THE CHARTERED INSTITUTE OF ARBITRATORS

EAST MIDLANDS BRANCH

(Chairman: Roy Pickavance)

Press Release June 2001

Click to Complain – ABTA Arbitration Scheme Goes Online

With over 800,000 people travelling from East Midlands Airport to go on holiday over the next 4 months, statistics predict that over 10,000 are likely to come back and complain about a bad holiday experience. In the past the misery would not end there with dissatisfied customers facing lengthy and expensive court battles to seek compensation from travel companies.

To tackle the issue of holiday disputes the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA), in conjunction with the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb), has launched a new improved arbitration scheme to provide a low-cost and effective alternative to going to court. Under the new scheme clients for the first time will be able to submit claims via the Internet.

Further improvements have been made to make the process faster and clearer for consumers. Claims will now be dealt with in less than 2 months, which compares to 8-9 months on average to go through the Small Claims Court. The maximum amount claimable has been raised from £1,500 to £5,000 per person, and per group £7,500 to £15,000, which will now also include up to £1,000 per person for a minor illness or accident. An average £1,500 claim costs nearly three times as much to pursue through the court rather than through arbitration.

Commenting on the scheme Keith Richards, ABTA’s Head of Consumer Affairs, said:

“ABTA and the travel industry aim to provide the highest level of customer service. However if in the unlikely situation when a consumer has a bad holiday experience we are confident that the Arbitration Scheme provides them with the opportunity to resolve their dispute in a speedy and cost effective way.

We have been working with our partners, The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, to implement further improvements to the scheme from 1st May. The improvements aim to decrease the hassle for the consumer, so the arbitration can now be conducted on-line and the processing time has reduced from 5 months to 2 months.”

Jeffrey Rosenthal, Public Relations Officer for the East Midlands Branch of The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators added:

“The ABTA Arbitration Scheme gives consumers with complaints about their holidays genuine choice on how they settle their disputes. This scheme underlines The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators commitment to provide accessible justice without the anxiety and expense of going to court.”

About The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators

Founded in 1915, The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) is a not-for-profit organisation with headquarters in London and branches worldwide.

Approaching 10,000 members in 85 countries, the CIArb promotes and facilitates the determination of disputes by arbitration, but also by alternative means of dispute resolution (ADR) for business sectors including; the law, construction, shipping, engineering, finance, insurance, commodities, medicine sport and the automobile industry.

A dynamic organisation, the CIArb conducts “Dispute Resolution Services” - administering bespoke schemes for both business-to-business and business-to-consumer transactions to provide cost-effective and timely settlement of disputes.

The CIArb also provides international training courses. It is dedicated to facilitating access to justice for all, both in the developed and the developing world.

For further information, please contact

Louise Gardiner

Kaizo

Tel: 020 7580 8852

Email: louise.gardiner@kaizo.net

Jeffrey C Rosenthal

Public Relations Officer, East Midlands Branch

Tel: 0116 241 4316

Email: PR@CIArb-EM.org

Gregory Hunt

Manager, Dispute Resolution Services

Chartered Institute of Arbitrators