Some 40,000 holidaymakers, most of them in the Netherlands, have been hit by the financial problems affecting online travel firm Travelbird, according to the holiday guarantee fund SGR.

Travelbird, which sells bargain holidays online, stopped operating last week after  applying for court protection from its creditors. Holidaymakers who have booked breaks through the website are covered by the SGR guarantee.

Some 6,000 people are currently away on holiday with the company and the SGR, together with travel firm TUI are trying to ensure they can complete their breaks, SGR deputy director Carin Beckers said.

Travelbird says ‘seasonal fluctuations’ had led to delays in paying some partners and that the company had failed to find extra financing. Beckers said that the hotels people are currently staying in with Travelbird have not been paid.

The company has a workforce of 310 and some seven million people have had a TravelBird break over the past eight years. The company claims to have turned in its first profit in the first half of 2018.