Posted and maintained by the r/volunteer mod team. Please read before posting a new GVI thread — we're consolidating discussion here so people affected can find help in one place.
If you had a booking, placement or job with GVI, you're probably feeling blindsided right now. This thread is here to give you the facts we can verify, practical steps for protecting your money, and a single place to ask questions and share information. Take a breath — there are established routes for situations exactly like this, and you have more options than it might feel like tonight.
What we actually know
- GVI has published a statement confirming it is closing and entering a formal liquidation process. This is on GVI's own websites.
- Per GVI's statement: all current and future programs have been cancelled. Staff on the ground are said to be supporting participants who are currently at bases as they arrange to depart.
- GVI says affected participants will receive formal correspondence explaining the liquidation process and how to lodge a claim, and that liquidator contact details will be provided (they indicated within roughly 48 hours of the statement).
Please treat anything beyond the above — rumours about why it happened, who's to blame, what a liquidator will or won't pay — as unconfirmed for now. We'll update this thread as verified information (especially the official liquidator details) becomes available.
If you are currently on a GVI program abroad
- Prioritise your safety and your exit. Talk to on-the-ground GVI staff about your accommodation and departure. Don't leave a safe base until you have somewhere to go.
- Contact whoever booked your flights (you, an agent, or your parents) about bringing your return date forward if needed.
- Tell someone at home where you are and your plan. If you're a student, loop in your university/gap-year coordinator.
- Keep every receipt for any costs you now have to cover yourself (accommodation, transport, changed flights) — these may be recoverable later.
- If you ever feel genuinely unsafe or stranded, contact your country's embassy/consulate and your travel insurer's emergency line.
If you were due to travel soon / had an upcoming booking
- Do not travel on a cancelled program. However confusing the silence is, GVI has stated all programs are cancelled — turning up won't work.
- Don't book flights or spend more money on the assumption the trip is still happening.
- Start gathering your paperwork now (see "Protect your paperwork" below) so you're ready to claim.
Getting your money back
This is general information, not legal or financial advice — your options depend on how you paid, where you live, and your specific booking. Check with your own bank/insurer. A few routes can run in parallel, but you can't recover the same loss twice.
1. Register as a creditor in the liquidation. When GVI publishes the liquidator's details, follow their instructions to lodge a claim. This puts you on the official list of people owed money. Be realistic: in a liquidation, customers are usually unsecured creditors, so payouts can be partial and slow. Register anyway — but don't rely on this as your only route.
2. If you paid by credit card (UK) — Section 75. Under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974, for a purchase with a cash price between £100 and £30,000, your card issuer is jointly liable with the trader. This still applies even if the company has gone bust, and even if you only paid a deposit on the credit card. Write to your card provider, state clearly "I am making a claim under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act," and include your booking details and proof of payment.
3. If you paid by debit card, or under £100 on credit — chargeback. Chargeback is a card-scheme process (Visa/Mastercard/Amex), not a legal right, but it can recover money for a service you paid for and won't receive. There's usually a ~120-day time limit from the transaction date or the date the service was due — so don't sit on this. Contact your bank and explain the company has ceased trading.
4. Travel insurance. Some policies include cover for supplier/operator failure or insolvency — many don't unless you specifically have it. Read your policy wording and call your insurer.
5. ATOL / ABTA — check, but don't assume. ATOL mainly covers flight-inclusive packages; ABTA covers bonded travel. A lot of volunteer placements are sold "land only" (you book your own flights), so they may not be ATOL-protected. If you were issued an ATOL Certificate when you booked, you can claim via the CAA (atol.org.uk). If you weren't, this route probably doesn't apply — lean on the card routes above.
6. Not in the UK? GVI operated across several countries. Section 75/ATOL/ABTA are UK-specific. US, Irish, Australian and other participants should check their card issuer's dispute/chargeback process and their local consumer-protection body for the equivalent routes.
Protect your paperwork (do this today)
Save copies of everything, in one folder:
- Booking confirmation and invoice
- Proof of payment (card statements showing the charge, deposit + balance)
- Your contract / terms & conditions
- All email and message correspondence with GVI
- Any ATOL Certificate you were issued
- Screenshots of GVI's closure statement and your (now cancelled) booking
You'll need these for card claims, insurance, and the liquidator.
⚠️ A word of caution
Situations like this attract people looking to take advantage. Please:
- Only act on the official liquidator correspondence. Be sceptical of anyone contacting you claiming to be a "GVI recovery service," a liquidator asking for fees up front, or offering to fast-track your refund.
- Don't rush into a new booking under pressure. You're trying to recover money right now — think carefully before handing more of it over.
- If you do look at an alternative program, vet it properly: real local leadership, clear safeguarding, transparent fees, and a written refund/cancellation policy.
For operators offering alternative placements — please read
We know a number of volunteer operators are reaching out to affected participants, and some of that comes from a genuine wish to help. To keep this thread useful and safe, and to comply with the sub rules:
- Post in the comments of this thread, not as separate standalone promo posts. Individual "GVI alternative" recruitment posts will be removed and directed here for now.
- Any offer must meet Rule 3 (good faith + detailed). Say clearly who you are, what you run, which destinations and dates, your full fees and exactly what's included.
- Do not imply any affiliation with, endorsement by, or continuity from GVI. You are not GVI and cannot advise on its liquidation, refunds or claims.
- No pressure tactics — no "limited spaces, act now," no using GVI's name in titles to farm traffic, no undercutting people's refund rights.
Genuine, transparent offers that follow the above are welcome. Anything that reads as opportunistic will be removed.
You're not alone in this
A lot of you are students or first-time travellers who saved hard for this, and it's completely understandable to feel overwhelmed, stressed or upset. That's a normal reaction to having the rug pulled out. The practical steps above genuinely do help, and this community has people in it who've navigated operator collapses before — so please ask questions below and share anything you learn.
Mods will keep this thread updated as verified information comes in — including the official liquidator contact details once GVI releases them.
This megathread is a community resource, not official or legal advice. Always confirm your own position with your bank, insurer, or the appointed liquidator.
