Disaster Zone Holidays Don't Get Done Get Dom

I've been fighting consumer battles for years, but there's

still many companies out there trying to get one over on you.

They don't care, as long as the cash register is going "ching, ching, ching," that's all they care about.

Thousands of you are still subject to an array of unfair treatment,

from poor customer service to hidden small print and faulty products.

What can we do? Maybe make a complaint maybe,

that'll get lost in the telecommunications abyss.

These companies simply don't seem to care,

and are causing you, the consumer, a lot of unnecessary stress.

But never fear, I'll take on your consumer battles

to make sure that you don't get done.

And coming up on today's show, we take on the travel agents,

as three major companies face complaints

over their lack of customer care during turbulent times.

There were sandbags outside the hotels and supermarkets,

you know, the flood water was gradually seeping in to Bangkok.

People were seen running around the streets with guns in their hands.

We've got some inside knowledge for you

on all that's dirty in the landscape gardening trade,

and it's not manure.

I've seen walls that have blown over and collapsed into cars

that could have been collapsed on to people or children walking by.

And we hit the streets to find out if you, the great British public,

are in the wrong about your consumer rights.

That's what I thought, OK, OK.

As a nation, we love nothing more than going on holiday.

But when it comes to booking exotic locations,

us Brits can be quite adventurous.

But what happens when something out of our control disrupts our holiday,

you know, earthquakes, flooding, hurricanes,

even ash clouds, would you believe.

Surely, we would be entitled to a refund, right?

Not necessarily, you see, some of you have been getting in touch

because you're having trouble getting your money back.

Meet Jill Greer, and her partner, Mike, from Sheerness in Kent.

Who experienced holiday problems outside of their control.

In August 2011, they researched and planned their dream holiday,

an exotic trip to Thailand.

It's one place we hadn't been to,

that we had heard lots of things about it

and it sounded very interesting,

fascinating culture, so we thought we would like to give it a go.

They decided they would like to book with Travelsphere,

an online tour operator who they had successfully booked with four times before.

Jill and Mike would tour Bangkok

and some of the enchanting northern provinces of Thailand.

How lovely.

We checked the weather forecast for the year

and decided that October, late October,

was probably the best time to go

because the monsoon should have been over by then,

and no more problems, let's go and enjoy the sunshine.

Jill and Mike paid £2,865 upfront,

which included prepaid excursions.

Their flight was due to leave on the 25th of October 2011.

But Thailand was about to be hit by the worst monsoon floods

it had seen in decades, and news was spreading across the world.

Round about October the 7th was when we first started getting news reports on the television,

it was getting, you know, quite serious, and the floods were

coming from the north, slowly working their way into Bangkok

and that's when we started ringing up Travelsphere

saying we were bit worried about us going.

And they said, "no, there's no problem at all,

"and we're in touch with the Foreign Office,

"and all our agents in Thailand."

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office are the government department

dedicated to protecting British citizens when travelling abroad

and they hadn't yet issued a warning.

But by mid-October, despite harrowing news reports

and millions of people effected by the floods,

Travelsphere maintained the holiday experience would be unaffected.

So, eventually, I telephoned them

and asked them what they were doing about the floods in Thailand,

because there was no way our tour could go ahead.

Travelsphere told Mike they'd been forced to change

two days of the itinerary due to the floods,

but the rest of the holiday would go ahead as normal.

However, Eva Air, the airline they were due to fly with

were offering to reschedule flights

for dates after the floods had passed.

So, the airline, as well as the world's media

were aware how serious this was,

but not Travelsphere it seems,

so Mike phoned them again.

I said "look, we can reschedule our tickets,

"the airlines have said so, will you do that for us?"

And got a flat refusal, "no." Despite our continued phone calls

Travelsphere didn't offer to do anything at all for us,

all they told us was that we went on their holiday,

but if we cancel, we would lose all of the money we paid.

Safety conscious and unable to ignore news reports,

Jill and Mike cancelled their dream holiday to Thailand

12 hours prior to their planned departure,

facing a loss of £2,865.

Travelsphere stuck to their word that it was safe to go,

based on advice from the Foreign Office.

When I contacted Dom I was hoping that there was perhaps some way

that he could help us out of this situation.

Sort of, last, desperate measures, really to get some compensation.

Desperate times indeed,

with what sounds like a very bad case of pre-holiday blues,

not to mention the thousands of pounds hanging in the balance.

This couple definitely need my help.

So, I've come to meet them at home in Kent

to get to the root of this flood disaster.

-Oh, I didn't know if the bell was working.

-Hello, Dom.

Hello, you must be Mike, pleased to meet you, Mike.

The reason I'm here is because you've had a bit of a disaster

-with a trip you had planned to Thailand.

-That's right, yes.

Right, so, you decided to cancel?

Then we discovered on the day we would have arrived in Bangkok,

because it is an overnight flight,

on the morning the Foreign Office issued advice

not to travel to Bangkok

and two of the other districts we were supposed to visit.

Unbelievably, the very day Jill and Mike were due to land in Thailand

the Foreign Office did indeed change their advice,

warning against all travel to affected part of the country.

So, Jill and Mike were right to worry about their own safety.

Quite often, I've found, travel companies should take their own initiative

and say, you know what, the Foreign Office haven't said anything,

but we think it might be worth looking at an alternative destination.

-Obviously, Travelsphere didn't do that.

-No.

You're good customers of theirs, you've paid them in full,

it's too dangerous as far as you're concerned to go,

-give us my money back.

-Yes.

-So, what happened next?

-Flat refusal.

-That's pretty poor customer service, isn't it?

-I thought so, yes.

Now that Jill and Mike had forfeited their holiday,

all that was left was for them to try to get their money back.

-Did you pursue it further?

-I wrote to Travelsphere,

and the man in charge of customer services got his lady assistant

to telephone me and say they're very sorry,

but there's nothing more they can do for us.

Sorry indeed, I'm stunned that even with the Foreign Office

changing their advice the day Jill and Mike were due to land,

Travelsphere were refusing to acknowledge this fact.

So, that's potentially £2,865 down the plug hole.

A sum of money that none of us would want to lose,

particularly a couple who are no longer working.

I mean, we're pensioners, so we haven't got loads and loads of money,

and, obviously, you save up for a big holiday,

and it was a lot of money just to lose.

Bit sad that we had to cancel it,

but, um, our safety is much more important

than Travelsphere keeping our money.

Having complained to the company,

they were refunded £190 for excursion refunds.

But that still left a deficit of 2,675.

-What about insurance, were you covered?

-We both had insurance

but, of course, the insurance doesn't pay out

unless the Foreign Office advises not to go, or you fall ill.

But this cancellation was our own choice

based on the information we had.

And by the sounds of it, you know, and with hindsight it,

it was a good choice, wasn't it?

You don't want go over to somewhere which is a disaster zone, isn't it?

It was the worst floods in nearly 60 years.

We would have been walking round knee deep in dirty floodwater

for the three days in Bangkok.

So, it wasn't just Travelsphere relying on Foreign Office advice, but insurers too.

Jill and Mike are now left with a big hole in their pocket.

What would you like from Travelsphere?

Um, well, we would like, um, the offer of another holiday,

-I suppose, wouldn't we?

-Yes.

-Thailand, now that the troubles are, sort of, over.

Yeah, I think that's the least they could offer, isn't it?

At the end of the day, the couple deserve something

for the holiday that never would have been the dream vacation they booked.

Now, are you all right if I take this paperwork away,

-I will return it.

-Yes, of course you can, Dom.

Have you got a different colour folder? I can't walk down the street with that.

Have you got another one? SHE LAUGHS

I'm not happy.

Look, I don't mind sorting out your problems,

but don't give me all of your paperwork in a pink folder

and expect me to walk down the road with it.

Livid.

Some people...

If the folder was red that would have been fine.

Because, jokes aside, I'm fuming.

I've got an expensive problem to deal with here.

Almost £3,000 handed over to Travelsphere,

no holiday in return, and no apology.

They blame a natural disaster beyond their control,

and following Foreign Office advice for their actions.

However you look at it, the Greer's have had no holiday,

and are still thousands of pounds out of pocket.

Jill and Mike have had very little luck with Travelsphere so far,

so, what I've done is written up a nice, but firm e-mail,

sent it off on their behalf.

Here's hoping for a quick resolve.

Back in the office, I browse my inbox

and very quickly discover Jill and Mike aren't alone in their plight.

There are other travel related stories awaiting investigation as well,

but these aren't all e-mails about Travelsphere.

We've had complaints about three different travel companies

whose name all, coincidently start with T, Thomas Cook, Thomson,

and Travelsphere.

And it seems when customers have tried to sort out the problems themselves

the reply also started with a T, tough.

They failed to give us the weeks holiday that we expected anyway,

and then, just to cancel right at the last minute,

um, I was angry.

Britain, home to over 62 million consumers.

But how much do you know about your consumer rights

when buying goods and services? What you do when things go wrong?

If you don't know, you need to get to know.

You could be saving yourselves a lot of time, stress, and money.

My research team have hit the streets

to find out how much you, the general public,

know about consumer law.

First question, tech trouble.

"You buy a new laptop from a high-street store,

"but after three months the hinge snaps off.

"You stick it back on, but a few weeks later, it breaks again,

"are you entitled to a replacement from the store?"

If it's within 28 days then you'd be entitled to a replacement.

After three months, I'd say yes.

-Yeah, I think you are.

-Pretty much, yeah.

No, no, no. Three incorrect answers.

Never attempt to fix faulty goods yourself,

as your protection under the Sale of Goods Act will be invalidated.

Leave the broken item well alone,

and return it to the shop you bought it from.

That's not right.

Well, that's the law of the land, I'm afraid.

Second question, frozen out.

"You buy a new fridge freezer from a department store,

"but due to a family emergency you miss the arranged delivery date,

"can you rearrange a free delivery?"

Um, I, personally, would say no.

I don't know, I think that they would rearrange it,

but they would charge you.

-The extra cost.

-I don't think you would get a free delivery.

I would say no in that case, because you've already arranged it,

and they showed up correctly, and you weren't there, back it up.

That's better, three correct answers this time,

I'm afraid that, even in emergency,

if you miss the delivery date arranged,

the company are within their rights to leave the package on your doorstep,

they may even charge you to take the item back to the warehouse.

That's what I thought, OK.

And well thought, sir.

Last question, off your bike.

"You purchase a bike from an online store

"but when it arrives you don't like the frame's colour,

"can you send it back unused and still get a full refund?"

Uh, no.

I don't think you would get a full refund.

Just cos you don't like the colour, when you chose it in the first place.

Yes, if it's unused.

-If it's unused, I imagine so, yes.

-Definitely.

Correct, but they were the only ones.

You can get your money back,

but you may still have to pay for postage and packaging.

The distance selling regulations allow customers who buy online

a seven-day cooling off period,

starting the day after the goods are delivered,

you don't have the same rights if you buy the item in a shop.

Oh, interesting.

Oh, yes, I find consumer law pretty interesting too,

especially when knowing your rights can save hassle, embarrassment,

and of course, money.

Earlier on, I met Jill Greer and her partner, Mike, from Sheerness,

who booked a dream holiday to Thailand

with online travel company Travelsphere,

but the events that followed were more like a nightmare.

Devastating floods hit Thailand

and Jill and Mike didn't feel it was safe to travel,

so they cancelled their holiday.

Thousands of people were trying to get out of Bangkok at the time

as our date of departure approached.

When Jill and Mike cancelled, their insurance company wouldn't pay out

because the Foreign Office hadn't issued a warning.

And, for the same reason, Travelsphere wouldn't let them make alternative arrangements.

They just wouldn't listen,

they said the tour was going to go ahead regardless

until they had any notification from the Foreign Office.

But 24 hours later, the day they were due to land in Thailand,

the Foreign Office did stop people going.

So, the couple were right to worry,

but this meant nothing to Travelsphere,

who said the events were not their fault,

and treated the case as a simple cancellation.

I've already sent Travelsphere an e-mail outlining Jill and Mike's plight,

in the hope of claiming some of their money back.

The floods in Thailand were outside the control of the holiday company and the customer,

and in this case, it was Jill and Mike who chose to cancel the agreement.

But floods are not the only kind of disaster

that can put an end to holiday dreams.

Sadly, Jill and Mike are not alone

because my inbox is full to the brim

with people complaining about holiday companies

making you liable for natural disasters.

Kelly Rose and Lee Gale from Manchester

booked a honeymoon in St Lucia with Thomas Cook.

But disaster struck when a hurricane hit the island.

It was November 2010 that the couple were due to fly

out for their £5,000 honeymoon.

But the gale force winds of Hurricane Tomas

meant the trip didn't take off as planned.

After being left at the airport for 12 hours with no information,

Thomas Cook told the couple they were unable to fly to their destination.

For two days, they were stuck in an airport hotel,

and were then flown to Barbados instead,

as that was unaffected by the weather.

Not ideal, but a good compromise.

Unfortunately, Thomas Cook booked the Gale's into a hotel that was already fully booked.

So, they then put them into a bed-and-breakfast.

Trouble is, the Gale's had paid for all-inclusive,

so, they were pretty relieved when St Lucia got the all clear,

and they were off to the airport

to be able to continue their honeymoon as planned.

Zip-a-dee-doo-dah.

But they weren't booked on the flight,

so, they had to wait another day.

The couple did eventually make it to St Lucia

but it is four days after they were due.

So, that's the start of a honeymoon ruined.

Out-of-pocket expenses totalling £300,

and despite Kelly Rose and Lee attempting to claw some of this back,

Thomas Cook have quoted, "circumstances beyond their control"

as the reason they won't offer reimbursement or any compensation.

Right, so, that's another holiday company washing their hands of a situation

and claiming events are not their fault.

Well, it's not the fault of the customer either.

Time to get the phone, I think.

Right, Thomas Cook, first call, let's see how I get on.

It's at this point I never really know

whether things are going to be good or bad.

'I get through to the press office

'and explain the case of Kelly Rose and Lee Gale.'

It's a bit of a bad start to honeymoon, isn't it?

They would like something done about it.

Now, from the 7th of November onwards,

once they eventually got to St Lucia,

the rest of the honeymoon they had.

It's just the first four days that was an absolute disaster for them.

'Natural disaster, more like.'

Speak to you soon, bye bye.

Well, she sounded quite nice,

she had one of those voices were I didn't want to be too firm and rude.

But I mustn't let that distract me from sorting out this problem.

'With that ball rolling,

'who is next on the holiday horror came disaster list?

'Well, it turns out it isn't always mother nature you should be worrying about,

'but, sometimes, your fellow man.'

Carmen and Bob Lowe from Somerset booked a two-week holiday to Egypt

with Thomson, departing on 26 January 2011.

They would spend their first week cruising the River Nile,

stopping off at various historical sites along the way,

and their second week relaxing at a five-star hotel in Luxor.

The total package that we bought from Thomson was £1595.

Unfortunately, just days before they were due to fly out,

civil unrest erupted in Egypt.

We heard about the problems about a week before

we were due to go to Egypt.

And then two days, I think it was, before we were due,

we actually went in to the travel agent

and asked was safe enough to go.

They said yes, the advice from the Foreign Office was fine,

there was no problems.

Everything was going to be OK, so, off we went.

Just like Jill and Mike,

Carmen and Bob had heard about the troubles on the horizon,

but were told that it was safe to travel.

In the news, you're still picking up unrest, gun shots,

people getting hurt, riots, that type of thing.

Their fears were confirmed as soon as they arrived

at their destination.

When we arrived on board the boat and they had a meeting,

and the Thomson rep then explained that because of the situation,

that we weren't going to be allowed off the boat at all.

Carmen, Bob, and all the other passengers were held on the boat

for safety reasons,

and they quickly realised this would not be the holiday they hoped for.

I think for the first three days we just stayed moored up at Luxor.

When we did actually start the cruising,

and we arrived at Edfu everybody was cleared off of the top deck

to the lower decks, because there was gunfire,

people were seen running around the streets with guns in their hands, shooting.

A few days into their holiday,

the UK Foreign Office advice was changed,

stating it was unsafe for Brits to travel to Egypt.

We found out the day before our seven-day cruise finished

that we were being repatriated home.

A whole week before they were due.

They'd failed to give us a weeks holiday that we expected anyway,

and then just cancel right at the last minute, um, I was angry.

Angry and very disappointed, but more angry.

On their return, Bob and Carmen duly wrote to Thomson to complain,

and after two weeks were offered £277

as reimbursement for their lost week of accommodation.

The Thomson offer they made to us was very poor,

and that, to me, is not a holiday,

that's not a seven-day holiday in a five-star hotel.

Bob and Carmen suffered a disrupted first week,

a non-existent second week, and poor customer service,

with Thomson saying the unrest was out of their control.

And once again, the situation could have been prevented

if the agent had used their own initiative,

and not relied on Foreign Office advice.

A £277 refund adds insult to injury, as far as I'm concerned.

Time to get on the blower again, I think.

It's Dominic Littlewood calling from the BBC here,

just put you briefly in the picture there,

they had a cruise, and it was a Nile cruise,

it was basically, by the sounds of it, it is a disaster.

'I've now been referred to someone higher up the chain,

'my aim is to get Carmen and Bob's accommodation refund increased.'

So, are you telling me that hotel, for a week's booking, is only £277?

'I've done my own research,

'and their pricing seems to be way off the mark.'

The cheapest room at the moment, for that time of year, is £575.35.

Not 277.

'I'm told that Thomson's pricing is complex,

'and they based the refund

'on the rates they've been charged for the hotel,

'not what the customer would pay, which doesn't seem fair to me.'

So, what you're saying is, if you only paid £277 for that hotel,

you return them exactly what it's cost you,

you still kept your end of the profit on that,

which sounds, to me, a bit odd.

'The PR manager tells me

'that the Lowe's holiday was riddled with disaster

'because of the, "extenuating circumstances."

'In other words, we're back to a situation out of the agents control.

'Now, there's a surprise.'

If it's something we can resolve very quickly,

and there's no issues, then, fine,

we'll just make sure that they're happy, you're happy, we're happy.

Bye bye.

She said to me, quite fairly, she goes, what are your questions,

what do you want to know, let me know, and I'll try to answer them.

And I said, well, actually,

that all depends on how you are going to react to this.

So, let's see what her response is,

which will probably come in tomorrow.

Now, in every case I'm working on,

travel companies have cited the Foreign Office

as an important player in deciding their legal obligation

to their customers.

But what makes a place too dangerous to travel to?

And what's the relationship between the Foreign Office

and the travel companies?

We set up an interview with a representative from the Foreign Office to try and get answers.

First of all, I'm interested in why this government department

advises on our holidays.

The Foreign Office gives out travel advice

because we want to make sure that British nationals,

when they're travelling, have a trouble-free trip,

if we can help them do that.

So, we try to give out advice that's accurate and well considered,

and covers all the key topics

that can help them make sure they have a trouble-free trip.

Customers can see on the news that trouble is happening abroad,

so, where do the Foreign Office get their information from?

When we want to look at what's happening overseas,

we've got a wide network of our own staff

who monitor what's happening in each individual country.

We have, actually, over two thirds of our staff locally engaged,

which means they're recruited from the country they're working in,

they really know what's happening in that country,

and they know all the local connections.

So, when they do issue advice, is it for holidaymakers, or travel agents?

We know that the travel industry and the insurance industry use

our advice is a bit of a benchmark to help them make their own decisions,

so, we do have a regular dialogue with them about travel advice issues,

and we do, obviously, want to avoid unnecessarily costing them money.

However, as I said before,

our primary concern is for the safety of British nationals,

so, if we are in disagreement with them about a particular decision,

it will always be the safety issues that come first for us.

OK, so, the Foreign Office is looking out for us.

But, also have a duty to look out for the British travel industry,

as their warnings can cost the sector millions.

I'm sure travel agents are grateful for this consideration,

but even when we remove the Foreign Office from the equation,

most holiday companies are still protected

by the terms and conditions in their own contracts.

On close inspection of the booking conditions of Travelsphere,

Thomas Cook, and Thomson, they all have a get out clause

related to situations beyond their control.

Natural disasters and civil disturbances

are among the long list of occurrences

that allow them to refuse responsibility for a ruined holiday.

With this discovery,

it's time to check in again regarding all three of my cases.

Travelsphere have e-mailed me back

regarding Jill and Mike's flood related cancellation,

saying, "they are disappointed to see an unresolved complaint,"

"and that they will be back in touch soon."

Thomas Cook are next on my hit list,

I want to see if anything has progressed

regarding Kelly Rose and Lee Gale's hurricane fraught honeymoon in St Lucia.

Now, obviously, we brought this up last week, is there anything that's happened yet, any news yet?

When you say customer relations, do you go back to Nick?

'It feels like I'm being given the run-around.'

So, basically, every time I speak to you,

you have to go back to them, but they won't deal with me.

'They don't have any answers yet,

'so, I leave Thomas Cook going round the houses

'to investigate the case and move on to Thomson.

'Now, since the last time I spoke to them,

'they sent me an e-mail stating they are willing to increase the offer

'to Carmen and Bob Lowe from £277

'to £400, and I'm still not impressed.

I've got to be honest, I wasn't expecting that,

I thought you were going to say something along the lines of you were going to refund them fully.

The week they had on their cruise ship had huge amounts of disruption,

and gunshots fired, etc etc, the second week they didn't get.

How can you offer only 25 percent?

I'm astounded that they think £400 is fair and acceptable.

I've got to be honest, if that was your parents, would you be happy?

If that was your mum and dad,

and that's what the travel agents offered, what would you say?

Be honest with me.

'I just want Thomson to do the right thing,

'the way I see it, at least 50 percent of the Lowe's holiday was disrupted,

'and that could have been prevented.'

Why didn't you just say to them right, get the airport,

and we'll take you somewhere else, where there's no civil unrest,

you know, let's really look after our customers.

'Once again, I'm fed that same old chestnut,

'she tells me, "it was beyond their control."'

Not saying for one second that civil unrest is your problem,

I know that it's not your fault, and that it's not your issue,

but looking after your customers is.

Right, this is what I'd like to suggest to you.

It would be nice to tie this up in a nice, good, suitable way,

in which you're happy, we're happy and they're happy.

Now, £400, I can guarantee, they're not happy and I'm not happy.

Well, I've got to say, very nice lady to talk to,

but I thought what she offered wasn't very nice.

And in a very polite way, I'd like to think that I was polite,

I told her so, and I said look, chew it over, over the weekend,

go back to your bosses and tell them, Dom's not happy, he wants more. Best keep my fingers crossed.

I don't feel that confident.

Wouldn't we all like to know

what goes on inside the mind of dodgy traders?

You know, get a little insight into how they all work.

Well, step forward today's whistleblower,

watch this, because it's going to be very interesting.

Today, we're getting to the root of the problems

associated with landscape gardening.

We don't all have green fingers, so, we rely on skilled tradesmen

to turn our gardens into heavenly havens for us to enjoy.

But, there are hellish workmen out there,

who are more likely to cause damage, waste time,

and disarrange your flowers, and they still expect to be paid.

I've found an insider who has worked in the landscape gardening industry for nearly 40 years.

Boy, oh, boy, he is irritated by rogue companies and individuals who set up shop,

tarnishing the good guys in the game.

We've protected his identity

to provide a safe environment for his expose.

Landscaping by its very nature is quite a significant investment,

you're building a dream for somebody, you're creating a dream.

People who act irresponsibly

and bring the industry into bad repute

are the scourge of our industry.

So, how do these dodgy gardeners get away with it?

It's an unregulated profession, you do not need any license to trade,

you can get your tools out of your garden shed and call yourself a landscape gardener.

And our insider has seen evidence of plenty of landscaping horror stories.

There's bad landscapers who are actually just out to rogue people,

and rip people off, that is their pure intention.

And there's other landscapers who believe that they are more capable of technically of something

that they clearly aren't. If you take block paving as a classic thing,

it's a fantastic material, on average, a block paved drive and concrete block

would probably be between £3,000 and £5,000.

And, you know, most cowboy landscapers would basically skimp on the subverse.

Use too much sand underneath to pack it out,

initially, everything is fine, the water goes through,

six months time it starts to separate, holds water,

and it's a disaster. So, basically you've got no choice but to strip it completely

and start again. If we're talking about, kind of, bad practice,

we've seen walls that have blown over and collapsed onto cars,

that could have been collapsed onto people or children walking by.

Worst case scenario is that, you know, it could be life-threatening.

They are fundamental differences between the good guys and the bad ones.

I think rogue gardeners who basically rip people off just want a quick fix.

It's like baking a cake and spending all the time on the icing

without the preparation.

And here's my insider's top tips

to prevent being hung out to dry over your lawn.

Research the contractor and check their references.

Spend time to evaluate those people, go to their offices,

go to physically look at their work.

Do not assume that the brochure that they show is their work,

it may have been plagiarised from somebody else.

Ensure your paying the right price for the job.

Make sure you get multiple quotations.

Give small amounts of deposits,

or agree a payment schedule with the contractor,

and make sure you hold enough money back at the end until you're happy.

Get written confirmation of your spoken agreement.

Make sure that anything verbal is backed up in writing.

Ask for a specification.

Ask for a timeline. Ask for how long it's going to be

and how many people you're going to need on that.

If you have any problems, communicate in an honest way.

Go by your instincts.

If you think things are not quite right from day one,

then speak about it. Be very open and open dialogue straight away.

And there you have it.

An insider's tips to stop you being led up the garden path

by a landscape gardener.

Here's hoping now you won't get done.

I'm tackling three tour operators - Travelsphere,

Thomson and Thomas Cook, for three sets of holidaymakers

who have been financially affected

by natural disasters or civil unrest.

The tour operators are blaming situations beyond their control

as the reason they kept hold of the customer's money.

When it comes to events outside of our control,

travel companies think they're protected

by their terms and conditions. Bear in mind that is not the law.

Their Ts & Cs have been written up by their solicitors

and put on the back of their contracts.

If you think they're unfair, you can legally challenge them.

The moral versus legal argument with holidays is a hefty one.

So, I think I need some answers from an expert in that industry.

I've arranged to meet travel lawyer Frank Brehany.

When disaster strikes, let's talk about initially

something like civil unrest,

where does the consumer stand when something like that happens?

I think the problem is that, for most consumers they face the problems

that normal booking conditions apply, or the tour operator refers

to their terms and conditions, which say, "it's not our problem."

This is a sudden event that we have no control over.

You shouldn't really just rely on the travel company.

Before you go to make that booking, go and carry out your own research.

Find out what's going on in the destination.

What's the politics like? What's the weather like?

That's why you go to a travel agents.

I don't disagree with you. The reason we go to a travel agent

is they're apparently the people with the skill and expertise.

Yet, when it comes to the crunch, they hide behind another body.

And, as I discovered, that body

is the Foreign and Commonwealth Office - otherwise known as the FCO.

The big problem here, of course, is the travel companies,

once they've sent you out there and the FCO hadn't said not to,

are all falling back on these Ts & Cs

and the FCO's guidance.

People aren't getting what they expect.

They're not getting compensation, holidays changed, destinations.

They're told, "Still go out there." They're banging their heads against a wall.

The one, most important trump card that the consumer had,

whether it was the Egyptian crisis, or floods, or whatever it is,

is the fact that changes are then made to the holiday contract.

Significant changes. It's the rights under the package travel regulations

that the consumer can use as a big flag

to fly against that particular trump card.

Clauses in the package travel regulations state

that if a significant proportion of the services contracted for

are not provided, the organiser should make

alternative arrangements at no extra cost to the consumer

and compensate where necessary.

While travel companies argue they're protected

by events being unforeseeable or beyond their control,

it seems to me that the Egyptian crisis

and Thailand floods could have been foreseen

by the travel agents, which would be a pretty strong argument in court.

But I still have one last burning question for Frank.

Can you explain the triangle between the Foreign & Commonwealth Office,

-the travel providers and their insurance companies?

-Yeah.

I think what's going on, Dom, is the Foreign Office

are trying to balance the promotion of British interests and opportunities

along with the rights of citizens and the duty of care to citizens.

Travel companies tend to work with the Foreign Office.

In times of crisis, they tend to hide behind the Foreign Office.

I think that's where the problem exists for holidaymakers.

Insurance companies tend to treat this

as a bit of an arm's length problem -

leaving it to both of the other two parties -

they're not going to get involved in the muddle.

The issue here really is

that there should really be more consumer representation,

I think, in the Foreign Office Travel Advisory Group.

At the moment, I'm not really sure there is consumer representation

in how these advisories are put together.

The Foreign Office only issue warnings in extreme situations.

As they've told us, consumers are not their only consideration.

There's also the travel industry to consider as well.

We do have a regular dialogue with them about travel advice issues.

We do obviously want to avoid unnecessarily costing them money.

What's clear is that you'd need to do your own research

about your destination and not rely on any other party.

For your own protection, you should know what your rights are before you travel.

So, after my numerous phone calls and e-mails,

some outcomes are definitely looking more positive than others.

There's good news from Travelsphere and also from Thomas Cook,

who have unexpectedly contacted Kelly Rose and Lee Gale,

with an offer of £900 as compensation for the disruption

to their honeymoon in St Lucia and they've accepted the offer.

This is hitting me like a hurricane.

Thomas Cook said:

Next up... Thomson.

After my persistent phone calls and e-mails asking them

to up their offer for the Lows' disrupted holiday in Egypt,

they've come back to me with a refusal - sticking at £400.

I'm pretty disappointed. Let's see what Bob and Carmen have to say.

It's still an industry fault,

whereby the provider of such holidays really have nothing to do.

It's not their fault. It's outside of our terms and conditions.

There you go.

The industry has got to think of it from the paying customer's perspective -

not only from their own - and look after themselves.

In their statement to us, Thomson said:

Well done, Dom, for getting Thomsons to agree

they would actually increase the compensation.

Yeah.

At least that's a little bit closer to the point of what you'd think

you would have paid for the accommodation.

Finally, my last result comes from Jill and Mike

and their troubles with Travelsphere.

Hello, good to see you again. Yes, come in.

-I've some really good news for you.

-I can't wait.

The reason I'm here is to find out how we're getting on.

The circumstances are a bit unusual.

Normally, I end up contacting customers

and various different organisations,

and then starting to speak to the companies concerned -

e-mailing, phone calling. Often arguing, falling out with them.

Eventually I try to get a resolution and I come to deliver the good news.

In your circumstances, it's slightly different.

Within a couple of days of sending an e-mail to Travelsphere,

-they contacted you.

-That's correct.

-Now you'll be delivering the news to me.

-We are.

-Would you like to fire away, Jill?

Yes, I will read the letter to you.

"Due to exceptional circumstances,

"and the cooperation of some of the suppliers of the component parts of your holiday,

"we are able to make the enclosed refund

"in the total sum of £2,375.

"The only deductions have been for those supply costs

"we have been unable to recover".

So, in addition to the money already received for optional excursions,

Jill and Mike have got almost 90% of their money back.

After the letters you've been sending, Mike,

the phone calls you've both been making,

and all the problems you've had about missing your holiday,

how did you feel when you came home and that was on the doormat?

I opened the letter and the cheque fell out.

-I called Jill immediately.

-I couldn't believe it.

I had to read the letter twice to understand it. It's incredible.

Something we have got to agree with in that statement

is the uniqueness of this problem.

It is something out of everybody's hands.

You had this huge flooding and no-one was to blame for that.

How did you feel about...?

Let's talk about the terms and conditions,

when you looked at those in circumstances like this?

Obviously I did check them

but it's an eight page booklet they sent me of terms and conditions.

All my communications from then on,

I said that I accepted they'd stayed within their terms and conditions,

but I made the point that these were exceptional circumstances

and we knew, as was mentioned in the letter,

that they could get some of the money back.

Travelsphere told us:

I've got to say, sorting that problem out

really came as a bit of a surprise to me

because of the speed at which it resolved.

It does show you that sometimes all you need is tenacity

and, sooner or later, that final push sorts things out.

Perfect! Right, coffee shop.

So, when it comes to natural disasters

and other situations out of anyone's control,

travel companies are often covered by their terms and conditions.

Ultimately, I think the travel industry should stop hiding behind

other bodies and their own contracts and use their common sense.

All food for thought, next time you plan your dream holiday

to prevent it becoming a nightmare.

I just want to say to Dom, thank you so very much.

We never expect such a great result and so quickly

after him sort of contacting Travelsphere.

-Yes.

-We're very pleased.

-We're very pleased indeed.

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