On The Beach Cancellation

Lyonst

My son is looking to cancel his holiday booked through On The Beach. They have stated that they cannot refund the cost of the flights just the hotel. Are they able to do this? The flights are with Ryanair

eskbanker

What's the cancellation policy within the terms he signed up to?

Lyonst

The OTB website states 'Please note that most airlines have a policy that bookings are non-refundable, therefore if your booking is cancelled before the flight cost has been paid, it is likely you will still have to pay for your flights.' It seems an assumption on their part that flight costs cannot be refunded

Caz3121

Ryanair only sell non- refundable flights (they only refund if they cancel a flight) Refundable flights that may be offered by some airlines tend to be expensive- can be 4x the cost of the cheaper non-refundable. Probably not something on the beach sell many of

DullGreyGuy

Lyonst said:

My son is looking to cancel his holiday booked through On The Beach. They have stated that they cannot refund the cost of the flights just the hotel. Are they able to do this? The flights are with Ryanair

Why do you think they can't?

In principle none of it could have been refundable so they are lucky they can at least get the hotel back. There is no cooling off period for travel on fixed dates. 

Lyonst

My son's partner is due to have a baby six weeks before the holiday. At the time of the booking they were not intending to start a family. 

DullGreyGuy

Lyonst said:

My son's partner is due to have a baby six weeks before the holiday. At the time of the booking they were not intending to start a family. 

And? 

Ultimately having a child is a choice, you cannot make a travel agent lose money because you choose to have child even if wasn't your plan at the time of booking

Lyonst

Has anyone else got any comments

elsien

Only that I agree with the other posters.
Whatever the reason, this counts as a change of mind on your son's part. If the flight that he booked is non-refundable, and that is in the terms and conditions then he still has an obligation to pay even if he doesn't use it. 

From their FAQ (which I'm fairly sure will be somewhere in the information he was sent when booking)

How do I cancel my booking and what will it cost?

...FAQs - Essential Information and Frequently Asked Questions (onthebeach.co.uk)..

Cancellation costs are subject to fees from our suppliers:

• Flights: Flights are non-refundable from the point of booking and therefore the cost of your flights cannot be refunded.

• Hotel: If you selected a non-refundable room at the time of booking, then we are unable to offer any refund. Some hotels can be cancelled at no charge and some may charge a partial fee depending on how close to your departure date is.

Whenever I'm booking a package holiday I work on the basis that it won't be refundable so if I change my mind I lose the money. 

comeandgo

I think they are very lucky to get the hotel costs reimbursed, flight costs are gone, not going to get them back.

Lyonst

Thanks for your comments