XL holiday issue

[Cate]

re-XL issue - Travel Republic - Steve D

Hi - it's Cate here - thanks again SteveD for all your hard work and personal phone calls on Friday. Got the visa statement today and they don't show the refund as yet of the hotel booking - though it does show the coach transfers to and from Kos airport which of course we never got to use!!! I rang up Mint visa to ask when the refunds would show but they skirted round my question and couldn't answer me!!! Steve, I am grateful to you, but I am a bit sceptical I will receive my payment till I see it on paper!!! I was ready to re-book again with Travel Republic but I just can't do it till I know I will get my refund back. Can I be cheeky also and ask for a replacement holiday like you did with Red??? I was so ready for a break, I booked way back in April for 13th to 28th Sep) for my 60th birthday on Sunday 21st September, instead I spent the worst birthday of my life in dull England - with not enough money to book elsewhere quickly!!! I was going to rebook for October - but that is dodgy - I come from a Mediterranean island (Malta) and I know the weather would not be as hot in October - so what's the solution?? I should still be on holiday - but there you go!!! Steve, will I really get my money???? Cate

 

[Cate]

Ok
Being a bit thick on the voting thing. Am trying to vote for Red (in the hope that he might win the monthly prize) but cannot see any 'button' relating to voting. Can anyone help?? I have 'thanked' him and I have rated his thread as excellent but definitely can't see anything where I can vote for him as such.

Thanks very much
Deb

Hi Debbs, I was also looking for the vote button - can you see it now?? It becomes Thanks as soon as you press it!!!! I have nominated Tony and Red for their output too. Hope this answers your question!!!! Cate

 

[Littledeb]

Yes Cate

Cate

I am pretty confident you WILL get your money. Why? Because I had a cheque for £1609 arrive this morning from Steve. Fast work. They couldn't refund my credit card because it was defrauded (I've had a bad few months!!) and had to be cancelled.

Try not to worry. I can understand your concern though

Deb
x

 

[Cate]

Hi Debbs - thanks for your quick reply

Hi Deb - thank you for your kind reply - I'm so glad you had your money refunded by a cheque!!! I can relax again now - I have faith again - I never doubted Steve in getting me my money refunded, but I suppose after last week's experience you start to doubt if it will really happen. When I checked with visa they kept saying we can't see any sort of refund at all, so I expect it's still in transit - so I have to keep waiting for a while more!!! Thanks again- Cate

 

[Cate]

Hi LittleDeb - got my refund on my credit card today!!! I have rung up visa mint to hear my balance and got a very big surprise, I realised the hotel accomm booking had gone back in!!! When I talked to an adviser, he said they are also working on the flights now, so Atol were right, they do get people's money from visa cards companies. He said my claim form I sent to Atol was being processed separately - but that they were working on it!!! Thanks for your encouragement - it takes time but we get there eventually.

 

[Littledeb]

Superb news Cate. Thanks again to Red, Steve and Tony and anyone I've missed!

Cate, I haven't even filled out my Atol claim form for my flights yet I suppose I ought to get round to that at some point..wonder if there's a time limit

Anyway, extremely happy for you and I hope you manage to book another holiday. Take Care Deb x

 

[Cate]

LittleDeb - thanks for your reply

As to the Atol claim form - you have till a whole year from 12 Sep 2008 so you have till 11 Sep 2009 I think!!! So don't worry - but do it soon so it will be in the system and the quicker you get the flights. As for my missed holiday I have already booked Kos again but different hotel, with Thomas Cook in town - for June 2009 - I want to be able to go to travel shop and swap my holiday and transfer it to another with the minimum of fuss if the same thing happens again!!! The travel shops face to face is better than an invisible travel agent, so I won't book online again, not my main holiday. But these are exceptional circumstances - who would have thought this was going to happen?? We'd been all over the Greek Islands with Excel (I think that's what they were called before) Airlines, and this was the first time we were let down by them. So there goes.

 

[red]

Now have refund

We now have been refunded and Steve was good to his word - how refreshing !!!

The full amount was refunded even the credit card booking fee and transfers which i would of accepted losing.

So thank you Steve!!

Steve was very helpful and was happy to discuss wider issues this has brought up as per last post ie what can be done to protect consumers in this scenario if this happpens again.

Travel Republic (or rather Steve) acknowledged this is an issue that has not been addressed and how consumers in my position could potentially lose there accomodation fees as per T&Cs.

We spoke about a specific insurance policy that could be added to the cost of the holiday and could be used as a USP by the travel company. The additional cost would probably be in the region of £2 per holiday. I for one would happily pay this after this recent experience to gain the security this unfortunate scenario would be covered.

I have lost count of the hours put into securing the refund; though at least my time has been rewarded as i am sure many thousands have not been refunded and spent similar lengths of time to me.

I regard to ATOL i too am unsure when i will receive this refund. I have not received even a confirmation of acceptance of the claim form, however sent it recorded delivery just incase!!

I believe this will take a long time to be refunded though feel fairly confident i will receive eventually.

The internet holiday agents were just not set up to deal with such a big case and influx of enquiries and their systems email and phone just basically crashed and gave up the ghost. I cant say i would of seen it being any better with an actual 'shop' apart from you would of eventually got to speak to someone - whether they were able to help or not is a different matter.

I will continue to book holidays on the internet, tailor made packages only where i can see their is insurance to cover this possibility.

Would be good if Steve does return and confirm to readers of whatconsumer that they have indeed followed this up and added an insurance policy for this type of instance. If this is the case i will use travel republic again which is in truth only down to Steve, as prior to his involvement i was hitting a brick wall.

Good to hear others in the thread have also gained a positive outcome. As Paul mentioned previosuly shows the strength of consumer power.

 

[mandy66]

travel republic booking

Hi

I too had a tailor-made holiday booked with travel republic. We were due to fly on 12th Sept to Tenerife with xl. We tried to get another flight but prices were hugely inflated - more than trebled what we originally paid. I have been told by Travel Republic that it is a 100% cancellation charge. I had resigned myself to the fact that we would lose our hotel money (£646.25). By the way I paid with a credit card.

I would greatly appreciate any help.

 

[Tony]

You should send a private message to Steve from Travel Republic, or perhaps one of the others will provide his contact details.

Tony

 

[Littledeb]

Hi Mandy
I am one of the people that Steve was able to help however my situation was very different from your own. We were not due to fly until tomorrow and we managed to get help from Steve a couple of weeks ago now. By the time we were able to speak with Steve, Travel Republic had issued a statement on their website stating that people with more than 10 days until their holiday was due would be refunded in full if they chose to cancel (except flights hich were covered by Atol). This meant that we would be entitled to a refund. What Steve managed to do for me was get me speaking to someone at Travel Republic. It was the 'getting through' that was a nightmare for me and I feared I would not get through in time. He was incredibly helpful.

I'm afraid I dont know what could be done in your situation. Your flights are covered by Atol right?? It's the accomms and transfers you have lost?

I guess all I can suggest is what Tony suggested i.e. contact Steve directly. I did that by private message on this site and then he called me. I'm afraid I don't have a direct phone number or email for him. I'm sorry.

I do wish you luck
Deb

 

[mandy66]

Thank you

Hi Deb

Thanks for that. I will pm Steve but have to post 5 messages first. I'm glad you got sorted with your hol. Perhaps there's hope for us.

Mandy

 

[mandy66]

Thank you

Hi Tony

I will get in touch with Steve.

Mandy

 

[Littledeb]

Hi Mandy
I had to do the same as you and post 5 times so I just kept replying to this thread.... not saying anything other than 'posting to bump up my number of posts'. I did that 4 times and then pm'd Steve!

Good luck
Deb

 

[mandy66]

Posting to increase my number of posts!!

 

[mandy66]

Posting again to increase my number!!

 

[Cate]

Mandy66 - get in touch with SteveDean of Travel Republic - he will sort you out - he did Red, LittleDeb and me - he got us the accommodation charges back, I was due to go to Kos on 13th September, and XL went bust on the 12th!!! I couldn't get thru on the phone or web - but as soon as I saw Red's thread I wrote too and Steve personally took over. He works for Travel Republic - so either ask for him or write on this forum. I am now trying to get sorted with the Freedom Flights money, I sent them - via recorded delivery, my Atol form, Freedom Flights invoice, and credit card statements - I have been away for 4 days to London, they phoned me twice to say they got the visa statements but not the Atol form or flights invoice!!!! They have LOST them - I sent everything recorded delivery and they are saying they only got the invoices!!!! How incompetent is that - they had to sign for recorded delivery - so where are half the documents I sent them?? I know I sent them all because I was struggling to fit all docs inside the envelope - I have searched for the Atol form now as soon as we got back but it's not here!!!! Steve please tell me what's going on???? Cate

 

[Cate]

Tony - just got back from London (went to see Hull play Spurs at White Hart Lane) and got 2 mobile calls - Fri and today Monday 6th Oct - to tell me they rec'd 3 Mint visa statements which I sent in a plastic sleeve, but not the Atol form or Freedom Flights invoice!!!! I know I sent them in same envelope cos I was struggling to push them all in - and I went to my local post office cos I was worried the reply paid envelope may not be enough for all the weight I had inside it - so I had it recorded and paid an extra 72p for that!!! So tell me, how can 1 envelope arrive with bank statements, but not the rest of the documents?? Whoever opened it had to sign for it - so what on earth is going on? I'm trying to recoup the flights money now and I have been sending documents backwards and forwards, paying postage, ringing, and now I have to download the atol form again and fill in 7 pages??? But I KNOW I have sent it to them!!! Do you think they ripped it up as they opened the envelope? Are they so incompetent - I know I have sent them everything and they have lost my form. Who works for TravelRepublic????????Cate

 

[Cate]

Mandy66 - forgot to say - if you paid by credit card - write (like I did) and ask for a claim form to recoup your costs from them. I wrote them a letter when I couldn't get through to TR and I have just rec'd a letter today to say send us your original tickets and invoice - even though Atol told me (I also wrote a letter to them) they would get me the flights from my visa card anyway!!!! So now TR are also trying to get me my claim, they may have to post it to Atol in Kingsway London - well I'm trying all 3 to see who will pay me first!!!! Wouldn't it be nice if they all paid up??? Travel Republic have mislaid or lost my Atol form - I shall be on the phone to them first thing today Tuesday, cos I know I posted the form to them with my mint visa credit card statements. Cate

 

[Cate]

I have just received confirmation from Red's hotel supplier(Hotelbeds), that the hotel is not charging for hotel booking (he was not able to travel), and so we are now able to refund.

We have already received ok to refund the transfer cost, leaving Red to claim for the flights from the CAA.

I think we are mostly sorted on here, but if you have just been watching and still need assistance from us, please ask. We still have a lot of similar problem bookings to sort, so are still experiencing delays.

Steve
TravelRepublic

Hi SteveD - I'm having trouble with your lot again!!!! I sent them my bank statements, by recorded delivery - on Thursday 2nd October, and I wondered why they asked me for statements of payment whilst they also returned my Atol form and original invoice for flights!!! Anyway, I was going to London on Fri for 4 days - so I found my credit card statements showing payments, put them (3) in a transparent sleeve so to keep them separate from Atol and invoice forms, and put them in ready paid envelope, and as it was so crammed full, I thought the reply postage may not be sufficient, so I went to the Post Office, no mean thing these days with all the local PO closures we've had here and the lady told me to send it Recorded delivery for which I paid 72p - to be sure it gets there - someone has to sign for it!!!! Lo and behold I get a mobile phone call on Fri on the coach going down which I missed - saying to ring a certain Stuart - with a reference number. Forgot all about it cos I couldn't get thru - got another mobile phone call on Mon 6th October, where I was blatantly told I only sent my visa credit statements and nothing else!!!! Now why would I do that??? I can remember 100% staffing the envelope with all the forms, I'm very methodical about things like that, I clear the table of all loose ends when finished, and there were no loose ends after I had staffed the envelope!!! The only thing I can think of, whoever opened the envelope, because of the slippery sleeve containing the statements, the other documents went off and the opener assumed there was only the statements!!!! Or - as the envelope was so compact, they tore the envelope to smithereens, and then they are trying to tell me I forgot to include them!!!! But I ask again, why return the completed Atol form to me with the invoice - why not leave them safely in a file till I posted the statements??? What is it with Travel Republic??? They didn't send the forms by recorded delivery either! So here I go again now, having to print the 7 page Atol form (how did I know I would need to - I had a feeling I'd better scan the forms before posting on 19 Sep just in case!!!) And it all goes back to PO to re-send the copies again!!!! What is going on in kingston-upon-Thames??? I despair!!!! I feel I should let go - but I won't - it's my money, I've had no holiday, no compensation, no respect - what a waste of space!!!! All I got is stress - and a huge telephone bill - thanks Steve - I'm out of pocket -do you think I should claim on Atol form for out-of-pocket expenses??? I am out of pocket now!! Cate