Originally Posted by
ratechaser
I agree that BAH are generally very flexible indeed and over the past year have become my favourite TA by far (now if only they did proper ski packages...).
But the 12 hour thing does seem an anomaly and I wonder how secure they would be if they ever tried to enforce it. I don't think 'significant change' is clearly defined in the Package Travel Regulations, but a holiday that was meant to get in early one evening, and now gets in very early the following morning would seem to fit the definition, if you're losing a nights stay.
Plus your own parent company (ie BA) is allowing refunds on a far more flexible basis.
So while BAH remain flexible all well and good, but I suspect the rule could be open to challenge as an unreasonable interpretation of what is 'significant'
They're predominantly there to satisfy ABTA and ATOL that the tour operator is compliant within their individual spheres of practice. The company I used to work for had a similar blanket T&C's to satisfy the package legislation and these had to be provided within every brochure and attached to every booking but in reality we operated on far more flexible terms from a customer perspective. If an airline would allow changes/refunds due to their own booking policies, these would be passed on to the client. We weren't into exploiting the situation. However they do provide a base coverage and point of reference. You might be surprised by how many people would try it on for compensation for a 20 minute flight reschedule.... or indeed you might not. You've then got other companies who would use these blanket t&c's to the absolute limit and exploit customers for all they're worth. Finding a reputable tour operator is worth its weight in gold and from my own experience BAH is one of the good guys.