TRAVEL COMPANY SELFCATERING.IE has announced that it has ceased trading with immediate effect, leaving thousands of families who have pre-paid for holidays at risk of being left out of pocket.

The agency, based in Co Wexford, emailed customers last night informing them that it had ceased trading as of Thursday and advising them to contact the relevant caretakers or property owners directly. All content on the company’s website has now been taken down.

In a statement seen by RTÉ, the company apologised “unreservedly” to customers, which it admitted will be financially impacted. It added that every effort had been made to avoid the situation that has now arisen.

Commenting on the news, Fianna Fáil’s Timmy Dooley called on the the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Trade Leo Varadkar to intervene.

“We have seen a growing trend of online trading companies going bust over the last number of months, but the problem is there seems to be no recourse for clients,” he said.

“I am calling on Minister Varadkar to regulate the on-line booking business because some companies appear to operate in a haphazard fashion… New legislation is needed in this area with compulsory insurance and a bonding mechanism to give some form of security to customers.”

Read: Microsoft makes first ever loss>

Making a difference

A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation.

For the price of one cup of coffee each week you can make sure we can keep reliable, meaningful news open to everyone regardless of their ability to pay.

Support us Learn More