by Donald Wood
Last updated: 11:17 AM ET, Tue September 24, 2019
Following the collapse of Thomas Cook, travelers are reporting that other tour operators and airlines have increased their prices.
According to The Guardian, tourists impacted by the Thomas Cook shut down have been forced to rebook their vacations, but they are experiencing dramatic price increases, with some flight tracking websites saying the inflation has hit Manchester the hardest.
The price gouging is expected to continue for several months, with officials from British low-cost airline Jet2 admitting they have raised prices to take advantage of the desperate travelers impacted by the Thomas Cook collapse.
"Our pricing, as is common practice in the travel industry, is based on the principle of supply and demand," a Jet2 spokesperson told The Guardian. "As supply reduces, an inevitable consequence is that prices increase. However, we are looking at adding more supply (flights and seats) to help customers at this time."
At both Manchester and Gatwick airports in England, Thomas Cook had 350 and 200 takeoff and landing slots, respectively. The resulting drop in capacity has allowed carriers to force travelers to pay more for tickets that typically would have been cheaper.
While the Thomas Cook collapse is terrible in the short term for travelers, it could result in the rise of low-cost carriers such as Flybe into more significant markets, which would result in lower prices across all airlines due to competition.
"This will be a short-term hit, with rises through the winter months as capacity is removed," an unnamed source told The Guardian. "But we expect to see other carriers take over Thomas Cook's slots and once those are swallowed up prices should steady."
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