THE future of a family-managed travel firm "will be very difficult" after after receiving no Government bailouts during the coronavirus pandemic, according to bosses.
Tendring Travel, based in Thorpe-le-Soken, was founded back in 2008 by owner Mark Bone, and specialises in providing transport to and from a myriad of events and day trips.
Managed by John Carter, the company, which also offers minibus and coach hire, often uses its fleet to take people in and out of London, for school excursions, days out and theatre performances.
Since March, however, none of the business’s buses have left the yard, and the Covid-19 lockdown quite literally put the brakes on its ability to operate.
As a result, bosses at the firm, like many across the country, were left concerned about the financial impact the crisis could have.
At the beginning of the pandemic, however, Chancellor Rishi Sunak pledged an “unprecedented” package worth billions of pounds to ensure companies could weather the coronavirus storm.
But, Hayden Carter, operations manager at Tendring Travel and son of John Carter, says the business has received no help from the Government.
“We are struggling just like everyone else in our industry,” he said.
“We have no work and not one bus has moved since March.
“We’ve found it so hard to get any grants, we were not able to get a small business loan, and we’ve fallen through the gaps of the support.
"The directors have had to use all their savings and live on no wages, and although we will make it through this, it will be very difficult times.
“We have had absolutely no revenue since March, but we still have all of our outgoing costs and it is just awful.”
Hayden believes the travel sector has been neglected and overlooked by the Government, which he admits has been painful to experience.
He now wants Parliament officials to step in and pull the coach industry out of the pit of uncertainty it has been thrown in to.
“To see other industries being generously supported has been heartbreaking,” he added.
“It has made us feel devalued and worthless and the Government is turning its back on us.
"We do feel the Government has combined the bus industry with the coach industry, but we are completely different.
"We just want the Government to realise how hard we have got it in this industry and how the whole industry is in this position.
“I’m so angry and disgusted and scared for our future.”
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