In troubled financial times people will often turn to desperate measures to get by. Stealing scrap metal, digging out bits of copper wiring and even siphoning petrol are all now considered to be viable targets for criminals looking to make a few extra quid. As financial conditions get harder, bandits are resorting to all kinds of thievery as one van hire company in Surrey has discovered.

In recent months Kendell Cars, a van rental company based in Surrey, has experienced a number of thefts involving its fleet of Ford Transit vans and catalytic converters. According to the director Roger Kendall it will cost you nearly £1000 to buy and fit and catalytic converter. The nearby Ford dealership has apparently sold nearly 80 units within the last week, highlighting just how bad the latest spate of burglary in the area is.

According to the director, Transit converters are quite easy to remove and can be sold on to rogue scrap merchants for a hefty price, making the process incredibly profitable. Surrey police are advising residents to purchase a catalytic converter identity kit from www.theisr.org to help prevent further incidents.      

Summer is supposedly the biggest season for tour operators, but this year things aren’t exactly going to plan. Yesterday another major budget holiday company, Kiss Flights, became the third UK travel operator to collapse this year. Earlier in the year Goldtrail hit the wall and at the start of this month Birmingham based Sun 4 U also collapsed, plunging thousands of holidaymakers and their travel plans into uncertainty.

According to the BBC a total of 13 tour operators have so far gone bust this year due to the pressures of the recession. This year companies have experienced a number of problems including volcanic ash clouds, rising fuel prices and a blazing UK summer season, all of which have contributed to poor booking numbers. A spokesperson for Tui Travel, Europe’s largest travel company, also cited a number of other issues including travel strikes and fears over job security as contributing factors to poor holiday sales.

Many of the budget travel companies operated holidays in and around the Mediterranean, including holidays to Spain, Greece and Turkey. Thankfully the CAA, Civil Aviation Authority, assured holidaymakers that the majority of people who had booked with Kiss Flights would receive refunds and that those already out and about would receive return flights.

To combat the poor number of bookings, a number of travel companies are now offering drastically reduced package deals which include flights, insurance, accommodation and car hire. In some areas of Greece and the Mediterranean discount packages can now cost anywhere from 40%-70% cheaper than they were last year. 

Customers due to fly out with Kiss Flights are advised to contact the CAA website or phone-line for more information regarding refunds under the Atol scheme.