Q: I booked and fully paid for an overseas package holiday tour with a local travel agency but a month before the scheduled departure date I was informed that it has been cancelled due to lack of bookings. The agency offered me a full refund but did not offer an alternative package holiday of equivalent value. I would like to know whether, apart from the refund, I have other rights or am entitled to some other kind of compensation.

A: The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations stipulate that a holiday organiser may terminate a package travel contract and provide the booked prospective travellers with a full refund of any payments they made for the package tour, if the number of persons enrolled for the tour is less than the minimum number stated in the contract, and the organiser notifies the travellers of the termination of the contract within the period stipulated in the contract, but not later than:

a) 20 days before the start of the package tour, in the case of trips lasting more than six days;

b) seven days before the start of the tour, in the case of trips lasting between two and six days; or

c) 48 hours before the start of the tour, in the case of trips lasting less than two days.

The regulations also stipulate that when a package tour is cancelled because not enough people booked for it, the travel agency is not liable to offer additional compensation.

In view of the above, if your sales contract stipulates that a minimum number of persons is required for the package tour to take place, and the agency informed you of the cancellation within the time-period stated in the contract, legally you are not entitled to claim additional compensation for the cancellation.

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