN

What's Gatwick like right now? It's not as chaotic as you might expect.

The UK Government issued lots of warnings to passengers not to turn up to airports today if you're booked on a Thomas Cook flight.

As a result, there aren't huge queues, or angry hordes of passengers flooding the departure hall at Gatwick, south of London.

Civil Aviation Authority officials who are on hand to help stranded passengers told CNN they have handed out hundreds of leaflets with all the advice that passengers impacted by Thomas Cook's closure need.

Empty desks at the check in counter for Thomas Cook.
Empty desks at the check in counter for Thomas Cook. Sebastian Shukla, CNN

7:46 a.m. ET, September 23, 2019

Downing Street defends decision to not save Thomas Cook

 A general view of Number 10 Downing Street's front door.
 A general view of Number 10 Downing Street's front door. Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

The UK Government has defended its decision not to save Thomas Cook from liquidation, telling the PA Media news agency that doing so "would not have been a good use of taxpayers' money."

"We would have had to repatriate people later down the line and have lost more money in the process," a Number 10 spokeswoman told the agency.

"It is obviously a very competitive market, and it isn't the Government's role to prop up companies when this sort of issue arises. Our decision was that injecting cash into the situation was not going to make it any better."

The spokeswoman added there were "serious concerns" over bonuses paid to Thomas Cook directors. PA Media reported that questions over the bonuses would form part of the Insolvency Service's investigation into the company's collapse.

7:42 a.m. ET, September 23, 2019

Travelers booked on Thomas Cook flights try their luck at Gatwick

From CNN's Sebastian Shukla

Martin Nowell and Pixie Flageul had booked flights with Thomas Cook to Hurghada, Egypt.
Martin Nowell and Pixie Flageul had booked flights with Thomas Cook to Hurghada, Egypt. Sebastian Shukla

Martin Nowell and Pixie Flageul told CNN they opted to try their luck at Gatwick Airport this morning, despite news of Thomas Cook's collapse.

"We thought we would try it until we hit the buffers," said Nowell, explaining that the couple had been due to fly to Hurghada in Egypt.

"We were all packed and ready to go," he added. "Pixie has been looking forward to this for months."

He said the pair had booked their flights through the tour operator, and their hotel through another agency.

"I'm glad we didn’t fly because we could get stuck, and we only have limited means in terms be able to bail ourselves out," Nowell added.