TUI Cannot supply the holiday I have booked but won’t refund me

CED60

We are due to fly in 2 weeks on a package holiday I booked with TUI about  3 weeks ago. Just after I booked I found out that the hotel was closing for its winter break a few days after our arrival date.
I contacted TUI awhile initially denied this was the case but then eventually accepted I was right .  I asked for a refund under the Package Travel Regulations but they are refusing to give me this saying that I have to wait for the Change Team to get in touch - I have now been waiting for this for 2 weeks and despite constantly chasing them they just say that they don’t have a timescale as to when this will be … I contacted the Directors Team who just state the same thing … in the meantime they have £3000 of my money , alternate holidays are going up in price and I am at a loss - Has anyone had any experience of this ? Many thanks 

eskbanker

If available, they should offer you alternative accommodation of the same standard and in the same resort, which might be a better bet than pushing for a refund and buying more expensively elsewhere?

Mark_d

Just let TUI sort out suitable alternative accommodation.You will end up seriously out of pocket if you pre-emptively try to range a replacement holiday independently.

TELLIT01

TUIs T&C will almost certainly say they can substitute accommodation of equal or higher grade.  Unless you stated at the time of booking that the booking was dependent upon this hotel being available you cannot demand a refund.

daveyjp

Whilst they my offer an alternative check that the resort doesn't close down.  Nothing worse than being a hotel which is open, but nothing else is.

TELLIT01

daveyjp said:

Whilst they my offer an alternative check that the resort doesn't close down.  Nothing worse than being a hotel which is open, but nothing else is.

If alternative accommodation is provided in the same resort as the original booking, it won't make any difference if everything else closes down.  The situation will be no different to that had the original hotel remained open a few more days.

eskbanker

TELLIT01 said:

TUIs T&C will almost certainly say they can substitute accommodation of equal or higher grade.  Unless you stated at the time of booking that the booking was dependent upon this hotel being available you cannot demand a refund.

It wouldn't just be down to OP to state that, TUI would need to agree to it - I'm not aware of companies like that typically accepting proposed variances to their standard Ts & Cs, but happy to be corrected if there's evidence to the contrary!

NoodleDoodleMan

It would be useful to know the name of the hotel etc.

TUI will look to put you into an establishment of comparable standard and board basis etc. - perhaps an enquiry asking them for the proposed alternative might ease your anxiety ?

I had a look at TUI's Ts&Cs - see the section under If We Change Your Holiday here.

https://www.tui.co.uk/destinations/booking/tandc?ptype=PDP

As I read this the customer has no right to a refund under the major change provision unless the alternative accommodation is a One Star downgrade (or more).......my interpretation may be flawed of course.