ITC chief executive Phil Aird-Mash said he was "delighted" by the success many agents have had persuading clients to amend their holiday dates rather than pursuing refunds or refund credit notes (RCNs).

"We can see how hard you’re working to keep these bookings, and we are immensely grateful for this support," said Aird-Mash. "A fully confirmed amendment for a later date is the best outcome for us all.

"I’m delighted to see how well we’re using our combined skills and knowledge to reallocate these bookings. We can also see the high volume of RCNs you are encouraging your customers to take; again, for this we are very grateful, and we are now in the process of distributing these."

ITC has pledged to process all refunds and RCNs for March and April departures by the end of May, and again stressed the operator’s appreciation fo agents efforts to make refunds "a last resort".

"Our indicators show this is working well," said Aird-Mash. "However, we fully understand there will always be exceptions – the customers who are completely insistent on refunds. We want to ensure we can support you with these cases to ensure your customers are happy."

Aird-Mash said ITC had been working hard to recoup supplier costs, allowing the operator – over the past two weeks – to start processing cash refunds for those customers unwilling to amend.

"Due to the complexity of this present situation, any eligible refunds we have been processing are taking longer than usual," he said.

"Our message remains the same: please do everything in your considerable power to encourage your customers to change bookings or accept RCNs. That said, in cases where you are unable to achieve this, call or email us and we will make sure we provide you with the best service possible."

Addressing agents directly, he added: "No one knows better than yourselves the challenges our industry is facing around refunds and prepaid money with suppliers, while also working hard to meet the need of our customers and still deliver excellent service in such extreme circumstances."