Arbitration - get your holiday compensation
Arbitration is a quick, low-cost alternative to court
action. With arbitration a third party (the arbitrator)
hears both sides of a dispute and makes a decision to resolve the
issue. All arbitrators are impartial and their decision is legally
binding on both sides, so you won't be able to go to court if
you're unhappy with the decision.
To reach the arbitration stage you must have followed all
previous steps as outlined on the previous page. Complaints about
members of the ABTA use the Arbitration Scheme for the Travel
Industry (ASTI), details of how to make an application to them can
be found at
www.idrs.ltd.uk/ABTA/home or by phoning
020 7520 3809.
More information about AITO members' arbitration stage can be
found at
www.aito.co.uk/corporate_DisputeSettlementService.
The arbitration stage is completely document-based, so you don't
need to go to any hearings. But this also means that you have to be
confident in getting your case across in writing.
How to make a strong claim for holiday
compensation at the arbitration stage
There are many elements which the arbitrator will consider when
reviewing your claim.
For a claim to be considered you must prove that the
terms of the holiday contract have been broken by the tour
operator. These terms are known as express or implied terms. An
express term, for example, is where the brochure promises
full-board or water skiing. An implied term is one not spelt out in
the contract, for example the holiday should be of a reasonable
standard considering the price you paid.
To qualify for compensation you must then prove that
your holiday suffered as a direct result of a breach of the holiday
contract.
Compensation claims can have three components, although your
complaint may not fall into every category:
a) Loss of value: the difference between the value
of the holiday you paid for and the one you actually got.
b) Out-of-pocket expenses: refund of any
reasonable expenses you incurred as a result of the breach of
contract.
c) Loss of enjoyment: something to compensate for
the disappointment and distress caused by things going wrong.
If your complaint relates to the quality of goods or services it
is your legal duty to have carried out all
reasonable steps to minimise the disruption to your holiday, i.e.
complaining as early as possible as you could have.
If you didn't give the tour operator a chance to put things
right there and then, and just waited until you get got home to
complain, then your claim is unlikely to succeed.
Where loss of enjoyment forms part of the claim it is difficult
for compensation levels to be calculated. Again, your case will be
looked upon more kindly if you took reasonable steps to
mitigate the disruption while you were on holiday and
acted reasonably when faced with problems.
You must work out the amount that represents the
proportion of the holiday that was disrupted or not up to
standard. If, for example, you spent two days sorting out
a problem (e.g. an unsatisfactory room) it may be appropriate to
base a claim for compensation on the proportion of the
accommodation part of the holiday which was lost.
As a guide to working out the cost of accommodation, first
subtract the cost of the air transport from the total holiday cost
(usually around 50%-60%). Then divide what's left by the number of
days you were on holiday. That will give you a rough figure for the
daily amount paid for the accommodation.
Unfortunately it is rare to get the whole cost of the holiday
back. Only if the holiday was a complete disaster from start to
finish or if your disappointment and expenses were substantial can
you expect a full refund or more.
Cost to you for the arbitration process: (these costs will
likely be refunded to you in the result of a successful claim.)
|
Amount claimed
|
Fee payable (inc. VAT)
|
|
£1 - £3,000
|
£71.30
|
|
£3,001 - £5,000
|
£96.60
|
|
£5,001 - £10,000
|
£126.50
|
|
£10,001 - £25,000
|
£161.00
|
Claims Financial
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