Urgent passport warning for Brit holidaymakers as fast-track fail sparks holiday chaos
BRIT holidaymakers have paid £147 for fast-track passport appointments but have had not reply or booking.
And some have been unable to get a refund because they were given no confirmation of the payment.
Many holidaymakers urgently need to renew their passports within the next week to avoid having to axe their trips abroad.
One traveller called the Passport Office’s helpline 44 times before getting through.
He was told he had no confirmation or appointment to renew his passport, despite the money having gone from his account.
Another woman from London told the Telegraph she is “worried and depressed”.
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She paid the fee to ensure she had a passport to travel to Barcelona to visit her daughter later this month.
But the only appointment she got was 80 miles away in Peterborough.
She said: “I eventually got through to the helpline operator who told me she had been taking calls from people with the same problem all day.”
The operator told her there was nothing she could do, and to call back.
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It is thought the issue is caused by the website before someone’s booking is confirmed.
It comes after it was revealed Brits face losing up to £1.1billlion on their holidays because of huge delays processing applications.
The government has since changed the advice warning Brits to leave more than 10 weeks to get their passports back.
And a study by The Centre for Economics and Business Research has estimated that families have just a 50 per cent chance of a “succesful and timely” passport renewal.
Last month ministers warned millions of Brits face cancelled summer holidays because of the huge delays in processing passports.
Five million people delayed renewing their passports during the pandemic, causing unprecedented demand when Covid restrictions lifted.
And the ten-week target to process applications has repeatedly been missed, MPs said.
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Post-Brexit EU rules mean Brit passports must have at least three months remaining.
HM Passport Office has been approached for comment.
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