Eurotunnel: Am I entitled to a refund?

growse

growse

growse

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Long story short: booked particular eurotunnel shuttle train for week-long holiday. Turned up at Folkstone with plenty of time to catch the train the one earlier (was actually the plan all along), was actually selected for the one we booked.

Drive down the ramp to the one we booked to find that the train is full and the last 5 cars (including us) have to drive all the way round to be put on the next train, therefore making us 30 minutes late on the drive.

I know that eurotunnel are quite flexible in what train you can catch, I was aiming to get the one before as I know if they've got room they can sometimes put you earlier. However, my assumption was that they guaranteed you a place on the train you had booked. Given I was in plenty of time and didn't get the train I had booked, what do you rate my chances of getting a refund?
 
[TW]Fox;18890015 said:
You want a refund for being all of half an hour late?

Seriously?
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Yes, seriously.

The day was planned around a 14 hour drive to Switzerland, and catching an earlier train was the plan for comfort. I booked the latest possible train I could in the knowledge that in the worst case, I would be guaranteed a space on that train. The fact that I didn't get a space on that train cocked the rest of the day up quite royally.
 
Surely, if you were being smart about all this, you'd book the earliest train you could. Not the latest. What with your drive being so time critical and all...
 
Stupot_ said:
Surely, if you were being smart about all this, you'd book the earliest train you could. Not the latest. What with your drive being so time critical and all...
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The number to times I've been on the train 2 or 3 before the one I've booked means I treat the one I book as a fail-safe last-resort time and aim to get there quite a lot earlier.

I don't want to miss the train I've booked by two minutes because of a traffic issue on the M20 and then be told they're suddenly very busy and I've got to wait 2 hours for the next one. In this case, they were obviously busy for the ones before, but not putting me on the train I actually booked a space on seems to be a bit amateurish.
 
Energize said:
Why not? He didn't get the service he paid for.
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This isn't true, is it? He paid for transport for him and a car across the channel - he received this. What happened was that the service was not delivered as advertised, not that he didnt receive the service at all.

Some compensation might be in order but a refund certainly not - and seriously, come on. 30 minutes? In the context of a 14 hour drive its nothing.
 
You booked the latest train possible in order to make sure you kept to schedule on a 14 hour drive? Surely booking an earlier one would allow more time for inevitable delays :|
 
[TW]Fox;18890165 said:
This isn't true, is it? He paid for transport for him and a car across the channel - he received this. What happened was that the service was not delivered as advertised, not that he didnt receive the service at all.

Some compensation might be in order but a refund certainly not - and seriously, come on. 30 minutes? In the context of a 14 hour drive its nothing.
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You're right, perhaps a full refund is a bit much, but in this case it did cause some significant difficulties due to timings, so I'm rather annoyed.

At the end of the day, I'm not just paying for transport, I'm paying for transport at a particular time. Yes, they ultimately got me there, but not when I asked me and not when they promised.

I'm just digging through their t&c's now, and it looks like that they reserve the right to do pretty much what they like. :(
 
growse said:
You're right, perhaps a full refund is a bit much, but in this case it did cause some significant difficulties due to timings, so I'm rather annoyed.

At the end of the day, I'm not just paying for transport, I'm paying for transport at a particular time. Yes, they ultimately got me there, but not when I asked me and not when they promised.

I'm just digging through their t&c's now, and it looks like that they reserve the right to do pretty much what they like. :(
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For god's sake give it a rest, you were a whole 30 minutes late on 14 hour drive!!!!

I am sure you have waste many more minutes creating this thread and reading their T&C's do you want a refund on life?
 
growse said:
The number to times I've been on the train 2 or 3 before the one I've booked means I treat the one I book as a fail-safe last-resort time and aim to get there quite a lot earlier.
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rofl u book a train and go there hoping for an earlier one and dont get it, so you want a refund? sad whingebag, book an earlier train.

some people, srsly, your thinking is just wrong! :rolleyes:
 
I guess most other people are happy accepting a half-assed service they've paid good money for. :(

zipp0r said:
rofl u book a train and go there hoping for an earlier one and dont get it, so you want a refund? sad whingebag, book an earlier train.

some people, srsly, your thinking is just wrong! :rolleyes:
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:confused:

You sir, I think, need to learn how to read.
 
If you'd booked a specific train at a specific time and couldn't get on it because they had oversold it, yes, I'd expect to receive compensation of some sort.

For all Eurotunnel knew, you had to be somewhere at a specific time, and their failure to carry you on the train you booked meant you were late for that.

However, do you have to check in to catch your train a certain amount of time before it departs? Typically you have to arrive say, 30 minutes before departure, at which point they will start allocating spaces to people who don't have a reservation. If you arrived after any specified check in time, then no, you wouldn't be entitled to anything back.

EDIT - Yeah I see you need to be there at least 30 minutes before departure. Were you?
 
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mrochester said:
If you'd booked a specific train at a specific time and couldn't get on it because they had oversold it, yes, I'd expect to receive compensation of some sort.

For all Eurotunnel knew, you had to be somewhere at a specific time, and their failure to carry you on the train you booked meant you were late for that.

However, do you have to check in to catch your train a certain amount of time before it departs? Typically you have to arrive say, 30 minutes before departure, at which point they will start allocating spaces to people who don't have a reservation. If you arrived after any specified check in time, then no, you wouldn't be entitled to anything back.

EDIT - Yeah I see you need to be there at least 30 minutes before departure. Were you?
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I was there 90 minutes before my booked train left. Enough to get the one 2 before.
 
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