What financial protection do I have if my safari company goes bust?

Your protection depends on where you book and what the company holds. A UK package with a flight is protected by ATOL; without a flight, by a bond, insurance or a trust account. SATSA says its members are bonded and KATO says the same, each only if a member goes into involuntary liquidation. This page sets out each scheme, from its own website. It lists 48 safari companies in the Uncompromised Travel tables that state how payments are protected.

What financial protection do I have if my safari company goes bust?

If your safari company goes bust, you are protected only by what it holds: ATOL for a UK package with a flight; a bond, insurance or a trust account for a UK package without one; a trust account the company states; an ABTOT bond; or a trade bond such as SATSA's in South Africa, which is limited and partial, or KATO's in Kenya, whose page gives no amount. Many local operators state none, so ask before you pay.

What the official websites say, read on 4 November 2026:

• ATOL is financial protection for package trips that include a flight; it is not travel insurance. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• ATOL also covers some flight-only bookings, typically where the ticket is not issued straight away. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• Your travel company should tell you before you book whether a flight-only booking is ATOL protected. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• If you buy a flight from an airline or travel company and receive a valid e-ticket for your payment, ATOL does not cover it. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• ATOL does not cover flight cancellations or the quality of service from your tour operator; the CAA adds that ATOL-protected package holidays fall under package travel rules, which give a refund if the flight is cancelled. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• If the firm fails, you can claim your money back, or carry on with your holiday and be brought home. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• The scheme can arrange flights home and reimburse money spent replacing ATOL-protected parts of a trip. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• The ABTA Code of Conduct covers your holiday from start to finish and members must follow it. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• ABTA can terminate the membership of a firm for very serious or persistent breaches of the Code. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• The Code itself does not award compensation; for that ABTA offers a low-cost arbitration scheme with a legally binding outcome. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• The protection of the ABTA Code and its dispute schemes applies only if you booked in the UK. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• For packages without a flight sold in the UK, the firm may protect your money with a bond to ABTA or another organisation approved by the Department for Business and Trade, a failure insurance policy or a trust account. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• Where an ABTA bond protects your package, ABTA handles the claim unless you paid by credit card. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• Flight-inclusive packages sold in the UK must be ATOL protected; claims go to the CAA, not ABTA. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• If the ABTA member did not protect your booking, you cannot claim from ABTA. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• ABTA aims to respond to disputes within 28 days. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• Airlines are not ABTA members; airline complaints go to the airline. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• ABTOT says its travel bonds are an insurance guarantee that protects its members' customers' money if the member's business fails; it is approved by the Department for Business and Trade. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• SATSA says members are vetted, with company registration and solvency checked every year. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• SATSA members follow a Code of Conduct. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• SATSA says all members are bonded with third-party indemnity. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• Every SATSA member is automatically included in SATSA Bonding. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• SATSA says its bonding fund deals with losses by any SATSA member or a customer of a SATSA member. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• It is a limited fund that offers partial reimbursement to affected clients and suppliers; it is not an insurance policy. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• The bond applies only to involuntary liquidation; it is paid to the lawyer managing the liquidation. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• Claims are limited to R150,000 for any one incident, with R900,000 available for all incidents. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• SATSA members must be in good standing with SATSA to claim. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• KATO started its 'KATO Bonded' scheme in October 2011. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• The bond is compulsory for all KATO members. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• It applies only when a member goes into involuntary liquidation; it does not cover voluntary liquidation or fraud. The page gives no amount. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• TATO's membership page asks each applicant for two guarantors among its members. It mentions no bond or financial protection for travellers. Source, read 4 November 2026.

How do I check a safari company's protection?

Check the ATOL number on the CAA register, ABTA membership on abta.com, the ABTOT bond with ABTOT, SATSA membership in its directory and KATO membership in KATO's directory.

• The ATOL Certificate is your proof that the trip is ATOL protected. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• You should get the ATOL Certificate as soon as you pay anything, even a deposit. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• You can check whether a firm holds an ATOL by name or ATOL number using the CAA's search tool at atol.org/check-for-atol/. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• ATOL holders must show the ATOL logo and their own four- or five-digit ATOL number. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• The CAA site also links to a search of ATOL holders and members of ATOL Accredited Bodies. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• ABTA members' standard statement: no ATOL Certificate means the booking is not ATOL protected. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• You can check membership on abta.com by company name, postcode, town or five-digit ABTA number. Source, read 4 November 2026.
• Check a member in the SATSA Membership Directory (satsa.com/membership-directory/corporate). Source, read 4 November 2026.
• A firm missing from KATO's directory is not a current, paid-up member. Source, read 4 November 2026.

Which safari companies say how your payments are protected?

48 safari companies in the Uncompromised Travel tables state on their own websites how guest payments are protected if they fail; each card names the scheme.

Safari planners: 21 companies, from the safari planners table.

Safari camp owners: 1 company, from the safari camp owners table.

Local safari operators: 26 companies, from the local safari operators table.

Richard Jasinski · Uncompromised Travel · written from Valencia · first published 4 November 2026 · updated 4 November 2026