Wowcher

SDMH

I purchased wowcher crazy bear hotel stay in Dec 2019.
This was redeemed and a the stay booked for April 2020.
Due to Covid-19, crazy bear cancelled stay pending further notification.
I was unable to make contact with Crazy bear until they re - opened to discuss a refund until July 2020, and advised refund would have to go through wowcher as they did not recieve any funds from wowcher? But in any case the expiry date has been extended for 12 months
 I have been in contact with wowcher and state that refund is not available as is outside 14 days and voucher was redeemed. However as the original terms could not be maintained ie through cancelling - what now are my consumer rights concerning a refund?
Any suggestions and legal signposting would be most appreciated.
Thank you

Sandtree

The problem with these types of sites is you aren't buying a hotel room for a night but are buying a voucher than can be redeemed for a hotel room for a night. You paid for a voucher and by the sounds of it you received the voucher. Part of the reason they are able to achieve the prices they do is because they know not all vouchers are redeemed in time, that the break in the supply chain reduces your rights etc.

Are you not interested in arranging the stay for a later date as suggested by the hotel?

pinkshoes

As above you have purchased vouchers for an experience. The experience is still available, so why not re-book? 

If you want a refund, it will be as Wowcher Vouchers and not a cash refund.

Aylesbury_Duck

We really do need a voucher forum on here.  The number of people who buy vouchers with no idea what they're getting or what they're entitled to (or not) is just growing.  They all think they're getting a bargain as well...

bondieboy

I purchased an Unlimited Sushi dining experience from Wowcher as a gift for my son and his wife in December 2021. My son actually made a reservation a couple of weeks ago for the restaurant on the link sent. As it was an extra special occasion which they had to travel to they also booked accommodation. They arrived at the restaurant to be told the Sushi did not exist anymore and had not for quite some time, and that the venue was a bar only now. On approaching Wowcher for a refund, initially they just said prove it doesn't exist! Which for a start I find totally unacceptable. The onus of proof should not be placed on the dissatisfied customer. But I did contact the location, they said it was not their product and it had been done through a third party. I again contacted Wowcher to see how I could progress this. I was again told to provide proof from the 'merchant'.
As an aside if you have redeemed your voucher as my son did to make the reservation, you can not use the on line form to request a refund, even if in this case the reservation form existed, but product did not! Which obviously added to the disappointment of failure of service. If you call Wowchers customer service telephone number you cannot talk to a person. 
I requested the contact details via email of the 'merchant' from Wowcher, which as a 'reputable' company offering products on their behalf you would hope they would have correct?! I emailed the advised 'merchant' but no response. The company is listed as 'dissolved via compulsory strike-off', since November 2020 on Companies House records! So either the company are operating illegally and Wowcher are not aware, or not? Or the contact and advert should have been dis-continued long ago?
I welcome comments?

powerful_Rogue

bondieboy said:

I purchased an Unlimited Sushi dining experience from Wowcher as a gift for my son and his wife in December 2021. My son actually made a reservation a couple of weeks ago for the restaurant on the link sent. As it was an extra special occasion which they had to travel to they also booked accommodation. They arrived at the restaurant to be told the Sushi did not exist anymore and had not for quite some time, and that the venue was a bar only now. On approaching Wowcher for a refund, initially they just said prove it doesn't exist! Which for a start I find totally unacceptable. The onus of proof should not be placed on the dissatisfied customer. But I did contact the location, they said it was not their product and it had been done through a third party. I again contacted Wowcher to see how I could progress this. I was again told to provide proof from the 'merchant'.
As an aside if you have redeemed your voucher as my son did to make the reservation, you can not use the on line form to request a refund, even if in this case the reservation form existed, but product did not! Which obviously added to the disappointment of failure of service. If you call Wowchers customer service telephone number you cannot talk to a person. 
I requested the contact details via email of the 'merchant' from Wowcher, which as a 'reputable' company offering products on their behalf you would hope they would have correct?! I emailed the advised 'merchant' but no response. The company is listed as 'dissolved via compulsory strike-off', since November 2020 on Companies House records! So either the company are operating illegally and Wowcher are not aware, or not? Or the contact and advert should have been dis-continued long ago?
I welcome comments?

Start your own new thread.

Manxman_in_exile

@bondieboy -   easiest thing to do is report your own post (exclamation mark in bottom right corner of your post) and ask the site team to start a new thread.

Just tagging onto a dead thread well over a year old won't get any helpful comments - except this one and the previous post!

cx6

A bit harsh! Particularly as the thread title is 'Wowcher' 

But I agree - a new voucher forum would be well-used.

bondieboy

Thank you and will do. Have not posted before! Just enraged at the injustice of Wowcher getting away with such horrendous practices!