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Espe Fuentes
Lawyer at Which? Legal Service.
Contact 01992 822 828 or visit www.whichlegalservice.co.uk |
Espe Fuentes answers all your Legal Services related questions |
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Missing guests
Q. My husband and I recently got married in Barbados - for the stunning location, nice weather and amazing fresh sea food. We went out a few days before the wedding and had the rest of our guests joining us the day before our wedding day. However, due to heavy snow, all aircraft were grounded and our guests were unable to board a flight, resulting in them missing our wedding. Needless to say, my husband and I were devastated as our wedding day was ruined in the absence of most of our guests. Can we claim for compensation?
A. Espe Fuentes says: In normal circumstances you could have requested compensation, however, there are problems here because the reason for the cancellation was the snow.
Snow is classed as an 'extraordinary circumstance', which means that the cancellation was beyond the control of your tour operator, and therefore in this situation the operator genuinely had no option but to cancel. 'Extraordinary circumstances' also include strikes, political instability, security risks, unexpected safety issues and any other weather conditions where it wouldn't be appropriate to fly.
Regardless of the cause of the cancellation, your guests should have received meals and refreshments, and two free phone calls, faxes or emails.
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A case for cake
Q. I got married last week and was horrified to discover that my gorgeous wedding cake which cost hundreds of pounds didn't turn up on the day. My mum had to quickly drive to the nearest supermarket and buy one from there - not quite what I had planned! Can I claim the money back, plus compensation for the inconvenience and distress caused by this?
A. Espe Fuentes says: Not having the cake you most likely spent a long time choosing for your wedding day must have been really disappointing, and you have the right to claim your money back. The cake company is in 'breach of contract' as it failed to provide you with your cake. As a result, you are entitled to damages, which in this case is a refund of the cost of the original cake. You will also have a good claim for 'distress and inconvenience'.
This type of claim is not normally permitted in English law except in very limited cases, for example holiday cases. However, in view of the special nature of an event such as a wedding, a claim for inconvenience should be made here.
You would hope that the cake company would agree that they made a mistake and will refund the money. However, if they fail to do so you could make a claim in the small claims of the county court. If you had insurance you may want to make a claim against the insurance policy. The uninsured loss or excess could be recovered directly from the cake company. A county court claim is easy to start and you don't need a solicitor to do it. It's always best to write to the cake company in this case and warn them that if they do not refund you the cost of the cake plus the inconvenience, then you will pursue it in court. |
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