Apology over grieving family’s fight for refund
Eurostar has apologised to the family of a young mum who died before she could take her children on a trip to Disneyland Paris after they were originally denied a full refund.
Last year thousands of pounds was donated to take Sophie Collins, from Barming, and her daughters - Delilah, eightmonths, and Daisy, three - to the French theme park.
Sadly the 26-year-old, who was diagnosed with breast cancer while pregnant with her second child, died on January 19.
The former Maidstone Travelodge worker had been told she would live for a year, but those months turned to weeks after the disease became more aggressive.
Tragically, instead of spending last Wednesday at Disneyland, her family were attending her funeral.
After spending more than £4,000 on the holiday, her grieving brother Matthew contacted Hays Travel in Maidstone, who booked it, to try and get a refund from Disney and Eurostar.
The family received around £3,500 for park tickets and accommodation, but were denied the £700 for train travel.
Mr Collins said he was “enraged”.
However, on Thursday Matthew received the good news from Hays Travel they would be receiving a refund in full.
“The travel agent met Sophie and knew this holiday would be her last and something she had on her bucket list,” he said.
“She tried her hardest for us to get a refund, but they kept saying ‘no’. I’m so grateful for what they’ve done, they went the extra mile from the start to make sure Sophie got the holiday she wanted.
“This holiday meant the world to my sister and because of the fundraising she was able to get that opportunity to do it.
“They were so understanding when we had to cancel. They were still so kind.”
But Matthew explained he was disappointed with Disney and “expected more from them”.