Aunt won't refund money

[Casals07]

Aunt has a home abroad that myself, DH and kids go to every year. We go in August as it's too hot for Aunt to go. I pay to stay there and always take care of the place and top everything up before I leave. The house is now 20 years old and is definitely showing signs of wear and tear. Nothing has been replaced. This year I arrived to find black mould in the bedrooms, job had been started but won't be finished until November. My Aunt never informed me of this. My DD has now got pneumonia and we have had to move out at a considerable expense. My Aunt has refused to return any of my text messages. My DH rang her and asked for the money back we paid as the house is not habitable. She has point blank refused.

Not sure you get pneumonia from mould but anyway.
Of course she should have told you so you had the choice to go or not but as its a family arrangement (even paid) I am assuming no contract so no obligation to refund you.
Would be nice if she did but as she is refusing there isn't a lot you can do

Why not spray with mould remover and limit the time in that room/cover it with something like cling film taped to the wall. I doubt DDs pneumonia is directly related to that so quickly she must have been ill before hand.

Instead of moving out you could have flown home you had other options. With no contract a refund isn't going to happen unless it's from the good of her heart which doesn't sound like it will particularly with work required.

Presumably you've been enjoying extended holidays at below rate prices all this time, perhaps see it as an investment for future holidays.

Is the house in France?
Can you prove the payments over the years.

If yes then remind your aunt that the French authorities take a very dim view of someone not declaring earnings.
Also the local maire would have something to say.
I'm sorry for your dd, that's shocking.
Old houses can get damp and it's rained a lot this spring.
Your aunt needs to get dehumidifiers in the rooms.

You can get pneumonia from mould and rising damp. The hospital confirmed this. It's gone beyond a spray,all the walls in master bedroom are affected and the smell is horrendous. It's in the door frames too.

House not in France and we had a dehumidifier in the room.

If your relative doesn't care about your health she won't care about keeping your cash...
Imo.

Why would we fly home when it's our summer holiday.

Wow what a lovely Aunt. That's vile.

Ugh it looks grim!!

How long has this been going on, ie. how long has Aunt not responded for? Pretty bad form from her not even giving a well wish to your DD. If I was her I would return the money but I don’t know what you can do to force her hand.

Are you asking for a refund of rent you paid her or for the additional expense of moving accommodation? Or both?

She absolutely should have told you about the issue if she was aware of it. Is she actually able to afford refunds/ reimbursement and works to the property? It sounds like a cheap build and an absolute nightmare for her although that doesn’t excuse her behaviour to you. I imagine she’s overwhelmed.

How many nights did you stay in that house?!! Jesus I would have left, I presumed you only lasted a night or two….

Does your aunt rely on the income from the house rentals? Maybe she doesn't have the money any more. Maybe she needs the money to complete the remedial work so she can continue renting for the rest of the year or so she can live there.

It sounds like there is a reason why she hasn't returned the money. I think you have to let it go for now. Next year ask her for a week for free IF the work has been done.

I texted her a week ago and DH rang yesterday after we moved out. He asked her to refund for the nights we are not staying. Not asking for all our money back or money for the new place. My Aunt is extremely well of and can afford to get it fixed. She was in the house 2 weeks before I arrived and the work was apparently started in June so she knew.

Do you pay full price Or have you had many years of cheap holidays?

Money is definitely not an issue. She only rents to three family members. She has already paid somebody cash to fix it but he's literally plastered over the rising damp.

I pay slightly less than the going rate but I by no means get it for cheap. Even if I was to get it for free would you think that rising damp is OK?

You keep going on about how wealthy she is. How do you know her circumstances?
You are just presuming.

If I was her, I would refund you for the days not used and never rent it to you again.
I’m sure you have conveniently forgotten the all the savings you have had over the years.
The one year it isn’t perfect!

it’s bad behaviour, but you really can’t force her to pay you without taking her to a small claims court, which does not seem like a great idea.

Don't rent off her again. Presuming you were getting mates rates? If not then just go to a normal rental villa/ hotel.
My mates fell out spectacularly over the level of habitability a caravan was deemed to possess, all bc you should not mix friends and rentals/money/holiday lets.
Did the mould cause pneumonia? Who knows. I hope she gets it sorted but just take it as that arrangement being a bust.

She has told me how wealthy she is. Its common knowledge in our family. As I said previously I only paid slightly below the going rate so I wasn't getting cheap holidays as the house is in an area that is quite expensive. I would never stay in it again, my family's health is more important.

My DD has fungal pneumonia caused by rising damp and mould spores as confirmed by the hospital. That is why we moved out immediately.

She should have told you about the mould/damp and given you the opportunity to cancel. As she's not communicating with you I think you're unlikely to see the money again so as frustrating as it is, I would try to put it out of your minds and never rent from her again.

That is awful. Of course she should refund you with a grovelling apology.

If she isn't then she isn't a nice person

And your poor DD! Get well soon

Do you have travel insurance?

@neverbeenskiing , didn't tell me and thank you.
@overgrowntoddler , thank you.