It is unfair as they were not given the opportunity to NOT take the flights in the first place and seem to have been lied to about the state of the hotel. Are you saying it is ok for a company to totally mislead you, dump you at a half finished hotel and then claim that they can keep 40% of your money for the privilege? They may have ruined the one and only holiday that year for caf and I am wondering if she even has a case for MORE than 100% back.

Fallenangel
I think we shall have to agree to disagree on this one! Do you by any chance work for the travel industry? Perhaps then you are going by what you know people get but that doesn't necessarily make it right.
Caf
keep us posted please!

From the details you have given surely you have a case on the health and safety issue? Did you take photos to back up claims?

Yes, we have photos and video footage too. Fortunately, in the room next to us was someone experienced with property development and signing off buildings was something he knew a lot about. He did his own survey of the hotel and took lots of photos. He knew all the right questions to ask when we sat down with the general manager of the hotel to discuss our concerns around health and safety.

fallenangel,

You wrote

If you had chosen alternative flights, you would most likely have been responsible for paying for these yourself, or the difference between your original flight and new flight.

With respect, the Package Travel Regulations (http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si1992/Uksi_19923288_en_1.htm) put the onus on the tour operator. Here's the relevant portion:

Significant proportion of services not provided
    14.-(1)  The terms set out in paragraphs (2) and (3) below are implied in every contract and apply where, after departure, a significant proportion of the services contracted for is not provided or the organiser becomes aware that he will be unable to procure a significant proportion of the services to be provided.

    (2)  The organiser will make suitable alternative arrangements, at no extra cost to the consumer, for the continuation of the package and will, where appropriate, compensate the consumer for the difference between the services to be supplied under the contract and those supplied.

    (3)  If it is impossible to make arrangements as described in paragraph (2), or these are not accepted by the consumer for good reasons, the organiser will, where appropriate, provide the consumer with equivalent transport back to the place of departure or to another place to which the consumer has agreed and will, where appropriate, compensate the consumer.

Hi Caf,

Yes I do work in the industry, and delaing with these claims is actually my full time job. Im just trying to advise.

Also, if you do have photographs and video evidence, you will have to submit this to the tour operator. If you do not, you are not giving them the opportunity to evaluate your claim based on all the information available.

Its not unfair at all. the flights alone equate to around 60% of the total price.

As I've already commented, this is a general yardstick used to calculate costs within the holiday industry. It is not something that a court would be likely to set much store by, given that these days, you can often pick up flights ridiculously cheaply for a fraction of the price of accommodation.

why should you get that back? the flights were fine!

Whether or not the flights were fine isn't really the issue here. The issue is whether or not the customer would have chosen to travel had the tour operator not failed in their duty to tell them that there were significant problems with the hotel that might merit them opting to exercise their right to cancel and have their money back; and following on from this, whether or not the tour operator's failure to tell them of the true extent of the problems at the hotel amounted to negligent performance of the contract.

Should a retailer fail to demonstrate that they have not been negligent in the performance of the contract in a situation such as this, then the customer may have grounds for claiming damages for any losses that they have suffered as a result. Such losses would include the wasted cost of travelling on flights that the customer claims they would have not have consented to take, had they been informed by the tour operator of the true position regarding the state of the hotel.

Yes I do work in the industry, and delaing with these claims is actually my full time job. Im just trying to advise.

I don't doubt that you are, and I accept that you believe what you are saying is correct. However, with respect, there is often a substantial gap between the way in which people who work for tour operators are trained to field claims for compensation, and what the law says about the way in which tour operators are supposed to deal with them. If tour operators could always be relied upon to deal fairly in their handling of complaints, the need for a forum such as this would not exist.

if you do have photographs and video evidence, you will have to submit this to the tour operator.

True. This generally happens much further down the line though, after court proceedings have been issued in cases where where a settement out of court can't be reached. Both parties will be given a fixed timescale within which to exchange all the documents, photographs and evidence that they intend to rely upon at the court hearing.

Hi mrs J

See you are watching this subject I have sent you a private message.

Regards
Bizzilady

Cheers, Bizzilady.

I got it, and have replied.

MrsJ

if you do have photographs and video evidence, you will have to submit this to the tour operator.

True. This generally happens much further down the line though, after court proceedings have been issued in cases where where a settement out of court can't be reached. Both parties will be given a fixed timescale within which to exchange all the documents, photographs and evidence that they intend to rely upon at the court hearing.

When I was a TA and had to send complaints off to the tour ops we had to make sure that all evidence, including rep reports and photos were sent at that stage. How can a TO evaulate the compensation they will pay purely on a letter with no evidence? Surely it is better to submit the evidence now to try and sort the situation out amicably, without the added stress of going to court?

How can a TO evaulate the compensation they will pay purely on a letter with no evidence? Surely it is better to submit the evidence now to try and sort the situation out amicably, without the added stress of going to court?

I think that it depends upon the nature of the complaint. Where complaints about accommodation are concerned, most tour operators have a rep on site who will have given them an appraisal of the situation at the hotel when the customer first made a complaint.

In a case like this, where part of the complaint revolves around the fact that a hotel resembles a building site, and the hotel actually does resemble a building site, a tour operator should not have to ask a customer to produce evidence that it does. They will know that it does already, as their in-resort representative will have made them aware that it does.

Whilst it is true that the courts encourage both parties in a dispute to exchange evidence at an early stage to try and reach a settlement and avoid matters ending up in court, this expectation cuts both ways and applies equally as much to the tour operator as it does to the customer...:!: