My cruise changed course to places I don’t want to see. Do I have the right to get my money back? DEAN DUNHAM responds

I have booked a Caribbean cruise for the end of the month and have now been told that four of the ship’s stops have been changed. I’m not happy because I already visited the replacement stops on a previous cruise. What are my rights?

VT, by email

Dean Dunham responds: If you booked the cruise and travel arrangements together, it is likely to be a package holiday, the relevant thing is that it will be protected by a law called Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements 2008 (more commonly known as Package Travel ). Regulation).

Under the Package Travel Regulations, you have the right to expect that the holiday you have booked and paid for matches the description given to you when you bought it or, as the saying goes, “does what it says on the tin”.

The Package Travel Regulations also state that if any essential part of your package trip changes significantly, except the price, you can cancel without paying cancellation fees.

In this case, the change of stops could be considered significant, especially if you have already been to the replacement locations.

This means that you could try to cancel the holiday and get a full refund or request a price reduction, recognizing the fact that your enjoyment of the holiday will clearly be affected by the changes.

If you have not booked a package holiday, you will still have the same rights, but rather than using the Package Travel Regulations as authority to enforce these rights, you will simply allege that there has been a breach of contract. The best way to know exactly what your options are when booking a cruise is to read the fine print.

It will be available in your cruise contract and, although it may be tedious, the contract will outline what your rights are.

It will also outline the conditions under which your cruise line owes you a refund in the event of changes to the trip you have booked.

Cruise ships often change itineraries while at sea due to weather conditions; As the weather is never guaranteed, this is not something you can claim.

I made a Section 75 claim on my late father’s credit card in connection with a purchase he made two years ago. But the card provider rejected it because “the primary cardholder will not benefit from the claim.” What can I do?

Terry E., Plymouth

Dean Dunham responds: The card provider is wrong. To make a successful Section 75 claim, you must meet three key elements.

Firstly, the goods or services you purchased must have sold for more than £100. Secondly, you must have paid the merchant or the person or entity who sold you the products or provided you with the services and pay them directly; Unfortunately, if you pay via PayPal, Section 75 cannot be used as you will have paid PayPal and then you will have paid the merchant.

Third, you as the primary cardholder must have benefited from the purchase of the goods or services.

That means that if you have a secondary cardholder on your account, in most cases, purchases you make with their secondary card will not be covered by Section 75, since they have benefited from the purchase and not you as main card holder.

These important elements must be met “at the time of purchase” and this is why the card provider gets it wrong.

When his late father made his purchase two years ago, he ticked all the boxes.

The Consumer Credit Act (the relevant law in this case) does not state that the cardholder must benefit from the Section 75 ‘claim’ nor does it say that the credit card account must still be open when a claim is made. Section 75 claim.

If after you have explained this to the card provider and they still reject your complaint, make a complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk.