with DIY you can choose which ever operator you like, so the option is there to go with established airlines. However most people search out the cheapest flights they can find and these are the one's likely to fold. However XL went a couple of years ago and they were considered a large airline in the holiday market.
As long as it's ATOL protected, your flights money is safe and will be refunded.

There are plently of people affected by goldtrail who were not on DIY, but had used them for a package holiday.

Was a disapointed that Lottiesmum thread lower down had been locked she had asked for some advice as she was DIY and had only booked flights with Goldtrail the accomadation was with On the Beach. Hope you get a better response.

We had booked all ours through On The Beach - as my husband had priced up it all up seperately. We then went to OTB who put it together for us - thinking that we will have some security through the ATOL if such a thing were to happen. However, we are still waiting to see if this is the case as they have informed us that we will not necessarily get the money for accomodation back.

If you want to go DIY, don't worry, we do it every year and as long as you book your flights and accommodation separately through established, reputable, companies it should be ok.
We always book cheap flights through either easyjet or ryanair, and accommodation through a recognised and recommended site. In the past we have booked accommodation through Travelrepublic, Easyjet, OnTheBeach, and Alitalia, and this year we are booking through 'Owners Direct', which gives you access to individual owners of flats/villas abroad.
But of course these days I suppose any company could go belly up, so it is just as well that when going DIY you can only pay by credit/debit card which means that you have a better chance of recouping your money.

As someone who usually booked everything DIY I can't say that I would recommend it anymore with the way things are financially and have booked with Thomas Cook for both this year and next.

When I did DIY I went for the cheapest and best options and did save money but to be honest the package holidays are now not far off the cheaper DIY package prices anyway. I will hopfully do DIY again but maybe in a few years time when things are hopefully a bit more stable.

This is a point I was trying to make before - we had booked with OTB as previous poster had done. However - we are still waiting to hear if we will have any money returned to us for the accomodation

On the back of Goldtrail problems and Cabby Bumping the topic regarding Tour Operators may go bust....

I was watching The One Show last night where a viewer described a problem she had where she tried to claim back money after the tour company she booked with went bust.

I thought it may be interesting to post the detail here...

What she had actually done was book accommodation and flights for 18 people for her daughters wedding abroad.

The flights were covered by ATOL but the accommodation wasn't so she thought she would be able to claim back on her Credit Card.

When she put the claim in she was told, "as her name was not on the booking form" it meant Section 75 did not apply so she wasn't covered. Her name was not on the booking form as she had booked into a different hotel.

The Credit Card company said Section 75 does not apply when buying for others.

The advice was if you are planning on booking for a lot of people say for a lot of family members, (even your children!), or a stag do or similar make sure that everyone books on their Credit Cards separately otherwise you will not be covered!

If you want to watch the piece, see link, its from about 10 minutes in.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00t5mbp/The_One_Show_19_07_2010/

The other option is to get insurance from somebody like this company,

http://www.protectmyholiday.com/