I have booked a Caribbean cruise for the end of the month and have now been told that four of the stops that the ship will make have been changed. I’m not happy as I have already visited the replacement stops on a previous cruise. What are my rights?
V.T., by email
Dean Dunham replies: If you booked the cruise and travel arrangements together, it is likely that this will be a package holiday, the relevance being that you will be protected under a law called the Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements 2008 (more commonly referred to as the Package Travel Regulations).
Under the Package Travel Regulations, you are entitled to expect that the holiday you booked and paid for matches the description given to you when you bought it – or, as the saying goes, ‘it does what it says on the tin’.
The Package Travel Regulations also state that if any essential part of your package holiday is changed significantly, except the price, you can cancel without paying termination fees.
A change of stops on a cruise could be significant in terms of claiming money back
Here the change of the stops could be construed as being significant, especially as you have already been to the replacement locations.
This means you could either seek to cancel the holiday and get a full refund or ask for a price reduction, in recognition of the fact that your enjoyment of the holiday will clearly be affected by the changes.
If you did not book a package holiday, you will still have the same rights but rather than using the Package Travel Regulations as the authority to assert these rights you will simply claim that there has been a breach of contract. The best way to know exactly what your options are when you book any cruise is to read the small print.
It will be available in your cruise contract, and though it can be tedious to go through, the contract will outline what your rights are.
It will also outline the conditions in which you are owed a refund by your cruise line in the event of changes to the voyage you have booked.
Often cruises change the itinerary while at sea due to weather conditions – as the weather is never guaranteed this is not something you can claim against.
A Section 75 allows you to claim against your credit card provider if you have issues with a purchase made using a credit card
I made a Section 75 claim on my late father’s credit card in relation to a purchase he made two years ago. But the card provider has rejected this as ‘the primary cardholder will not benefit from the claim’. What can I do?
Terry E., Plymouth
Dean Dunham replies: The card provider is wrong. To make a successful Section 75 claim, you must satisfy three key elements.
First, the goods or services you purchased must have been sold for more than £100. Secondly, you must have paid the trader or the person or entity that sold you the goods or provided the services and paid them direct – unfortunately if you pay via the likes of PayPal, Section 75 cannot be used as you will have paid PayPal and it will then have paid the trader.
Thirdly, you as the main card holder must have benefited from the purchase of the goods or services.
That means if you have a secondary card holder on your account, in most circumstances purchases they make on their secondary card will not be covered by Section 75 as they have benefited from the purchase and not you as main card holder.
These important elements must be satisfied ‘at the point of purchase’ and this is why the card provider here is wrong.
When your late father made his purchase two years ago, he did satisfy all the necessary elements.
The Consumer Credit Act (the relevant law here) does not state that the cardholder must benefit from the Section 75 ‘claim’ nor does it say that the credit card account still needs to be open when a Section 75 claim is made.
If after you have explained this to the card provider and it still rejects your claim, lodge a claim with the Financial Ombudsman Service at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk
SAVE MONEY, MAKE MONEY
Investing boost
Investing boost
5.09% on cash for Isa investors
5.05% one-year fix
5.05% one-year fix
Prosper boost on Al Rayan
Free share offer
Free share offer
No account fee and free share dealing
4.84% cash Isa
4.84% cash Isa
Flexible Isa that now accepts transfers
Dealing fee refund
Dealing fee refund
Get £200 back in trading fees
Affiliate links: If you take out a product This is Money may earn a commission. These deals are chosen by our editorial team, as we think they are worth highlighting. This does not affect our editorial independence.
