Love Holidays - Disgrace

tovmeister

I booked a holiday with Love Holidays in January 2020 for a trip abroad in August. I paid a deposit and then Covid happened big time.  Despite common sense telling me the holiday would be cancelled, 10days before I was due to fly Love Holidays sent me a reminder to pay the balance of the holiday...I managed to get a live chat going and was told I had to pay the balance, in order to then be fully reimbursed. Like a fool I did. Lanzarote was put on the no fly list, and I followed the Love Holiday instructions and chose a full refund option. I received some money back ( hotel) but was then told I had to wait for the airline to reimburse me. I spoke to them and was told I should have changed my flights as it was now too late to do anything. I went back to Love Holidays who said not to worry, i would eventually be paid pad in full. My holiday insurance company refused to help, I raised a MSE Case, nothing was  heard back, I even tried my credit card company who last week have said they looked into it and the flights were non refundable so they cannot help ( apparently it was in the terms of booking). Non refundable flights were not highlighted to me when I booked, I was not told to change flights prior to the cancellation ( I also forked out an extra £100 for seats and luggage, so thats lost as well) so I am well and truely out of pocket. I am disgusted I have paid for a service, for goods I could not use and as far as I am concerned Love Holidays should be liable. I shall never used them again and would advise anyone else to be look at the small, tiny, minute print if you decide to risk a holiday with these unresponsive, unhelpful, thieving charlatons.

bagand96

Flights are nearly always non-refundable, that would have been in the booking T&C's  Love Holidays are just an agent who put flight and hotel together, you are still bound by the T&C's of the airline. This is in the LH T&C's too. 

However it would appear you did book a package so you do have additional rights under the Package Travel Regulations, which even LH admit on their own website https://www.loveholidays.com/about-us/package-rights.html Did LoveHolidays advise you the holiday was cancelled? You may still have some recourse under the PTRs.

I assume the problem here is the flight operated and the airline won't refund LH so they don't want to refund you? Ryanair?

To be clear are you saying that LH are now saying you can't have a refund after previously saying you can?

twopenny

Did you read the Terms and Conditions on booking? You have to agree to them or when you book you are altomatically agreeing to them. Nothing has to be pointed out to you.

I know this may sound harsh but in future you really want to know what you are agreeing to when you part with your money. It's tedious but doable over a cup of tea.

Non refundable really is just that. It's why it's cheaper.

 Bagand, that's a good thought. Though I'd be willing to bet it was someone on a phone and unless you have a recording of the message or have it in writing no one will admit to that.

[Deleted User]

If you booked a package holiday with Love Holidays (did you get an ATOL certificate stating “package”). Then LH should be responsible for refunding the lot regardless of whether the airline refunds them.   However (big however) it doesn’t seem to be as straight forward as that with LH and you will probably have a fight on your hands which may involve  you taking them to court.   I am not sure if there have ever been any test cases?   

In first instance I would send letters/emails enclosing copy of the certificate and quoting the package holiday rights as stated above.  

I don’t think I would ever book through third parties again after reading so many horror stories on here.  My own experience of Love Holidays has been good but that was when things worked well.   Good luck. 

Browntoa

I had 2 holidays fully refunded from love holiday last year without issue.

Sometimes the issue is not fully reading and understanding the types of flights you are booking