Grrr! Holiday let oven!

No I don't agree Palliser. Ok maybe they can manage without, but it is not acceptable to have an unusable oven in holiday self catering accommodation. And why would it upset sister? Just say you had a lovely time, cottage great etc but unfortunately oven not up to standard. I have no sympathy for owner. To suggest guesswork is not good enough!!!

Well, if other half doesn't want to complain you'll just have to eat out.

You are actually considering upsetting sister and husband and cottage owner because you couldn't cook a pizza? You are on holiday. Pour a large glass of wine and order take out/eat bread and cheese or something else.

Whoever is responsible for the letting is at fault here. If they are not prepared to get the oven in proper working order they should give details of the state of the oven in the letting details: a proper working oven will be important to some people but not others. If you put a review mentioning the problem with the oven then it will help others when deciding whether or not to rent it. If they have a guest book mention it in that as well.

We have a holiday caravan in Torbay, which we let out. We have to have a gas safety check and the electric appliances pac checked, we have to display our safety certificates for anyone to see.
I would definitely complain, that is really not up to standard, I would also try and get a partial refund

When one has paid hundreds for a cottage then everything ought to be spot on. It is not good enough to have to guess the temperature of an oven . Do something about it pronto.

They have already admitted there is a problem by leaving the note about guesswork, so I would contact them and say this is not acceptable, needs attention and you are hopeless at guessing games and wouldn't feel able to recommend them to friends. Mind you Cornwall high season they probably wouldn't be bothered. Hope you enjoy the rest of your holiday.

The owner/letting agent are obviously aware of the state of the cooker as they have told you to use “guesswork”. This is unacceptable, and not the same as coming across a deficiency or fault that may not have been obvious. In this case I would complain.

We don’t cater for ourselves on holiday, apart from breakfast & hot drinks, but many do, and you should be able to use any appliance listed as provided with ease and safety.

Niobe Agree with you completely - I'd be sending off that irate email too. (We don't complain enough!)

Regarding Trip Advisor a word of caution here. This is a site that everybody seems to like and trust. But my family stayed at an hotel in Wales a few years ago. It was awful!

(And we noticed, while we were there, that the owner was constantly on the computer, on the Trip Advisor site - in fact, we joked about it.)

When we got back home three of us (it was three families) posted our disappointment on the site, and one by one, our bad reviews were taken down. Just disappeared! My daughter contacted Trip Advisor to ask why. No response. She ended up writing a real paper-and-envelope letter (to USA). No reply.

Is Trip Advisor a truly unbiased site? Or is there something funny going on here? Makes you wonder ...?

Holiday cottages can be a real home from home if you are careful and lucky, but they can be a nightmare. The worst we had was a quaint Lochside cottage in Scotland named the Ghillies Cottage, it was a 2 up 2 down hovel and I swear the Ghillie had died the week before.
Added to that free milk was included, strangely it didn't keep, we later found out the cow had mastitis!. We did tough it out for a week, enjoyed the challenge and had a good laugh about it afterwards.

I'd email the person who let the cottage to you but I don't know if I'd send a "stiff" email. Then I'd get on with enjoying my holiday.

We were on holiday last week in rented accommodation and realised the dish washer did not work. I spoke to the house keeper, with whom I had built up a good rapport, but when she havered I said firmly with a smile that it had to be fixed because we had caterers coming in one evening for a special meal, if not...... The repair man turned up the same day and fixed it. Wish he could have replaced the b****y AGA. It was baking hot last week and the kitchen was like a sauna because this wretched appliance, the only cooker, was pumping out heat all the time.

Unfortunately my experience of holiday cottages in England have often been that owners and agents have a very, um, shall we say relaxed view of what is good enough. E.g. we booked a cottage where the sea view pic shown on the website must have been taken standing on a chair with arms aloft (that is, there was no sea view), burnt-on pots and pans, uncomfortable beds; the list is long. And these were all pricey holidays.

I'd complain, but I don't think that it's necessary to justify the complaint by citing H&S. Expecting to find a fully working oven in an expensive cottage should be a basic requirement.

(Sykes don't care BTW, you'll get a stock reply).

Witzend -send that email pronto or contact owner directly if you have the details.
Similar thing happening us recently in Whitby but luckily we had planned to eat out or get a takeaway most days. The owner was very helpful when I contacted her but they don't always give their contact details. We booked through Sykes Cottages which we have always found to be very good. Hope you enjoy your stay.

Wizend Do holiday lets have to have safety certifcates issued every year to comply with regulations.?

'Use guesswork'? Definitely not on. Do get that email sent right away. They must not get away with that shoddy treatment.

The oven is so old the numbers have worn off the knobs ?
The property is oviously not maintained to a decent standard, if you don't complain they will think it is fine to allow guests to struggle.

Maybe the owners do not know how difficult it is to use as past visitors were like your husband. I would contact them now as they may be able to help.

You are certainly not being unreasonable Witzend

As you said you have a right to expect appliances to be working properly without any hassle.

I would have a word with the holiday letting agent.

Having said that, as you are on holiday, shouldn't you really be eating out each evening otherwise it won't be a proper holiday for you will it?

Having a break from the endless planning and cooking meals is the main appeal of being on holiday for me!

* oven not over (damn auto correct lol)

I don't know how long you are there for but do you really want to waste time waiting for over repairs being done!

I would email - tell them its not working - then stop fretting - use whatever is available (microwave, grill, toaster etc)

We often have to 'improvise' but all part of the fun of being away to us!

P.S. don't mean you don't have to complain about it, only don't let it spoil your holiday

We are staying in a lovely cottage for two in Yorkshire. Everything works (even the Wi-Fi) but the washing machine seems to go through it’s cycle in 30 minutes. However, as our clothes just need refreshing this doesn’t really matter. Last year the kitchen was so small that there wasn’t actually a worktop where you could prepare food! Just a hob, draining board and sink in a row.

I wonder why they haven't just replaced the switch so you can see the temperatures etc.

Holiday cottages can be a minefield.
I had to call the owners twice of the one we stayed in. First we couldn't get the water hot despite solar panels and hot weather. The owners talked us through the water. I did feel stupid. Then we found a wasp nest just outside the bedroom window.
Neither of these spoiled our holiday once we'd blocked where the wasps were getting in.
I certainly don't think you are BU. You have to be safe and comfortable.

OH is the same as yours. He cannot bear to complain. He'd be mortified.

I'm just boggled at the thought that you have a cottage in Cornwall that presumably sleeps four people during high season and the cost is only in the hundreds of pounds, not thousands!