Holiday will most likely be cancelled - rights ?

magicray

We are due to go on holidays on the 15th of April, nice all inclusive trip with some guided tours included , its been paid in full

The company (which I won't name) have cancelled their tours until the 6th of April so far and are only offering a voucher back to use off another holiday to those people - their t&c say if they cancel a full refund will be issued

I am expecting our trip to be cancelled soon and am wondering am I within my rights not to accept a voucher ?

I did ring them 2 weeks ago before this all took off and asked could we reschedule our trip to later in the year and they said no, they also said we would lose 80% of the cost if we cancelled so we chose to wait it out and see

This is the section of the t&c I am reading

d) If prior to the departure date there is a cancellation, alteration, change or curtailment relating to a holiday, which results in more than 12 hours change in the time of departure, or a change of resort or in the type of accommodation offered, or some other change which fundamentally alters the holiday, the Organiser shall, if practicable, offer an alternative comparable holiday of at least similar standard or shall refund the Consumer all monies paid. Unless within four days of issue of the offer of an alternative holiday, it is declined by the Consumer in writing, the Organiser shall assume that the Consumer has accepted such offer. Where the offer is declined the Consumer shall only be entitled to return of payment made.

drunkmonkey

Hold tight until they cancel get your money back not a voucher.

magicray

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Hold tight until they cancel get your money back not a voucher.

Yes thats what we are doing but they are only offering vouchers at the moment for the holidays they have cancelled not money back

FluffPiece

I'd nearly be tempted to name and shame if I was in your shoes. Some companies deserve the bad rep and have people know what they are like.

I have a trip booked upcoming at the end of this month. It was booked since September last year. A couple of weeks ago following a similar closure announcement of some of their stuff, I contacted them and they gave us a choice to rebook at a later stage this year free of charges or to have a refund. whichever we wanted.

We've chosen to go later this year instead of opting for a refund as they were honest and accommodating about it.

magicray

FluffPiece wrote: »

We've chosen to go later this year instead of opting for a refund as they were honest and accommodating about it.

See that's exactly what we wanted to do, I think the customer service is absolutely shocking and I apart from anything else treating people like this does not give me much confidence that they will be in business for long enough for me to use a voucher

FluffPiece

FluffPiece wrote: »

I'd nearly be tempted to name and shame if I was in your shoes. Some companies deserve the bad rep and have people know what they are like.

I have a trip booked upcoming at the end of this month. It was booked since September last year. A couple of weeks ago following a similar closure announcement of some of their stuff, I contacted them and they gave us a choice to rebook at a later stage this year free of charges or to have a refund. whichever we wanted.

We've chosen to go later this year instead of opting for a refund as they were honest and accommodating about it.

At this stage the company have done absolutely nothing wrong, as unlikely as it sounds, if the holiday is deemed safe to go ahead, this will be a change of mind situation. At this stage it is hard to see holidays like this going ahead in that timeframe, if the company cancels then op will get money back. There is currently no shame to name.

dartboardio

If their t&cs stated a full refund will be issued then you will get a full refund.

Just refuse the voucher and quote the t&cs, job done.

magicray

Dav010 wrote: »

At this stage the company have done absolutely nothing wrong, as unlikely as it sounds, if the holiday is deemed safe to go ahead, this will be a change of mind situation. At this stage it is hard to see holidays like this going ahead in that timeframe, if the company cancels then op will get money back. There is currently no shame to name.

The countries borders have closed and we would be subject to a 14 day quarantine when we get there - so really I don't understand why its still going ahead , anyway I'll wait it out a bit longer

magicray

magicray wrote: »

The countries borders have closed and we would be subject to a 14 day quarantine when we get there - so really I don't understand why its still going ahead , anyway I'll wait it out a bit longer

It is fair to assume that it will be cancelled. It is quite complex for businesses. A virus outbreak is a force majuere, an act of God, insurance does not cover this. But if a Government closes down a country, then Insurance companies have to pay out. At the moment border closures and flight restrictions may only be in force up to a certain date, as they are extended, say after April 6th, then travel companies will be able to get reimbursement from insurance companies for losses and pay their clients. Sit tight.

skinny90

What about initiating a charge back?
My boat I am due to fly to Asia on April 3rd
There is 2 stops Greece and Singapore on the way and on the way back it’s Singapore Berlin on way back.
It’s fairly certain the flights will be cancelled. We have contacted to see if we can a) change the dates to the end of this year or next year
get our money back

The company won’t deal with any queries unless where due to fly in 5 days time l. They will just hang up.
In my case it’s edreams
Any advice ?

FluffPiece

Dav010 wrote: »

At this stage the company have done absolutely nothing wrong, as unlikely as it sounds, if the holiday is deemed safe to go ahead, this will be a change of mind situation. At this stage it is hard to see holidays like this going ahead in that timeframe, if the company cancels then op will get money back. There is currently no shame to name.

That I would normally agree with, but the OP has said that so far where this company has actually cancelled for others, all that was offered was a voucher instead of the option for a full refund. I'm sure if you refused the voucher, you would get the refund but you shouldn't have to fight for a refund where it's cancelled.

silver2020

remember these companies are dealing with thousands of queries and looking at a huge loss of business, so can't really afford to take on more staff.

We all simply have to be patient. Email is by far the best form of communication.

Put a booking ref and date of travel/event/stay in the subject line and then give a short concise query.

If you babble on for several paragraphs, it will be shunted to one side.

Allow a couple of days for response - if they don't respond, resend it, but not with any narky remarks. Remember a huge number of people and companies are under immense pressure and they don't need unwarranted hassle.

Please be polite

Fireball81

silver2020 wrote: »

remember these companies are dealing with thousands of queries and looking at a huge loss of business, so can't really afford to take on more staff.

We all simply have to be patient. Email is by far the best form of communication.

Put a booking ref and date of travel/event/stay in the subject line and then give a short concise query.

If you babble on for several paragraphs, it will be shunted to one side.

Allow a couple of days for response - if they don't respond, resend it, but not with any narky remarks. Remember a huge number of people and companies are under immense pressure and they don't need unwarranted hassle.

Please be polite

I know people are concerned about their trips in the coming months but the airlines and co have all asked only to contact them if your departure is in the next 72 hours - perfectly reasonable in my opinion given the sheer volume of queries they will have.

No company could plan for this level of disruption, we have a trip in August, will wait a while before contacting them.

magicray

Thanks all, I do understand this is an awful situation for all concerned and totally unprecedented , I am always polite having worked in a customer facing role for too many years

I do understand too that they are looking after the people that are travelling sooner than me - in the next 2 weeks

My question really was that if/when my trip is cancelled am I entitled to insist on a refund and not a voucher - that is all they are offering the people that were to travel in the next 2 weeks at the moment
I am kind of hoping that these people will have the arguments first so when my turn comes around it will be sorted

Emmersonn

We were supposed to travel to Canada on 27th this month which includes a train journey across Canada. We got word from the travel agents yesterday that they were cancelling all trips. We were given the choice of rescheduling or a full refund. We opted for the refund.

silver2020

magicray wrote: »

Thanks all, I do understand this is an awful situation for all concerned and totally unprecedented , I am always polite having worked in a customer facing role for too many years

I do understand too that they are looking after the people that are travelling sooner than me - in the next 2 weeks

My question really was that if/when my trip is cancelled am I entitled to insist on a refund and not a voucher - that is all they are offering the people that were to travel in the next 2 weeks at the moment
I am kind of hoping that these people will have the arguments first so when my turn comes around it will be sorted

not suggesting you are anything but polite - and you post is very sensibly put.

Their own conditions state that they will offer you a rescheduled date and if that is not suitable, you need to state that in writing (email should suffice) and get a refund.

I'd simply say

"Thanks for the offer of an alternative date, however it does not suit me and therefore under condition d of your terms and condition I would like a refund to be processed.

I understand this is a difficult time for all and should I be looking for a similar holiday, you will be my first port of call due to the professional way you have handled this"

It would be very hard not to give a refund - also you;d be covered by credit/debit card chargeback in any case unless you paid by cash or bank transfer

jos28

We booked flights to Montenegro with Ryanair and a hotel with Booking.com for end May. Not looking good at this stage. Montenegro have closed their borders and all flights have been cancelled (not mine yet).
If it's cancelled I will obviously sort that out with RA, the hotel booking is different. I've paid €130 of the total €850, I have until 14th May to cancel but will lose the €130. Would I be entitled to a full refund if the airport remains closed.

Cee-Jay-Cee

I’d imagine the company are trying to limit the damage to their company as much as possible by offering vouchers however you don’t have to accept it so simply say no thanks, refund my money. They can’t refuse.

Icepick

Did you pay with a card to chargeback? The company may go into liquidation before this is over.

jos28

Yep, I'd be very reluctant to accept vouchers in this climate.

Little rossie

Listening to Sean O'Rourke on RTE1 radio speaking to a woman from a travel company in Bray today, she was making lots of excuses for not returning people's deposit/money who have booked a holiday with her company and are now not refunding them. Companies offering a voucher or an alternative date for holiday booked is not on. She even said herself that she may not be in business because of Covid 19. There is a law there to protect consumers so why is it being ignored by some companies. Was disappointed Sean did not pick her up on this, felt he let her away too lightly. Why would you want to get vouchers from these travel companies, as others have said they may not be around. In the same boat as others and having terrible difficulties trying to even get a response to my emails.

magicray

Well just to update, I got a call and was offered a voucher which I declined - I was told that they cant refund me and I would have to put my case forward in an email - they are estimating approx 14 days for a reply

I have sent the mail off and will see what they say, in the mean time we contacted the bank to see if a chargeback was possible, they have confirmed that once I have the refusal to refund in writing I can start that process

At least we wont be out of pocket but it looks like its going to be a long drawn out process

seagull

You should have contacted the bank first. Then you could have let the travel company know that you have been in contact with the bank, and they have agreed the conditions warrant a chargeback if they don't refund.

Icepick

seagull wrote: »

You should have contacted the bank first. Then you could have let the travel company know that you have been in contact with the bank, and they have agreed the conditions warrant a chargeback if they don't refund.

Not much weight IMO. They likely have significant cashflow issues.
Card issuers already have some funds locked for chargebacks.

jos28

My booking was made with Booking.com and it's understandably impossible to get through to them. I cannot fly to my destination as the airports are closed. I paid Booking.Com €113 approx with the balance due on 14th May. I will obviously be cancelling , would a chargeback be the way to get that €113 back ?

Cal04

Sorry but can I ask what is chargeback? I've paid over 300 to alph××xoms to travel to Spain end of june
Paid by card

jos28

A chargeback is where you ask your credit card company to reverse the transaction
https://www.ccpc.ie/consumers/shopping/disputed-card-transactions-chargeback/

seagull

They will only initiate a chargeback if you can show cause. A company refusing a refund when they can't provide a service is an acceptable situation for a chargeback. A company refusing a refund when you change your mind is not.