Credit Card Protection or Not?

That is more than disappointing for you. I was under the impression (false) that if one spent £100 using a credit card one was covered. Why not ring the credit card company?

I would have thought that if you buy something with a credit card and the goods are not as expected, it is not the fault of the card company. Your complaint is with whoever sold you the holiday.

I was also under the impression that if you paid more than £100 by credit card that you where covered for any claims,obviously not.

Just to clarify - I did claim a chargeback (first time ever) though the credit card company. They don't make it easy, they send a form through the post which I completed and returned with photographic evidence to support. They contacted the holiday company and it seems that the link is broken as the booking is made via a company but the contract is with the customer and the owner. So no cover or chargeback. I booked through the company as I assumed that they would inspect the cottages and ensure that they were of a reasonable standard. They told me they rely on the cleaners to point out any faults!!

Not good enough by a million miles , is it Daisymae . Id take to social media- Twitter, Instagram, FaceBook, perhaps Trip Advisor. They will not like negative feedback one bit and may be more inclined to settle .

NanaandGrampy, no its not good enough. Have used them before and you would think that you would get a certain level of protection going through a company. The property had grotty grout, mildew on the shower curtains and a lot more. Plus the lovely builders next door, making access difficult, plus of course the noise. After day 3 we wondered why we were putting up with it when we had a quiet, clean house to go back to! It was NOT cheap.

I'm afraid I just wouldn't let it lie if it was me. I'd be naming and shaming them all over :-) .

Did you take pictures?

I think I would also track down the name of the Managing Director / CEO of the holiday company and email him. All these details are available online if you do a search.

I'm all for complimenting good service etc but I also want what I paid for and it doesn't sound like you got that by a long shot .

Yes, I have photos. After all a picture says 1000 words. I have emailed the company to ask for the name and address of the owner so that I can proceed with a small claims court claim. I didn't really want to go down this route but I don't think they should be allowed to get away with it. I have a lot on my plate at the moment with other things.

The same thing happens if you pay for anything through PayPal, even though the payment is made to PayPal by a charge to your credit card, if anything goes wrong, the credit card company say that their contract is with Pay Pal, not the company you bought from, so your argument is with Pay Pal.

I am not sure how sure in law the agent's disclaimer is. I think the clause about all complaints should go to the owner, may well be questionable and if you queried it and threatened to take them to court, they might offer you more.

Having said that when a retailer, whom I paid direct with my card, failed to supply the goods, I went to the card company and they reimbursed me.

It is just that they only repay on payments where they have a direct relationship with the company owing the money and, if you can step back from your present problem, you should be able to see that this is not an unreasonable demand. It is up to the purchaser to be make sure when making purchases to check whether they are paying an agent who filters the payment to the service supplier or the service supplier themselves.

I never use PayPal for payments of over £100, for just that reason.

I don't know the law on holiday rentals but if you buy a product from a retailer they are responsible if it doesn't work. They cannot refer you to the manufacturer because your contract was with them. I think the company may have found a loophole but does it come under unfair contract terms? Perhaps Trading Standards could advise you.

According to the credit card company as per the original booking conditions 'the hiring contract will be between you the Hirer and the Owner of the property'
This means that 'debtor, creditor and supplier' link has been broken and therefore S75 does not apply.
S75 is the Consumer Credit Act that gives joint liability with a credit provider.
So I guess that means the small claims court.

I think they are just using their get out of jail free card.

I am sorry I think the law is entirely reasonable, legal requirement apart, why should the credit company reimburse you just because you bought a dud product. The bank does not have to reimburse you if you pay by cheque. If you paid by cash you equally cannot expect someone (the government, they printed the notes?) to give you your money back. Be grateful for those times the relationship is direct and you do get repaid.

If you paid a workman to fit a bathroom and he damaged the wash basin, would you expect the wash basin manufacturer to reimburse you for the workman's clumsiness?

Sometimes we just have to expect to deal with our own problems no matter how much hassle it costs us, not just expect a get out of prison free card every time.

People often choose to pay by credit card because it gives an extra level of protection if the cost of the item is over £100, it's part of consumer protection legislation

Daisymae, that is true and it does, but the CC company's relationship is with the person/company you paid the money too, and that person/company is not necessarily the /person/company providing the service, which is what, unfortunately, has happened in your case.

As I said someone using Paypal to buy a product is in the same position as you are. The CC company's contract is with Paypal, not the provider of the goods/services so if the goods do not appear or are shoddy you cannot make a claim on your credit card because the money on your card has gone to Paypal , not the supplier. This is why I always charge products costing over £100 directly to my credit card and never pay for them through Paypal.

Your predicament is unfortunate, but the law is clear.

If a company goes bust then you can claim via the credit card. This is not the case here.good luck with the claim.

I am very surprised by this.

Your contract to rent the cottage was with the holiday letting agents so surely they are responsible for any refund you may be entitled to ?

It would then be up to the agent to take up the matter with the owners.

Apparently in the small print it says that contract is between hirer and the owner. Effectively removing the credit card protection.

My only experience regarding credit card refunds was on two occasions I was charged twice for the same purchase.
The first time was for a flights of over £300 and the second a shower pump I purchased at a cost of £160.
I contacted Tesco my credit card company and I received an immediate refund and they informed me they would deal with the companies involved.

If you have a gripe, uour first point of call is your CC company.
If you've been re-imbursed in part or whole you cannot then claim from the card company.
Likewise, if your card company (Visa or Credit) pay you a refund, you cannot then take court action.

Before going to the expense of taking court action have you tried the booking company's Facebook page (if they have one)? I was having problems with a local company, they messed me around for two weeks, I posted on their Facebook page, got an immediate response and everything sorted.

DD1 had serious issues with ecoli poisoning in a holiday village in Croatia. She has recently found out that companies can remove unfavorable posts from trip advisor, Facebook etc. She has eventually found a group who make it their business to keep posting about their dire experiences trying to keep ahead of these dangerous companies. My GS a very fit and healthy 14 year old lost a stone in weight and a three month old baby almost died and is still very poorly. Very worrying!

If you have an unpaid debt on your credit card will it affect your credit? and will it lose its protection?

If the cottage had not been available the credit card would have reimbursed because you did not receive what you purchased.

But what you have here is a dispute. You believe the cottage was not as you expected, the letting company says it was. At the moment the credit card company has one word against another.

I think you misunderstand the protection that credit card companies offer.