I shouldn't pay the balance for a holiday that's not going to happen....or should I?

frankiethemonkey

Tedber said:

frankiethemonkey said:

Choice seems to be- walk away now and lose 50% of our money, or take a gamble, pay the 50% balance, and hope the trip gets cancelled so we can claim 100% back somewhere down the line.
The grey area remains though- what if we are technically/legally allowed to travel, but end up going on a holiday in which there could possibly be quarantines/social distancing/limits on travel WITHIN the country, etc.  Sounds like the worst holiday I could ever imagine!
Travel insurer said she is speaking to people every day in the same dilemma, unsure whether to pay balances on holidays that are likely never going to happen, and dealing with holiday companies refusing to return deposits, on the basis that their cancellation is "voluntary."
Thanks everyone for your sage advice!  It's amazing and so appreciated.

I can't get my head round this at all.   How would you be able to claim 100% refund back through section 75 IF you haven't paid half of it through a credit card?   Maybe I am missing something?   Also have you got all your companions listed on your insurance or did they take it out individually?   Insurance has to be claimed individually. 

Sorry if I was unclear.  We cannot claim the money paid by BACS under section 75.  The insurer's advice was, if we choose to pay the balance, to use a credit card rather than by bacs, which will offer us another layer of consumer protection in addition to the protection offered by the insurers.  And yes, we know insurance has to be claimed individually and I cannot make a claim on someone else's behalf.  

Life__Goes__On

frankiethemonkey said:

  We cannot claim the money paid by BACS under section 75. 

Just want to make sure you know.
If you pay the balance via credit card,  you can claim that money back and also what you paid via BACS on the credit card also

boliston

i would probably 'play it safe' and go with loss of deposit rather than 'throw good money after bad' and pay out more money in the hope of someday getting it back

frankiethemonkey

Life__Goes__On said:

frankiethemonkey said:

  We cannot claim the money paid by BACS under section 75. 

Just want to make sure you know.
If you pay the balance via credit card,  you can claim that money back and also what you paid via BACS on the credit card also

Wow, that's great to know. Thank you!  Is there somewhere you can direct me to read up on that and educate myself?

Life__Goes__On

Also for future reference
It you paid cash, sometimes the only option is to take a company to court  and then even if you win if they go under you get nothing. and also you have to pay to take the to court (you get that back if you win)
With a Credit card it's the Ombudsman that rules, and it's totally free, and as it's the credit card that pays not much chance of not getting paid.

markh1965

Life__Goes__On said:

"

Tedber said:

I can't get my head round this at all.   How would you be able to claim 100% refund back through section 75 IF you haven't paid half of it through a credit card?   Maybe I am missing something?   Also have you got all your companions listed on your insurance or did they take it out individually?   Insurance has to be claimed individually. 

Yes, even if you paid 1p on a credit card it covers you for the whole amount under S75

Under a debit card it's Chargeback  so only what you paid via the card
That's why paying by credit card (if you can) is so important.

EDIT  So if something cost £10,000  pay £9,999.99 in cash, 1p on credit card
you are covered for the whole ten grand on the card.

So,if I used a debit card to pay say£1000 of my holiday can I claim that back,less the first£100.i was lead to believe I could only claim if I used a credit card

frankiethemonkey

Life__Goes__On said:

Also for future reference
It you paid cash, sometimes the only option is to take a company to court  and then even if you win if they go under you get nothing. and also you have to pay to take the to court (you get that back if you win)
With a Credit card it's the Ombudsman that rules, and it's totally free, and as it's the credit card that pays not much chance of not getting paid.

Hi, yes I am aware of this (although was not aware of what you mentioned in your previous post about being able to claim the BACS payment if the final payment is by credit card), and in general use my credit card for almost all of my purchases- not just for the protections I am afforded, but for air miles.  When this company only offered BACS for payment, I simply didn't question it (what could possibly go wrong! I'm certainly finding out now!), and I regret not asking/insisting to pay by card. 

frankiethemonkey

boliston said:

i would probably 'play it safe' and go with loss of deposit rather than 'throw good money after bad' and pay out more money in the hope of someday getting it back

Yes it's certainly tempting to walk away.....

bagand96

markh1965 said:

So,if I used a debit card to pay say£1000 of my holiday can I claim that back,less the first£100.i was lead to believe I could only claim if I used a credit card

If you used a debit card you can ask your bank for a Chargeback.  The chargeback schemes are voluntary schemes run by MasterCard, Visa and Amex that reverse the transaction to refund you the money.  It is different to Section 75 however, because Section 75 is covered in law, and holds the bank jointly liable for a transaction with the merchant.  Chargeback has no legal protection.

More info here https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/visa-mastercard-chargeback/

It's worth saying chargeback, like Section 75, only helps you if the supplier defaults on the contract.  Faulty product, non-delivery, cancellation etc.  It won't help you for example if you just want to cancel a holiday because you've changed your mind.