Warning over staycation cancellations
Staycation businesses could lose millions this summer because thousands of holidaymakers plan to cancel at the last minute if travel restrictions change so they can jet off abroad instead.
The phenomena of “spreadbooking”, where people plan at least two different holidays to take advantage of a sudden relaxation of Covid-19 guidance but only intend to take one, has been described as “appalling” behaviour which will hurt the small businesses that have just about survived the coronavirus pandemic.
After more than a year of disrupted travel pans, many holidaymakers are not willing to leave the fate of their break up to chance.
Britain’s Tourism Alliance said businesses were “trying to do the right thing by customers” but people were “abusing” their good will.
Kurt Janson, director of the Tourism Alliance, said: “A lot of businesses have changed their booking terms to be incredibly generous because of the instability [over] g overnment restrictions.
"What is tending to happen is people are seeing they can cancel holidays at late notice and get full refunds and they’re taking advantage of that to do the double bookings.
“Some of the larger, selfcatering accommodation places, where people have got barns or complexes which will take up to 20, 30 people, they’re very nervous about the bookings they’ve got – which look good at the moment but will fall through later and cause them considerable financial problems.”
The limited number of countries on the g overnment’s “green list” for foreign travel has exacerbated the problem because many people hoping for a holiday abroad are uncertain as to whether they will be allowed to go or without having to quarantine afterwards.
Similarly,pressureonstaycations has intensified because of doubts that Covid restrictions will be lifted by J une 21.
A Visit Britain survey has found that 8 per cent of people would cancel a UK trip to go abroad this summer, rising to 10 per cent later in the year.
If each of the UK’S 35,000 B&BS had a week’s worth of cancellations over the summer, they could lose £17m in total, according to an estimation from the Bed and Breakfast Association.
Its chairman, David Weston, said the accommodation sector had been badly hit by the pandemic and would suffer even more if people cancelled with little notice as the rooms would be impossible to resell.
“We just appeal to people to be considerate and think of the small business owners. It’s been called ‘spread-booking’… it’s just very unfair as a way of dealing with tiny businesses that have been hard hit,” he said.
The summer months are peak season for self-catering properties but losing one week’s work of bookings could cut up to eight per cent of their annual income.
Alistair Handyside, executive chair of the Professional Association of Self-caterers UK, described spread-booking as “really appalling” and “inexcusable”.
“It’s taking the mickey,” Mr Handyside said, warning that guests would face more stringent cancellation policies and higher prices in the future.