Do You Know Someone Who’s Owed Money by TICO?

The Travel Industry Council of Ontario (TICO) is attempting to return thousands of dollars in unclaimed security deposits to former travel agencies—some of which closed more than two decades ago.

The initiative is part of TICO’s response to a December 2023 value-for-money audit by the Office of the Auditor General of Ontario. One of the audit’s recommendations called for a review of long-held registrant security deposits. TICO is now reaching out to former registrants whose security deposits have remained unclaimed for over two years.

However, the organization has been unable to contact several businesses, prompting a public call to locate individuals who may be entitled to recover the funds.

“We encourage the majority shareholder of one of these companies, or anyone who is the rightful owner of the unclaimed security deposit, to complete and submit a Security Return Application form,” said TICO in a statement.

The security deposits range from $10,000 to $20,000 and are tied to businesses that operated under names such as New Century Travel Inc., Empire Vacations Inc., Bargain Travel Holidays, and Myway Concierge Inc.

In total, deposits remain unclaimed from 15 former registrants, with termination dates ranging from 1999 to as recently as July 2024.

The full list of affected companies and deposit amounts is available on TICO’s website. If no claim is made by the July 2, 2027 deadline, the unclaimed funds will be redirected to TICO’s consumer protection initiatives.

Anyone with questions is asked to contact TICO at [email protected].

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