Millions of British tourists suffered package holiday problems in last year
More than four million people encountered problems with package holidays last year, according to a new survey from Citizens Advice.
The charity’s findings show that 76 per cent of adults have booked a package trip before, while 34 per cent have experienced a significant problem. This means an estimated four million passengers have experienced difficulties in the last 12 months alone.
Citizens Advice, which receives around 14 complaints every day about package holidays, highlighted common complaints such as unexpected hotel changes, refused refunds and substandard customer service.
Of the 3,500 package holiday complaints submitted to the Citizens Advice Consumer Service last year, 42 per cent were about all-inclusive packages booked abroad.
Quality issues, such as misdescription of hotels, poor food or lack of facilities, accounted for a third (33 percent) of all complaints.
Meanwhile, customer service failures, which included long phone waits, ignored complaints and administrative mistakes made by companies, accounted for 19 percent of reported problems.
As a result, one in four people (25 percent) who had problems with their package holiday said they experienced stress, anxiety or sadness, while 17 percent said they had to pay extra for daily expenses.
Citizens Advice encouraged holidaymakers to check what protections are included in their booking.
Get a free partial share of up to £100.
Capital is at risk.
Terms and conditions apply.
ADVERTISING
Get a free partial share of up to £100.
Capital is at risk.
Terms and conditions apply.
ADVERTISING
One of the complainants, Zorana, a semi-retired NHS doctor from north-east England, reported spending £6,300 on an all-inclusive, seven-night trip to Lanzarote with her daughter through a UK holiday operator.
Heavy rain on the second day resulted in “nightmare” flooding, leaving hotel guests without electricity, water, food and internet.
However, the woman said that she could not receive on-site support from her operator and this situation caused them serious stress.
Zorana, 66, said: “We spent the morning at the beach and planned the sauna for later. But while we were having lunch, it started raining and didn’t stop.
“When we arrived at the spa, the hotel told us that we could not go in because it was flooded. Half an hour later, the electricity was cut off. When there was no electricity, everything stopped.
“There was no internet or water because the pumps were not working.
“We all gathered in the hotel lobby to hear what was going on. It was the weekend and representatives from all the other travel companies were there, talking to people, reassuring them, giving them information.”
“Some had already been distributed to other locations. ‘Where is our representative?’ we asked. And we were told he doesn’t work on weekends.
“We were very angry. The hotel staff told us that our travel company always caused trouble and never helped people.
“Five days later we came home and I started calling the travel company for a refund. However, the customer service advisor said they couldn’t deal with it because they had been offered compensation. But their offer wasn’t enough.
“I talked about the lack of support, the delay, the value of the holiday, the fact that I had to find and pay for another hotel, so it made sense for them to give me all my money back.
“I feel doubly victimized having gone through the stress of having our holiday ruined and then trying to get compensation for months.”
Citizens Advice consumer spokesperson Jane Parsons said: “People often become stressed and disappointed when their dream holiday is ruined because they don’t get paid for it.
“What’s worse is that they have to spend a lot of time and effort to solve problems, sometimes with no luck.
“A record should be kept of any problems that arise and evidence, including clear details of what went wrong and when, photos and receipts.
“If something goes wrong on your holiday, you may receive compensation from the company you booked with. You should tell them about the problems as soon as possible; if you say nothing until you get home, you may receive less compensation or no compensation at all.”
John Herriman, chief executive of the Chartered Trading Standards Institute, said: “This research highlights the real impact that poor practice in the travel industry can have on consumers, particularly the problems with consumers booking holidays online, particularly through social media.
“Too many people are left broke or struggling with stress when holidays don’t live up to the promise. What should be a time of relaxation and unwinding can turn into the opposite.
“It’s vital that consumers understand their rights, check safeguards and keep clear records if something goes wrong, but businesses need to meet their legal obligations, make sure they deliver the standard of service people pay for and resolve any issues that arise quickly.
“Strong consumer protection depends on both informed consumers and responsible traders.”
Consumers are entitled to compensation for the holiday if the value of the holiday was lower than what was booked, if a problem required extra money to be spent, if a large part of the services booked were not provided, if something went wrong causing inconvenience or disappointment, or if the holiday was completely ruined.
Yonder surveyed 2,018 adults between April 17-19 about their experiences with package holidays, including any problems.
Participants were asked to exclude issues beyond the operator’s control, such as geopolitical events or natural disasters.
