If it’s happened to you, then a bad holiday will bring back nightmare memories and always be a constant reminder to do a serious review check before you book accommodation anywhere you haven’t been before. It is quite astounding that the odd holiday park manages to continue to operate despite providing unclean substandard accommodation.
So what do you do when you arrive at your destination to be shown to a grubby room, complete with graffiti and insects? From what we have read of the experience of Richard and Elisse Anson, the unfortunate answer may be that you need to demand your money back on the spot and not stay at the resort for a moment longer.
After having a dreadful experience at Pontins holiday park in Southport, Merseyside, the couple have since been trying to get their money back, but as yet they have been refused because, in short, they actually stayed on the park for the duration, and in effect they did in fact receive a holiday from the vendor, albeit a miserable one.
They may have been able to have recovered their money under section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act if they had complained immediately and asked their bank to reverse the transaction. But, that would have meant they would have to leave the holiday park, and find alternative accommodation, which despite being more than a bit of a faff, can be very costly or worse, impossible at certain times of the year in certain locations.
The unhappy couple were initially offered ’50 per cent off the price of their next holiday at Pontins, Southport, valid until February next year’. So, they are really going to book an out of season holiday in a resort which they have already found to be severely lacking in cleanliness? Obviously not, so they took their story to the The Mail on Sunday, and Pontins may be giving a refund.
So, where does this leave the rest of us planning our future holidays? Can we be assured that if we are miss-sold a holiday is there any course for recompense? Well, even with the ‘chargeback’ element of the Section 75 rule there is no legal obligation for any party. There are basically no guarantees.
Sadly, it is a situation of ‘caveat emptor’. Even though the Ansons may eventually get their money back, that will only be because they were prepared to contact a national newspaper and agree to have their faces plastered over the internet, which many people will not be prepared to do for a few hundred quid. Buyer beware!
The only thing you can really do is find out about the resort you are intending to stay at by checking out reviews, although please don’t take them as gospel, as you never know who’s written them! With a place apparently as bad as Pontins holiday park in Southport, you should not find too much difficulty in finding out the truth with a little help from Google. Try Googling a few terms such as *Holiday Park Name*, reviews, complaints etc, and it should take a few minutes to get a bit of a true picture.
I typed in “Southport Pontins holiday park complaints”, and near the top of the list got a Trip Advisor review page for the resort. After two seconds of reading the page I came to the conclusion that I wouldn’t kennel a dog there, never mind book a holiday (at any price).
This is Britain, we work too hard as a nation, so when it comes around to a well deserved break it is important that we spend at least a few minutes to check out a holiday location before clicking that ‘Confirm’ button. Most Holiday park operators, including Haven, Park Holidays and Park Resorts have too much to lose by having their reputation tarnished over a lack of cleanliness, so they go out of their way to ensure that their guests are kept happy. But, that said, always check first from an independent source. That said, enjoy the end of the summer! Original article.
By: Gareth Whieldon
