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Not sure if this is this right place to post this, but here goes....
My problem is regarding the cancellation that I had to make of holiday accomodation.
I booked the accomodation several months ago & paid the deposit.
Since then my father became ill & it became clear that I would not be able to take the holiday as planned as this would have meant me being several hours away from home which I didn't want to be.
I emailed the owner of the accomodation 2 weeks before the holiday to advise of my decision & asked about the position of the deposit as the booking confirmation had no terms or conditions, nor did the renters website.The owner emailed back to say that we would lose the deposit which I thought was fair enough so left it at that.
However, I received a letter after the date that the holiday was due to commence stating that he wanted the balance of the holiday as he had not been able to find another occupier.I wrote back stating that I would not pay any more as he had not told me that he would be pursuing the balance when we cancelled, merely that we would lose the deposit, had he told me that we would lose all our money then we may have decided to still go but for a shorter time.
He is now threatening to take me to court for the balance.
My defence so far is based around the unfair contract terms & unfair trading regulations as - a. the amount he is asking for is excessive in that it includes profits for a service that wasn't provided and b. by the omission of cancellation terms he has led us to believe that we would only lose our deposit, this is backed by the email sent to us by him when we advised of our intention to cancel.
Does anyone have any thoughts/suggestions of how I can defend myself against this should this go to court?
I have offered to pay a smaller amount but this was rejected.
To be honest it is frowned upon on here for members to offer to assist off the forums. However you can send me a pm with the details so I can advise how to post it on here without giving too much detail. Do you know how to send a pm on here?
If no terms and conditions attached and brought to your attention at the time of booking then DSR regs apply and you can cancel without incurring costs; IMO.
Is that Distance Selling Regulations??
Am I right to assume that I have lost the deposit only then, and that if he takes it to court I can refer to DSR, unfair contract terms and unfair trading regulations??
Just had a look at DSR regs and we were provided with no cancellation policy - He has said in one of his responses 'the website does not contain details of any price reduction in event of cancellation. There are none. The customer is liable for the full cost of the contracted booking.'
Is he just trying it on?
DSR allow you to give T & C at time of booking with no 7 day cancellation refund etc. However if no T & C stated or brought to your attention at the time of booking they cannot apply them retrospectively.
Therefore I think it is fair they keep the deposit.
Most hotels etc. you only pay 1st night of booking period if cancelled, B & B similarly, holidays usually state if canceeled late that full cost to be paid if they cannot relet; hence insurance! however as said above it that was not a condition of the booking they cant ask for it now.
Commercial links are not allowed on this forum, and there is no exception for this by PM's, unless express permission is given by a member of the site team.
To avoid breaching forum rules I recommend the OP gives the name of the venue and copies the terms and posts them here, then we can all look at them and give advice publicly.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- All the information I impart is my advice based on my experience. It does not constitute professional advice. If in doubt, always consult with a professional.
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It is understandable that the OP may not want the name of the problem company to be shown here.
However, it would be good to have copied and pasted here any relevant wording from the website for us to take a look at as 1stlifeline has suggested.
Unfortunately, as I am new to asking for help, I may slip up on the CAG protocol for which may I apologise.
I cannot give the specific details of the accomodation as I am worried of repercussions further down the line.
Responding to requests for a copy of the actual wording from the website is equally difficult as when I say there are none, I literally mean that. Nor were any details of further charges in the event of cancellation given when I had paid the deposit.
I have today received court papers saying chasing the amount with a rather ropey argument attached. I intend to defend the claim as I don't believe I owe any more money.
Unfortunately, as I am new to asking for help, I may slip up on the CAG protocol for which may I apologise.
I cannot give the specific details of the accomodation as I am worried of repercussions further down the line.
Responding to requests for a copy of the actual wording from the website is equally difficult as when I say there are none, I literally mean that. Nor were any details of further charges in the event of cancellation given when I had paid the deposit.
I have today received court papers saying chasing the amount with a rather ropey argument attached. I intend to defend the claim as I don't believe I owe any more money.
Firstly, file an Acknowledgement of Service stating your intent to defend the claim in its entirety.
Secondly, if you want help on the forum on how to deal with this and to make a defence - and possibly counterclaim - that are as good as all of us together can do, then you are going to post all the details of the claim - minus any confidential ones - as otherwise we have nothing to work with!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- All the information I impart is my advice based on my experience. It does not constitute professional advice. If in doubt, always consult with a professional.
If you feel my post has been helpful, please click my scales.
Holiday accomodation cancellation/penalty charge
accomodation.
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All the information I impart is my advice based on my experience. It does not constitute professional advice. If in doubt, always consult with a professional. 
If you feel my post has been helpful, please click my scales. 
Originally Posted by S4RS
