what have first choice actually said about your complaint. have they just rejected it completely or did they make any offer of compensation?
did you contact the rep in resort about all these issues?
what did they do?
do you have any photos?
have you looked at the terms and conditions of reporting complaints, and followed them, in resort?
how much do you think you should get in compensation?
are you looking to go to ABTA or making a claim through the small claims court?
at first glance it certainly appears that you have a reasonable claim but answers to the above will help you get better advice.

Thanks for taking the time to reply. I'll try and expand on your points.

First Choice initially replied with a standard 'sorry you aren't satisfied, we hope this won't stop you booking with us in the future', and when we put in our second complaint they said they 'feel they have done everything to ensure they can to ensure a fair and reasonable closure to the matter'. We were not offered any compensation.

We contacted the rep after the first night to report the broken bed. He told us he would sort the problem for us. Nothing was done. He was not at work the next day so we saw him again at 9am the following day. We were told to return at 12pm. We did and were told to go to our rooms and we would be moved at 5pm, which then happened around 5.30, so we lost a day. When we reported the problem with the electrics, he told us he would get it fixed and to mail him that night if it wasn't. It wasn't, so we did and he replied with 'I can't believe how rubbish they have been'. With the final issue, we reported to the hotel directly as it was 8pm and we thought this would get a faster resolution. I have photos of the broken bed but we didn't submit them in the complaint as I assumed the fact they made us move proved they weren't disputing it.

I am not sure the best course of action. I was planning on letting ABTA deal with it as I aren't really sure how to proceed in the small claims court. I am not sure how much compensation we should get - an apology and a some vouchers of next years holiday would have sufficed, but when pushed for an amount in the ABTA process we suggested £500 for the loss of time and the same for loss of enjoyment and stress caused. The holiday cost was around £3400. I have no idea if this is reasonable, and to be honest the amount isn't really important and I was open to counter offers.

I think we are going to go ahead with the independent arbitration and risk the costs. Advice and opinion on here is very helpful because obviously to us it is a very personal issue and that can cloud judgement.

Thanks once again for your reply

Phil

i dont think ABTA is the independant arbitration it was in the past and you may be better exploring the small claims court route before spending the money.
you can submit your claim online
please recheck the T&Cs to ensure you have complied with your part of the claim procedure particularly in resort before you spend any money

The Abta arbitration is completely neutral. It's supplied by the CEDR, and they appointment the arbitrator.

I would try a firm called Resolver.They look into your complaint and if things aren't going fast enough with the other party they up the tempo and put pressure on them.They are online and are completely free.I have used them once and got complete satisfaction from them.Worth giving them a try.

Isn't Resolver an app that helps you pursue your own comlaint via series of temlate letters etc rather than company that will take up your complaint on your behalf?

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/site/resolver

Its part of Martin Lewises Money Saving Expert business,and once they get involved they advise you on how to proceed with your complaint,taking it to higher authority ,making them take notice,even going to the ombudsman if required.

Thanks again for the replies. I will take a look at resolver and seeif they can offer any advice. I will keep you updated with any progress.

Resolver is the easiest and cost free way to go. I don't hold out much hope of you ctually getting anything out of First Choice without lots of patience.
Thomson/First Choice have signed up to the CEDR arbitration scheme and from what I understand they will not do anything until you have gone through the system.
The advantage of using Resolver is that using their template (you are guided through it) they will escalate the complaintto a timetable which is far quicker and easierthan trying to do it yourself. At the end they will then refer you to CEDR.
Again there is a template and if you need any advice then you can ring them up. They will then (once they have checked the documentation refer thye case for arbitration - again it is free. Once the adjudicator makes a ruling then if it is in your favourThomson/First Choice are bound by it. In my case 5 hours after the ruling Thomson rejected my claim. Contacted CEDR and they said tough thomson pay up - and they are doing so.
There is a standard cost to you of £25.00 if you do not win the case - BUT that does ot stop you taking Thomson/First Choice to court.
Check the Martin Lewis website for full details.

Hi again all

Quick update in case anyone is reading this and considering the same thing.

Following 2 complaints to First Choice which were both rejected out of hand, we submitted our claim to ABTA who forwarded it to First Choice. Again, this was rejected by First Choice who claimed they had already dealt with the matter. We decided to go ahead with independent arbitration and submitted our evidence, fully aware that had we lost we would have faced a bill of approximately £129. First Choice were given 28 days to respond, but within 7 days we were contacted by First Choice who offered to pay us the full amount we requested in cash rather than let it go to the arbitrator, and we received a cheque the following week
Although we are obviously pleased with the result, I was annoyed with the way First Choice handled the matter. They clearly knew they were in the wrong and it seems they were testing us to see how far we were willing to take it, hoping we would give up and go away. The cost of a failed arbitration must put a lot of people off and I guess they save a lot of money by refusing compensation claims to the point the claimant is required to put their money where their mouth is.

I certainly don't suggest this is the correct route for everyone, but I hope this information can shed some light on the process for anyone considering going down the same route.

Thanks to everyone that posted advice, and happy holidays!

P

Many thanks for getting back to us & am glad to hear you had a positive result 👍