ABTA adopted its current name on 1 July 2007 reflect its wider representation of the travel industry.

The code is essentially a guide to good practice, although some of what it contains is also required under UK and European law.

Booking with an ABTA member also provides recourse should there be a problem or complaint with the travel company.

When customers' money will be automatically protected: ABTA currently has around 1,200 members and represents over 5,000 retail outlets and offices.

A 2018 report by ABTA claims that the majority of UK summer holidays abroad are to seven EU member states: Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus and Malta.