Despite the grey skies and heavy rain, summer is upon us and many take the opportunity to take a well-earned break. But many of you have told us that your holidays have not been quite as hassle-free as you hoped…
That is why today we launched our Stop the Holiday Hassles campaign. We want to help you tackle those problems that may make your holiday unforgettable for all the wrong reasons.
One in seven people who have been on holiday in the last two years have had a problem, equivalent to around 6.2 million people in the UK.
The most common issue was delays or cancellations to flights (30%). Also high among the holiday gripes were long waits to reclaim baggage (25%), accommodation being different to the description (24%) and unhelpful or rude staff (24%). Worryingly, two in 10 travellers (21%) said they once had a holiday that was so bad they felt like they needed another one.
Your holiday gripes
We’re grateful for the comments you’ve shared with us already, which in turn have prompted us to launch this campaign. Bill P told us:
‘I never fly now, but take the train or drive where I can, I refuse to fly simply because the treatment I receive at airports leaves me angry and frustrated.’
And Geoff P told us
‘I had a serious problem at Gatwick Airport and complained. Sadly I never got a satisfactory reply from them, it seemed to be swept under the carpet.’
David Mitchell caught our eye when he said:
‘Biggest bugbear? From arrival at the car park to taking off. Everything else is just dandy.’
But it’s not just airports that are causing issues, Wavechange shared his worrying experience of meet-and-greet parking:
‘I once hired a boat from a small company and they offered to park my car safely for the week. Quite by chance I found my car in a pub car park.’
Stop the Holiday Hassles
With six million of you experiencing an issue with your holiday over the last two years we’ve decided it’s time for action.
We want holidaymakers to be able to quickly resolve any problems that may arise by providing you with the means to take action. Through your stories we’ll also challenge companies to stop the holiday hassles.
Please share your experiences below and sign up to our campaign. We’ll be taking action to tackle shoddy holiday practices so you don’t have to suffer in future. And once we know your most common holiday hassles, we’ll provide you with useful tips and information from our Consumer Rights team to put the power back in your hands.