Teletext Holidays ‘very disappointed’ after watchdog launches legal proceedings

Teletext Holidays ‘very disappointed’ after watchdog launches legal proceedings

OTA owes £1.2 million in COVID refunds but says it has paid back £10.8 million

Teletext Holidays says it is “very disappointed” with the launch of legal action against its parent company by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).

On Monday, the CMA began its legal action over parent company Truly Holdings’ failure to pay refunds on cancelled package holidays.

A Teletext Holidays spokesperson confirmed the OTA now owes £1.2 million in refunds and has paid back £10.8 million.

They said: “The company is working as hard as it can and continues to process the remaining refunds due under the Package Travel Regulations to our remaining customers, and as such is very disappointed by the latest action by the CMA.

“We have engaged in constructive dialogue with the CMA and continue to vigorously pursue any strategy agreed with the CMA.

“The company continues to urge customers who are due a refund under the Package Travel Regulations but have not received it, to contact us directly from their registered email address (which was used to make their booking). If we need more information, we will request it.”

The CMA announced in May that Teletext parent company Truly Holdings had signed?undertakings committing to refund customers for holidays cancelled amid the pandemic.

The authority warned in September that it would take Truly Holdings to court unless it took urgent action to process refunds.

But it announced on Monday (Ocotober 19): “The CMA does not consider Truly Holdings has done enough to provide refunds to package holiday customers with outstanding claims, including recent cancellations, or to make sure it pays all future refunds that are due within the 14 days required by law.

“The CMA has therefore filed proceedings requesting a court order that outstanding refunds be immediately repaid and that, going forward, customers entitled to a refund are repaid within 14 days.”

Teletext customers seeking refunds are asked to email covidwebform@trulytravel.com with their booking reference number.