You must be joking

[cromercrabholiday]

Jane got a call yesterday from a guest due to arrive in just under five weeks time. The call went on the lines of:

Hello, you probably remember that we were moving house when we booked. Well, we've now got the keys and there's a lot more work than we thought, so we cannot afford a holiday too.

Well, that's all very well but I've had a lot of enquiries for that week and could have let it easily.

I realise I may lose my deposit, but there it is.

Further chat, she puts down phone.

Polite letter today pointing out our (very clear) booking conditions that once booked, you have taken on a legal contract and are committed to pay the full price. We will try to get another booking but any shortfall is down to her.

I feel a trip to the Small Claims Court coming on.

John

[A-two]

Since they bought the holiday before they bought the house, if anything it was the house they couldn't afford, not the holiday!

I completely agree with you about not letting them get away with it, but when the penny drops that they really are liable for the full balance, they may decide to turn up after all and not in the best of moods. Do you want them in your home now? I'm not sure I would. That's the problem.

Fingers crossed you find another booking, and I'm so sorry this has happened to you, but a valuable reminder for the rest of us why it is so important to insist on payment in full well in advance of arrival. Asking for the balance 45 days, 60 days, or even 90 days in advance seems entirely justified when I read that things like this are going on.

[Ju]

I have to say I think you will be on shakey grounds for the small claims court. It doesn't really matter what you say in your contract, it is what the court deems to be reasonable. The renters have let you know and you are keeping their deposit (rightly so).

I would suggest you change your terms so they the full amount is due, say, eight weeks before the holiday which will give you more time in the future to find replacement renters.

Fingers crossed you find someone.

Ju

[Guest3]

We request the balance to be paid 8 weeks before departure and state in our T & C's that if there is a cancellation after that time then there is no refund. We also advise guests to take out a comprehensive travel insurance which should cover them for last minute cancellations. But in your case the reason for cancelling is because they cannot afford the holiday...no insurance company will pay out for that reason.

We had a booking last year in October and they cancelled 3 days before departure. There was no way that I could get another booking for the same week within 3 days, so I withheld the payment. I did however refund them the damage deposit.

[A-two]

How you can deal with the damage deposit is usually covered by local law, which is why it is so important to distinguish between a deposit payment made towards advance rent and a deposit payment made towards possible damages. If there's a cancellation, as in this case, the difference is crucial as to whether or not you can keep whatever they have paid so far, regardless of what your agreement says. And I agree with Ju that case law is what counts most, not the laws as written. The agreement they signed with you takes third place and certainly doesn't overide either of the above. You can write whatever you like into an Agreement, it doesn't make it legal or enforceable even if the other party agrees to it. This is one good reason to ask a lawyer to read through whatever you are sending out with instructions to watch your back.

8 weeks...wow, that's a long time. Is that typical?

IANAL (I am not a lawyer) and this is not legal advice. If it was, you would have received a bill.

[Ju]

8 weeks before is what we do and we have never had any complaints. Our deposit is smaller than yours though, we only take £250 per week.

[Normandy Cow]

8 weeks for me too, and that seems to be fairly typical for British-owned gites here in France. (Although it appears that many French-owned gites don't take your payment until the day you arrive!)

I would have no hesitation in keeping their payment if they cancel after having paid, for whatever reason. I do make a point of stressing to people that they should take out adequate cancellation insurance to cover them (although as someone mentioned above, I doubt that any insurance company would pay out for the reasons given in John's case).

However, I am not a total ogre, and if someone cancelled for a good reason and were not covered by insurance, I would make every effort to relet the property so that I could refund as much as I could. Similarly, I had someone who cancelled 3 days before their arrival because his wife had a miscarriage. Their insurance paid up, but I have offered him a 10% discount if he wants to rebook in the future.

[Ju]

Catherine, I agree if someone had cancelled after they had paid the full amount then they get no refund. My understanding of the situation here is that the renters had not yet paid their final amount, and cromer crab is expecting them to pay even though they have cancelled. I just question whether you can actually get money out of someone under these circumstances. Once the money is in you pocket it is a different matter.

Ju

[debk]

We collect full payment 60 days in advance. Most everyone I know here in Portugal does the same.

Our damage deposit (€300) is paid in cash upon arrival.

Cancellations within the 60 day window are refunded if we are able to re-rent and our rental agreement strongly recommends trip insurance to cover unforseen last-minute change of plans.

I can't imagine anyone paying for a rental after a cancellation. Would love to hear if they do!
debk

[A-two]

I can't imagine anyone paying for a rental after a cancellation. Would love to hear if they do!

I can't imagine a defense of "buyer's remorse" winning the case in the Small Claims Court, but hopefully it won't go as far as that!

[cromercrabholiday]

I'm interested in the concept that courts will not take account of a clause in a contract - surely, unless it is illegal in some way or obtained under duress, this is what the parties have agreed to?

Maybe we should think about asking for the cash earlier - I thought that we were about right when we set up three years ago. I'll have a look at other UK cottages.

I'll keep you posted. Currently, we are waiting for the other party to confirm the cancellation in writing, although we have changed the availability on the website.

John

[cromercrabholiday]

News - we have been exchanging correspondence with our cancelling guest and had got fed up with lack of response, so looked for the court forms. There seemed to be a glitch in getting them on-line, so Jane picked up hard copies on Friday. Yesterday, out of the blue, our guest rang up to tell us that the cheques were in the post - we had offered to allow half post-dated a month.

So, it took a while, but we aren't out of pocket! Meanwhile, we have changed our payment terms to eight weeks before arrival, which gives us more time to find another let.

Don't let the blighters grind you down.

John

[debk]

Wow. I couldn't imagine it... yet there you go.

C-O-N-G-R-A-T-S !
debk

[Big Sis..]

Hope it works out and the chq or chqs arrive safely keep us posted.

I ask for payment 8 weeks before as well, it was 6 weeks last year but after a couple of cancellations I decided on 8 weeks noone seems to mind.
I always ask them for flt details a few months before as well.
I find if theyve booked their flts they are less likely to cancel.

The ones that say they are waiting for a cheaper deal nearer the date are a bit of a worry & are the ones that are more likely to cancel a day before the balance is due as they havent paid out for flts
A family this year [5 boys & 2 Adults] Asked for a couple of weeks delay in paying the balance so I asked for another £100 to add to the deposit Id already been given.
He reassured me that he had no intention of cancelling as hed paid so much out on flts.The balance came a couple of weeks later.
I wasnt too worried as it was for August & I knew I would be able to rebook quite easily.
I have quite a few bookings about a year in advance for the summer months and I usually email them every couple of months to see how things are and ask them if their plans are the same.This way you can get an inkling if they are changing their mind and not bothering to tell you until nearer the time.

Regards