Holiday dispute with friend

[Hardspend]

Hi looking for some consumer / legal advice prior to small claims.

 

My friend's mum paid for a holiday in April. I then immediately transferred my portion of the cost to my friend's dad's account. The holiday was booked for 25th July.

 

By end of May for reasons I don't think are important (but I can detail if you need) we mutually agreed that it would be fine for another person to take my place. If no person was found then I would still go as canceling my place on the holiday would actually cost more money (due to single room occupancy). We did not speak at all until yesterday 21st July. I never heard back from my friend about whether someone else was going and upon checking with the travel company on 18th July (one week before the holiday) I was still down for traveling much to my surprise. I still did not contact my friend.

 

Two days later 21st July I checked again with travel agent (FlyGlobeSpan) and found the name had just been changed the previous day. I thought that is fine even though I was not happy about not even being told about it. So I phoned my friend to ask about getting the money back and was told

"you said you were not going so rather than me having to pay the cancellation fee I got someone else to go with me, therefore you aren't getting any money back". A few minutes later they (I was on speaker to whole family..) agreed I could get "a couple of hundred quid back after the holiday, they would phone me".

 

I was stunned by how unfair this is and because I said I would still go if nobody else was found. Surely the person taking my place should pay 100% of the cost I paid before the holiday. I am effectively paying for someone else to go on holiday. I was expecting this to be a straightforward transfer of money back to my account.

 

I told my friend via text message an hour or so later after the phone call yesterday July 21st that it is not fair and I have a right to all of my money back. No response for 12 hours so this afternoon July 22nd I told my friend that if I don't get my money back (less the £50 name change cost) by the July 24th 5pm I will be compelled so take the mater to small claims court the following week.

 

Do you think I have a solid case? The total holiday cost is around £550. I would claim the total cost of the holiday possibly less the name change fee but plus the cost of the court (£65).

 

The evidence I have is:-

1. Bank statement showing transfer of money to my friends dad's account.

2. Booking reference with my name on it. This was a ticketless holiday, just a piece of paper with flight times, costs, hotel, passenger name and booking reference. The holiday was originally booked for 6 people. Friends mum(1) and dad(2), my friend(3), my friends brother(4) and my friend's brothers friend (5) and my friend's friend, i.e. me (6). Three rooms were booked (mum+dad (1), my friend + me(2), friends brother + his friend (3). The booking reference I have shows my name plus my friend's brothers friend. I was told at the time we would sort out the rooms when we got there.

3. Text message from July 21st showing I have tried to get my money back within a timescale without having to go straight to court. I have not heard back since I sent this message.

 

I don't have any evidence the name has actually been changed, I only know this because Flyglobespan told me over phone and my friend has verbally acknowledged it. I don't think this is an issue as I'm confident they won't try and deny it, surely..

 

The statement my friend claims i.e. "you said you did not want to go so I had to find someone else or I would end up paying a cancellation" is false however it is just my word against theirs. My friend says I told them this verbally and it was on speaker phone to my friend plus their mum. Even if this was true (which would mean I lose my original £550 plus have to pay the cancellation of almost £200) I still think that it is meaningless because it has not been canceled and someone is going in my place.

 

As I told my friend via text message I plan to complete the small claims form next week if I don't get my money back by Friday July 24th 5pm. I plan to just put my friend down as the defender. I don't know if this is correct. Bearing in mind it was my friend's mum that originally paid for the whole holiday and my friend's dad whose bank account I transferred the money to (could be a joint account and the same account that paid for the holiday, I have no idea). I don't even know who the person is taking my place, I think it is up to my friend to get the money off them which shouldn't be a problem since they are in a relationship.

 

Any comments welcome thanks.

[Conniff]

If this friend was close enough to go on holiday with, why were you so reluctant to talk to her/him for months.

I wouldn't hold out much hope of a full refund unless they admit to everything, as you don't have any paperwork to show, but would like to be proved wrong.

[Hardspend]

What paperwork am I missing? I have paperwork to show I paid for the holiday and I'm sure they will admit that someone else took my place.

[mustang67]

You say that you agreed for someone else to take your place. Then you do not contact your friend for nearly two months. Surprise, Surprise they want someone else to go with them!!!

 

I would say by your actions you put your friends holiday in jeopardy, what else are they supposed to do ? People cannot wait forever for you to make your mind up. If they were the lead name on the booking you have put them to a lot of trouble.

You also say that you were surprised to still see your name down on the booking and this a week before departure.

Then, when you see that you have been replaced, you are not to happy about it.

By the sounds of it YOU are the one that has walked away and tough if you lose out financially.

[Hardspend]

ooops double post

Edited July 23, 2009 by Hardspend

[Conniff]

Anything that designates the holiday to another giving you a refund should you not want/be able to go.

 

I think you should go to cab for advice.

[Hardspend]

I don't have anything that proves I wanted any of my money back if someone went in my place.

 

I have been to see CAB, they recommended I write a letter saying what the agreement was and that I wanted my money back and what will happen if I don't get it back. I did this today. I wrote the agreement was I go or someone else takes my place and you pay me back in full. If I don't get my money back before you go on holiday or an assurance I will get it back when you return I will take the matter to small claims court next week.

[Conniff]

List everything you have done and said and their replies in a chronological order with dates etc; your original post is a bit untidy and difficult to understand and that wont help if it's presented like that should you have to go all the way to court.

Make copies of everything and transcribe any texts you have sent or received.

[Hardspend]

You say that you agreed for someone else to take your place. Then you do not contact your friend for nearly two months. Surprise, Surprise they want someone else to go with them!!!

 

Are you playing devil's advocate or do you really think I am being unreasonable.

 

I agreed for someone else to take my place but if nobody else was found I would happily go. My friend was going to confirm whether their other friend wanted to go and let me know. This was on 8th June (I checked phone records, in opening post I said end of May). There is no evidence of this phone call only my word. I feel it was really up to my friend to let me know whether I or their other friend was going.

 

I would say by your actions you put your friends holiday in jeopardy, what else are they supposed to do ? People cannot wait forever for you to make your mind up. If they were the lead name on the booking you have put them to a lot of trouble.

 

The agreement was either someone else goes or I go? It was never in jeopardy. Their argument though will be I said "I am not going full stop"

 

You also say that you were surprised to still see your name down on the booking and this a week before departure.

 

I was suprised because at the time I said I was happy for my friends other friend to take my place this was really doing my friend a favour, my friend wanted to take someone else and I was happy for someone else to go as long as I got my money back. So when I checked the names a week before I didn't expect to see my name still down for going.

 

Then, when you see that you have been replaced, you are not to happy about it.

 

I am not happy about not being notified since the agreement was my friend would let me know one their other friend confirmed they could take my place.

 

By the sounds of it YOU are the one that has walked away and tough if you lose out financially.

I never just walked away and said I'm not going full stop. I said I was happy for my friend to take someone else and provided my bank details at the time for the cost of the holiday to be transferred back to me.

Edited July 23, 2009 by Hardspend
updated date to 8th June

[mustang67]

You are explaining it a bit more clearer now, even if you have no proof, someone did take your place on the holiday, so that should be in your favour. I think I would wait for their return and if you get no joy, then take it a step further as you are planning to.

Sorry for first reply, but the post did seem mixed up, as Conniff says get your points in order etc.

 

Good Luck.

[Guest Old_andrew2018]

Any news

[Hardspend]

the case is on Tuesday, I put the defender down as the father of my friend since that is who I paid the money to

[Hardspend]

basically the dispute is this:

 

defender says I did not want to go on holiday and did not care about getting any money back

 

I say I only agreed for someone to take my place if I got my money back

 

There will be a full hearing with my friend present as the defender to hear them say it for themselves. I am quite suprised the judge considers that their argument might be true because I think it is not realistic that I would pay for someone I don't know to go on holiday.

 

Spoke to defender outside and without him actually saying it it's clear he believes me but he has to go with what my friend says and that I should pursue the person who took my place instead. He said I wasn't getting a penny from him.

 

The judge did ask me why I don't pursue the person who took my place and I said it was the defender I paid for the holiday and the defender who changed the name. I don't even know the name of the person who took my place and have made no agreement with them. He seemed to accept this because nothing more was said of it and he moved on to call for full hearing with my friend present.

 

I don't know what to expect, the way it was heading the judge made it sound like I was being totally reasonable wanted my money back but the next second he wanted a full hearing with my friend present.

[Hardspend]

Full hearing today and defender failed to show up so judge awarded me the money with expenses (court fee), now I wait until they don't pay and have to chase them up

[Bookworm]

Well done. Let's hope that the threat of a CCJ will make him a bit more compliant.

 

(Incidentally, you were quite correct to pursue the person with whom you had made the agreement/paid the money to, it was certainly not for you to pursue the person who went on holiday. If the dad wants the money back, it will be up to him to chase the other person for it)

[Conniff]

Well done for sticking to your guns. Lets hope payment is made without having to resort to further measures.

[reorete]

if you hadnt spoken to your friend 2 months before the holiday maybe she thought tthe holiday atmosphere would be strained. that would of spoilt everyones holiday... i think you should just put it down to a bad experience and let it go..

[sexyfufu]

Well done and Congrats on winning this !!

[Bookworm]

i think you should just put it down to a bad experience and let it go..

Why? :-? S/he won in court! Besides, we're not talking of a few quid here, this is a substabtial amount of money for most of us. :-?

[Hardspend]

had to go back to court as the clerk at the court office made an error... anyway went back to court and won as the judge realised the error, was threatened by defendant 'i know where you live etc' and had to inform police, eventually got about half my money back this month by using employer arrestment of earnings and should get rest back next month, finally!

 

reorete - that's no reason for not paying me back is it? I don't think I made it clear at the start but when I gave the holiday up there was somebody there to take it immediately, I didn't leave anybody in the lurch, far far from it! as to writing it off as a bad experience ...:???: