Cancelling holiday letting

[swirlywirlywoo]

We booked a holiday letting which accommodates 11 before the rule of 6 was introduced. The owners know there will be 10 of us as we had to tell them at the time of booking. We haven't been in touch with them yet as we were hoping for a u turn on under 12s to align with Scotland and Wales but now that looks unlikely. Just wondering what our legal position would be in terms of the rental fee? We can't legally all go so would need to cancel but would the owners be able to argue that since 6 of us could go they don't have to give us a refund, even though we said 10 at time of booking? Thanks

I really don't know but surely they are unable to accommodate more than six and you booked for ten people originally. It's be rubbish if there weren't at least some concessions on the part of the owners. Everyone is in a difficult position.

We booked accommodation for 8 (we were only 7 but needed 4 rooms). 2 were coming from abroad and couldn't, so the other 5 of us took the accommodation.

I had no contact from the owner or the agent so they had no idea how many of us were there. We paid for what we had booked: a house for 8.

I don't think it's up to letters to police their customers. I think they should assume that we all know the law, or perhaps send a generic email reminding the customer of all the relevant regulations, and then leave the customer to take responsibility for his/her own actions. After all, we could have been a family of 8 who all live together normally.

There is a law which states that if a contract can't be fulfilled because it would be illegal or impossible (not just difficult or expensive) to do so, then it becomes null and void. Frustrated contract is the term you'd need to google. It was being used as the foundation upon which people were able to get refunds rather than vouchers for cancelled holidays.

But since you could, in theory, be a household of 10, then it's not them that are unable to fulfil the contract, so in that case I don't think they'd be sympathetic.

Frustration is not applicable, they're supplying what you purchased. If the ten of you were one household, or a bubble setup, you could still all go.

Can those of you from one household still go?

Frustration is not applicable, they're supplying what you purchased. The supply isn't the main point. During lockdown, when people were unable to travel to a cottage they'd booked, the cottage was still there and available (supplied by the renter) but frustration applied because the contract could no longer legally be fulfilled, because the people renting would have been breaking the law.