lost deposit on holidays

[big-all]

my friend has cancelled the holiday she had booked next summer
the holiday was in jamaica in june

she had made several instalments totaling £800 from a £3.500 holiday
the travel agent [first choice ] says she can only have £50 back as a good will gesture
my thought are this is not a fair amount as with holding £750 would not be a reasonable and fair amount and would = an unfair term in the contract

 

[Alarm]

Just had a quick look, with that amount of time before the holiday the "deposit" is lost. So I assume the £800 was classed as a deposit.
Check the terms and conditionds, but its probably right, Was section 12 of the "sun holidays terms),

After that call in ABTA or ATOL.

 

[Susiejb]

I would imagine that there are 'terms and conditions' that are in the small print regarding refunds.

Often you lose more the closer the holiday is.....so as she has cancelled well in advance I would suggest arguing this point and refusing the £50.

It is always worth standing your ground and giving it your best shot....after all there is nothing to lose and a lot to gain

 

[LooPrEvil]

As an alternative, could she transfer the holiday to somebody else and just pay the admin fee for that?

Or will they allow the money to be transferred to another holiday that she could take, and again just pay the admin fee?

 

[big-all]

it actually says in the terms and conditions small print that she should ask what the deposit will be now in my eyes that them neglecting there responcabillities they are the experts and thats a fundamental part off the contract so they should bring it up

 

[Susiejb]

Big-all you say that she has paid 'installments' I would imagine that your friend needs to clarify what percentage of these payments is actually the deposit.
Unfortunately the fact that 'they are the experts' doesn't always mean that 'they' will be helpful and act in your friends best interest.

 

[big-all]

unfortunately as you might expect there is no money to spare so freeing up money is the main object
but if the outcome will be a 750 loss then better to leave in limbo and hope for another option that will be less wastfull rather than cut and run

 

[Alarm]

But as Susie and myself said, you have to find out what amount constitutes the deposit.

The installments made could have been making the initial deposit up to the correct amount,thus negating any return.

Time to read the small print and get the specific T&C for this holiday, as a quick search shows they have a few different ones for various holiday types.
Also get them to quote the direct reference AND the correct deposit required for this holiday.

 

[LooPrEvil]

Surely Al you know how much the deposit was?

I can go on line now, go through the motions of booking the holiday and it shows the deposit today is £150 per person. Just have a look in the brochure and it will state the value of deposit required and the terms and conditions will confirm how much it will cost to cancel taking into account the notice she gave. Simple really, surely??

 

[LooPrEvil]

unfortunately as you might expect there is no money to spare so freeing up money is the main object
but if the outcome will be a 750 loss then better to leave in limbo and hope for another option that will be less wastfull rather than cut and run

You are not a business man than?

 

[Alarm]

5 @ £150 = £750, balance £50

Just an idea, as we do not know how many were booked.

 

[LooPrEvil]

5 @ £150 = £750, balance £50

Just an idea, as we do not know how many were booked.

True

 

[LooPrEvil]

Surely Al you know how much the deposit was?

I can go on line now, go through the motions of booking the holiday and it shows the deposit today is £150 per person. Just have a look in the brochure and it will state the value of deposit required and the terms and conditions will confirm how much it will cost to cancel taking into account the notice she gave. Simple really, surely??

CLAUSE 12 of the terms and conditions:

12. If you cancel your booking

If you want to cancel your booking or part of it, you or your travel agent must advise us. Once we receive your notice of cancellation you should expect to receive a Cancellation Invoice within 14 days. If you do not then please contact us. To cover the cost of processing your cancellation and to compensate us for the risk that we may not be able to resell your travel arrangements, we make a cancellation charge on the scale shown below. The person who made the booking is responsible for paying this charge. The size of the charge depends on when we receive your notification– the more notice you give, the less we will charge.

If you are travelling on a scheduled flight, we cannot give you any refund until we have received your old travel documents, including tickets. Please return them to us or your travel agent immediately.

Cancellation charges
These charges are based on how many days before your booked departure we receive your cancellation notice. These charges are a percentage of the total cost of your booking, not including your insurance premium.

Period before departure when notice of cancellation is received % of total booking price
70 days or more
Loss of deposit*
69-56 days 30%
55-36 days 50%
35-22 days 70%
21-15 days 90%
14-0 days 100%

* Where the standard deposit is increased to secure specific facilities or an additional payment has been made for transport tickets (see Section 10 and 11.3) and these are non-refundable in whole or in part, then the scale of charges shown will be calculated based on a % of the cost of all other arrangements and the non-refundable charges will be added to that cancellation charge to give the total charge. If a low deposit scheme was used for your booking, the full deposit as advised at time of booking or as stated on the confirmation invoice will need to be paid in full upon cancellation, if you have not already paid the full percentage of deposit due.

Please note that for certain travel arrangements e.g. coach tours and many scheduled transport providers the cancellation charge may be higher than those shown. In certain cases a 100% cancellation fee applies as soon as the booking is made and the ticket is issued. Please ask for full details of cancellation charges at time of booking. Please check your insurance policy to see if you are covered for the cancellation charge.

 

[big-all]

it was 3 people so 450 or 525 if the 175 they quoted

 

[big-all]

unfortunately as you might expect there is no money to spare so freeing up money is the main object
but if the outcome will be a 750 loss then better to leave in limbo and hope for another option that will be less wastfull rather than cut and run

You are not a business man than?

what i ment was take £50 and loose the money or not take anything leave as is then at a later date if things improve the money is still there as is the holiday on further payment or maybe to a different cheaper holiday or transfer to another person

thanks for taking the time and trouble people i appreciate it