To be fuming at holiday home owner?

[namechange0178]

We booked a week away (in England) for August ages ago. In autumn last year. We're a large family group so limited options. Last week I get a cancellation note, with a big story from the owner that her family member has long covid and they are closing their business so that he and his carers can live there. Lo and behold, as I'm browsing every day in the hope that something else becomes available so that we don't lose our holiday completely, the house has popped up again for our dates at a much inflated rate.

Why lie? If you're going to be a greedy snake, at least give us the option to pay more to keep our holiday. As it is, there is literally nothing else available for us.

Happened to us a few years ago, we had a room booked for a weekend, a couple of months before we were due to go they contacted us to say we had been given the wrong rate, it was 275% of what it had been booked at! When we researched on line we realised that a sporting event had been relocated to that city!

@Crazycatlady83

Very few people seem to have failed to understand that there would be consequences to closing the economy for 1+ year. Domestic holiday prices will rise this year, foreign holiday next year. Restaurant prices and taxes. I feel sorry for business owners - people screaming for their businesses to close (and in some cases they still remain closed), not making a penny for a year and then people calling them "disgusting" and "greedy" for trying to claw back some of their losses.

It's a inconvenience for you, but we don't know the holiday owners circumstances. They might be on the edge financially and need to make more money to keep their heads above water.

We should have a little sympathy for other people's circumstances

Perhaps there would be sympathy if business owners were honest.

Faking serious illness and garnering fake sympathy for something like long covid, to the point of needing carers, as a ploy to cancel and remarket is vile.

Cancelling without giving people the opportunity to pay the new cost is hideous.

Pulling peoples holidays from under them with a few days, as per a previous post, to go is never anything other that disgusting.

@MintyMabel

I know Covid will have meant they've lost a lot of money from being unable to rent it out through lockdown but it's the bare faced lies that's pissed me off.

Is it really, though? If they had said "look, we've lost a shit ton of money in the last year and need to cancel your holiday because someone else will pay double what you are and that means our business might survive", you wouldn't be pissed off?

Covid does NOT necessarily mean they've lost a lot of money. They have likely benefitted from tens of thousands of pounds from the self-employed income support scheme (some won't have, but many many will have) Certainly all self catering owners are going to have a bumper year because they will be booked out solid AND there is some serious price inflation this year. You definitely need to somehow make their behaviour public. It's disgraceful. I was really worried this would happen to our cottage that we went to last week. We were lucky but I think what you are describing is going to be very common.

I think the OPs annoyance centres as much around the owners lying about Covid. If they had just said that due to covid they had lost last year's business, and were trying to cover costs to keep the business viable, then OP might have been more willing to stump up or negotiate.

Center Parcs is looking better value by the day. Although that's probably well booked up now for summer, but at least they have honoured their bookings at the original price which now compares very favourably with independent cottages and caravans.

I enquired about a holiday cottage at The Bay, Filey for two nights next year. It was advertised at £314 for a three bed. The owner emailed back saying the price had gone up to £947. For TWO NIGHTS!! Err, no thanks.

Covid does NOT necessarily mean they've lost a lot of money. They have likely benefitted from tens of thousands of pounds from the self-employed income support scheme (some won't have, but many many will have)

Oh, that's so funny.

@MintyMabel

Covid does NOT necessarily mean they've lost a lot of money. They have likely benefitted from tens of thousands of pounds from the self-employed income support scheme (some won't have, but many many will have)

Oh, that's so funny.

what's so funny. I know lots of people who've done well out of SEISS. Others have had woeful help - including myself - and it absolutely stinks.

I'm just saying that you can't assume that their business has really struggled because of covid.

South Downs in August - you may have to think outside the box. I'd be checking out places that usually do yoga/writing retreats to see if they have any availability and don't use mainstream websites to book. This might be worth checking out www.westdean.org.uk/venue/bed-and-breakfast or small YHAs that aren't opening for individuals, just in case they have anything. In the meantime, if the property owners were lying, that's dispicable.

Check your contract. If it doesn't have a clause allowing the owners to cancel then take them to the small claims court. The "loss" you have suffered (which you can claim for breach of contract) is the difference between the price you would have paid for your holiday and the price you have to pay to replace the holiday (so something similar... lo and behold, the higher price that that they're charging).

I'd even be tempted to book the same place at the higher price and sue them for the difference. :D

Get back in touch - something may have changed regarding the Carer arrangement.

Otherwise call out the lying toads

@coronafiona

I enquired about a holiday cottage at The Bay, Filey for two nights next year. It was advertised at £314 for a three bed. The owner emailed back saying the price had gone up to £947. For TWO NIGHTS!! Err, no thanks.

What a joker. I think someone needs to tell him/her that everyone will be going on foreign holidays again next year. If you were willing to pay £314 for two nights they should have bitten your hand off.

I'd even be tempted to book the same place at the higher price and sue them for the difference. :D

Very good idea. You have the paperwork and it’s like for like as it’s the same bloody holiday!

I would definitely leave a 1 star review in several places if you can OP.

It's such a shoddy way to treat you and if they're willing to do that to you, I'm sure they're willing to treat other guests poorly too.

@CornishTiger

I’d call them out on it. Tell them you have seen the revised availability and you’d like then to honour your previous booking.

If they remain not decent on this then I agree review everywhere.

This - and if they don’t I would review and add the evidence. That is absolutely woeful

@MintyMabel

Covid does NOT necessarily mean they've lost a lot of money. They have likely benefitted from tens of thousands of pounds from the self-employed income support scheme (some won't have, but many many will have)

Oh, that's so funny.

Yes, many people have benefited. It’s definitely not been doom and gloom for all.

@namechange0178

We had paid a 30% deposit which has been refunded to us. To be honest, it's not so much the revisiting of the price which has annoyed me - I get it, it's been a tough 18 months and they want to get as much as they can. It's the lying about having a very poorly relative which I find inexcusable. Had they messaged and said prices everywhere have gone up a lot and would we consider splitting the difference, I would have been annoyed at the cheek, but we would at least have the choice of still having our holiday.

So, if anyone knows of a 6 bedroom place suitable for young children somewhere around the south downs for the second week of August, please let me know!

Was this through a company/holiday website? You might be able to complain to them if it was and see if they have any alternatives.

@Crazycatlady83

Very few people seem to have failed to understand that there would be consequences to closing the economy for 1+ year. Domestic holiday prices will rise this year, foreign holiday next year. Restaurant prices and taxes. I feel sorry for business owners - people screaming for their businesses to close (and in some cases they still remain closed), not making a penny for a year and then people calling them "disgusting" and "greedy" for trying to claw back some of their losses.

It's a inconvenience for you, but we don't know the holiday owners circumstances. They might be on the edge financially and need to make more money to keep their heads above water.

We should have a little sympathy for other people's circumstances

Assuming the holiday home was registered for business rates (as they should have been as it's a business), they'll have received upto £28k in govt grants so far (with more to come). It started with the £10k grant last April and there have been local council grants ever since payable to property based businesses which have been forced to close due to covid. Now there's the reopening grant payable to businesses previously forced to close. I'm an accountant with various holiday home owning clients. Those who were correctly/properly registered as business premises have had plenty of grants, even though they could still trade for a few months over the year outside the lockdowns. All my clients have had more in grants than they lost in lost customers over the lockdowns, so are quids in. If a holiday home owner wasn't properly registered with their local council as a business, and therefore missed out on the grants, it's their own hard luck!

Sue them- for disappointment. You can easily do this yourself online.

I agree lots of people have benefitted from the Covid financial support in place - if they've been honest about their takings in the first place, they have been quite well supported, to the point they have more than they actually would have done if they were trading.

I hate greedy arseholes like this, I really do. I hope Karma comes to bite them. Lying about COVID is fucking disgusting.

We had this happen on AirBnB. We contacted Airbnb and told them. The inflated booking was taken down and the owner blacklisted I’m told.

Get a load of tents and pitch them in the garden!

That’s really unfair

Reneging agreements, lying and blaming it on Covid - is, by any chance, the holiday home owner's name "Boris Johnson"?

This happened to me recently it is disgusting and puts you off booking anything.
Especially with Hoseasons.