holiday refund

[Pootrouble]

Hi all, in january i arranged a holiday through trail finders to China and then onto Thailand. They arranged our flights and hotel. I paid a deposit of £2000 by debit card which was more than required. I then made a further payment a week later of around £1300 by debit card and then a payment of £2500 by credit card to complete the payments. however due to unforeseen circus we may need to change our holiday and go elsewhere. I've just rang trail finders and out of the £5.5k I've paid they said i will only receive back around £470!!!!

They said its basically my fault for paying it off early and that the sales person that dealt with me had sent the money to the airlines to pay for the flights (I got the impression this has been done far too early and shouldn't have been done until 60 days before departure).

In the Ts&Cs it says i will at least get my deposit back but they are saying as the money has already been sent to airlines and I've now chosen my seat i can't have it back. i only chose my seat as i was told i could!

Anyway this is a right hassle! Do you think if they won't refund me that my credit card company (virgin) will refund me the whole amount? If so how long does this normally take and what is the process does anyone know??

thank you

what does it say in the terms and conditions about cancellation and how far away is the holiday ? If they have booked it as individual elements with a non- refundable ticket then it may be more tricky than a standard package holiday . ABTA should be able to advise. Maybe £470 is the basic deposit as you admit you overpaid?

Do you have insurance?

Not insured yet. We dont travel until july 25. Yes so we would expect to lose the deposit we paid which is what it states in ts&cs and receive the rest back. I expected to lose around 500quid however they are telling me I am set to lose around 5k!.

lizs they are saying that out of over 5k I will only get back 470quid

I'd suggest you ask for a breakdown of their calculation. Sorry but very foolhardy not to take out insurance when booking as you wouldn't be covered even if, for example, one of you was too ill to travel and you cancelled nearer the time.

This is the second thread where someone has said 'not insured yet'.

LIZS is right. You book the insurance at the same time as the holiday. This gives you immediate cancellation cover, and then the medical etc kicks in when you actually travel.

insurance doesn't necessarily cover 'change of mind' even when it is for reasons beyond your control, but the 'too ill to travel' happened to the person on the other thread.

sorry.

If you have paid trail finders & they have sent your payments on. It will be a nightmare for them to get any money back, and the admin fees & the time it would take would be horrendous!
Once flights are purchased it is going to be up to your insurance company to claw the money back from the airline ( & no it is not to soon to buy flights) I organise long distance specific activity holidays as part of my job. Some flights already paid in full for November. Likewise when payments are sent to accommodation in distant countries, the hotels etc consider it their money, and unless pressed by insurance companies you are unlikely to see your money back.
What I have done in the past is say to people who have had to cancel, if they can find someone to take their place ( friend etc) then for a name change/admin fee that would be accepted by all parties. Can you find someone to take your place op?

Anyway fingers crossed for you, but it won't be easy.

Thanks guys we do usually do insurance at same time however weve booked this hol in several different bits with different companies so it got left til last. It wouldnt have covered it any. Thanks I will listen to the catch up radio

wishing you luck and hope you can get something back.

Do check you don't have travel insurance attached to your bank account , although as someone has pointed out it may not cover these circumstances.

Ok thanks all I will do