My daughter who is 17 and her friends decided to look into going on holiday in June when they are all 18. So they contacted teletext and enquired about a holiday for the 4 of them. The lady advised them that she could get them a all inclusive deal for 2 weeks in Salou. They could secure the booking with a £1.00. My daughter rang me and asked if she should go ahead and book it and I said as long as it was all in agreemnet then yes. So they went ahead and booked it.

When she got home from college she decided to have a look on the website at the hotel - to our horro the write ups on the hotel were appalling. There wasn't a nice thing to say about it. The site also indicated that there had been things stolen from the hotal and the food had been unfit to eat. After lengthy discussions my daughter decided to cancle the booking.

She contacted teletext and asked them to cancel it - the operator saiid she needed to ring back the next day and cancel it with a different department.

The very next day she rang the department concerned and after a lengthy discussion with the operator she told my daughter that the cancellation had to be in writing, sent recorded delivery and then they would cancel the holiday.

Then the bombshell was dropped - she told my daughter that she would have to pay £75.00 per person for cancelling the holiday. My daughter asked why and she was told it is in the terms and conditions of the agreement and the operator who booked you holiday would have told you this. She advised her that nothing had been mentioned about the cancellation fee of £75.00. After only 1 day she was being asked to pay £75.00.

After 2 weeks of waiting to find out if the holiday has been cancelled she rang teletext again - they told her because the letter had taken so long to get to them that they would be charging £75.00 per person. As her card id the card they used will it be taken from her?

I am incensed that a holiday compnay can charge £75.00 for cancelling a holiday 24 hours after it was booked. There was no other way they would accept the cancellation unless it was in writing. Can they accept a booking of 4 people aged 17? Why wasn't this explained to them on the phone that there was a cancellation fee?

Hi laineynic,

Its standard with most tour operators that when they offer a low deposit, in the case of cancellation you must pay the full deposit. Check any brochure or website and you will find this. It is to entice you to book early.

You say that the terms were not explained to your daughter at the time of booking. If she 100% certain, she can request the call records to prove this.

Have a look at this thread started by mutley2007, I hope he does not mind me using it:

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/holiday-companies/122894-cancellation-customer-going-court.html

It is a similar issue - T & C's not explained at time of booking. He got the result he was looking for.

As a side note, your daughter read some bad reviews about the hotel? No holiday company will allow cancellation without charges because of bad reviews.

Out of interest, can you post the name of the hotel?

Thanks for your posting - I understand what your saying but to be made to pay £75 after only 24 hours seems very harsh. Surely there must be some kind of cooling of period. What about the distanc selling laws?

At 17 is she legally allowed to ook a hiloday? The T&C'S weren't explaind to them, she has signed nothing. I understand that on friday they ill attempt to take £300 from her bank, even though she has told them that she hasn't the money.

Hi again laineynic,

I've never heard of a cooling off period for holidays but if you check the link I gave you that should help a lot.

I don't think they have done anything wrong by booking the holiday, as they will all be 18 at the time of departure. What about 18-30 hols? They do it all the time. If she was not legally allowed then the agent would not have been able to go forward with the booking.

Remember, Teletext are only the booking agents. Its like going into a travel agent in the high street. They are booking holidays for Tour Operators such as First Choice, Thomson etc so they have to abide by the T & C's laid out by the particular operator.

As I said though, if the T & C's were not explained, this is your best bet based on Mutley's experience.

What about the distanc selling laws?

Holidays are exempt. There is no right of cancellation or cooling off period.

why is booking a holiday exempt?

I don't know why, I don't make the laws! It's probably to do with the nature of booking holidays - you can't have a 14 day cooling off period when you could have been on the holiday in that time.

I have been on the OFT site and it doesnt mention that holidays are exempt from the ruling. If your not sure of the law why state it as being so?

I have read other comments fom previous postings and hey used that argument.

I am sure of it, and I have never suggested otherwise.

The details are on the OFT website. The exceptions are, funnily enough, detailed on the 'exceptions' page.

The Office of Fair Trading: Exceptions to the regulations

To quote from OFT "the provisions do not apply to package travel"

laineynic, barracad is trying to help you and as a moderator of this forum I do not think for one minute that he would post without knowing the facts. No point going for the distance selling angle if it does not apply to your daughters case.

As I said before you have two options. Fight them on the lack of info at time of booking - like Mutley did or just take the holiday.

I asked baracuda a question which was "why are holidays eempt" he was the one who got on his high horse and said he didn'tmake the rules.

I am beginning to wonder wether this sie is as useful as it used to be. I seem to ask the wrong questions and get blasted. I am not an epert and I asked for advise. Instead I get an obnoixous reply.

Having a bad day lainey? In response to barracad's reply you asked why they were exempt and his response was simply that he didn't know as he didn't make the laws. You then came back and said "If your not sure of the law why state it as being so?" Barracad did not state that he wasn't sure of the law only that he didn't know why the powers that be exempted them. I think you have misinterpreted things. Go and put the kettle on and have a nice cuppa

Well holidays are exempt - that is the information you were looking for, is it not? As for why a particular law exists then that would not be the kind of thing you can expect to find an answer to here as this would be down to the people who put such laws in place.

laineynic

We have answered your questions the best we can. In all honesty, the only obnoxious reply has been posted by yourself.

Perhaps you need a specialist in travel law to help you further.

I wish you and your daughter good luck in finding a resolution.

Just thought i'd update on the latest from the Sun4U saga - we have been in constant contact with the holiday company to have the £75 per person penatly stopped and have got no where. Yesterday we received a letter giving the girls 48 hours to pay the £475 each.

We have advised them that they did not advise the girls at anytime of the cancellation penalty. There response was we don't have the time to read out the terms and conditions over te phone. They have now stopped responding to any emails we have sent and the customer services advisor I have been dealing with won't give me details of someone more senior.

It seems that many others are falling into the same thing. I just wonder why this is not regulated better. Surely you should be able to change your mind without being penalised especially after only 4 hours.

I am completely stumped - it looks like holding out and not paying the £75 has put the girls in a position of having to pay for a holiday that they won't be taking.

Unfortunately the law does not cover you for changing your mind, only if you have been wronged in some way.

Can you not arrange to swap the hotel possibly?

I'm not saying this would be the correct answer, but have you requested new card details for your DD? I assume the attempted transaction was declined. £75 PP is a joke if you ask me.

What do they threaten should they not pay? Could anybody tell me if this is liable for court action? (not that I think they'd bother) only, if they did, the T&C's bit would be on your side, would it not?

On the 14th April I spoke my daughters friends mum contacted customer services to sort out changing the holiday. Despite being promised that they would move it foc, the told her there would be a charge per person. We even had the persons name who told us she would move it free of charge. After a 15 minute debate we decided that we would give in and pay the £75 charge and use another holiday company. We gave in and asked how to pay. We were told to put it in a email and someone would get back to us with what we need to pay to cancel the holiday.

11 days later - no email, no response to the email and the demand letters have stopped. Could it be that they have finally given in? or is this the lull before a storm.

I would never ever use Sun4u.com ever again.

 

We have advised them that they did not advise the girls at anytime of the cancellation penalty. There response was we don't have the time to read out the terms and conditions over te phone.

Isn't that the get-out for you. Was that said in an e-mail? Isn't it the case that the contract isn't binding until you receive the written t & C. Think of any only purchases. You always have to tick the T & C box.

Yes I am using this against them. Still no response from anyone regarding the cancellation penalty. I have contacted them, and one of the other mums has been in rouch and the correspondnce from them has stopped. No threatening letters or any thing now. I have enough emails from them admitting that they don'r give t&c's over the phone.

Thanks bribri