If the value of the purchase on your credit card was over £ 100.00 you may want to seek redress/assistance from the credit card company.

Also check out the terms- and conditions of booking, specifically the terms referring to cancellation due to force majeure (sp?).

Mark

Wow what a quick response many many thanks. Hadn't thought about contacting the credit card company, thank you. Have checked the booking conditions and whilst we are not entitled to any compensation, which I understand and wouldn't want to travel if the sea was rough, it does say we can have a refund. The coach company have not refused a refund but keep making excuses as to when I can have a refund. As my husband had only booked enough holiday to cover the short trip we wanted to book somewhere else asap but I have been waiting for telephone calls and e-mails that were promised and never came. I am not cross that the trip was cancelled, but that the coach company seem to not want to put things right quickly. I just want a refund and I am happy.
blackjappa

You may not get a refund on the insurance as this was in place and paid for at the time of taking out the booking. Doesnt the Travel Insurance have a cancellation clause which would provide you with at least a refund, or does this exclude weather.

Kind Regards
Stewart

blackjappa,

I'd be surprised if the terms & conditions excluded a refund for cancellation - even due to bad weather - particularly as cruises are prone to bad sea conditions. Anyway, you've checked and you ARE entitled to a refund.
Have you pointedly asked the tour company when they WILL issue the refund? I suppose 7-10 days is reasonable - but they may be prepared to put a timescale in writing. Only accept a written confirmation - fax and/or email are not generaly legally useful.

If you get no joy there, do call your credit card issuer. As Mark rightly pointed out, if your total spend (even if you only paid, say, the deposit by card) is more than £100 and less than £30,000 you are cobered under section 75 of the consumer credit act and this enables you to take action against either the supplier OR your card issuer in the event of a breach of contract or other similar fault.

Your card company is likely to send you some forms, these will be filled in by you and returned and the card cmpany will then chase the tour company. In the meantime, the car company usually "freezes" the amount of the payment (this can be a problem if you've only paid, say, the deposit by the card) until the matter is resolved. This has the benificial effect of allowing your to then spend an amount similar to the "frozen" amount, on an alternate holiday and you need only pay the one sum at the month end when your statement arrives.

Your card company may warn you that if there's no "breach" or other contractual issue you may need to repay the sum to the card cmpany. This is why it's best to check the small print first if you do intend to spend that same sum a second time.

Cheers

I think the original poster has a valid point... the cruise was cancelled and a refund is due.

When it comes to paying for a holiday the money (either the deposit or full amount) is taken there and then. You can't offer the supplier of the holiday to pay in 7 or 10 days time.

In my opinion, the same treatment should be offered in return. When refunds are due they can be done there and then if a company puts their mind to it.

Mark

Thank you all for your replies. I have e-mailed the company and they are "processing" my refund. But it hasn't materialised yet. Why it takes so long to refund back onto a credit card I don't know. In a shop it is done immediately. I wrote and asked about the insurance and received a reply saying refunds are not being made on insurance cover as some passengers may want to make a claim. I understood that insurers will only pay out if you cannot claim a refund from the company that sold the holiday. However I also received a letter from them outlining my options because of the cancellation. A refund for the holiday was one of them and it also said that insurance premiums would be reimbursed once the policy was sent back. There was no mention of this in the e-mail I received. I am not sure where I stand now.
blackjappa

Usually when you buy insurance there is a cooling off period in which you can cancel and get a refund providing no claim has been made.

After the cooling off period all premiums will be lost as insurances usually cover cancellation of a holiday.

Mark