Seriously troubled tour operator Natalie Tours sold 10,000 tours with a flight to October 1 for about $ 15 million, Interfax was told by the press-secretary of the Russian Union of Travel Industry (PCT) Irina Tyurina, citing data provided by the president of tour operator Vladimir Vorobyov . Vorobyov himself did not answer Vedomosti's calls.

Earlier on the site of Rosturizm it was reported that "Natalie Tours" was insured for 150.5 million rubles. under contracts of insurance of civil liability of the tour operator and another 5.9 million rubles. in the funds of his personal responsibility. "If you divide the financial guarantee of the tour operator [...] by all tourists, you will get 15 600 per person. That is, financial guarantees are not enough for payments to all victims, "Turin summed up.

The insurance money can be paid only after the official termination of activities. "So far, Natalie Tours has not planned to stop activity," the representative of Rosturizm noted.

 Responsibility of the operator is insured in Ingosstrakh, the insurance company confirmed. "In the event of an insured event under the contract of insurance of civil liability of the tour operator, Ingosstrakh is ready to fulfill all its obligations under the insurance contract in full," said Karen Asoyan, director of public relations of the company.

On June 29, "Natalie Tours" informed the travel agencies about the abolition of charter programs to Barcelona, ​​Rimini, Catania, Naples, Antalya and Heraklion. July 2, "Natalie Tours" canceled absolutely all tours for its tourists until the end of the summer season.

"Natalie Tours" was forced to cancel the charter programs because of the reduced demand for tours to Europe, which specializes in the company, told "Vedomosti" Vorobyov. Demand for the tour operator declined by about a quarter due to the World Cup, rising fuel costs and the volatility of the dollar, noted a week ago, the general director of the association "Tourmop" Alexander Ossaulenko. Charter vouchers for "Natalie Tours" were often unprofitable, Vorobyov admitted: the planes remained unloaded, tours had to be sold with a minimum margin or even at a loss. And in April, the tour operator raised salaries for more than 300 employees, which also had a negative impact on its liquidity, he added.

 A wave of negative publications provoked the travel agents to "disconnect" Natalie Tours from sales, which is why the company stopped receiving money on Monday, Vorobyov said. Therefore, the tour operator and suspended the sale of permits.

Earlier, "Natalie Tours" invited tourists to use tickets and visas, and for the rest of the tour to get a guarantee obligation to perform services from April 1, 2019 to April 1, 2020, "Interfax" writes. If the tourist refuses to enter into a guarantee obligation, he gets in line for cost recovery without specifying the time frame when this happens, the agency points out.

Vorobiev himself suggested that tourists take advantage of the vouchers next summer. "This is the fastest way to get money back," he stated.