Police complaint prompts probe into Atol protection claims on flights website

The CAA is investigating a website called Click2Flight offering flights and holidays for sale in the UK.

The CAA is investigating a website called Click2Flight offering flights and holidays for sale in the UK.

The investigation follows a call to Travel Weekly from Avon and Somerset police after a consumer reported booking a flight which did not exist.

Click2Flight offers “cheap flights”, including with British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, primarily to long-haul destinations.

Its site carries an Atol logo, although the number is illegible, and claims: “We are fully bonded of ATOL, UK APTA, IATA.”

The company suggests APTA stands for Asia Pacific Travel Partner. A spokeswoman for the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA International) said she had never heard of the group.

Click2Flight claim to act “as agents”, stating: “The Company are not the Principal and do not act as the Principal.” It appears to offer hotels and car hire but clicking on these options merely returns a user to the flight options.

The CAA confirmed the company does not hold an Atol and UK Companies House shows no record of the firm.

Click2Flight provides a London address and phone number but had not responded to email or phone messages. The address in south London appears to be occupied by a hardware shop.

A CAA spokesman said: “There are a few things we have concerns about and we’re looking into it. They don’t have an Atol. You can’t see the Atol number. It’s not clear who they are an agent of.”

The company claims to have won a 2012 Readers Choice Award from the US Travel Weekly, but the Travel Weekly site shows it was not among the winners.