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HOLIDAY HELL

Turkey quarantine refunds: Will Tui, Lastminute, LoveHolidays and OnTheBeach refund me?

TURKEY has been added to the UK quarantine list throwing many holidaymakers' plans into chaos.

Transport secretary Grant Shapps took to Twitter last night to announce the changes, which also included Poland and the Caribbean islands of Bonaire, St Eustatius, and Saba.

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Travellers entering the UK from Turkey will have to quarantine for two weeks from Saturday
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Travellers entering the UK from Turkey will have to quarantine for two weeks from Saturday Credit: Getty Images - Getty

Brits can still travel to these countries, including Turkey, but anyone who returns to the UK after 4am on Saturday October 3 will have to self-isolate for 14 days.

Turkey wasn't expected to be added to the list as it only has 12.9 cases per 100,000 people.

This is way below the 20 per 100,000 mark, which the government uses to determine whether to add a country to the quarantine list.

But the decision suggests the government doesn't trust Turkey's coronavirus reporting after it admitted it wasn't disclosing the sheer scale of new cases.

Travel: What are your rights to a refund?

MILLIONS of Brits have had holiday plans cancelled.

Firstly, speak to your airline or holiday firm about a refund or rearranging your plans.

You are entitled to a cash refund if they've cancelled your holiday but many have large delays or may offer vouchers instead.

If the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advises against all but essential travel to countries or regions, you may also be covered for cancellations by your travel insurance if the holiday provider or airline is not helping you.

Keep in mind the travel insurance must have been taken out before the FCO advice changed, otherwise you won't be covered.

If you don't have travel insurance, you may be able to claim your money back through your credit or debit card provider.

Credit card payments between £100 and £30,000 are covered under Section 75 of the Consumer Rights Act.

To start a claim, you need to contact your credit card provider directly -  has a free tool that can help you do this.

Debit card claims or credit card claims of under £100 may be covered under similar Chargeback guarantees.

The shock addition to the list will have thrown many travellers' plans up in the air, with Brits already scrambling to get home before Saturday.

Holidaymakers could be slapped with a £1,000 fine for failing to self-isolate on their return.

The quarantine rules also will mean that some people will no longer be able to go abroad any more and they may need to cancel their trips.

We explain what happens next if you've got a trip booked with FirstChoice, Lastminute, LoveHolidays, OnTheBeach, Teletext, and Tui.

First Choice and TUI

First Choice and TUI are both part of the TUI Group.

TUI told The Sun it has cancelled all TUI and First Choice holidays to Turkey up to and including October 3, 2020.

Customers will automatically receive a full cash refund and holidaymakers are advised not to travel to the airport when they're due to depart.

The firm added that it will contact customers due to travel to Turkey on October 4 through to October 15 to discuss their options.

It is yet to confirm what these options are, but previously TUI has offered to rearrange trips for free, or for customers to cancel and receive a refund.

When the price of a rebooked trip is more expensive, customers have to cover the price difference.

You can call Tui on 0203 451 2688 to discuss your booking, but keep in mind its customer service centres are likely to be extremely busy.

Customers can find alternative ways of .

It's best not to cancel trips yourself if possible as then you might struggle to get a refund.

A TUI spokesperson said: "Customers currently on holiday in Turkey can continue to enjoy their holidays as planned and return on their intended flights home.

"We apologise for any inconvenience caused due to the sudden change in advice."

Lastminute.com

Lastminute.com has said it won't cancel trips to destinations added to the quarantine list after booking, including Turkey.

If you cancel your trip because you won't be able to self-isolate, you won't be able to claim a refund, according to its website.

The cancellation will also be subject to the normal terms and conditions, so you may have to pay a fee to do this.

How much you'll have to pay depends on your individual policy - your booking is subject to cancellations fees charged by Lastminute.com, the hotel and airline.

Alternatively, you may be able to rearrange your trip but you may also be charged a fee.

You may also be asked to pay the difference if the holiday is more expensive on the rearranged dates.

You can manage your booking online, or  via its website.

If Lastminute.com cancels your trip, you will be entitled to a full refund or credit voucher that will be valid for a year.

LoveHolidays

LoveHolidays has said that as holidaymakers can still travel to Turkey it won't cancel any upcoming trips.

But it will be offer free amendments for customers wishing to rearrange their travels to alternative dates, according to its website.

It's unclear if holidaymakers have to pay any difference in price - we've asked LoveHolidays and will update this story.

Customers who want to cancel their holiday will be able to get a refund on hotel and transfer costs but getting your money back for flights depends on the airline policy.

If the flight isn't cancelled then you will have to forfeit the cash. If the airline cancels the flight then you will be entitled to a full refund.

The holiday firm said some airlines are offering customer vouchers or the option to amend bookings, but not all of them.

Up until recently, LoveHolidays was an ABTA member, which offers customers an extra level of protection when booking their trip.

Customers who book through an ABTA protected firm are entitled to a full refund for their package holiday even if only one element, such as the flights, is cancelled.

But LoveHolidays quit its membership to avoid paying out.

If you have a trip booked to Turkey and you no longer want to travel,   for more information.

Full list of countries on the UK's quarantine list

Afghanistan

Albania

Algeria

Andorra

Angola

Anguilla

Argentina

Armenia

Aruba

Austria

Azerbaijan

Bahamas

Bahrain

Bangladesh

Belarus

Belgium

Belize

Benin

Bhutan

Bolivia

Bonaire/St Eustatius/Saba

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Botswana

Brazil

British Virgin Islands

Bulgaria

Burkina Faso

Burundi

Cameroon

Cape Verde

Central African Republic

Chad

Chile

China

Colombia

Comoros

Congo

Costa Rica

Côte d'Ivoire

Croatia

Czech Republic

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Djibouti

Dominican Republic

Ecuador

Egypt

El Salvador

Equatorial Guinea

Eritrea

Eswatini

Ethiopia

France

French Guiana

Gabon

The Gambia

Georgia

Ghana

Guatemala

Guinea

Guinea-Bissau

Guyana

Haiti

Honduras

India

Indonesia

Iran

Iraq

Israel

Jamaica

Jordan

Kazakhstan

Kenya

Kiribati

Kosovo

Kuwait

Kyrgyzstan

Lebanon

Lesotho

Liberia

Libya

Luxembourg

Madagascar

Malawi

Maldives

Mali

Malta

Marshall Islands

Mauritania

Mauritius

Mayotte

Mexico

Micronesia

Moldova

Monaco

Mongolia

Montenegro

Montserrat

Morocco

Mozambique

Myanmar (Burma)

Namibia

Nauru

Nepal

Netherlands

Nicaragua

Niger

Nigeria

North Korea

North Macedonia

Oman

Pakistan

Palau

The Occupied Palestinian Territories

Panama

Papua New Guinea

Paraguay

Peru

Philippines

Pitcairn Island

Poland

Qatar

Romania

Russia

Rwanda

São Tomé and Principe

Saudi Arabia

Senegal

Serbia

Seychelles

Sierra Leone

Solomon Islands

Somalia

South Africa

South Sudan

Spain

Sudan

Suriname

Sweden

Switzerland

Syria

Tajikistan

Tanzania

Timor-Leste

Togo

Tonga

Trinidad and Tobago

Tunisia

Turkey

Turkmenistan

Turks and Caicos Islands

Tuvalu

USA

Uganda

Ukraine

United Arab Emirates

Uruguay

Uzbekistan

Vanuatu

Venezuela

Western Sahara

Yemen

Zambia

Zimbabwe

To change the dates of your stay or cancel a hotel reservation, go to "manage my booking" on the LoveHolidays website and check your options.

OnTheBeach

OnTheBeach also won't cancel trips affected by new quarantine rules, including Turkey.

If you have to cancel your trip because you won't be able to self-isolate on your return, you will have to pay any fees outlined in your booking.

Cancellation fees may be charged by your hotel, airline and OnTheBeach.

You can find out how much you will be charged for cancelling your trip under the My Bookings section on the website.

It's unclear if these fees are taken off any refund of what you've paid or if they're on top of any refund - we've asked OnTheBeach and we will update this story.

The travel agent is also refusing to process requests to change the dates of any upcoming trips.

On its website, it said: "Over the past few weeks and prior to the new advice about travel to Spain, we have quoted several thousand date change requests.

"Because summer 2021 is currently on limited release, these quotations were often double the price paid for the 2020 holiday and as a result well in excess of the cost to cancel the holiday.

"As a result of this only a very small proportion of the customers quoted proceeded with a change of dates."

OnTheBeach recently came under fire for quitting an industry body to avoid paying out refunds to customers.

Teletext

Teletext is yet to confirm exactly what its policy is in regards to holidays to Turkey.

When Portugal was added to the quarantine list, Teletext waived amendment and cancellations fees for customers who wanted to rearrange or cancel their trip up to seven days before departure.

The firm hasn't confirmed whether customers will get a refund if they cancel their trip within seven days of departure or if you can move trips without incurring any fees, so we'll update this article once we hear back.

Teletext gives customers the option of a full refund, or rebooking the trip for later this year or 2021, if a holiday has been cancelled by them.

READ MORE SUN STORIES

The travel film says refunds should take less than 14 days to process.

Turkey and Poland put on UK’s quarantine travel list with Brits forced to isolate on return from Saturday

 

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