In a shocking turn of events, the German tour operator FTI filed for bankruptcy yesterday, leaving thousands of tourists and workers in the Canary Islands facing uncertainty. The insolvency has affected Meeting Point, a hotel chain with 12 hotels in Fuerteventura, 11 in Gran Canaria, four in Tenerife, and three in Lanzarote.
According to estimates, the bankruptcy has put the holidays of around 40,000 tourists and the jobs of approximately 1,500 people at risk. The FTI tour operator was responsible for bringing around half a million tourists to the Canary Islands each year, with a business volume of around 800 million euros.
The insolvency is attributed to non-payments by FTI to its clients in the island tourism sector over recent months. Despite hopes that an investment fund would assume the debts of the operator, it did not come to fruition. The German firm's collapse has left many tourists and workers in limbo.
Holidaymakers are advised to claim their rightful compensation from their insurance companies, as FTI will no longer be able to meet its obligations. The company has stated that it is working to ensure that trips that have already begun can be completed as planned, but those that have not yet started will only be able to be partially completed.
The Canary Islands tourism sector has learned a hard lesson from the collapse of FTI, having previously experienced a similar situation with the bankruptcy of Thomas Cook in 2019. The region's dependence on outside investment and its vulnerability to external factors have been highlighted as major concerns.
