Flight delay and cancellation compensation, Thomas Cook ONLY

Dog1_2

I would be grateful for some advise as to whether this is a reasonable amount of compensation (£463.71) I should accept for my recent family holiday to Mexico booked through Thomson's or whether I should be entitled to more money for the stress & delay it caused me & my family which basically ruined the start of our holiday. If not then what or who should I approach & what should I do & say to increase the amount of compensation I should be owed ?
These are the facts as follows:
Holiday booked via Thomson's holidays, departing on 30/7/2014 from East Midlands airport at 10.20am on Thomson Boeing Dreamliner (TOM644) to Cancun Mexico for 4 adults staying at Playacar Mexico. We also paid extra for pre booked seats on both flights (£120.00)
Having checked in & waited around at airport we were finally told to go to gate, Finally allowed to board plane at around 10.35am & told reason for delay was they were waiting for entertainment headset supplies to turn up but had decided they could wait no longer so we would have to fly to Cancun Mexico (11 hrs) without any headsets for entertainment. Took of around 11.00am & then spent following hour with crew trying to sort out entertainment system by rebooting it several times due to several displays not working on plane. Eventually they said they were unable to fix fault & then started serving drinks & only after ordering drinks we were then told the 1st drink was free as an apology for the problems with entertainment system !
Just after lunch served 3 hours into flight Captain announced due to technical problem with plane it would have to turn around & return to Manchester airport due to fact plane could not be repaired at Mexico for various reasons. We were initially told another plane would be waiting to transfer onto & then carry onto Cancun Mexico. Finally landed around 5.15pm, held out on taxiway for good 15 minutes with fire crews sitting out on right-hand side of plane ! Once at terminal told to remain seated whilst Thomson decide what will happen. After good 15-20 minutes told no plane available & we would be put into hotels overnight & flown to Mexico next day. Upon exiting plane right-hand engine covers were all open with several people all stood around it inspecting engine ! Had to go through passport control, collect cases & wait in baggage hall for 2 girls from Swiss port agency to tell us what to do. It appeared they were clueless as to what the procedure was as they had very little idea as to who to let out onto coaches & which hotels people were going to plus no one could hear anything they spoke as they spoke very quietly.
My family of 4 eventually ended up a bus to Crowne Plaza hotel were once checked in we were told a buffet meal at 9pm in the bar with a free soft drink would be provided. At the meal no drink was provided & we were told we had to buy our own at the bar. Having spent £20 for drinks I kept receipts as I was not happy as this was supposed to be my 1st night on an all inclusive holiday in Mexico !
No written information was given throughout even about what would happen following morning as to what time etc we would be departing, although later that evening I received 2 phone texts saying that new departure time would be 09.00am on 31/7/2014 & that coaches would pick us up between 05.30-06.00am & breakfast vouchers would be available from Swiss port at Manchester airport. We went to reception & booked an early morning call for 4.30am & went to bed around 10.00pm still having received no written confirmation of proceedings the following day. My wife got up around 1.00am in the night to go to the toilet & still no letter was under the door of our room. We also received no early morning call & thankfully had set our own alarms & having woken found a letter under our room door stating that we receive a wakeup call at 5am which we never got & coaches would pick us up at 6am & that if we had any problems then speak to reception ! (This letter must of been put under door about 3.00am in morning !). Upon speaking to reception they apologised & said that they had been having problems with their phone system & that's why we didn't get a wakeup call !
We were given letter from Thomson apologising for delay & it also said if you are covered by your holiday insurance & would like to pursue a claim the following information will help you ! it stated that scheduled time of departure was 09.20gmt 30/7/2014, actual time departure from Manchester 08.19gmt 31/7/2014, reason for delay was aircraft suffered technical fault after departure from East Midlands Airport & had to return to Manchester. The crew had exceeded there legally permitted working hours & were required to take a rest & the flight would be operated at the earliest opportunity following day. Total length of delay 22hrs 59minutes !
Seeing as our plane did not depart from Manchester until 9.00am 31/7/2014 this letter was incorrect ! (it should have stated total length of delay was 23hr 40 minutes).
Coach picked us up just gone 6.30am on 31/7/2014 from hotel. Upon checking in at Manchester airport we were given £15 Thomson voucher each ( £60 total for my family of 4) to use at airport or on flight to Mexico & told flight would be on a Boeing 767 & not a Dreamliner. We therefore were put into different seats due to fact that seat plan of a 767 is different than a Dreamliner( as previously mentioned we had paid for specific seats !)
Once in Mexico & at our all inclusive hotel about a week into the holiday we received a letter from Thomson's apologising for the delay etc & saying that we would be refunded 1 days holiday cost which would be sent out via a cheque within 28 days.
Upon returning home from our holiday on 14/8/2014 we received a cheque in the post on 16/8/2014 for total amount of £463.71
To summarise:

• We should have flown to Mexico on 30/7/2014 (Prebooked seats on Boeing Dreamliner)but returned to Manchester after nearly 7hrs in air
• Put up in Crowne plaza hotel for night.
• Given limited evening buffet meal at hotel with No drink.
• Given £60 total Thomson's vouchers for to use at Manchester airport or on plane on 31/7/2014.
• Flown from Manchester to Cancun Mexico on Boeing 767 (not Boeing Dreamliner & not in our Prebooked seats).
• Letter given during course holiday from Thomson rep explaining we would receive refund for 1 days holiday cost.
• Received cheque for £463.71 via cheque in post on 16/8/2014.

Basically we received £463.71 cheque plus £60 Thomson vouchers to use on 31/7/2014 for the loss of one days holiday & spent 2 days trying to get to Mexico !
Is this fair compensation ???????
As previously said is this fair compensation or should I be expecting more. As a family we have never experienced a problem like this & it seems strange to us that Thomson have been very quick to react which makes us curious as to whether they are trying to get out of paying out huge claims. Maybe I'm wrong & if so I apologise but I'd rather try & find out before it's too late & seek advice from someone who knows.

David_e

Dog1 wrote: »

Is this fair compensation ???????

The FAQs give all the details about the compensation due for flight delays. If you have any questions not answered there, please post on the Thomson thread.

Inkie123_2

SeriouslyAnnoyed wrote: »

TCX1866 from Gatwick to Izmir 5th July 2014
TCX1867 from Izmir to Gatwick 12th July 2014
TCX1866 from Gatwick to Izmir 12th July 2014

Was anyone on this forum on any of these flights over the last week or so.. We were on the outbound flight on the 5th and inbound flight on the 12th and suffered delays of 4hrs and over 13hrs respectively...

Very interested to hear from anyone on these flights, particularly anyone on the TCX1866 from Gatwick on the 12th, as we'd love to know what reasons Thomas Cook gave to you for the VERY late departure out to Izmir..??

Thomas Cook shouldn't be allowed to get away with continuing to run aircraft that are over 13 years old, and apparently very likely to break down without having adequate back up plans in place..!!

If you are advised that you are travelling on either G-JMAA or G-JMAB then keep your fingers crossed....

Hi - I was on the 5/7 and the return 12/7 - having difficulty finding the info to support any claim from the 14 hr delays on the retrun. Flight stats doesn't give infor for the 12th July return. Any ideas?

spaceaarvark

David_e wrote: »

The FAQs give all the details about the compensation due for flight delays. If you have any questions not answered there, please post on the Thomson thread.

Hmm, I've been in and out of this forum for quite a while, but I am starting to get confused now!


The FAQ page I am familiar with is this one: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=59705723&postcount=32


But looking at the thread list today I couldn't get to this page - there were a few threads which seem to be FAQs, but none of them led to that page (unless I missed it).


Quick reply to Dog1...


1. The £463.71 is probably compensation for one person (did they not say?) - everyone should be entitled to this compensation.


2. You might want to pursue Thomson for more because you feel your holiday was ruined, but that is outside the scope of the statutory compensation that everyone is entitled to for a delay (and is nothing to do with this forum)


3. You have posted your question on the Thomas Cook thread - there is a separate thread for Thomson.

David_e

spaceaarvark wrote: »

3. You have posted your question on the Thomas Cook thread - there is a separate thread for Thomson.

It was moved here by a moderator - obviously in error. It was originally posted as a new thread.

endaf

beanie65 wrote: »

Now received this so bit confused:(

Dear Mr W

We are writing in response to your most recent letter following your flight with Thomas Cook Airlines.

Firstly, we would like to extend our sincere apologies for the delay you experienced on your flight. Please be assured On Time Performance is a key measure for us, and we do work extremely hard to get our customers to their destination on time, and in the vast majority of cases this does happen. We do, however, regret the impact to your travel plans on this occasion.

We have carried out an investigation as to the cause of delay that you experienced and can confirm that this was due to a technical fault which was not inherent in the normal course of activity. A recent court case, Huzar vs Jet2, has been heard in the court of appeal, which has resulted in a change to how EC 261/2004 is interpreted, which is the regulation that supports governance on compensation payments for flight delays. The decision of this case is due to be appealed at the Supreme Court by Jet2.com in the near future, which may result in a further change to the interpretation of regulations.

In view of this, Thomas Cook will be deferring a review of your case until such time as further clarification is received on the EC 261/2004 Regulations . We will continue to monitor any developments, and we will ensure an updated message is posted on our website with regard to our revised position following the outcome of the appeal. You will be required to re-approach us once the appeal has been heard and your case will then be reviewed against the appropriate guidelines.

Once again please accept our apologies for the delay to your flight, and I hope the above explains why we are unable to review your case at the present moment in time.

Kind Regards,

S**** b***

Customer Relations

They'll say anything to get out of paying what they should be automatically doing! I'm STILL waiting for my complaint to be looked and now well over the 28 days response time! Does anyone know if the 28 day response is a legal thing or just Thomas cooks timeframe they've allocated?
I'm seriously considering taking to court as I'm getting nowhere....not even an answer to my complaint!

111KAB

endaf wrote: »

They'll say anything to get out of paying what they should be automatically doing! I'm STILL waiting for my complaint to be looked and now well over the 28 days response time! Does anyone know if the 28 day response is a legal thing or just Thomas cooks timeframe they've allocated?
I'm seriously considering taking to court as I'm getting nowhere....not even an answer to my complaint!

Read Huzar thread - court sounds like the route for you/NWNF but unsure when your delay was so you may not have time on your side if waiting for the Supreme Court.

teejay73

Well, after sending TC another brief E-mail on the 13th Aug, and still not heard nothing I decided to get Bott and co to deal with the claim. I filled in their online form on the 18th Aug, and sent them relevant info, ie boarding passes, TC letter, etc. I have not heard anything back from them apart from an E-mail with my ref number, and that is all.

Well on the 19th Aug, I get an E-mail from TC, awarding me £654.00, though as expected in the form of a voucher (erm no thanks, will not be going with TC for next holiday!). Straight away I mailed them back asking for the compensation to be paid in cash, I guess I should have to ring them to get this sorted!?

Also, what is the deal with Bott and co? Surely they have not got my compensation sorted with-in the space of a less than a day have they? I have not had any communication with them to confirm or deny this. I think TC paid out because of the original claim I made, at least I hope so!

Vauban

Well done. Did you sign a document (or tick a box) to assign your claim to Bott? If so, you have committed to their T&Cs. Perhaps give them a call tomorrow to explain that immediately after you engaged their services, the airline compensation came through. Bott are a reputable outfit and - provided they've done no work on your case - might be amenable to letting you off the hook.

teejay73

Vauban wrote: »

Well done. Did you sign a document (or tick a box) to assign your claim to Bott? If so, you have committed to their T&Cs. Perhaps give them a call tomorrow to explain that immediately after you engaged their services, the airline compensation came through. Bott are a reputable outfit and - provided they've done no work on your case - might be amenable to letting you off the hook.

I know I have not signed anything, though I do not recall ticking a box. This is the E-mail they sent:

Dear *****

You are receiving this email as confirmation of receipt of your recent flight claim made online at bottonline.co.uk

Thank you for submitting your flight claim with Bott & Co using our 100% no-win no-fee service. Your enquiry reference number is 100000536

We'll now work on verifying the flight information you've provided and will confirm the status of your claim by email shortly.

If you have documentation such as boarding passes, booking confirmations or letters from the airline then please forward them on to us, as it will greatly assist us in dealing with your claim.

We've secured payments from airlines in as little as five days and in others we've gone all the way to court. No other flight claims company or law firm will do this in the UK; Bott & Co are the industry leaders by a considerable distance.

Kind regards

The Aviation Team - Bott & Co

And this was there 1st one:

Dear *****

You are receiving this email as confirmation of receipt of your recent flight claim enquiry made online at bottonline.co.uk

Thank you for submitting your flight claim with Bott & Co using our 100% no-win no-fee service. Your enquiry reference number is 100000536

We ask that you click the link below to visit our claims portal and provide further passenger details and information for us to manage your claim for you.

Go to my claim

We'll now work on verifying the flight information you've provided and will confirm the status of your claim by email shortly.

Please note that we are unable to proceed with your claim until you have completed the passengers details using the link above.

We've secured payments from airlines in as little as several hours and in others we’ve gone all the way to the Court of Appeal. No other flight claims company or law firm will do this in the UK; Bott & Co are the industry leaders by a considerable distance.

Kind regards

The Aviation Team - Bott & Co

I guess it does look like I have entered into an agreement with them, as I gave them all relevant passenger details. I did E-mail them to tell them that I have since had my claim compensation. Will give them a ring tomorrow.

Should I also give TC A ring to get my voucher changed for cash, or will an E-mail be ok?