The cost is detailed in the report of the Air Travel Trust (ATT) for the year ended 31 March 2020, which puts the compensation total at £444,425,687.
Cook failed on 23 September 2019, prompting the largest-ever peacetime repatriation of more than 150,000 people. Only 45% - 68,000 – had Atol protection, with the UK government picking up the cost of the remaining flights. The ATT refunded “almost 12 times as many customers”.
Speculation about Cook’s predicament led the ATT to increase its insurance excess against a collapse. The report said: “This effectively capped the ATT’s exposure to £250 million, which was within the cash reserves of the Trust at the time of failure.”
