Late booking mess - URGENT

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CostaBlanca
Posts: 253
Joined: Mon Jan 09, 2006 2:58 pm
Location: Costa Blanca

Late booking mess - URGENT

Post by CostaBlanca »

Hi,
I had just finished putting up a special offer of August 29 on the rental site and I received an enquiry for the "29th". I immediately replied and confirmed August 29th for 2 weeks with that on subject line. He made a payment into my account yesterday but will not be cleared until Tuesday at least. That´s my side of things . The client however had July 29th on his mind and has booked his flights based on my confirmation. This only came to light at midnight and he is due to travel from his home at 10am this morning for his flight when he finally sent his flight details and asked for directions.

The only accommodation that I know of that is available is an apartment in the next town instead of a villa which he wanted to book. Obviously there are villas available but not at the reduced price that I offered.

What a mess? My first major *******

I have to ring this morning. Any ideas, advice.
A-two
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Joined: Mon Oct 25, 2004 10:05 am
Location: USA

Post by A-two »

He didn't say which "29th" he wanted, but you told him which "29th" was available. If he didn't bother to read the confirmation you sent which clarified this as August not July then he's an idiot.

My suggestion would be to tell him you will return the money to him at your earliest opportunity (tell your bank to send it back from wherever it came as soon as it has cleared and net of all bank charges) and point him in the direction of the nearest hotel. I would not offer to get involved in trying to secure other accomodation for him or paying for something else on his behalf using the money he sent you which hasn't even cleared your bank yet, if ever.

Apart from anything else, this could be a scam to get you to cash a bad cheque in advance of it clearing your bank on Tuesday. Be careful. It may well bounce.

Even if he's a genuine idiot rather than a fake idiot, he is still not your problem, his situation is not your fault and you are not his mother. You may want to help him, but unfortunately you can't, you're booked.

My 2 cents... :)
Last edited by A-two on Sat Jul 29, 2006 5:45 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Ju
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Location: Vendee, France
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Post by Ju »

I agree with Joanna, You have taken no money from him as yet. You are not in the wrong. If your confirmation e-mail says August 29th for two weeks then it is completely his error and you should not get involved with sorting him out.

If you do get involved you would be effectively addmitting fault which could get you into deeper problems. Do not under any circumstances give him directions to your property!

Best of Luck

Ju
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debk
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Post by debk »

Excellent advice from Joanna and Ju, as usual. I'm just writing to let you know that we are all pulling for you. Hang in there!
Beijinhos,
debk
Vally
Posts: 152
Joined: Sat Jul 08, 2006 4:24 pm
Location: Aberdeenshire

Post by Vally »

Oh you poor old thing , I hate it when this happens I made an error ( my fault)this year, even if it isn't your fault if you are a softie like me you worry about the folk!!
Hope it all works out without too much upset.
Fraise
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Joined: Sat Oct 30, 2004 8:25 am
Location: Charente Maritime and Middle England

Post by Fraise »

Let us know how this goes. If you confirmed as August 29th then you are not to blame. As someone else said- the cheque may yet bounce- you don't know if it's yet another clever scam :roll:
Nightowl
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Post by Nightowl »

Yep, harsh though it may seem, I agree with the others. If your email was clear which dates you were available then it's his problem. I would feel bad about it too as I'm sure would anyone in this situation but it's not a cock up of your making and you haven't any obligation to sort it out. And as the others have said, you haven't been paid yet and it could be a scam...

When you ring him, see if his priority seems to be getting his money back or finding alternative accommodation. If his priority is getting his money back, then I reckon that points to a scam. If it's sorting out accommodation then he might be, as Joanna says a 'genuine idiot' rather than a 'fake idiot' but at the end of the day, it's still not your problem, and if you can offer him alternative suggestions or directions to a hotel, you have done as much as you could be expected to do.
Nightowl
Forever going one step forwards and two
backwards......
CostaBlanca
Posts: 253
Joined: Mon Jan 09, 2006 2:58 pm
Location: Costa Blanca

Post by CostaBlanca »

Thanks guys and gals for your support and advice. Even if it wasn´t directly my fault, I feel that I am partially responsible. Shucks, he even phoned me twice in between the emails and I couldn´t understand his urgency since August 29 was so far away. I should have seen "29th" only and confirmed his travel dates before confirming anything. I had just put in the special offer price for Aug 29 and I just assumed that his enquiry was for this date.

After the worry last night, I phoned him this morning and of course his main preoccupation was how to save the situation for his 2 kids, so looking forward to going on holiday, etc. After an hour or so phoning back and forth (when I should have doing my own changeover), he advised me that he had got a villa bookingg in another resort nearby for 1 week and would my friend´s apt be still available for 2nd week. So I am still involved with his booking. His payment is not due to clear until tues/weds so I will not return anything until then.

I am shattered, nursing a cool cerveza as I type. Oh, the joys of renting holidays. Thanks again
Vally
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Joined: Sat Jul 08, 2006 4:24 pm
Location: Aberdeenshire

Post by Vally »

Its a lot easier to say " don't get involved "than not to get involved. When we had the hotel proper instead of the cottages and the B&B, we would be plagued by folk unable to find anywhere to stay , and frequently ( when I should have been paying attention to the dinners) I would find myself ringing round other hotels to try to find accommodation for them. sometimes you just can't shelve what you feel is a responsibility
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