BA ruined a £13,000 trip to St Lucia for my grieving daughters

My wife died late last year. As it has been such a tough time for me and my two young daughters, I decided to take the three of us on a really special holiday in July. After an extensive search I paid more than £13,000 for 12 nights in a penthouse suite in a resort in St Lucia, via British Airways.

We arrived to be told by the resort that no penthouses were available due to construction work, and that our accommodation had been downgraded. The suite was significantly cheaper and lacked the views we had been promised. It was on the lowest floor next to the swimming pool, which had loud music from the bar playing all day. I immediately called BA and was told to register a complaint via its website. I did, but over two months later have received no response. I have called twice and tweeted, only to be told they are very busy and can’t give me a timeline for a reply.

Quite apart from the disappointment of the inferior accommodation, I am out of pocket by hundreds of pounds because I have not been refunded the price difference.
DG, Berlin

I am so very sorry to hear of the death of your wife and its impact on your daughters. The once-in-a-lifetime luxury of this holiday was intended to give them a lasting good memory and, although you all had a pleasant stay, the disappointment undermined the trip. As a further wound, the letter from the resort confirming the downgrade was addressed to you and your late wife, although she had never been on the booking.

I’m enraged that BA should have proved so indifferent about the mistake, especially given the circumstances and cost. Predictably, it got in touch with you the day after I questioned its appalling customer service. It told you that it had not been made aware of the building works and blamed the delayed response on your web complaint being misdirected internally.

The price difference between the penthouse suite, and the rooms you were given, was, BA told you, £750. It has now offered you £3,000 as goodwill, plus a refund of the Avios points used in part payment.

To me it says: “It’s clear that we haven’t met the standards our customers rightly expect of us here and we’re very sorry, especially given the importance of this trip to our customer and his family.”

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