Holiday cancelled due to pregnancy

We booked a cruise & flight back in May 2012 and paid approx £1500 for the holiday which was due to happen at the end of January 2013. We discovered that I was pregnant at the end of August. The travel agents have told us that the airline won't take me because I will be over 30 weeks pregnant by then. Consequently, we have no way of getting to Antigua for the cruise & have had to cancel the holiday. I expected (particularly as we gave them 4 and a half months' notice of the cancellation) that we would receive a full refund. But instead, the travel agents are telling us that we owe them (!) and that we will not be getting a refund.

I'm wondering how we can get our money back. It doesn't seem right that the airline are refusing to take us, leaving us without the possibility of having the holiday we paid for.
«1345

Comments

  • luci
    luci Posts: 5,960 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts
    Do you have travel insurance? You would need to check if your policy would cover it.
  • JQ.
    JQ. Posts: 1,919 Forumite
    We went through the same for a skiing holiday and just claimed on our insurance policy without an issue.
  • alanrowell
    alanrowell Posts: 5,384 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    If you don't have travel insurance then check the card you used to book the holiday to see if you have any insurance through it or if your bank account comes with travel insurance
  • joerugby
    joerugby Posts: 1,180 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker
    What do the t&cs (for the flight and the cruise) say?
  • opinions4u
    opinions4u Posts: 19,411 Forumite
    Cassie5000 wrote: »

    I'm wondering how we can get our money back. It doesn't seem right that the airline are refusing to take us, leaving us without the possibility of having the holiday we paid for.
    This is the sort of thing travel insurance was invented for.

    You do have a policy, don't you?
  • lgw29
    lgw29 Posts: 74 Forumite
    Which airline are you travelling with? As the one I work for you can fly up to 28 weeks without a doctors letter and up to 36 weeks with a doctors letter conferring the due date and no problems with the pregnancy
  • stephb34
    stephb34 Posts: 2,064 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker
    If this is a true package you should only lose your deposit, unless it was one of those deals that was cheaper if you pay in full. Do you have insurance if so you should have no problem in claiming. In the airlines defence just think how much it would cost them if you went into labour in mid air and also would you want to put your baby at risk in this way.
  • withabix
    withabix Posts: 9,508 Forumite
    Claim on your travel insurance. That is what it is for.

    The tour operator didn't get you pregnant did they?
    British Ex-pat in British Columbia!
  • malkie76
    malkie76 Posts: 6,170 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Not all travel insurance policies cover pregnancy though. It's often viewed as avoidable.
    Legal team on standby
  • daveyjp
    daveyjp Posts: 13,405 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    We have claimed on insurance for cancellation due to pregnancy and at the time had two holidays booked. We needed a doctor's letter, but once provided we received full refunds, no questions asked.
This discussion has been closed.
Meet your Ambassadors

🚀 Getting Started

Hi new member!

Our Getting Started Guide will help you get the most out of the Forum

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 350.2K Banking & Borrowing
  • 252.8K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 453.2K Spending & Discounts
  • 243.2K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 597.6K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 176.5K Life & Family
  • 256.2K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 16.1K Discuss & Feedback
  • 37.6K Read-Only Boards

Is this how you want to be seen?

We see you are using a default avatar. It takes only a few seconds to pick a picture.