Holiday Cancellations - Where Do I Stand?
It is every holiday goer's worst nightmare, you are packing your suitcases and then get news of you flight being cancelled because of strikes. Having booked your special trip using your Diamond Resorts Points (DRI Points), you have been eagerly awaiting getting away from it all, only to find out that it is not as simple as that – your flight has been cancelled.
The only thing more heart-wrenching than learning that your flight is cancelled before you depart is if you are waiting to return home. Whilst, being stuck in your dream holiday destination might not seem like a bad situation for some, making the new arrangements in addition to the additional expenditure can be quite a pain. But sadly these things happen – so where do you stand if they do?
In April 2010 Europe ground to a halt as the Icelandic volcano, Eyjafjallajökull erupted, pumping dense collumns of ash into the atmosphere. The eruption was hugely disruptive cancelling many flights across Europe closing airports, leaving thousands of holiday makers stranded.
Quite beside the logistical nightmare of working your own way back home, the question on most people’s lips was with what would happen to the money for flights and who would cover it. In the instance of the volcano many had to rely on their insurance, which in cases like this is never hopeful with volcanic eruptions being classified as an “act of God” and can be wriggled out of my insurers.
If you are travelling with a specific tour operator or package holiday company you are mostl likely covered fully, but any issues and disruption to flights have to be handled with the airline you booked with.
Whilst not quite as big as a volcano erupting, Spanish “general strikes” in 2012 have created havoc with flight arrangements as only a small number of flights are still in operation. Many who have to travel whilst the industrial action is on found that the airlines had been cancelling their flights, so what can you do?
In line with EU regulation 261/2004, an airline either has to offer alternate travel arrangements or the money back – if a refund is accepted, you will have to get your own way home. Accepting a refund from an airline is them filling their obligation to you and that is the end of their deal.
If you have booked through a package holiday company or Diamond Resorts International then you will see that, withing their differing polices, it is their job to get you home and give accommodation of a similar standard until new flight arrangements can be made.
The really tricky situation is if you have to chase a refund made not in a package holiday or Diamond Resorts, i.e. made by you. It is up to you to make contact with the provider and ask them to issue a full refund. All providers should have given details about cancellations and notice which is required at the time of booking – so make sure you are aware of that.
What happens if they won't give you a refund from your accommodation? Well, this then moves to travel insurance, and as I’ve said, there are many of different factors here. It all rests on your policy, and especially on cover for “consequential loss”. The cost and issuer of the policy will have a large impact as to the type of cover you get – so make sure you contact your insurer for details.
Booking to use your Diamond Resort Points is an exciting time as the thought of time away is a welcome one, but be aware disruptions happen. Remember that refund and cancellation polices can differ, so familarise yourself with them and act quickly should you need to make claims yourself or different arrangements.
James Howson is a timeshare and travel guru with over a decade of experience in travel writing . Having owned timeshares he is often asked about buying timeshare points and recently about Diamond Resorts International.
