Have any Arundel residents booked their holiday with these companies?

Following the death of the owner of two travel businesses based in Lancing, near Arundel, trading standards is trying to contact customers.

The companies are Leisurebreak Holidays and Leisure Breaks with A1, which were based in Station Parade. 

Graeme MacPherson, Head of Regulatory Services at West Sussex Trading Standards, said: “The owner’s death has resulted in many planned trips being cancelled and doubt over the return of deposits to customers who had already booked.” 

Trading Standards and another travel firm, A1 Executive Travel, which shared premises with the businesses, are trying to make contact with the majority of the customers who had paid deposits to advise them of the situation. 

“There is some good news – we found a number of cheques on the premises that had not been banked and these are being returned to customers,” said Graeme.

“But it is still unclear whether the businesses will continue to trade and we are investigating if there was any financial protection in place to safeguard customers’ money.”

Trading Standards advice for consumers looking to book similar trips is to check whether the operator is a member of a trade association, such as ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents) or AITO (Association of Independent Tour Operators). 

“They will then be bound by the relevant association's code of practice and the association could be prepared to step in if any problems occur.

“Consumers should also consider paying for some of the cost of the trip by credit card. If the total price of the trip is more than £100 even paying the deposit on card ensures you can also ask the credit card company for compensation if things go wrong,” said Graeme.

Peter Evans, County Council Cabinet for Public Protection, said: “Because booking a holiday represents a considerable investment for people looking forward to a well-earned break, our Trading Standards Service began the investigation as soon as they were made aware of the situation.” 

If you are due to travel with these companies please contact Trading Standards for further advice on Consumer Direct 08454 040506