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Payments & travel · the UK
Checked 2026-09-30

🏖️ My package holiday went wrong: what can I claim in the UK?

Short answer

For a package holiday the organiser is responsible for every part of it: flights, hotel, transfers. If something is not as booked, you can ask for a price reduction and compensation; if the organiser cancels, it refunds everything within 14 days.

⏱ DeadlineTell the organiser without undue delay, ideally on the spot. After a cancellation: refund within 14 days.

📜 Your rights

The rules in the UK

The organiser is liable for all travel services in your package, whoever provides them. It must fix problems, give an appropriate price reduction and compensation for damage, and refund you within 14 days if the contract is terminated.

  • You can cancel before departure for an appropriate termination fee, or free with a full refund if unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances at the destination significantly affect the package (reg 12). (legislation.gov.uk)
  • If the organiser proposes a price increase of more than 8%, you can terminate without a fee (reg 11). (legislation.gov.uk)
  • Refunds after termination must be paid without undue delay and at the latest 14 days after the contract ends (reg 14). (legislation.gov.uk)
  • The contract may limit compensation, but not below three times the package price, and never for personal injury or damage caused intentionally or negligently (reg 16). (legislation.gov.uk)
Law: regs 11, 12, 14, 15 and 16 of the Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 (SI 2018/634)
Official source: legislation.gov.uk · Checked 2026-09-30

🪜 Step by step

  1. Report problems on the spotTo the organiser’s rep or its contact number, in writing if possible. Photos, receipts, names.
  2. Keep every costExtra taxis, meals, another hotel: keep the receipts for the compensation claim.
  3. Write after you are backUse the letter below: what went wrong, when you reported it, what you claim.
  4. Trip cancelled?The letter demands the full refund within 14 days of the cancellation.
  5. EscalateThe travel dispute body or the bodies under “If the trader does not answer”.

✉️ Your letter

Information, not legal advice. FFCheck is independent and not affiliated with any authority, court or company. The letter is a template filled with your details: you check it and send it yourself.

Fill in your details. The letter appears on this page: copy it into an e-mail or the trader’s contact form, or print it. Nothing you type is stored.

Name of the shop or company
What happened required
Your full name
Optional, but a letter by post needs it.

🧭 If the trader does not answer

Give the trader the time in your letter. Then, in this order:

An out-of-court dispute body (ADR) can settle it. The trader has to tell you which ADR body covers it (on its website, terms or in its reply).

ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents)CTSI-approved ADR for holiday disputes with ABTA member travel companies only.🔗 abta.com
Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) – ADR Approved BodiesOfficial list of accredited consumer ADR bodies by sector; CTSI is the competent authority.🔗 tradingstandards.uk
Make a court claim for money (county court)Online or postal money claim in England and Wales; small claims track up to £10,000.🔗 gov.uk

📇 Every office for this in the UK →

❓ Frequently asked questions

The organiser says the hotel is responsible. Is that right?

No. For a package the organiser is responsible for all services in it.

Can the organiser give me a voucher instead of a refund?

Only if you agree. The refund is due within 14 days.

I booked a flight and a hotel separately. Is that a package?

Not necessarily; then each provider is liable for its own service. For a flight, see flight compensation.

📎 Sources

Checked: 2026-09-30

🔎 What people search

  • “package holiday complaint the UK”
  • “holiday not as described compensation”
  • “tour operator cancelled refund 14 days”
  • “hotel different from booking claim”
  • “travel complaint letter”

🧭 Is this still correct?

We check this information carefully, but phone numbers, websites and rules change — and sometimes we get something wrong. Spotted a mistake or a change? Let us know below.

🔗 Related

❔Can I cancel a package holiday and get a refund? · Your right in one line→💳Unauthorised payment→💶Refund not received→📦Order not delivered→↩️Return an online order→📇Every office for this in the UK→

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