BRI-T Many thanks for your advice. Strangely enough, I have written to ABTA and they are saying that Virgin are right as they are not liable to rectify situations where the flight is delayed due to mechanical failure, weather etc etc. In fact, the flight was delayed, so we were told, as they were waiting for a pilot! It appears that ABTA are taking Virgin's side and are abdicating them of any responsibility - I wonder how they differentiate between your situation and ours ?? I would have thought that, regardless of the reason, it is the Airlines responsibility to ensure that the connecting passengers are there in good time. Anyway, thanks for the advice, I think the next step has to be a solicitor.

10con, I really dont know what else to advise! Have you actually written to Virgin Holidays again and asked for the unused day back?
And as you have asked ABTA for their advice, im sure they have advised you to do that?

ABTA dont side with T/O's, in fact in my experience it is the very opposite!
What will going to a solictor achieve? A lot of costs on your part, and maybe not a result at the end of that. Try one more time to get the unused day back, but apart from that I dont really think that you are going to be awarded anything else, from anyone.

The solicitor will obviously liase with ABTA and Virgin Holidays, and as you have already been told by both parties that the T/O are not liable whats the point?

What will going to a solictor achieve? A lot of costs on your part, and maybe not a result at the end of that.

Ros will give you free advice as to what you should do next and also if it is worth pursing your claim.

Fallen angel - Yes, asked Virgin to refund days lost holiday but they flatly refused. It seems ludicrous that we can part with over £500 per day for our holiday, yet no-one will take responsibility for us not being able to take that holiday - they says it's not their fault (V.Atlantic and V.Holidays) but it certainly ain't mine. As a consumer, if I have paid my money surely I have a right to expect the service promised? If this is not possible, surely some compensation should be offered. It seems simple to me!

Hi 10con,

I mean have you written again to them? I think its 2 letters have to be corresponded before the matter can go to arbitartion.

Work out the costing of the day you have lost, from the extra night price in the brochure you booked from (per person). if you didnt lose the night, just halve it and ask for that back in a short letter or email.

Yes fallenangel is right it does cost the tour op. more to defend the case but why defend it if they are wrong? and in your case 10con they are definately in the wrong. Also ABTA are supposed to be independant and impartial. I would speak to ROS like glynis suggests, i got my advive on the legallitys of making a complaint from my local trading standards because there is a way and means of writing and wording a complaint and they have all the facts sheets and advice, i even got them to check my initial complaint letter over before i sent it ( send it recorded post then they cant say they did not receive it) Also request a letter from virgin atlantic as to why the plane was delayed like i did. They have to reply because it might be for insurance purposes ( mine was got from AA though and they tend to be more helpful) but dont give up you are owed that money. Oh as a footnotr did you reject by letter the offer of three 50% fares and tell them that compensation is to be paid in cash not credit? because you have to do it like this.

The solicitor will obviously liase with ABTA and Virgin Holidays, and as you have already been told by both parties that the T/O are not liable whats the point?

The point is that the solicitor's job is to argue the customers case and put their side of it, rather than the tour operators. ABTA are the trade organisation for the travel industry, and their primary role is to look after the interests of tour operators and travel agents; not the interests of customers.

Parroting the mantra that they are not liable when things go wrong seems to be standard practice these days for some holiday companies. A lot of the time this simply isn't true, and the tour operator is taking advantage of the fact that most people don't know what their legal rights are to avoid having to pay out compensation. Free advice costs nothing, and you have nothing to lose (and possibly a lot to gain) from asking Ros for her opinion.

In the meantime, I would recommend that you don't accept any form of conpensation offered to you, be it vouchers or offers of cash, until you know properly where you stand.

In the longer term, if you have to resort to further measures to resolve your complaint and choose to do it without a solicitor, then I would recommend that court action is the way to go; not ABTA arbitration. According to Which? magazine most people are better off by taking their case to court.

As BRI-T says, your local trading standards office will help you fill the forms in.

Also most of the members of the board of ABTA are heads of Tour Operators/Travel Agents.

Another thing if you go through ABTA arbitration then that is it - case closed - you can not pursue the matter through the courts if you are not satisfied with the results.

I know principles cost money, but even now, after years of dealing with these claims every day, I am so suprised to see what lengths people are prepared to go to.

Youve had your holiday, yes it was disrupted a little. But overall you had a good time, why keep dragging it on?!

No holiday unfortunately is ever completely perfect, but why prolong the disappointment youve had by continuing this for the case of a delayed flight? I really do not think that your solictor will feel it worth taking on.

I really do not think that your solictor will feel it worth taking on.

Which is where we differ. Correct me if I'm wrong but you work in the travel industry, do you not?

I used to work in consumer rights, which I'm guessing at least partly accounts for why our take on this is different. You find the lengths people are prepared to go to to pursue claims against tour operators surprising; I find the lengths which some tour operators are prepared to go to to avoid settling legitimate claims fairly out of court equally astounding.

I agree that no reasonable person would expect a holiday to be perfect; however, it is reasonable to expect to get what you have paid for, and it also reasonable to expect that when things do go wrong, a tour operator does everything in their power to put things right and minimise the inconvenience to the customer.

The law places an absolute duty on the tour operator to exercise all due care at every stage in the performance of the contract, from the point where the customer books the holiday and pays their deposit, till the point when the customer returns home and the contractual relationship between the tour operator and the customer ends.

In circumstances where the tour operator has not exercised all due care and the customer has suffered loss, inconvenience or disappointment as a result, then the default position in law is that the consumer has a case against the tour operator. Peronal injury and complex claims aside, the majority of holiday claims are pretty straightforward and can be dealt with in the small claims court without the aid of a solicitor.

However, Fallenangel, this IS a matter of principle. Virgin do not expect to give you a free days holiday so why should you pay for one you didn't receive. I am also undergoing a dispute with Virgin (they still owe me some money from a holiday they cancelled) they cannot possibly win. However, they are making it impossibly tedious now. I will get my money in the end and all they will have achieved is loosing a customer that has used them many times.

I completely agree with you Mrs J and RachieM, it is a matter of principal and Virgin should pay up. I cannot believe fallen angel is more or less saying forget it! Why should I? I am not in the habit of forking out hundreds of pounds for a days stay in an airport hotel, without clean clothes or toiletries, making my 9 year old son endure a 22 hour journey without even the offer of refreshments or a seat. We paid our money in good faith and Virgin failed to deliver - I don't care whose fault it was, they should make good. It was more than a little disruption too, it affected all our wedding plans because we were not there when we were meant to be - therefore using up another 2 full days holiday to sort these problems out. Would anyone with half a brain pay out over £6,000 for a fortnights holiday and accept this?