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OK, here's the preliminary letter that was sent to First Choice on 6th October.
Re : Holiday Booking Reference xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
We write regarding a holiday we booked online with First Choice Holidays on xx/xx/xxxx under the above booking reference. We understand you will be able to access details of this holiday from the booking reference provided.
We were very much in need of this holiday break and were eagerly looking forward to it. We were extremely dissatisfied with many aspects of the holiday and seek financial compensation in respect of our complaints.
Please note that we do not wish to commence a prolonged debate regarding these complaints. We have itemised matters below and conclude with a statement regarding the level of compensation we require in order to prevent further action.
Failure to provide the requested compensation within the period of time specified below will result in this matter being passed into the total care of our Solicitors who will seek a solution to this matter, through the courts if necessary.
1) Flight Check-In and boarding. Despite booking Premier Service we were not allocated seats next to each other. We were in-fact seated behind each other. We were therefore not seated together as we had been advised would be the case by a Member of First Choice staff in a telephone conversation a few days before the start of our holiday.
1.1 Once seated we were eventually offered a small glass of warm, flat fizzy wine and not a sparkling cocktail as per the Premier Service description.
2) Departure. The flight was due to depart from London Gatwick on 1st July at 18.15 hours but departed approximately 15 minutes late.
2.1 Shortly after take off it became obvious that we were circling rather than proceeding on the expected route. Finally, after half an hour of wondering we were notified by the Captain that the aircraft had developed a technical problem and that we would be returning to Gatwick. The Captain also advised that the ground crew would check the problem once we had landed to see if they could get us away on our holiday again. The Captain explained that prior to landing he needed to dump fuel over the English Channel which would take about 2.5 hrs. We were told to remain in our seats with seat belts on. We landed back at Gatwick approx 3 hours later. The only refreshment provided during this period was a small cup of water.
2.2 The Captain announced, after landing, that we might not be able to resume our holiday until the following day. He advised that we would be disembarking the plane, would be escorted to a large lounge area and would be briefed by a First Choice representative. Owing to the nature of our return to Gatwick the plane had not been permitted to dock at a gate. We were told to exit the plane via steps and were advised that we would be taken by bus back to the Terminal. We felt we were not escorted safely from the plane to the buses as there were no ground staff positioned between the plane and the buses which we have since been advised should be the case in these situations.
3) Delay. Once back in the Terminal we were not met by a First Choice Representative, nor were we escorted to a large lounge area as we had been informed by the Captain would be the case.
3.1 As we entered the terminal building we spotted a lady trying to hand out yellow transit passenger labels and obtained one of these labels each. We were then herded, like sheep, by an Employee of Virgin, through the airport terminal and after an incredibly long walk through Immigration arrived at baggage reclaim. Bear in mind that at this point we had no idea what was happening and had been expecting to be escorted to a lounge area where matters would be explained to us by a First Choice Representative.
3.2 We had an incredibly long wait at baggage reclaim for our suitcases, during this period we were handed a photocopied letter advising us that we would not be resuming our holiday flight until the following day and would be staying in an airport hotel (in our case, Gatwick Hilton ) overnight. The First Choice employee, who only made himself known to us upon questioning, was incredibly unhelpful and refused to provide us with contact names or telephone numbers for a First Choice Manager to whom we could direct our complaints. Basically, nothing was properly explained and we were just expected to accept that we were not going on holiday and had to stay at Gatwick. In fact we and other passengers were left to help and try to explain what little we knew to other confused passengers.
3.3. Eventually, after collecting our baggage, we were subjected to a further two incredibly long walks broken with a shuttle journey, through the airport terminals to the hotel escorted by a member of Swissport staff who actually left us alone before reaching the hotel. We eventually worked out how to check in at the Hotel and were provided with a meal at 23:30. During the meal we were advised by Swissport staff that the take-off slot, planned for the following day at 14:15, was not definite and should the new plane arrive late or the re-stocking / refuelling of the plane not happen in time then there might be a further delay. We were therefore left worrying overnight that we might not actually depart on our holiday as had been indicated. We had only booked a weeks holiday so the over-riding thoughts for us, through the night, were whether we would actually depart on our holiday at all and whether it was actually worth going anyway.
4) Gatwick Hotel Problems. We were allocated a room in the bowels of the hotel – another long walk which was certainly not appreciated after our trek through the airport and so late at night.
4.1 The accommodation was not satisfactory as the shower was lukewarm, with low pressure and the hairdryer only blew cold air. The floor from the bedroom to the hallway/bathroom had a small step down which was not noticeable so we kept stubbing our toes on it. All this added to our stress and tension.
5) Departure.
5.1 After a fairly sleepless night, we were advised at breakfast that we had to check in at 11:00. This again meant that we did not receive the privileges of the Premier Service we had paid for which allowed us a 90 min check-in prior to departure. We had to ‘mooch’ about the airport for a further 3 hours.
5.2 Once on board we were told to occupy the same seats as we had been allocated the previous day, i.e. we were still not seated together, something we had paid for through the Premier Service.
5.3 The rescheduled flight was actually about 30 minutes late in departing.
6) Flight.
6.1 The cabin crew announced that as a compensation for the flight delay standard passengers were being upgraded, free of charge, to the entertainment package normally only provided free to Premier Service passengers. No compensatory service was provided or offered to Premier Service passengers. In fact when asking for a tiny packet of peanuts as opposed to spicy rice crackers supplied with our drink, we were informed that we would have to pay for these.
6.2 There was no issued meal menu or drinks list; in fact the cabin staff passed through the plane offering a verbal menu which varied in it’s completeness from one passenger to the next.
6.3 Ice for drinks ran out less than half way through the flight with the cabin crew blaming the Standard Service passengers.
6.4 There were problems with lighting in the Premier service cabin meaning that it was virtually impossible to sleep during the flight and therefore the ‘mood lighting’ included in the Premier Service package was not available.
6.5 The toilets were disgusting, smelly and messy and were not once tidied during the flight.
7) Arrival. Once we landed in Columbo we were faced with a huge delay at Immigration which then led to a further lengthy wait ( for remaining passengers ) once we had passed through. As we had already lost a day of our holiday we decided that in order to try and make the most of the shortened holiday it would be sensible to take a taxi to our hotel rather than waiting indefinitely at the airport.
8) Hotel. The first room we were allocated at our hotel had faulty air conditioning. We had paid extra for this so we complained. Despite promises of someone coming to sort the problem no-one ever came. We eventually asked to be moved to another room so that we could un-pack and try to start our long awaited holiday.
9) On-going Stresses. Throughout our stay in the hotel we were continually harassed by the First Choice representative during his visits to the hotel; trying to persuade us to book trips and tours and up-grade to Premier Service, despite us telling him repeatedly that we already had paid for this service and that we weren’t interested in over-priced tours.
9.1 The hotel staff were slow to respond to or provided no response at all to any service requests we raised during our stay. For example it took two days to sort out a problem with mattresses, which were causing further sleepless nights.
9.2 We were left without hot water for two days owing to a problem with solar panel heating. We were repeatedly told someone would fix it but were never offered an alternative solution during the two days.
9.3 Throughout our stay we were continually reminded and questioned about the delayed start to our holiday, by other guests, hotel staff and even the local beach sellers. We were therefore never properly able to switch off, relax and enjoy our already shortened holiday and were provided with continual reminders of our need to arrange compensation when we returned home.
9.4 During the morning of our last day in Sri Lanka the First Choice Rep provided us with a copy of a letter for insurance purposes. The letter implies that we should seek compensation for our disastrous holiday from our own insurance company. However the letter contained incorrect information and further added to our concerns that no proper attention had been paid to the delay and problems we had experienced. This greatly angered us and so totally ruined our last day.
10) Return Flight. The flight home was also disrupted and unsatisfactory.
10.1 There was again no 90 minute check in service for Premier Service passengers as paid for and expected.
10.2 We were subjected to a three hour minimum check in as per Columbo Airport regulations – this had not been previously advised.
10.3 The flight was again late in departing owing, as we were eventually informed, to a malfunctioning door. No announcements were made onboard the flight explaining the delay. When we politely asked the cabin crew for information they responded curtly and appeared incredulous that we should be asking even though we were already 30 mins past our scheduled departure time. They only provided an answer when we explained we had come in on the delayed flight and were worried this might end up as a repeat performance.
10.4 No sparkling cocktail on departure, again, just slightly fizzy wine.
10.5 The duty free trolley service was out of stock of the items that we wished to purchase.
10.6 The entertainment system was (without warning) taken off air over 30 minutes before arrival, therefore resulting in us missing the last 10mins of a movie.
11) Premier Service. This service provided luggage labels stating “Last on / First off”. However this was certainly not the case. We received one bag ten minutes after the conveyer belt started and our other bag 40 minutes later ( both bags were fitted with Premier service baggage labels ) and was one of the last bags on the conveyor belt. We were amongst the last passengers, from our flight, to exit the baggage area and noticed we weren’t the only Premier Service customers picking up their bags from the conveyer.
In summary, we are extremely disappointed in the exceptionally poor service, provided by First Choice holidays.
We require and expect to receive immediate financial compensation in respect of these matters.
The compensation we require is for; the loss of one day of our holiday, the virtually non-existent Premier Service, poor hotel accommodation, generally poor service level, wasted costs that we incurred and most importantly, for the stress, worry and extreme upset caused to us as a result.
We require that you refund in full the amount actually paid to First Choice, namely £xxxx and expect to receive this amount from you within 14 days from the date of this letter.
Re : Holiday Booking Reference xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
We write regarding a holiday we booked online with First Choice Holidays on xx/xx/xxxx under the above booking reference. We understand you will be able to access details of this holiday from the booking reference provided.
We were very much in need of this holiday break and were eagerly looking forward to it. We were extremely dissatisfied with many aspects of the holiday and seek financial compensation in respect of our complaints.
Please note that we do not wish to commence a prolonged debate regarding these complaints. We have itemised matters below and conclude with a statement regarding the level of compensation we require in order to prevent further action.
Failure to provide the requested compensation within the period of time specified below will result in this matter being passed into the total care of our Solicitors who will seek a solution to this matter, through the courts if necessary.
1) Flight Check-In and boarding. Despite booking Premier Service we were not allocated seats next to each other. We were in-fact seated behind each other. We were therefore not seated together as we had been advised would be the case by a Member of First Choice staff in a telephone conversation a few days before the start of our holiday.
1.1 Once seated we were eventually offered a small glass of warm, flat fizzy wine and not a sparkling cocktail as per the Premier Service description.
2) Departure. The flight was due to depart from London Gatwick on 1st July at 18.15 hours but departed approximately 15 minutes late.
2.1 Shortly after take off it became obvious that we were circling rather than proceeding on the expected route. Finally, after half an hour of wondering we were notified by the Captain that the aircraft had developed a technical problem and that we would be returning to Gatwick. The Captain also advised that the ground crew would check the problem once we had landed to see if they could get us away on our holiday again. The Captain explained that prior to landing he needed to dump fuel over the English Channel which would take about 2.5 hrs. We were told to remain in our seats with seat belts on. We landed back at Gatwick approx 3 hours later. The only refreshment provided during this period was a small cup of water.
2.2 The Captain announced, after landing, that we might not be able to resume our holiday until the following day. He advised that we would be disembarking the plane, would be escorted to a large lounge area and would be briefed by a First Choice representative. Owing to the nature of our return to Gatwick the plane had not been permitted to dock at a gate. We were told to exit the plane via steps and were advised that we would be taken by bus back to the Terminal. We felt we were not escorted safely from the plane to the buses as there were no ground staff positioned between the plane and the buses which we have since been advised should be the case in these situations.
3) Delay. Once back in the Terminal we were not met by a First Choice Representative, nor were we escorted to a large lounge area as we had been informed by the Captain would be the case.
3.1 As we entered the terminal building we spotted a lady trying to hand out yellow transit passenger labels and obtained one of these labels each. We were then herded, like sheep, by an Employee of Virgin, through the airport terminal and after an incredibly long walk through Immigration arrived at baggage reclaim. Bear in mind that at this point we had no idea what was happening and had been expecting to be escorted to a lounge area where matters would be explained to us by a First Choice Representative.
3.2 We had an incredibly long wait at baggage reclaim for our suitcases, during this period we were handed a photocopied letter advising us that we would not be resuming our holiday flight until the following day and would be staying in an airport hotel (in our case, Gatwick Hilton ) overnight. The First Choice employee, who only made himself known to us upon questioning, was incredibly unhelpful and refused to provide us with contact names or telephone numbers for a First Choice Manager to whom we could direct our complaints. Basically, nothing was properly explained and we were just expected to accept that we were not going on holiday and had to stay at Gatwick. In fact we and other passengers were left to help and try to explain what little we knew to other confused passengers.
3.3. Eventually, after collecting our baggage, we were subjected to a further two incredibly long walks broken with a shuttle journey, through the airport terminals to the hotel escorted by a member of Swissport staff who actually left us alone before reaching the hotel. We eventually worked out how to check in at the Hotel and were provided with a meal at 23:30. During the meal we were advised by Swissport staff that the take-off slot, planned for the following day at 14:15, was not definite and should the new plane arrive late or the re-stocking / refuelling of the plane not happen in time then there might be a further delay. We were therefore left worrying overnight that we might not actually depart on our holiday as had been indicated. We had only booked a weeks holiday so the over-riding thoughts for us, through the night, were whether we would actually depart on our holiday at all and whether it was actually worth going anyway.
4) Gatwick Hotel Problems. We were allocated a room in the bowels of the hotel – another long walk which was certainly not appreciated after our trek through the airport and so late at night.
4.1 The accommodation was not satisfactory as the shower was lukewarm, with low pressure and the hairdryer only blew cold air. The floor from the bedroom to the hallway/bathroom had a small step down which was not noticeable so we kept stubbing our toes on it. All this added to our stress and tension.
5) Departure.
5.1 After a fairly sleepless night, we were advised at breakfast that we had to check in at 11:00. This again meant that we did not receive the privileges of the Premier Service we had paid for which allowed us a 90 min check-in prior to departure. We had to ‘mooch’ about the airport for a further 3 hours.
5.2 Once on board we were told to occupy the same seats as we had been allocated the previous day, i.e. we were still not seated together, something we had paid for through the Premier Service.
5.3 The rescheduled flight was actually about 30 minutes late in departing.
6) Flight.
6.1 The cabin crew announced that as a compensation for the flight delay standard passengers were being upgraded, free of charge, to the entertainment package normally only provided free to Premier Service passengers. No compensatory service was provided or offered to Premier Service passengers. In fact when asking for a tiny packet of peanuts as opposed to spicy rice crackers supplied with our drink, we were informed that we would have to pay for these.
6.2 There was no issued meal menu or drinks list; in fact the cabin staff passed through the plane offering a verbal menu which varied in it’s completeness from one passenger to the next.
6.3 Ice for drinks ran out less than half way through the flight with the cabin crew blaming the Standard Service passengers.
6.4 There were problems with lighting in the Premier service cabin meaning that it was virtually impossible to sleep during the flight and therefore the ‘mood lighting’ included in the Premier Service package was not available.
6.5 The toilets were disgusting, smelly and messy and were not once tidied during the flight.
7) Arrival. Once we landed in Columbo we were faced with a huge delay at Immigration which then led to a further lengthy wait ( for remaining passengers ) once we had passed through. As we had already lost a day of our holiday we decided that in order to try and make the most of the shortened holiday it would be sensible to take a taxi to our hotel rather than waiting indefinitely at the airport.
8) Hotel. The first room we were allocated at our hotel had faulty air conditioning. We had paid extra for this so we complained. Despite promises of someone coming to sort the problem no-one ever came. We eventually asked to be moved to another room so that we could un-pack and try to start our long awaited holiday.
9) On-going Stresses. Throughout our stay in the hotel we were continually harassed by the First Choice representative during his visits to the hotel; trying to persuade us to book trips and tours and up-grade to Premier Service, despite us telling him repeatedly that we already had paid for this service and that we weren’t interested in over-priced tours.
9.1 The hotel staff were slow to respond to or provided no response at all to any service requests we raised during our stay. For example it took two days to sort out a problem with mattresses, which were causing further sleepless nights.
9.2 We were left without hot water for two days owing to a problem with solar panel heating. We were repeatedly told someone would fix it but were never offered an alternative solution during the two days.
9.3 Throughout our stay we were continually reminded and questioned about the delayed start to our holiday, by other guests, hotel staff and even the local beach sellers. We were therefore never properly able to switch off, relax and enjoy our already shortened holiday and were provided with continual reminders of our need to arrange compensation when we returned home.
9.4 During the morning of our last day in Sri Lanka the First Choice Rep provided us with a copy of a letter for insurance purposes. The letter implies that we should seek compensation for our disastrous holiday from our own insurance company. However the letter contained incorrect information and further added to our concerns that no proper attention had been paid to the delay and problems we had experienced. This greatly angered us and so totally ruined our last day.
10) Return Flight. The flight home was also disrupted and unsatisfactory.
10.1 There was again no 90 minute check in service for Premier Service passengers as paid for and expected.
10.2 We were subjected to a three hour minimum check in as per Columbo Airport regulations – this had not been previously advised.
10.3 The flight was again late in departing owing, as we were eventually informed, to a malfunctioning door. No announcements were made onboard the flight explaining the delay. When we politely asked the cabin crew for information they responded curtly and appeared incredulous that we should be asking even though we were already 30 mins past our scheduled departure time. They only provided an answer when we explained we had come in on the delayed flight and were worried this might end up as a repeat performance.
10.4 No sparkling cocktail on departure, again, just slightly fizzy wine.
10.5 The duty free trolley service was out of stock of the items that we wished to purchase.
10.6 The entertainment system was (without warning) taken off air over 30 minutes before arrival, therefore resulting in us missing the last 10mins of a movie.
11) Premier Service. This service provided luggage labels stating “Last on / First off”. However this was certainly not the case. We received one bag ten minutes after the conveyer belt started and our other bag 40 minutes later ( both bags were fitted with Premier service baggage labels ) and was one of the last bags on the conveyor belt. We were amongst the last passengers, from our flight, to exit the baggage area and noticed we weren’t the only Premier Service customers picking up their bags from the conveyer.
In summary, we are extremely disappointed in the exceptionally poor service, provided by First Choice holidays.
We require and expect to receive immediate financial compensation in respect of these matters.
The compensation we require is for; the loss of one day of our holiday, the virtually non-existent Premier Service, poor hotel accommodation, generally poor service level, wasted costs that we incurred and most importantly, for the stress, worry and extreme upset caused to us as a result.
We require that you refund in full the amount actually paid to First Choice, namely £xxxx and expect to receive this amount from you within 14 days from the date of this letter.
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