More than 4-in-10 Brits (43%) are set to book a last-minute half-term holiday overseas between October and Christmas, the figures suggest. This figure rises to more than 50% among younger consumers aged 18-34.

Average spend on these trips, meanwhile, is expected to run just shy of £2,500, with 30% of prospective travellers planning to spent more than £3,000 on their getaways, and 7% more than £5,000.

“There has been a trend for late bookings all summer, and it looks as if this will continue into the autumn and beyond,” said Michael Budge, head of Atol at the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

The research accompanies a new video campaign marking the 50th anniversary of Atol, highlighting examples where the scheme has come to the aid of consumers where their holiday is impacted by a failure.

"You don’t realise how important Atol actually is until you have been through something… you don’t think the horror story is going to happen,” said Carol, who was on holiday in Greece with her partner when their travel company collapsed. “We certainly know what Atol protected means now."