With families enjoying the festive holidays and thoughts turning to sunny climates for 2022, travellers looking for their next holiday are reminded to check for financial protection when booking their getaways.

Research by the UK Civil Aviation Authority has found that 74 per cent of people consider ATOL protection more important since the pandemic.

Booking a package holiday that is financially protected by the ATOL scheme is a straightforward way to protect a trip.

ATOL protection means that if the travel company you booked with ceases trading, you will either get your money back, or, if you have already begun your holiday, be able to complete your trip at no extra cost.

Before booking, you should always check that your travel provider is a legitimate ATOL holder.

You can do this on the UK Civil Aviation Authority website.

While ATOL protected package holidays provide the best possible level of financial protection, there are other ways of booking trips.

Michael Budge, head of ATOL at the UK Civil Aviation Authority, said: “With many travellers considering ATOL protection more important since the pandemic, we want to make sure consumers are aware of the financial protection that ATOL provides.

“While travel has not yet normalised, we’re asking holidaymakers to make smart decisions for their well-earned breaks by booking ATOL protected trips.”