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Holiday advice for consumers
Denbighshire Trading Standards, in partnership with Visit Wales and Consumer Direct  are offering holiday hints for consumers during Wales Consumer Affairs Week (18-22 August)
Many people look forward to an annual holiday, whether home or abroad, as a chance to have a well-earned break, to relax and have fun, and it can be very disappointing, frustrating and expensive if things go wrong.
Are you aware of rights, what you can do to reduce the chance of a bad holiday experience and from losing money?
When people book a holiday, they enter into a contract and the law gives you certain rights and protection. Below is information about your consumer rights: 
· The term 'package holiday' is legally defined as a holiday with a pre-arranged combination of, at least, two of the following elements: accommodation, transport, other tourist services (not ancillary to transport or accommodation) accounting for a significant proportion of the package. 
· The definition covers holidays which are sold, or offered for sale, at an inclusive price and which cover a period of more than 24 hours, or include overnight accommodation.
· The Regulations set out the tour operator's legal responsibilities to you, what you are entitled to, should the tour operator fail to honour these obligations and if any false or misleading representations or descriptions about the holiday, hotel or facilities are made by the tour operator or its representative.
· Certain information should be given to you before the contract is concluded, such as: general information about passports and visa requirements, information on health formalities; arrangements for the protection of the money you pay, such as bonding to repatriate you if the tour operator becomes insolvent whilst you are away.
· You must also be given, in good time before you go on holiday, information on travel times and scheduled stops, the tour operator representative's contact details or other contact details if a representative is not provided, and insurance requirements.
· If you don’t buy a ‘package’; for example you book your flight, your hotel etc seperately, say over the internet; these Regulations will not apply.
The Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 sets out the general duties and responsibilities of a seller providing a service. You are entitled to expect that the holiday is of a reasonable standard, as described, and that the holiday organiser provides service with 'reasonable care and skill'.
The Unfair Contract TermsAct 1977 and the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999 allow you to challenge any contractual term that may be unfair or unreasonable, unfairly weighted against you, or ambiguous. Standard contract terms should be written in clear, understandable language. It is illegal to have a contract term that tries to restrict your legal rights and no term should avoid responsibility for death or personal injury.
THE CONTRACT –
· If you book your holiday with a tour operator, via a travel agent, your contract is with the tour operator, who must accept liability for all the elements of the holiday. The travel agent is considered to be acting on behalf of the tour operator, but also has an obligation to ensure that it carries out the administration of the booking correctly and efficiently. In addition, the travel agent may be liable, to you, for any extras that are nothing to do with the brochured holiday, such as currency exchange and arranging airport car parking. It is important to be aware of the different relationships you have with the tour operator and the travel agent and to know who is liable for what.
· If you have any special requests, make sure they are specifically stated, in writing, on the booking form. Read the terms and conditions of the booking. They are there for a purpose and, once you have booked the holiday, the law assumes that you have read and accepted them. Make sure you keep a copy of them.
· If you book your holiday on-line, print a hard copy of all relevant documentation, there and then. Only use a website with a secure payment facility.
· Shortly after you have made your initial booking, you should receive a confirmation notice. It is essential to check this carefully, as this is your proof of the contract and what you have booked. Spotting problems, at this stage, can avoid a lot of hassle and upset later on.
· You will have entered into a contract with no automatic right of cancellation. If you do need to cancel, an insurable issue, you will incur a penalty charge, as stated in the booking conditions.
Insurance
· Most tour operators require you to have adequate insurance cover when you book.
· Remember to take your European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) when travelling in a European Economic Area (EEA) country or Switzerland.
· If you are worried that you may have to cancel a holiday, you might want to consider taking out cancellation insurance.
Flight only
· If you are booking flights only, ask whether the agent, or any intermediary it may use, holds an ATOL (Air Travel Organiser's Licence). This licence is issued by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and is your guarantee of financial protection.

For further information visit the Consumer Direct website (www. consumerdirect.gov.uk) or phone 08454 040506.