To think people should cut the holiday companies some slack?

[sunfloweryy]

I’ve had my holiday cancelled for two weeks time - fair enough. Company are offering credit plus a discount on future holidays or you can apply for a refund but it could take several months.

I get this. They are obviously experiencing massively high call volumes, don’t have enough staff and are hemoraging money.

But loads of people are on SM demanding refunds, swearing, being rude etc. AIBU to think there are bigger problems and we should lay off for a while and let things die down?

I know it’s shit, I want my money back too but the cost is already sunk!

Couldn’t have put it better myself
It’s the lack of understanding that leads to wrong information given out and people jumping on the band wagon
So many people think Travel is a glamorous job , all we do is sit around and discuss holidays and go on free trips . How wrong people can be

Ahh sorry, my misunderstanding. Clearly I've never used a travel agent! Not sure that would entice me to use one in the future either, seems like it would just be another administrative layer to complicate things!

On the contrary bingo. I work for a tour operator and would never not use an agent as I've seen so many issues over the years that agents have resolved with zero stress to their customers. This situation is crazy and agents are working flat out for free, paying back commission on cancelled holidays not knowing if their businesses will survive. They shouldn't be judged on this situation no one has had to deal with anything on this scale before. In normal circumstances agents are worth their weight in gold. I've been at the end of a flight cancellation with a two year old in tow. I texted my agent and went for a coffee. Within an hour i was booked into an airport hotel with a meal and had a new flight the next morning. The car parking at the uk end was extended and I had an extra day on holiday. I could have organised that myself and racked up a huge phone bill whole trying to entertain a two year old but it was far easier to leave it in the hands of my agent.

Well I would be happy to accept a credit and rebook with the £7k I have paid but I cannot even get that.

Yes, I am looking at YOU Secret Escapes! We should have gone to The Maldives on 26th March and apart from the email telling us that it has been cancelled and we will be getting a credit. Nothing.

I have been nothing but polite every time I have emailed them only to be ignored. I don't really want a credit as it was a "once in a lifetime" experience for me, my 50th Birthday which has obviously gone now, however I totally understand that these are unprecedented times so would take a credit if I could get one.

Given up now and gone through our CC company.

I was a loyal customer for years but won't use them again, same with Sykes.

I fully expect my holiday to not be cancelled when it is time for me to pay the full balance.

I fully expect this to be deliberate on travel operators and the got will be complicit in this.

I fully expect to lose my deposit. I will however not pay over the balance.

We cancelled our holiday before this kicked off precisely because we wanted the cash in our bank and not be left with a credit note when our holiday was inevitably cancelled.

We lost 30% as a cancellation fee, we were meant to have been repaid that day. Ha. One month on an feck all. Will be amazed if it ever hits our bank account. Last time I book a holiday more than a couple of weeks in advance.

@byvirtue
Who told you you would be paid within a day ?

People want refunds. Not answering the phones , not having an email address , not caring is enough for me to never book a holiday with TUI ever again.
I understand what you are saying but go on Twitter or Facebook and read the complaints on there about this bunch of crooks and then get back to me! It's not the staff I have a beef with at all but the managers who clearly do not give a shit about their customers!

@Lala241280 the confirmation email we received when we cancelled. I forgot about it and didn’t even check the bank account until 2 weeks later.

@LEELULUMPKIN if you have an email that confirms you will be getting a credit that is already legally enforceable so you actually do have a credit already.

People who claim via their credit cards should be aware that the credit card companies can then go against the travel company to get back the money that they paid out. They may decide not to bother, but they can. Just in case anyone was thinking of doing it that way because they wanted to help the tour operator.

I have an email with my booking amendment which states 'balance overpaid' for the difference between my old and new holidays. Is this legally enforceable as well do you know, @ArgumentativeAardvaark?

I’m not sure I understand the question @chocolatesaltyballs.

Are you saying that you rebooked on to a cheaper holiday so want to make sure they refund you the difference? If so, then yes, you absolutely have an enforceable right to get a refund of the money overpaid. That right doesn’t derive from what the email says or doesn’t say, it derives from the simple fact that you have paid them more than the cost of the new holiday. But do you want to take it as credit?

@LEELULUMPKIN have you spoken to your CC company yet? I'm in a similar position to you so would be interested the bad how you get on.

We had booked a once in a lifetime holiday for mine and DH 50th birthdays. Booked through Kenwood and paid £10k.

Airline cancelled our flight two and a half weeks before we were due to fly and Kenwood couldn't rebook us so they cancelled the whole package. They initially said we'd get a refund but now they are saying that as the situation is out of their control we will only get a refund if the airline and the hotel provide one.

I'm not hopeful that they we will get anything back so it looks like we will have to contact Amex and try for a charge back.

Kenwood couldn't rebook us so they cancelled the whole package. They initially said we'd get a refund but now they are saying that as the situation is out of their control we will only get a refund if the airline and the hotel provide one.

Take a look at the ABTA website Angels. ABTA are clear that they will crack down on members saying they won’t give refunds. (I am presuming Kenwood are ABTA members).

Yes that's exactly what I meant @argumentativeaardvaark - thanks. I want to take the difference as a refund rather than a credit as it's only £365 and wouldn't cover the cost of another holiday. Plus I don't really want to book with TUI again as they've been utterly crap.

@ArgumentativeAardvaark yes Kenwood are abta members but they are saying that they have taken advice and the fact that the virus is outside of their control they are not duty bound to give us a refund. Obviously they are breaking the rules/law and seeing what they can get away with. It does look like the credit card charge back will be our only way to get our money back.

OK @chocolatesaltyballs. Unless you agreed to something by email etc where they said you had to keep the balance as credit, you’re basically in the same boat as everyone else waiting for refunds, but it will be slow.

OK - thankyou

@AngelsWithSilverWings they are bullshitting you- they cannot possibly have had legal advice that says that. ABTA are literally all over this topic at the moment, lobbying the government hard to amend the law to remove the obligation to refund. ABTA are getting legal advice, I know this for a fact. Yes, they may be trying to appeal to your better nature, and may well be struggling to find the cash, but they can’t pretend that they are not refunding because the law doesn’t oblige them to. Why not report them to ABTA?

chocolatesaltyballs22
ArgumentativeAardvaark - can I ask do you work within the Travel Industry

Sorry @chocolatesaltyballs22 don’t know why this place aged u

I’ve PM’d you @lala241280

@ArgumentativeAardvaark I've looked at ABTA but they seem to have all but shut down to be honest and the process for complaints looks very drawn out especially now that they are giving their members longer to respond to queries. I've emailed the travel agent and told him that we've already given them a month to try to obtain the refund from their suppliers and now we will be contacting our credit card company. I do feel bad for the travel agent - it's a horrible horrible situation but they've decided not to play fair ( not even suggesting a credit note let alone a refund) so we don't have many more options.

Edreams as well, flying via Thai Airways to Laos via Bangkok last month. Two of us, waiting on £1050. One of four flights cancelled, FCO advised no non essential travel the day before, Laos stopped issuing visas the morning we were due to land and had already closed accommodation businesses. Thai won't engage, has to be through Edreams, Edreams can't do anything without Thai engaging, yadda yadda. Waiting on our insurance, if not maybe the credit card company. We don't want vouchers, we want our money back so we can maybe book something possible when it's possible... If its possible. Or to form part of our estates if the worst happens. Just waiting really, that's all we can do.

Big thumbs up to booking.com and the three places we were due to stay in Laos - without requesting it we were refunded, and those people are the least able to take the hit out of everyone involved. If the trip ever happens, I'm staying in those places and giving them my money, if they survive.

Worst case, we've lost £525 each. It hurts but...best case is we've just lost the trip if we go on the credit card. Most likely we are down £75 for the insurance excess. But will we get out there at all?

Had an updated response from Kenwood - they are now saying they will process our refund within the next 14 days. This is a complete change of tune and was in response to us saying that we would be raising a dispute/section 75 with Amex. Just waiting now to see if we get the money from Kenwood or Amex first ( or at all!)