In a video message posted on the agency’s Facebook page, John Hays said that since the UK’s lockdown imposed on 23 March “we’re really conscious we haven’t given the quality of service you would associate with Hays Travel, and we’re really sorry for that”.

Hays Travel announced last month it had furloughed “the majority” of staff to safeguard jobs under the government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. 

Hays said the agency was now “steadily bringing our staff back” to work from home with “more than half” of its 5,000-person workforce already back in action, adding: “We’re increasing that every day.”

Speaking alongside John, Irene Hays asked customers to contact their local branch via email.

“We’ll get you an acknowledgement straight away but as you can imagine we’re looking after those who have most need first,” she said. 

Hays added she wanted to “say a huge thank you for all the positive messages” the company had received during the crisis and joked that “yes you’re quite right, we honestly couldn’t have made up [the] last year”.

“But we really appreciate the lovely messages – thanks very much everyone, take care of yourselves,” she said.