SGR

What SGR does

SGR (Stichting Garantiefonds Reisgelden) is a Dutch non-profit foundation established in 1983 in Rotterdam that protects travelers against the financial consequences of travel company insolvency. It is co-founded by ANVR (the Dutch travel industry association) and the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs following the bankruptcy of Christoffel Reizen, and operates under the EU Package Travel Directive as the recognized statutory insolvency protection mechanism for travel companies selling package travel and linked travel arrangements in the Netherlands and Switzerland. Its core offering is a single guarantee product under which travelers booking with an SGR-affiliated travel company either receive a replacement trip or a refund of prepaid travel funds up to €12,500 per consumer if the travel company becomes insolvent, with excess exposure reinsured through Europeesche Verzekeringen.

The underlying platform consists of an online self-service claims portal where affected travelers file and track claims (notably scaled with multilingual capability and data analytics after the 2018 TravelBird bankruptcy), a digital certificate system (certificaten.sgr.nl) that verifies and displays membership status for the 1,883 affiliated trading names, and operational tooling for the financial vetting and ongoing solvency monitoring of participants. SGR's go-to-market is an indirect channel model: it does not sell directly to consumers but recruits travel companies as members, who then market the SGR logo as a trust signal to end travelers.

Revenue is generated through two primary streams: a fixed €5 per-person per-booking consumer contribution (mandatory since February 2021, collected by travel companies and remitted to SGR) and annual membership fees plus one-time application fees from participating travel companies, with the participant fee schedule tied to the applicant's financial profile and subject to a €18,000 minimum equity requirement. The organization is headquartered at Admiraliteitskade 73 in Rotterdam with 11–50 employees, and operates a related ecosystem of sister foundations covering catastrophe insurance (Calamiteitenfonds), business travel (SGRZ), specialized tour operators (GGTO), and payments (RBP). Since inception SGR has helped more than 300,000 travelers and paid out €130 million in claims, currently guaranteeing approximately 3 million bookings and €7.5 billion in insured travel value per year.

Name

SGR

Legal name

Stichting Garantiefonds Reisgelden

Website

https://sgr.nl

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

SGR is a Dutch non-profit travel guarantee fund, established 1983 in Rotterdam, that protects travelers against travel company insolvency under the EU Package Travel Directive, serving 1,883 affiliated travel companies across the Netherlands and Switzerland and covering roughly 3 million bookings per year.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Rotterdam

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Consumer contribution: A fixed consumer contribution of €5 per person per booking is collected by SGR-participating travel companies and remitted to SGR. This contribution protects the traveler's prepaid funds from the moment of booking. The contribution is non-refundable even if the traveler cancels.
2. Participant membership fees: Travel companies pay a one-time application fee and an annual contribution to SGR for membership. The fee covers the cost of financial vetting, guarantee scheme administration, and ongoing monitoring of participant solvency.
3. Excess insurance coverage: SGR provides insurance through Europeesche Verzekeringen for claims exceeding the €12,500 per consumer cap. This reinsurance layer is funded through participant contributions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

SGR provides a statutory travel guarantee fund that protects prepaid travel funds of consumers who book package travel, accommodation, or transport services with SGR-affiliated travel companies. If an affiliated travel company becomes insolvent, SGR either ensures the trip is executed via a replacement operator or refunds the traveler, up to €12,500 per consumer per claim (with excess coverage via reinsurance through Europeesche Verzekeringen). Travel companies pay annual membership contributions and a €5 per-booking consumer contribution is collected by them on SGR's behalf.

Product overview

SGR (Stichting Garantiefonds Reisgelden) operates as a non-profit travel guarantee fund offering a single unified service: financial protection for prepaid travel bookings. The core product is the SGR Guarantee, which protects travelers' advance payments when affiliated travel companies become insolvent. SGR provides this service through a claims processing system and self-service portal where affected travelers can file claims and track reimbursement status. The organization also maintains a certificate system for affiliated travel companies to display their SGR membership. There are no separate product modules, sub-brands, or add-on products—the offering is the guarantee service itself, supported by administrative systems for claims handling and participant management.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SGR Guarantee (Reisgarantie) Statutory financial protection service that safeguards prepaid travel funds for consumers booking package holidays, accommodation contracts, or transport (bus, train, ferry) with SGR-affiliated travel companies. If the affiliated travel company becomes insolvent, SGR ensures the trip is executed via a replacement operator or refunds the traveler. Coverage extends up to €12,500 per consumer per claim, with excess coverage provided by reinsurance through Europeesche Verzekeringen.
• SGR Self-Service Portal (Zelfserviceportal) Online self-service portal where travelers can file claims, upload required documentation, and track the status of their reimbursement when an SGR-affiliated travel company becomes insolvent. Used by travelers directly during the claims process, with the portal designed to process high volumes of claims supported by data analytics (originally built out for the 2018 TravelBird international bankruptcy with multilingual support).
• SGR Certificate System (Certificaten.sgr.nl) Digital certificate issuance and verification system that allows SGR to issue membership certificates to affiliated travel companies and enables consumers and partners to verify participant status. Affiliated companies display the certificate and SGR logo on their websites as a trust signal.

Quantifiable outcome

• 300,000+ travelers helped since 1983
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ANVR (Koninklijke Vereniging van Nederlandse Reisondernemingen)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1983ANVR (Dutch Travel Association) co-founded SGR in 1983 following the bankruptcy of Christoffel Reizen. SGR membership qualifies travel companies for ANVR membership, and together they advocated for the Coronavoucher and Voucherfonds during the COVID-19 pandemic. The two organizations work closely on regulatory compliance and consumer protection in the Dutch travel market.
• Europeesche VerzekeringencoreOthersSGR maintains excess insurance coverage with Europeesche Verzekeringen for claims exceeding the €12,500 per consumer cap. This reinsurance arrangement is a core part of SGR's financial protection structure, ensuring that consumers can be fully compensated even for very large claims.
• Stichting Calamiteitenfonds ReizencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSGR and the Calamiteitenfonds are sister organizations under the SGR foundation. SGR protects travelers against financial insolvency of travel companies, while Calamiteitenfonds covers disruptions during travel (e.g., natural disasters, political unrest). SGR-participating companies are eligible for Calamiteitenfonds membership.
• Stichting Garantiefonds Reisgelden Zakelijk (SGRZ)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSGRZ is a related foundation under the SGR umbrella that provides guarantee coverage for the business travel segment (B2B travel bookings), separate from the consumer-focused SGR fund.
• Stichting Garantiefonds Gespecialiseerde Touroperators (GGTO)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGGTO is a sister foundation under the SGR umbrella that provides guarantee coverage for specialized tour operators, serving a niche segment of the travel market.
• Stichting Reis BetaalPlatform (RBP)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRBP is a sister foundation under the SGR umbrella related to payment services for the travel industry.
• ACM (Autoriteit Consument & Markt)coreOthersSGR serves as the recognized insolvency protection mechanism for travel companies under Dutch law, as overseen and recognized by the ACM (Netherlands Authority for Consumers & Markets). Travel companies must be recognized by ACM, and SGR membership helps companies meet this requirement.
• 1883 affiliated travel companies (tour operators, travel agencies)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSGR's core distribution model is through affiliated travel companies (1883 trading names as of 2026). These companies join SGR, display the SGR logo, and remit the €5 consumer contribution. They are the primary channel through which travelers encounter SGR's guarantee.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• AirHelp: Flight compensation and air passenger rights technology company offering alternative consumer protection for air travelers. Represents an emerging fintech approach to travel protection that could complement or compete with SGR's traditional insolvency-fund model as regulators broaden accepted protection mechanisms.

Broad incumbents

• ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents): UK travel trade association operating a comparable financial protection scheme for member travel companies. Operates alongside ATOL within the UK regulatory regime and serves as the British analog to the ANVR-SGR relationship.
• ANVR (Koninklijke Vereniging van Nederlandse Reisondernemingen): Dutch travel trade association that co-founded SGR in 1983. While not itself a guarantee fund, ANVR coordinates closely with SGR, routes member travel companies through SGR membership, and jointly advocates on regulatory and consumer-protection matters in the Dutch market.

Direct peers

• Stichting Garantiefonds Gespecialiseerde Touroperators (GGTO): Sister foundation under the SGR umbrella providing guarantee coverage specifically for specialized tour operators. Uses the identical financial guarantee architecture as SGR, targeting a niche market segment with adapted member-vetting criteria.
• Stichting Calamiteitenfonds Reizen: Sister foundation under the SGR umbrella that provides coverage for travel calamities such as natural disasters and political unrest. Operates an identical guarantee-fund model for an adjacent risk category, with overlapping regulatory framework, shared supervisory oversight, and consumer-facing brand recognition.
• Stichting Garantiefonds Reisgelden Zakelijk (SGRZ): Sister foundation under the SGR umbrella providing guarantee coverage for B2B travel bookings. Uses the same financial guarantee architecture as SGR but targets the corporate/business travel segment, with shared back-office operations and member-vetting standards.
• Deutscher Reiseverband (DRV): German travel industry association that operates the Reisepreissicherung customer-money protection fund for German tour operators. The closest cross-border functional peer to SGR, providing insolvency protection under the same EU Package Travel Directive framework with comparable regulatory backing.
• ATOL (Air Travel Organisers' Licence, UK Civil Aviation Authority): UK government-backed scheme protecting travelers against insolvency of ATOL-licensed travel organizers. Performs the same regulatory-insolvency-protection function as SGR for the UK market under equivalent EU-derived regulatory frameworks, funded through contributions from licensed operators.
• APST (Association Professionnelle de Solidarité du Tourisme): French professional association providing financial guarantees to French travelers against member travel-agency insolvency. Functions as the French equivalent of SGR under the EU Package Travel Directive, with a comparable member-vetting and contribution-based funding model.

Others

• Allianz Travel: Major global travel insurance provider offering trip-cancellation and travel-protection products to consumers. Adjacent rather than directly comparable, as Allianz insures individual travelers against personal travel risks rather than providing collective insolvency protection for travel companies—nevertheless represents an alternative consumer-protection channel that competes for traveler mind-share.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/sgr_nl
• Xx.com/SGR__NL
• Facebookfacebook.com/garantiefondsreizen
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/garantiefonds-reisgelden

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SGR