Flight delay and cancellation compensation, Tui/Thomson ONLY

KMD7

matt2baker wrote: »

Sounds like it'll be an EC technical fault, hence the "no comp" response (did they say that at all?) unless there are other reasons for the excessive delay.............but as fellow poster, 111KAB suggests above, that's your next step, (best option!!) as long as you first put a letter to them saying "14 days before Court Action" and send your letter Recorded Delivery (£1.70) - it'll probably be signed for Thomsons by Sheila Smith! - all mine were!

It was submitted by email, reply will also be by email. It was sent to after care team, asking for reply within 14 days as per template.

mistersneezy

Although I’m new to this forum, this forum is not new to me. I’ve been following this with great interest since it began and have also read every single post on the other airline forums so as not to miss anything.
I have had an on-going claim with Thomson for the last nine months. Initially I jumped through the many hoops and obstacles Thomson placed in front of me but like many others on here I was then effectively ignored by them in an attempt to make me give up. It soon became apparent that the only language they would listen to was litigation and I began my legal action in April.
Thomson never even replied to my NBA and their ignorance just made me more determined to pursue my claim. My first real correspondence from them was an acknowledgement to my court action - they can’t ignore that. I then received the same letters that you guys have all received fobbing me off and claiming extraordinary circumstances. We have all seen them reproduced many times on this forum. Clearly a ‘copy and paste’ exercise for the office junior. Weeks later I received their official defence as lodged with the court. I had no contact with Thomson from the point that I started my legal action and to be honest would not have given them that courtesy after the months of stonewalling I had endured at their hands. I intended to treat them exactly as they had treated me.
Although no stranger to a confrontation with a bank or utility company, I have never been to court before but was determined that Thomson would not ride roughshod over me. I hate the David and Goliath syndrome. I set about tackling their nine point defence one by one in preparation for my court case. I compiled the evidence I needed - the regulation itself, Wallentin, Sturgeon, etc. Soon I had a bundle together and was quite looking forward to court as I felt I had a very strong case. All I had to do now was sit and wait for my day in court.
Then, approximately one month before my court date, came a letter offering settlement from Mr Moran. Obviously with an impending encounter in court I was nearing the top of his inbox and my file had been passed from the office juniors to ‘The man that can’. The offer was a carrot dangled in front of me to see if I would take the bait. Not for the full amount, but still a reasonable offer. By now though it was a matter of principle - I was in the right and would accept not a penny less. I didn’t feel that the offer warranted a response, so it didn’t get one. After months of being ignored by Thomson it felt nice to do it back to them. I would do my talking in court. Eventually as the court date got closer I received an offer for the full amount, interest included. I had mixed feelings about this as I was quite looking forward to revealing to the courts the non-cooperation and delay tactics I had been subjected to by this company. How will the courts get to hear of the games the airlines are playing if we don’t get to court?
I had to accept the offer as I could not decline it and continue to court for fear of being told I was wasting the court’s time. Even after accepting the offer they didn’t process it when they said they would. It crossed my mind that the offer could have been a ploy to stop me paying my final hearing fee and effectively lose my court date and have to start again from the beginning. To play safe, I paid my court fee and retained my court date. Eventually, after telling Thomson that I had not received their transfer and the court action was still live, it reached my bank. It could have been more Thomson games or perhaps just incompetence. You decide for yourselves.
Incidentally, my letter to the CAA that I wrote back in February has also just been replied to. They pointed me towards their new guidelines and have said that in their view I would not be entitled to compensation due to ‘extraordinary circumstances’. The CAA should be ashamed of themselves. Their new guidelines are the result of cries for help from those that fund the CAA - the airlines. The guidelines look like they have been written by the airlines and they are not legally binding anyway. Don’t waste your time with the CAA.
So now after 9 months my battle is over all but for the 8 weeks the court has said I may have to wait for my hearing fee to be reimbursed. It has taken a long time and more hours of my evenings and weekends than I care to remember but for me it was about a principle. It was a considerable sum of money but I’d have done the same if it was a tenner. I was in the right, they were wrong. For all of you who are considering going through this process and for those of you who are already in it, don’t give up. The advice on this forum is excellent. Second to none. I would particularly like to thank Centipede, Vauban, Mark2spark, 111KAB, and blondmark whose advice has been invaluable. Sorry for not posting earlier but I would imagine that the airline’s litigants will be monitoring this site very carefully and I didn’t want to reveal my hand to them. They certainly should be monitoring it anyway, because if you have a valid claim everything you need to win it is on here.
Good luck everyone, and don’t give up - that’s exactly what they want you to do.
Mistersneezy

Vauban

What a great post, Mr Sneezy. Thanks for taking the trouble to record your experience: if you could bear to post a link to this in the court success thread, I think that would be helpful too.

I agree with everything you've written. The airlines and the CAA are a disgrace: they are in cahoots. The CAA's response to this scandal is itself a systemic failure of regulation - but who will hold them to account?

At least your battle, hard fought and principled, is won. Well done!

Star9272

Although I’m new to this forum, this forum is not new to me. I’ve been following this with great interest since it began and have also read every single post on the other airline forums so as not to miss anything.


Thanks Mrsneezy, it helps when I hear successes

jonmac43

I submitted a claim to Thomson after an 11 hour delay on TOM1455 (due to a breakdown on plane coming out from Edinburgh) returning from Lanzarote on 13th June. No reply to first letter after 28 days so repeated the claim and registered the letter this time. Cheque for just under £700 (2x350) followed on after a couple of weeks or so.

bazaar_2

KMD7 wrote: »

It was submitted by email, reply will also be by email. It was sent to after care team, asking for reply within 14 days as per template.

You should write your NBA by snail mail and recorded delivery,
Theyll have some sort of disclaimer on any emails .
Best to have the solid evidenece of notice before action in your hand.
Send it recorded signed for. Then they cant say 'we never read or received it'

matt2baker

KMD7 wrote: »

It was submitted by email, reply will also be by email. It was sent to after care team, asking for reply within 14 days as per template.

Bazaar just beat me to it - you can't guarantee that the email arrived, was opened, was read or was actioned/deleted.

Send it by post as we suggested, using recorded delivery. Simples!

00helen

I have just received my "get knotted" letter from Thomson. I never knew about the compensation but when I saw on MSE that the claims could go back to 2005 I remembered my holiday from hell where I had a puking baby, flight delayed for over 3 hours AND they'd confiscated my baby milk and food and wouldn't give it back even though I could see it...oh how we laughed!
Our flight was 29/6/07. However from what I gather now this is clearly just over the 6 year limitations thing so I have no chance anyway? I KNOW it's pushing it for an old claim (though I'm sure Thomson would do it to me if it could), but has anyone else tried a "historic" claim and been successful? If the limit is 6 years why run an article saying we can claim back to 2005? As unless the airline rolls over it would appear that I would not win in a small claims court. Any constructive advice gratefully received - I don't want to waste my time if I have no chance anyway.
Thanks!

111KAB

00helen wrote: »

. Any constructive advice gratefully received - I don't want to waste my time if I have no chance anyway.

Forget it - law goes back to 2005 but ability to sue when airline refuses to pay goes back until 22/08/07 (as of today!). Thomson will not even pay bone fide claims so little chance of them coughing up for one which is out of court claim date.

matt2baker

00helen wrote: »

I KNOW it's pushing it for an old claim (though I'm sure Thomson would do it to me if it could),

really?? some on here are struggling on 6 weeks, yet alone 6+ years......