Pressured into postponing holiday by pushy call centre advisors

carlyd123

I was hoping I could get some advice regarding a package holiday booked with TUI. I read on the TUI website that if we did not amend our booking for August we would not receive our money back. On the 16th June we called to enquire if there was anything that they could offer us (credit note, refund etc). The advisor who we could barely understand due to the poor connection of the call (likely down to it being an international call centre) informed us that the only possible option was to amend our booking on or before the 30th June. We called again on the 29th June as we read on the website that we could amend our booking slightly later before the 10th of July. We spoke to another unhelpful advisor, who informed us that we could only book before the 30th of June despite the website stating otherwise, however the advisor was quick to offer us a number of extras including a luggage upgrade or early check-in for an extra price. Feeling pressured and unsure what to do, we went ahead and amended our booking for the following year in July - a month earlier than our previous booking. What we were told beforehand was that we could amend our booking for FREE and now we have ended up paying an extra £550 for the same holiday. We feel as though we were conned into booking another holiday, despite TUI probably being aware that they would be cancelling all Summer flights from Scottish airports. Any advice would be appreciated, thanks.

comeandgo

I don't think anyone knows which Scottish airports TUI will be using next year. I'm not sure what it is you want, were you charged for amending your holiday?  You look to have been charged the increased 2021 prices but you should not have been charged anything for admin.

carlyd123

comeandgo said:

I don't think anyone knows which Scottish airports TUI will be using next year. I'm not sure what it is you want, were you charged for amending your holiday?  You look to have been charged the increased 2021 prices but you should not have been charged anything for admin.

I would like either a credit note or refund for our holiday. We were pressured into making a completely new booking and then a week later TUI had announced that all holidays (we were travelling from Aberdeen Airport) were cancelled. If we had cancelled by the 10th, we wouldn’t of received a refund so we took a chance and amended the booking. TUI announced the cancellations on the 14th July, so I feel slightly misled. Each time I have phoned TUI they haven’t been helpful at all. Thanks. 

[Deleted User]

Not sure exactly but I think people are mistaking free transfer of booking to mean transferring at same price.   It isn't,  because although you may not have to pay to transfer you will have to pay any increase in prices for 2021.   This is where they are catching people unawares I feel.    

As for the 'advisors' well yes they are doing their job if they get you to transfer.   They can't bully you though.  You are entitled to make your own minds up.   It is easy to get flustered but the so called advisors are not advising on the best for the customer, they are advising on the best for the company which obviously is to get people to rebook.    Had you waited you would have no doubt qualified for a full refund when the holidays were cancelled.   I am not getting at you by the way, nobody knew what the heck was happening and lots of people panicked into wanting to secure their holiday.    It doesn't necessarily mean the person at the end of the phone would have known all flights would be cancelled either.   

If you feel you were given any incorrect 'advice' or that you were bullied at any time, ask for a transcript of the conversation.  Take a look and if you feel justified you can first of all lodge a complaint against Tui and take it from there (there are several steps you can take).

carlyd123

Tedber said:

Not sure exactly but I think people are mistaking free transfer of booking to mean transferring at same price.   It isn't,  because although you may not have to pay to transfer you will have to pay any increase in prices for 2021.   This is where they are catching people unawares I feel.    

As for the 'advisors' well yes they are doing their job if they get you to transfer.   They can't bully you though.  You are entitled to make your own minds up.   It is easy to get flustered but the so called advisors are not advising on the best for the customer, they are advising on the best for the company which obviously is to get people to rebook.    Had you waited you would have no doubt qualified for a full refund when the holidays were cancelled.   I am not getting at you by the way, nobody knew what the heck was happening and lots of people panicked into wanting to secure their holiday.    It doesn't necessarily mean the person at the end of the phone would have known all flights would be cancelled either.   

If you feel you were given any incorrect 'advice' or that you were bullied at any time, ask for a transcript of the conversation.  Take a look and if you feel justified you can first of all lodge a complaint against Tui and take it from there (there are several steps you can take).

Thanks for the advice. I feel like I may have been a bit vague. When I called TUI we were told specifically that if we did NOT amend our booking we would lose our money completely and they informed us that the holidays were going ahead as planned. I am aware that the “advisors” are just doing their job, however I feel like they were very misleading. We understood that we would have to pay extra, but we felt pressured into doing so not just by the advisor, but TUI themselves. Therefore that has resulted us in paying an extra £500 which we totally understand due to the 2021 prices. I completely understand you are not getting at me, but I am a young adult and this has been a difficult situation to deal with. We would feel more comfortable if we received our money back or even a credit note to allow us to book a holiday when we are ready. 

Mrsn

I’m very sorry but by amending when you did you have no recourse now to ask for a credit note or refund. TUI hasn’t done particularly well in the last few months with the customer service side of it and you have sadly been part of that treatment.

By all means as Tedber has suggested you are welcome to put in a complaint but I don’t expect anything to come of it.